Deva (ten) or guardian deity
Biranba
毘藍婆
Biranba is one of the ten rasetsu women (Jū Rasetsunyo) who appear in chapter 26, the Darani chapter, of the Lotus Sutra (Myōhō Renge Kyō); in the sutra text this name is listed second. Together with Kishimo, her children and her followers, the ten rasetsu women vow to protect those who recite and uphold the Lotus Sutra, and they speak darani before the Buddha.
The vow of the Ten Rasetsu-nyo in the sutra and the later explanations of each figure's form and original Buddhist form (honjibutsu) are introduced with their sources kept separate.
English pages are the site’s own translations of its Japanese pages. The sources cited are in Japanese. 日本語で読む
The name and role of Biranba
It is listed as one of the Ten Rasetsu, and it is described as originally having been a demon spirit that formed and cut ties as it pleased. Its honjibutsu is recorded as 華開如来, that is, Hōshō Nyorai.
Source: 飛不動尊 正宝院・飛不動尊 正宝院・飛不動尊 正宝院
Tracing its form and traditions
What it holds in its hand is recorded as "hachi"; because this character is not in the font, it is noted that it is the character made of the metal radical and 友, with a dot at its upper right.
Source: 飛不動尊 正宝院・飛不動尊 正宝院・飛不動尊 正宝院
The ten rasetsu women who appear in chapter 26, the Darani chapter
Biranba is one of the ten rasetsu women (Jū Rasetsunyo) who appear in chapter 26, the Darani chapter, of the Lotus Sutra (Myōhō Renge Kyō); in the sutra text this name is listed second. Together with Kishimo, her children and her followers, the ten rasetsu women vow to protect those who recite and uphold the Lotus Sutra, and they speak darani before the Buddha.
Source: 日蓮宗 長崎教化センター
A story of vows: from demon spirits to benevolent deities
Shōhōin relates that the rasetsu women, having heard the Lotus Sutra preached, vow to Shakyamuni to protect people of faith. This vow is a tradition shared by all ten. They are presented in the context of protecting the Lotus Sutra, without turning differences in their individual names or attributes into a meaning that each will surely grant a different wish.
Source: 飛不動尊 正宝院
The vow to protect those who uphold the Lotus Sutra
In the Darani chapter of the Lotus Sutra, the ten rasetsu women, together with Kishimojin and others, vow to protect those who uphold the teachings of the Lotus Sutra. Nichiren Shū explains protection from the various hindrances that obstruct people of faith as the heart of this chapter. It is read here as a vow shared by all ten, and no separate benefit is added to any individual deity.
Source: 日蓮宗
Related kami and buddhas
Sources (in Japanese)
- 飛不動尊 正宝院「仏様の世界：毘藍婆」（2026-10-14 確認）
- 飛不動尊 正宝院「仏様の世界：目次」（2026-10-14 確認）
- 飛不動尊 正宝院「仏様の世界：十羅刹」（2026-10-14 確認）
- 日蓮宗 長崎教化センター「法華経ウェブ版：妙法蓮華経 陀羅尼品第二十六（真読）」（2026-10-15 確認）
- 日蓮宗「陀羅尼品｜ざっくり納得 法華経のすべて」（2026-10-17 確認）