Centre for the Study of Japanese Religions. CSJR Newsletter Issue 22-23

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1 Centre for the Study of Japanese Religions CSJR Newsletter Issue 22-23

2 In this issue 2 From the Centre Chair Centre Activities 3 CSJR Programme Overview 4 Tenri Gagaku Concert and KanZeOn 5 Japanese Religion in Film Centre Activities Reports 6 Mediating (new) Religions in Japan 7 Nothingness and Desire: A Philosophical Antiphony 8 Reassessing Buddhist Visual Culture 9 Combinatory Practices in Japan 12 Documenting Religions Film Festival 15 Words Deities Icons Research Notes 18 Japanese Religious Art at the British Museum 21 Exploring Ritual in Premodern Japan 24 A Glimpse into the Past Postgraduate 28 MA Japanese Religions 28 Postgraduate Research on Japanese Religions at SOAS 29 Members' Activities Information on Japanese Religions 32 Haguro Shugendō in Paris 33 Heian Japan in the East Asian World Publications 35 Buddhist Icon and Early Mikkyō Vision 37 Japanese Mythology: Hermeneutics on Scripture FROM THE CHAIR: The last academic year was eventful in many respects, not least on account of the tragic events in Tōhoku. Many of our colleagues, students and friends were affected by the consequences of the earthquakes and our thoughts and hopes for a full recovery have often gone to them marked the 10th Anniversary of the Newsletter and of the Centre s research activities and we celebrated it with a number of international events that saw a wonderful and diverse participation of scholars, students, and the public. In London we were able to welcome international experts, academics and filmmakers, in order to reflect on new and old themes, renew long-established collaborations and create new ones. A workshop on New Religions and Media opened the autumn term, followed by a workshop on Visual Cultures jointly organized with the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Culture. In the spring and summer we held two major workshops, co-sponsored with two Japanese research teams, which turned out to be especially fruitful: the papers presented there are being prepared for publication in two collaborative volumes scheduled to appear in 2012 and in In spring we also explored visual media with a film festival on Shugendō dedicated to the late Carmen Blacker. Reports on all these activities are included in this issue. The Centre also hosted the Jordan Lectureship on Comparative Religions, a series of seminars endowed to the Department of the Study of Religions at SOAS, where Prof Jim Heisig discussed the theoretical possibilities of Japanese philosophy. Last year was also an extraordinary year for our graduate students: five of them completed their PhD! Our warmest congratulations to Satomi Horiuchi, Tullio Lobetti, Benedetta Lomi, Masaaki Okada, and Fumi Ouchi! Kigensan Licha has also submitted his dissertation and is awaiting the viva. Through the years they have enriched the Centre with their diverse interests, which encompass themes from contemporary funerary practices, and medieval rituals, to theories (and practices) of the body and ideas of nature, from Buddhism to New Religions to Christianity. Their participation in the Centre s activities (even while in the very last stages of their dissertation!) has been crucial, as well as the help with Centre matters that they have often so generously offered. We wish them all the best in their future careers, and we hope to read their contributions to the field in the very near future. From the institutional perspective it is also good to see research that was sponsored by CSJR grants being completed (Tullio Lobetti was the holder of a CSJR studentship and Kigensan Licha of a research bursary). We hope to be able to offer again in the future such indispensable help to young scholars. On the sad note, John Carpenter has left SOAS to take over the position of curator of Japanese art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. This is no doubt an exciting opportunity for John and we are all happy for him, but we have lost a wonderful colleague who has greatly contributed to the Centre in many ways, not least by facilitating fruitful collaborations with the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Culture, and more recently by serving on our management board. I wish to thank John for his invaluable and unselfish help through the years. John Breen, too, after spending three years in Kyoto on leave from SOAS, has left us for good to take up a position at Nichibunken. We are happy to welcome two new colleagues to the Centre s board, Antonello Palumbo and Tim Screech, and thank them for their willingness to act as advisors to the CSJR. This year the activities of the Centre start with a special public event in September, a gagaku concert performed by the renowned Gagaku Music Society of Tenri University. The concert marks the signing of an academic exchange between SOAS and Tenri, which we hope will develop further in the future. In Term 1 we will also start a new seven-week series on Cinematic Religion where we screen and discuss Japanese films that deal with aspects of religious history and practice. Through feature films, documentaries and anime, we aim to explore the different dynamics of representation of religion that the cinematic medium offers. The CSJR Seminar Series will also continue through the academic year with international guest speakers from Europe, the US and Japan, who will talk on Christianity, linguistic aspects of classics such as the Kojiki, contemporary myths and volunteer organizations. In May we will hold a summer workshop on talismans, which is planned together with a special exhibition of a private collection. Detailed information will be circulated through our mailing list. We look forward to another exciting year! Lucia Dolce 2 (Front Cover and Left) Hie-Sanno Mandara, Detail Edo period Hanging scroll, Ink, colour and gold on silk 85 x 40.9 cm AN The Trustees of the British Museum Please see Meri Arichi s report on page 18.

