Steps leading up to the Daisho-in Buddhist Temple in Miyajima. Daisho-in belongs to the Shingon sect of Japanese Buddhism, and was visited by one of the sect's most revered philosophers, Kobo Daishi, in the Ninth century. The Shingon sect was one of the first to popularize and spread the worship of Jizo as a primary tenet of Buddhism in Japan.
じぞう "jizou (jee-zohh)" Jizo, Ksitigarbha(sanskrit). Bodhisattva who looks over children, miscarried or aborted infants, travellers and the underworld. Believed to alleviate the suffering of those condemned to Hell.
The Jizo Iconography:
錫杖 しゃくじょう Shakujo, khakkhara(sanskrit) - A Six-Ringed Staff. This is also known as a "jingle staff", buddhist monks carry it to alert insects and small animals of their impending presence, so that the creatures might have appropriate warning flee any accidental tramplings.
宝珠の魂 ほうしゅのたま Houju no Tama - Wish-Fulfilling Jewel
Often depicted with a halo. The only Bosatsu [BOSATSU (Japanese) = BODHISATTVA (Sanskrit)] depicted as a monk, with a shaven head and no jewelry or royal trappings, just the simple kesa (robe, 袈裟 けさ) of a monk.
The literal translation of Jizo can be (and most often is) read as "Womb of the Earth", 'Ji' means 'Earth', while 'Zo' means 'womb'. But 'Zo' can also be read as 'store house' or 'repository of treasure', and so an alternate reading is 'Earth Treasury'.
A Buddhist deity conceived in India, the Jizo is more popular in Asian Buddhist sects. Its first recorded appearance in Japan was during the 'Nara Period' (710-794 AD), when the Imperial Court resided in Nara, Japan.
The Jizo Legend:
Japanese Buddhists (those who worshipped Jizo, some sects didn't/don't...it gets a little complicated) traditionally held that a child who died prematurely was sent to the Underworld as punishment for the pain they caused their parents (harsh). In 才の河原 さいのかわら Sai no Kawara (Soul River) the children pray for Buddha's intercession by making small stone towers. An evil underworld deity sends demons to torment the children, and they scatter the towers and beat the children with iron clubs. But the children are not lost, for Jizo appears and protects them, in one version hiding the children in a sleeve of his robe.
This tale has modern echoes in the heaps of small stones and pebbles you can find near Jizo statues. The belief is that a stone offered by a devout Buddhist will shorten the time an unborn child suffers in the Underworld. Many jizo are also seen wearing knit garments or, more commonly, red caps, bibs, and/or capes. These clothes are meant to be the garments of lost children and are used by grieving parents to dress the Jizo in the hopes of inducing him to protect their loved ones. The red bibs and hats can be either a gift for the protection of a deceased child, or an expression of thanks from parents whose child was "saved" from a serious illness by the intercession of Jizo.
Different Forms of Jizo:
Anzan Jizo
安産地蔵 あんざんじぞう
Expectant (lit. "easy delivery") mothers
Mizuko Jizo
水子地蔵 みずこじぞう
Water-Child Jizo
Guardian of Unborn Children (or children who die prematurely)
Hitaki (Kuro) Jizo
??? (黒 くろ)地蔵 くろじぞう
(Black) Jizo
Fire Kindling Jizo
Patron of Firemen
Shibarare Jizo
縛られ地蔵 しばられじぞう
String-Bound Jizo
Hadaka Jizo
裸地蔵 はだかじぞう
Nude Jizo; carved nude but dressed in clothing
Migawari Jizo
身代り地蔵 みがわりじぞう
Jizo who substitutes himself for one who is suffering
Kosodate Jizo
子育て地蔵 こそだてじぞう
Child-Raising Jizo
Koyasu Jizo
肥やす地蔵 こやすじぞう
Child-Giving Jizo
Shogun Jizo
将軍地蔵 しょうぐんじぞう
Battle field protector
Sentai Jizo
戦隊地蔵 せんたいじぞう
1,000 bodies of Jizo; groupings of hundreds of Jizo statues
From the
Photo Dictionary of Japanese Buddhism 
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