Bodhisattva (bosatsu)
Yakujō Bosatsu
薬上菩薩
A bodhisattva belonging to the group of the Twenty-Five Bodhisattvas and assigned as the buddha of the 26th day among the Thirty-Day Buddhas (sanjūnichi hibutsu).
This introduction is based on materials from Shōhōin (Tobi Fudō). It is summarized within the scope of the beliefs and traditions those materials convey, and does not present explanations or customs common to all schools, shrines, and temples.
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 Yakujō Bosatsu
A bodhisattva belonging to the group of the Twenty-Five Bodhisattvas and assigned as the buddha of the 26th day among the Thirty-Day Buddhas. It is said to be the brother of Yakuō Bosatsu, and both are described as beings who save people suffering from illness with various good medicines.
Source: 飛不動尊 正宝院・飛不動尊 正宝院・飛不動尊 正宝院
Tracing the form and traditions
Its attribute is said to be a jeweled banner (gyokuban).
Source: 飛不動尊 正宝院・飛不動尊 正宝院・飛不動尊 正宝院
Protecting those who wish for rebirth in the Land of Bliss
The Twenty-Five Bodhisattvas protect people who wish to be reborn in the Pure Land of Amida Buddha. A Jōdo school dictionary explains the protection of practitioners taught in the Jū Ōjō Amidabutsu Koku Kyō as the basis of this belief. Rather than assigning separate benefits such as wealth or study to each one, they can be understood first through their saving work as a group.
Source: 浄土宗
Raigō paintings and the bodhisattvas of nerikuyō
As Pure Land belief spread, the Twenty-Five Bodhisattvas came to be depicted in raigō paintings, in which they come with Amida Nyorai to welcome the dying, and in nerikuyō processions. This is explained as a development from the understanding that the bodhisattvas who protect practitioners in daily life would also protect them at the moment of death. Attributes such as musical instruments and lotus pedestals differ from source to source; the individual forms shown here are mainly based on Shōhōin's materials, which introduce the Butsuzō Zui.
Source: 浄土宗・飛不動尊 正宝院
Related kami and buddhas
Sources (in Japanese)
- 飛不動尊 正宝院「仏様の世界：薬上菩薩」（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：二十五菩薩」（2026-10-14 確認）
- 浄土宗「新纂浄土宗大辞典：二十五菩薩」（2026-10-15 確認）