3 Center for the Study of Japanese Religions Programme October 6, 5-6:30pm, G2 CSJR Seminars: Professor Ikuo Higashibaba (Tenri University) Practising Christianity in Early Modern Japan: Symbol, Prayer, and Mirror October 13, 5-6:30pm, G2 CSJR Seminars: Professor William M. Bodiford (UCLA) Printing and the Visual Representation of Linguistic Data in the Discovery of Ancient Japan Centre for the Study of Japanese Religions Programme October - December 5-7:00pm, G2 CSJR Film Series Cinematic Religion: Japanese Religion in Film (For further details, please see the programme on page 5.) February 23, 5-6:30pm, G2 CSJR Seminars: Dr Stephen Turnbull (University of Leeds) Phallicism and Fertility in Contemporary Japan: Ancient Traditions or Urban Myths? March 8, 5-6:30pm, G2 CSJR Seminars: Paola Cavaliere (University of Sheffield) Title: Women in Japanese Faith-Based Volunteer Groups: From Continuity to Innovation March 22, 5-6:30pm, G2 CSJR Seminars: Dr Igawa Kenji (Osaka University) Catholic Missionaries and Medieval Japan ALL WELCOME For more information and updates on the schedule please visit our website: or contact: ld16@soas.ac.uk May 2012 (date TBA) CSJR RAS Joint Exhibition and Workshop: The Royal Asiatic Society (14 Stephenson Way, London) The Sekimori O-fuda Collection 3

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5 Centre Activity Japanese Religion in Film October December 2011 SOAS Room G2 October 20, 5-7pm Onmyōji (Takita Yōjirō, 2001) October 27, 5-7pm The Funeral (Itami Juzo, 1984) November 3, 5-7pm Where Mountains Fly (Sandra and Karina Roth, 2008) November 17, 5-7pm Suwa Onbashira Festival 1992 (Kitamura Minao, 1992) November 24, 5-7pm Fragment (Makoto Sasaki, 2008) December 1, 5-7pm Zen (Takahashi Banmei, 2009) December 8, 5-7pm The Rebirth of Buddha (Takaaki Ishiyama, 2009)

6 Centre Activity Report Mediating (new) Religions in Contemporary Japan Radu Leca On 21 October 2010, the Centre for the Study of Japanese Religions at SOAS hosted a workshop on Mediating (New) Religions in Contemporary Japan. It was an opportunity to analyze the impact of media on religious phenomena. The themes of the workshop were summed up by Dr Louella Matsunaga of SOAS in the concluding roundtable discussion. Firstly, how much does the medium used transform the message? Secondly, what is the effect of new media on the social relations within the religious community? And thirdly, how do media relate to different audiences? The workshop started with the introduction by the Centre Chair Lucia Dolce, outlining the importance of studying new religions in the context of Japanese religious studies. This was followed by the paper presented by Erica Baffelli (Otago University) on the online representations of the religious group Aum Shinrikyō. After the epochal 1995 sarin gas attack in the Tokyo Underground, the internet became a site of refuge for the otherwise ostracized Aum community. The refashioning of the group s image is exemplified by the activity of Jōyū Fumihiro. A former top member of Aum, Jōyū is the founding leader of a new group called Hikari no Wa. He has been using social networking and video streaming websites to refashion his image into that of a spiritual guide. Jōyū also intends to experiment with a virtual dojo, a form of pure online practice, using sermons adapted to the format of this new media. This raises questions of how new media can influence the creation of new forms of ritual: are we witnessing the emergence of a solely online internet religion? In her talk, Baffelli showed how internet can be a very local phenomenon, and argued for the need to create a new field of research, which draws attention to the Japanese specificity of the use of internet in a religious context. Doctor István Keul s (Trondheim University) talk focused on the anime productions of Kōfuku no Kagaku (Institute for Research in Human Happiness), a Buddhist-type of new religion founded by Ryūhō Ōkawa. Starting in the mid 90s, Kōfuku no Kagaku produced six full-length anime films. Mainly conceived as reference works for members, they feature themes of salvation, lib- eration, apocalypse, referring both to a pre-existing arena of religious experience, and to elements of Japanese pop culture. They offer valuable insights for studies of cultural appropriation. For example, they feature composite images of non-japanese cultures similar to Miyazaki s films. They also illustrate the dynamics of religious discourse. Three of these anime are film versions of the law books which form the central doctrine of the organization. Keul showed how these adaptations not only transmit, but also contribute to the elaboration of the doctrine. The need to integrate Okawa s teaching into a narrative plot increased the coherence of discourse. The films also resulted in the development of the organization s iconographical and architectural program. The last paper, by Masaaki Okada, PhD student at SOAS, discussed The role of the media in shaping the works of Okada Mokichi, the founder of Sekai Kyūsei Kyō (SKK). The focus was on nature farming (shizen nōhō), a spiritual approach to farming practice, using the healing practice of jōrei instead of fertilizers. The talk proved the influence of early 1950s media criticism of this sentimental farming on Okada s founding of the Nature Farming Diffusion Association, separate from SKK. It then traced the process of replacing religious references in nature farming with ecological and scientific discourse. This process is also influenced by the post attitude of the Japanese society towards religion as being dangerous, paralleling the case of the Aum group. Participants in the workshop had an opportunity to explore such interconnections in the roundtable discussion that followed, guided by the aforementioned thematic triad. The issues which were raised are relevant not only to scholars of new Japanese religions, but to all scholars of religious studies interested in the relationship between media and religion. Specifically, the cases shown illustrated the use of the media in strategies of legitimization of religious groups. For example, an interesting parallel could be raised with the discoursive formation of medieval Japanese religious groups in relationship to their employed media. Radu Leca is a PhD candidate at the Department of Art and Archaeology at SOAS. His research, supported by a Meiji Jingu Scholarship, examines the relationship between feminine imagery and liminal spaces in seventeenth century Japanese visual culture.

