Lord Mashiba Hisayoshi, the Tairyô

Lord Hisayoshi was a Kabuki theater character modeled on the real-life Lord Hideyoshi. The Lord had disrupted the meditations of Kūkai, the great Buddhist Priest who was said to stay eternally in a cave on the slopes of Mount Koya outside the old capital city Kyoto. When he was reminded not to disturb Kūkai, the Lord was dismissive, and decided to mount an attack on the cave to prove his strength. A fierce storm materializes, perhaps conjured by the powerful master Kūkai, to defeat the Lord and his retainers, who turn back before any confrontation could occur.
In this image we see Lord Hisayoshi and his men as they are menaced by the fierce wind, rain and lightning conjured by Kobo Daishi. While the lord’s facial expression remains resolute, his men are clearly unhappy as their fine umbrellas are ripped apart and turned inside out. The rain streaks and splatters, and brilliant orange bolts of lightning slash across the image, showing the tremendous power of Kobo Daishi’s supernatural defenses.

The lightning bolts are a tour-de-force of the printer’s skill, as we can see glimpses of Lord Hisayoshi’s exquisite robes through the orange color, while the raindrops are foregrounded.

What lesson are we meant to learn from the tale of Lord Hisayoshi?