Nio Zen Buddhism
Nio Zen Buddhism was a practice advocated by the Zen monk Suzuki Shōsan (1579-1655), who advocated Nio Zen Buddhism over Nyorai Zen Buddhism. He recommended that practitioners should meditate on Nio and even adopt their fierce expressions and martial stances in order to cultivate power, strength and courage when dealing with adversity. Suzuki described Nio as follows: “The Niõ (Vajrapani) is a menacing God. He wields the kongõsho (vajra) and he can crush your enemies. Depend on him, pray to him that he will protect you as he protects the Buddha. He vibrates with energy and spiritual power which you can absorb from him in times of need.”
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