7 Centre Activities Report Jordan Lectures Nothingness and Desire: A Philosophical Antiphony Professor James Heisig, Nanzan University Tullio Lobetti In March 2011 Professor James Heisig was invited to deliver the Jordan Lectures in Comparative Religion in the Department of the Study of Religions at SOAS. Professor Heisig is a permanent research fellow at the Nanzan Institute for Religion and Culture in Nagoya, Japan, where he has worked since He is well-known to those involved in the study of Japanese religions for his constant contribution as author, translator and editor to the Japanese Journal of Religious Studies, an invaluable source for all us. He also edited the 19-volume Nanzan Studies in Religion and Culture ( ), and is currently maintaining two ongoing collections entitled Frontiers of Japanese Philosophy and Tetsugaku (in Italian). His published volumes of writings and translations, which have appeared in 10 languages, comprise some 60 volumes. His most famous works include titles such as Philosophers of Nothingness (2001), Dialogues at One Inch Above the Ground (2003), El gemelo de Jesús: Un alumbramiento al budismo (2007), and the newly completed Japanese Philosophy: A Sourcebook (2011), coedited with Thomas Kasulis and John Maraldo. The underlying purpose of this series of lectures, was to attempt to address pivotal themes in contemporary societies, and at a global level, by employing philosophical concepts borrowed from the cultural framework of East Asia, with a particular focus on Japan, rather than relying on the paradigms developed within the European philosophical traditions of the last two centuries and historically grounded in Greek philosophy. Chosen as representative of a potentially new fundamental dichotomy were the concepts of nothingness and desire, the subject of the inaugural lecture in the series, both clearly inspired by the Buddhist tradition, but here re-represented in a new way. In the second lecture in the series, Redefining the Philosophical Tradition, Professor Heisig's attempt went indeed well beyond the mere expropriation of such concepts from their original contexts. He tried to elaborate the ideas of nothingness and desire as critical tools to reconsider otherwise consolidated western categories. Accordingly, the seminars that followed undertook an in-depth analysis and critique of specific categories in the understanding of contemporary local and global society(s): Self, God, Ethics, Property. The re-examination of such concepts in the light of the new underlying paradigm of nothingness and desire not only worked as a proposal for a new interpretative framework, but inherently exposed a certain parochialism of contemporary European philosophy, and its resistance in considering alternative conceptual systems. The inevitably provocative stance of Professor Heisig s approach lead to a number of critical arguments being raised, particularly about the apparent persistence of an East/West dichotomy in his conceptual framework, and the limits of the actual possibility of proficiently borrowing philosophical concepts from such diverse historical and cultural contexts. Besides the inevitable controversies, the ensuing discussions forced all of us to at least come to terms with our implicitly preunderstanding of our own and other s philosophical traditions, compelling us to re-consider the epistemological limits within which we frame the categories constituting the subjects of the above-mentioned seminars. In more general methodological terms, this might be an inspiring way of reconsidering what we mean by comparative approach - where the now outdated model of comparing different metaphysics in pursuit for an improbable essence of being is discarded in favour of an approach that understands different cultural realities as different epistemologies. This cannot but enrich our horizon of understanding, at the same time allowing us to clearly identify its limits, and Professor Heisig certainly deserves our gratitude for having provided us with one more exciting occasion to test our will and wits in such a demanding but vital endeavour. Tullio Lobetti was awarded his PhD from SOAS in 2011 with a dissertation on Body and Ascetic Practices in Contemporary Japanese Religious Context. He is now a Senior Teaching Fellow in the Department of the Study of Religions at SOAS, teaching courses on theory in the study of religions and mysticism.

