Ashikaga Mochiuji's Prayer - Ashikaga Mochiuji's Prayer

...On the occasion of temple and pagoda construction, Buddha construction, copying and burying sutras, Buddhist ceremonies, etc., many of them express the purpose of the prayer, praying for comfort in this life and the afterlife, recovery from illness, good fortune in battle, and the prosperity of descendants. The format is generally to begin with "respectfully," followed by the main text of the prayer, and then to write the date and the sender's name, but some are written with great effort, such as the petition of the Kanto kubo Ashikaga Mochiuji dated March 18, 1434 (Eikyo 6), which was written in blood, and the petition of Uesugi Terutora dated May 9, 1566 (Eiroku 9), which curses Takeda Shingen and others, and includes a vow to hold a Buddhist ceremony if Shingen is defeated. Incidentally, many prayers remain as documents or as inscriptions on Buddhist statues or pagodas, but considering the role of prayers in rituals, they were originally meant to be recited in front of the gods and Buddhas, and it is thought that many of them were then burned or placed inside Buddhist statues.

*Some of the terminology used in the "Ashikaga Mochiuji Petition" is explained below.

Source | Heibonsha World Encyclopedia 2nd Edition | Information

…造寺･造塔･造仏･写経･埋経や仏事などに際して，その発願の趣意をのべ，現世･後世の安楽を願ったり，病気の平癒や武運長久，子孫繁栄を祈願したものが多い。その形式は，〈敬白〉で書きはじめ，願意を記した本文が続き，日付･差出書を書くのが一般であるが，中には，永享6年(1434)3月18日付関東公方足利持氏願文のように，心血をしぼって書きあげた血書願文や，永禄9年(1566)5月9日付上杉輝虎願文などのように武田信玄らを呪詛し，信玄を滅ぼしえた場合には，仏神事を興行するという誓約を含むようなものもある。ところで，願文は文書として，あるいは仏像･塔などの銘文として残っているものも多いが，儀式の中に占める願文の役割からすれば，神仏の前で読みあげられることが本来で，そのあとは焼かれたり，仏像の胎内にこめられたりしたものも多いと考えられる。…

※「足利持氏願文」について言及している用語解説の一部を掲載しています。

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