8 Centre Activities Report Reassessing Buddhist Visual Culture in Japan: New Findings and Global Perspectives Benedetta Lomi On November 11th 2010, the Centre for the Study of Japanese Religions (CSJR) in collaboration with the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Culture (SISJAC) hosted an international workshop focused on the theme of Buddhist Visual Culture. The aim of the workshop was to enrich the theoretical discussion surrounding Buddhist visuality, by bringing together scholars working on different aspects of Buddhist art, religion and history. The first presenter, Professor Mimi Yiengpruksawan (Yale), focused On the Hybrid Nature of the Amitābha Hall at Byōdōin. Professor Yiengpruksawan, a specialist on the history and material culture of Heian Japan, was in London to deliver the Toshiba Lectures in Japanese Art (see report in this newsletter). At the workshop she proposed an alternative look at the architectural model of the famous Amitābha hall, by arguing for a possible influence of Liao style. Through a reading of historical sources as well as an analysis of the visual components of the hall, Professor Yiengpruksawan suggested that the frequent contacts and exchanges with the Northern Song and Liao may have had an impact on the construction of the Byōdōin. As much as the hall has been considered an example of Heian-period style and taste, it also presented unique characteristics that differentiated it from other contemporary Japanese structures and which reflected, in Professor Yiengpruksawan s opinion, an international and transcultural taste. The argument of Professor Yiengpruksawan was both welcomed and challenged by the two discussants, Professor Tim Barrett (SOAS) and Dr. Naomi Standen (Newcastle), who called for further historical corroboration attesting to the relations with the Liao Kingdom as well as other examples of the influence of Liao architecture in Heian Japan. The second speaker, Dr Cynthea Bogel (University of Washington, Seattle), presented a paper on Visual Efficacy and Ritual Activity: Early Shingon Contexts, which provided a compelling discussion on how Mikkyō icons shaped a new understanding of the world and the cosmos during ninth century Japan, as well as marking a shift in the understanding of the nature of Buddhist icons. Through the analysis of a diversity of visual materials, Dr Bogel suggested that Mikkyō icons and objects do not only have a ritual dimension, or a ritual function, but a representational one as well. Here Bogel makes a very important point, elucidated at length in her new book, With a Single Glance (see review in this issue): Mikkyō maṇḍalas whether two or three-dimensional are not only representations but also produce visual efficacy. Therefore, if at an ontological level, and surely at a doctrinal one, sacred objects may present major differentiations to the extent that the way they look is neither an aid to meditation nor a representation of a concept, this does not mean that their aesthetic and visual aspects are not relevant to the framing of religious activity. The complexity and visionary nature of Mikkyō representations the gold implements, the gems and the fine materials all serve the purpose of both conveying the potency of the numinous presence and showing the power of the object itself. Religious images are thus charged with power, part of which derives from their appearance. The way objects are visually constructed is neither casual nor without an effect on the way people relate to them and, through them, make sense of the world. The captivating and layered analysis of Dr Bogel stimulated a dialogue with the audience, led by the discussant, Dr Lucia Dolce (SOAS), on the role of visual efficacy in ritual and nonritual contexts, as well as on the power of mediation that Mikkyō representations had even for those who could not see them. The final paper Mandalas, Talismans and Straw Dolls: the Six-Syllable Purification in Heian Japan presented by Dr Benedetta Lomi (SOAS) further assessed the performative dimension of Buddhist icons and religious objects during healing rituals. The paper argued that the the Six-Syllable Purification ritual shows considerable variety and diversity in incorporating elements belonging to different religious traditions, and in allowing flexibility within the structure of the liturgy, to the extent that from the choice of the honzon (Shō Kannon, the Rokujikyō maṇḍala, one of the Six Kannon or Rokujiten) down to single ritual segments, the six-syllable ritual seems to have been tailor-made to fit each sponsor s desire.

9 The choice of diverse honzon, for instance, is often justified in terms of a distinction between the two esoteric traditions Taimitsu and Tōmitsu, or in terms of different lineages transmissions. By contrast, this paper proposed that other contingent factors be considered, such as the availability of ritual specialists, fashionable iconographies and deities that were held in higher esteem, the specific requirements based on good or bad omens, and the type of illness to be cured. The paper further discussed the role of the honzon in relation to other visual and material elements of the ritual, such as talismans and hitokata (straw or metal dolls) alongside ritual objects proper to different religious denominations. The paper argued that such a diverse visual and material dimension of the ritual reflected a specific way of conceiving healing as well as envisioning the relation between body and the cosmos in Heian Japan. The final discussion, chaired by Dr John Carpenter (SOAS) further stressed the need that emerged from each of the three papers of considering the complex network of relations that stimulated the creation and circulation of religious objects in Heian Japan. At the same time, the workshop succeeded in encouraging a constructive debate on the impact that visual elements had in shaping religious experience and cultural knowledge as a whole. The presence and participation of an audience of senior scholars and researchers coming from various fields brought new perspectives to this exploration and contributed to the success of the event. Benedetta Lomi completed her PhD research in the Department of the Study of Religions at SOAS in 2011 under the supervision of Lucia Dolce with the thesis: The Precious Steed of the Buddhist Pantheon: Ritual, Faith and Images of Batō Kannon in Japan. She is currently the Shinjō Itō Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Center for Japanese Studies at UC Berkley. Centre Activities Report CSJR Spring Workshop Report: Combinatory Practices in Japan James Hoyle On the 24th and 25th of February 2011, the Centre for the Study of Japanese Religions hosted its Spring Workshop on the topic of Combinatory Practices in Japan. The workshop was organised by Lucia Dolce and Mitsuhashi Tadashi, academic visitor at the Centre for the year Apart from allowing a platform for the re-assessing of those combinatory religious systems which developed in Japan through the intermingling of such traditions as those we now call Shintō, Buddhism and Onmyōdō, the workshop also sought to stimulate discussion regarding how best to approach the study of the Japanese religious system, and to what extent the rubric of syncretism is appropriate. The first day began in the British Museum where Meri Arichi (SOAS) presented a tour of the Japanese Galleries, focussing on the shinbutsu paintings. After a break for lunch, the workshop was taken back to SOAS and officially introduced by Lucia Dolce (SOAS). Following this introduction was Mitsuhashi Tadashi (Meisei University) with the opening talk entitled The Formation of Shintō as a Combinatory Religious System. Mitsuhashi identified as crucial in the development of Shintō practices the place of state rituals, and proposed that such rituals were the key influence in forming popular beliefs, thus challenging the idea of a pure folk source for Shintō. Mitsuhashi concluded by stating that any analysis of Japan as having a combinatory religious system must also be understood in terms of what he calls the Japanese belief style, which focusses on the physical application of religious action. This, in turn, forms what may be called a combinatory system. The second paper of the day was presented by Tullio Lobetti (SOAS) and was entitled When Two Become One: On the Meaning and Use of Syncretism in Religious Studies. This paper explored the crucial topic of the meaning of the term syncretism and to what extent such a term can be applied to the study of Japanese religious phenomena. In particular, Lobetti made an important distinction between syncretic entities (such as deities icons, etc.) and syncretic systems (philosophies and beliefs systems) and that the former do not necessarily stem from the latter. This matter of the meaning and For updates on Centre activities please check the CSJR Website:

10 dynamics of syncretism is an issue that was at the core of most of the discussions during the workshop. Following a short discussion on the issues raised by the previous two papers, Yoshihara Hiroto (Waseda University) presented his work: Reception and Development of the Word Jindō in Ancient Japan. Yoshihara wished to challenge Kuroda Toshio s contention that the word Shintō as used in the Heian period was not as a concept in opposition to Buddhism, but as part of it. Yoshihara created a definition of Jindō, (the pre-medieval pronunciation of Shintō, according to Mark Teeuwen), by reflecting upon its coinage in the Nihon-Shoki, as well as in possible texts of influence from China. This paper was followed by The Formation of honji suijaku in Ninth Century Japan by Satō Masato (The University of Kitakyūshū). Satō reflected upon the changing relationship between gods, buddhas and the emperor and how such concepts created a world-view which enabled the fruition of honji-suijaku thought in the ninth century. The first day concluded with Fumi Ouchi (Miyagi Gakuin/SOAS) presenting The Human Body as a Basis of Syncretism: Annen s Idea of the Voice. This paper brought the focus away from syncretism within the kami-buddha paradigm and broadened our understanding of syncretism to include the development of Annen s thought within Tendai esoteric Buddhism. Ouchi analyzed the process by which Annen combined diverse sources from Chinese musical theory, to chanting techniques in the Pure Land tradition, as well as the works of Kūkai, to create an original interpretation of aural phenomena as Buddhist preaching. Ouchi also drew our attention to bodily experience as a locus for combining traditions and practices. The second day began with Noriko Horsley (SOAS) presenting her paper Goryō-e: The Festival of Sound and Fury during the Insei Period. By analyzing various sources, Horsley sought to place festivals for vengeful spirits within a political and historical framework to understand both the nature of such activities and their wider social impact. This paper was followed by Dōjishin: A Study of the View of God in Japanese Middle Ages by Matsumoto Koichi (Ikenobo Junior College). Matsumoto s paper focussed on the phenomenon of Divine Children (Wakamiya or Mikogami) and their portrayal in both literature and visual culture from the mid-heian period onwards. The paper reflected upon sources such as images of the Kasuga Shrine, images of the child figure of Prince Shōtoku, and the divine child within the Hachiman cult. Matsumoto concluded that the influence of infant emperors during the Insei period led to the greater proliferation of images of divine children as mediators between the sacred and the secular, thus drawing our attention to how social and political factors may act to shape the combinatory process. Satō Hiroo (Tōhoku University) then presented his paper The Destination of the Dead. The paper began by establishing the changing attitudes to bodily remains in Japan, identifying three periods of customary action. Before the twelfth century no special attention was paid to remains; the second period from the twelfth to the fourteenth century, involved carrying of bones to sacred sites to be interred; finally, from the fourteenth century family graves were established. By identifying these three stages, Satō made the vital point that religious attitudes shift and change so any attempt to study a Japanese religious system must take into account this fluidity. The paper went on to discuss changing ideas related to sacred geography, and the proximity of the other world, as corresponding to the changing practices of dealing with bodily remains. In this way, Satō highlighted the relationship between thought and action as part of the mechanism for creating combinatory systems. Following a lunch break, Kigensan Licha (SOAS) presented his paper on The deity of Mt. Hakusan as seen in Sōtō kirigami. The paper looked at the specific nature of the rubric of combinatory practice by presenting the historical context in which Hakusan was revered in the Sōtō School, through examining esoteric transmission documents. Licha emphasized the purification of priests who had been in close proximity to corpses in the course of funerary rites. This again highlighted the importance of context and action to the examination of combinatory practices. Licha s presentation was followed by a paper from Sonehara Satoshi (Tōhoku University) entitled Combinatory Systems in the Early Modern Period: Sannō ichijitsu Shintō. Sonehara challenged the received notion that the dominant paradigm of thought throughout the Edo period was Confucianism, and presented instead what he calls Shūgō Shintō, the combination and codification of Buddhist and kami-related thought and practice. Sonehara presented figures such as Tenkai ( ), Cho on Dokai ( ), and Jōin ( ), as ex- 10

11 emplifying the thought of Shūgō Shintō and proposed that it was this mode of thought, and not Confucianism, which held great influence during the Edo period. Anna Andreeva (Heidelberg University) then presented the paper Kami and Buddhas in the Mountains: Reading Asamayama engi. The paper focussed around the Asamayama engi (dated 1511) which presented a complex array of kami-buddha beliefs centred around Mount Asama. Andreeva explored the relationships that existed between the variety of practitioners and the site of Asama, and also what symbols were used by such belief systems to construct the mountain as an important sacred and cultural site. Furthermore, it was argued that the relationships which existed between the cultic institution of Asama, the imperial shrines of Ise, as well as other important cultic locations, were built on the foundations of Buddhist concepts. Thus, Andreeva provided an example of the possible dynamics which existed between numerous religious phenomena, once combined within institutions. Gaynor Sekimori (SOAS) then presented her paper Combinatory Practice in the Life of an Edo-Period Village Shugen: Secret Rituals from the Archive of Koshikidake Kannonji. Sekimori explored the figure of the village shugen (practitioner of Shugendō) as the embodiment of the combination of kami-buddha beliefs. Crucial in the activities of the shugen are the rituals that served to answer the numerous needs of individuals, encompassing luck in love, the prevention of bad luck, healing, and any other number of aims. The paper then examined the ritual archive of Koshikidake Kannonji near the city of Yamagata. The temple used to be a Tōzan-ha Shugendō temple, but became a shrine in 1871 following the shinbutsu bunri (the enforced separation of Shintō and Buddhist elements during the Meiji period). However, the ritual archive has remained intact, and since 2005 a fifth generation descendent has been restoring the use of such rituals. Apart from the temple itself being an example of the complex historical factors of combinatory beliefs in Japan, Sekimori also explored some of the rituals, which have a variety of religious sources and combinatory aims and themes. The penultimate presentation was that made by Fukuhara Toshio (Musashi University) entitled Combinatory ritual of the Early Modern Period: The Funeral Procession as a Festive Procession. Fukuhara examined early modern picture scrolls that depict the Daito-sai festive procession, and identified a strong combination of kami and buddha elements. He concluded that the festive procession was different in character to modern events, which have been influenced by the shinbutsu bunri, and thus no longer contain funerary motifs which were more Buddhist in nature. Again, the influence of politics in the dynamics of combinatory systems is clearly exemplified by the shinbutsu bunri. The final paper of the workshop was presented by Lucia Dolce (SOAS) entitled Re-inventing Combinatory Rituals in Contemporary Japan. Dolce challenged the scholarly assumption that shinbutsu shūgō is a premodern phenomenon, now superseded by a more singlesystem mode of religion, by looking at the rituals of contemporary shrines and identifying elements which would seem to suggest a reversal of the policies of shinbutsu bunri. An example of such activities is at Hiyoshi Taisha, where Buddhist monks still perform debates on the Lotus Sutra for the Sannō kami. Furthermore, Dolce observed that new associations have been formed between Buddhist and Shintō institutions that had no significant ties in the past, such as that between Iwashimizu and Kiyomizudera, using common myths of sacred water as the basis for both ritual and rhetorical exchange. Connected to such new institutional exchange also is the creation of a pilgrimage named shinbutsu junrei, which encompasses 150 shrine and temple sites starting in Ise and ending at Hieizan. The guidebooks produced for the event explain the history of shinbutsu bunri and lament such a separation. Dolce concluded by posing questions as to the nature of these new alliances: whether such combination is following the medieval logic, or creating a new discourse, what are the power dynamics between such institutions, and how are the creators of these new rituals using such combinatory practice to define their actions as a peculiarity of Japanese religiosity. The final discussion of the day was chaired by Timon Screech (SOAS) and brought out many of the topics which had been raised during the workshop, particularly focussing on definitions of shūgō (syncretism) and to what extent this term aids the understanding of the fusion of religious phenomena in Japan. The workshop was a great opportunity to examine and deconstruct ideas of combinatory practices and syncretism which are so much a part of the study of Japanese religion, yet often left under-examined by scholars. The great variety in both subject matter and theoretical approach from the papers presented in the workshop led to much stimulating exchange with attending students, as well as senior scholars, contributing to the fruitful discussions. We can be very thankful for the great effort of those who organised the event, and look forward to more such rewarding workshops in future. James Hoyle is a SOAS alumnus, who completed his MA in the Study of Religions, Japanese Religions pathway, in

12 Centre Activities Report Documenting Religions: SOAS Shugendō Film Festival Honors Memory of Dr Carmen Blacker ( ) Mark Patrick McGuire What does it mean to perform austerities in an age of excess? How does a primarily rural religious tradition appeal to and serve the needs of busy, urban people? How can filmmakers gain access to, and make accessible to diverse audiences, a set of esoteric ritual practices ordinarily reserved for the initiated? These and other questions and concerns animated the Shugendō film festival organized and facilitated by Lucia Dolce, Gaynor Sekimori, Tullio Lobetti and Benedetta Lomi at the SOAS Brunei Theater on March This rare occasion to view and discuss three recent documentaries representing the mountain ascetic tradition was made more poignant by its occurrence less than two weeks after the massive tsunami, earthquake and nuclear meltdowns that devastated communities in Japan s Tōhoku region. Landscapes and participants featured in the films, it was revealed, had been directly affected by the tragedies of 11 March. Several ascetic practitioners (shugenja) based in Yamagata, acquaintances of Gaynor Sekimori and Kitamura Minao (director of The Autumn Peak of Haguro Shugendō), narrowly survived the catastrophe, but have lost everything in the wake of the powerful force that moved Honshu eight feet eastward. To make the occasion even livelier (and potentially at risk of cancellation), a teachers strike had been convened on the festival s starting day to protest proposed cuts to public education spending. Thankfully, Lucia Dolce and strike organizers negotiated an agreement whereby the festival s international guests and audiences were permitted entrance into the Brunei Theater for screenings and discussions without having to cross the picket line. Thus, the show was allowed to go on. In this short report I present a concise overview of each film and mention a few of the many stimulating topics and questions that arose for discussion. The festival began with a screening of Where Mountains Fly presented by its creators Sandra Roth and Carina Roth. The film successfully evokes a sense of the awe and wonder of the Kii Peninsula s mountains and shorelines. This effect is achieved visually by an innovative animation technique devised by Sandra Roth whereby video footage shot in the Kumano region is stitched together seamlessly to unfold across the screen in the manner of an emaki picture scroll. Cinephiles may notice a visual parallel with the work of Japanese director Mizoguchi Kenji ( ) who, in a rejection of the American classic cinematic techniques and reassertion of indigenous visual culture, employed traditional literary and aesthetic motifs such as the film stock unrolling in the manner of an emaki. Where Mountains Fly also features textual passages selected from the Shozan engi (translated by Carina Roth for her PhD research) and inserted as narrative voice-over in locations where the miraculous accounts depicted in the text are claimed to have occurred. The contrast between these evocative, mythical tableaus and the contemporary realities of the landscapes where ritual ascesis is still practiced is striking. Against a backdrop of tamed rock faces, waterfalls, rivers and other hybrid natural and constructed formations (eg. contained by metal fencing and concrete reinforcement walls), we see practitioners perform ritual ablutions and seek identification with Fudō Myōō and other patron deities. Two gentlemen in particular, lay men who arise early to enter a constructed waterfall (a downspout from a concrete river with retaining wall and dam), subtly demonstrate that meaningful and sustained ascetic practice is possible despite the encroachments of modern development and excesses of the construction state that have so dramatically altered Japan s rural landscape. Ethnographic filmmaking pioneer and acclaimed television documentarian Kitamura Minao premiered the English version (translated by Gaynor Sekimori) of his film The Autumn Peak of Haguro Shugendō during the festival. A well-crafted and researched documentary of certain archival value, The Autumn Peak gives its most sustained attention to the ritual symbolism and meaning of the ascent. In contrast to the experimental and lyrical qualities of Where Mountains Fly and poetic evocation by a first-person, subjective narrator in Shugendō Now, The Autumn Peak takes a more analytical and expository approach and is presented from the institutional hierarchy s point of view. Every ritual utterance, including sutra chanting, is translated and explained in the film s subtitles. Taken together, the three films complement each 12

13 other nicely in content and approach. In his pre-film comments Kitamura stressed the following aspects of his documentary: 1) Haguro Shugendō priests had never granted access to any previous filmmaker to film its Autumn Peak, 2) Haguro Shugendō preserves a significant number of ancient ritual practices not seen elsewhere, and 3) the principle potency and value of Haguro Shugendō resides in the accumulated power of its continuously maintained ritual traditions. Although Kitamura s first claim may be accurate, his second and third strike this viewer and co-participant (full disclosure: I am the co-producer of Shugendō Now discussed below) as both problematic and misleading, on the one hand, yet provocative and worthy of further critical analysis and reflection. At their best, Kitamura s claims may be seen as those of a savvy film promoter seeking to enhance the appeal and merits of his film. At their worst, however, his questionable authenticity claims harken back to an historical movement and folklore studies approach that has lost favor in most circles. Kitamura claimed Haguro Shugendō is somehow more (if not the most) authentic tradition of Shugendō and thus its practices more efficacious than those of practices carried out elsewhere. Kitamura also referred to practices in the Kii Peninsula (depicted in Where Mountains Fly and Shugendō Now) as just walking (eg. very little ritual content or meaning has survived the Meiji proscription of Shugendō) in contrast to the carefully preserved, ritual-heavy activities of the Autumn Peak of Mt Haguro. Though I wish to avoid becoming entangled in what I perceive to be primarily a sectarian rivalry outside the purview of scholarship and self-reflexive filmmaking, the issues raised by Kitamura s comments (which tradition is more authentic and thus offers the greater possibility of a transcendent experience) are worth considering if we explore them beyond their surface meanings. These issues and Kitamura s premises can help to focus our attention upon some key differences in each of our filmmaking approaches and shed some light upon the contemporary circumstances facing the leadership and rank-and-file membership of these diverse traditions of Shugendō. To put the problem as simply as I can, it seems as though precisely what Kitamura decries as the degeneration and decline of Yoshino and Kumano Shugendō traditions ( just walking ) strikes me as a creative reinvention of traditions worthy of serious study, analysis, debate and ethnographic representation. These differences in perception reveal important differences in institutional leadership approaches, adaptability to changing sociohistorical circumstances, and the extent to which the way things may (or may not) have been done in the past determines present and future activities and decisions at each site. Kimpusenji s leadership, with the awareness that its broad accessibility to diverse urban practitioners potentially alienates its more seasoned ascetic membership, has wagered that casting the net as wide as possible is the best means of staying financially solvent and relevant to contemporary Japanese, a majority of whom live quite far from Mt Ōmine. It is neither a simple nor straightforward decision, but it is one that Tanaka Riten at Kimpusenji appears comfortable with for the foreseeable future. As Tanaka states in our film Shugendō Now: Giving large numbers of people a wide variety of things to reflect upon, experience, and feel is a meaningful part of a religious tradition's mission. It would be a shame if we didn't accomplish this. Since I came to Kimpusenji and began using things like the Daihôrin journal, and our homepage to send a direct call out to the general public, it is a fact that participation by the public at large has increased. We have a sense that we have attained some measure of success. But the reality is also that with the increase in participation by everyday people, we have seen a decline in participation by more seasoned ascetic practitioners. This is a difficult problem. But a religious tradition survives only on the strength of broad participation. Since this is our premise, we think our attempts to secure broader engagement have not been unsuccessful. During this interview, Tanaka also mentioned several texts he had been reading that gave practical advice to religious leaders about engaging the broadest possible audience. This demonstrates the extent to which Tanaka is committed to experimentation and innovation within certain limits. Since I have not conducted extensive fieldwork among Haguro priests and practitioners or discussed this topic with them, I cannot draw any broad comparisons. But 13

14 Image courtesy of Enpower Pictures I would not be surprised to learn that Haguro priests, too, share Tanaka s concerns and are actively considering ways to maintain their relevance and resonance with contemporary Japanese. It may be unfair to suggest that reflection upon such topics and dilemmas by Haguro leadership might have been welcome in Kitamura s documentary, particularly given the archival, preservationist approach he adopts (giving the impression it is already too late), but inclusion of such topics might have shed some light upon the Haguro tradition s present challenges and concerns. We are instead presented with a ritual exegesis of a timeless, unchanging rural tradition without a context for understanding how participation in these esoteric practices resonates with everyday experiences in modern Japan. This is another area of divergence and site of fruitful exchange between our and Kitamura s approach. Abela and I set out to tell the story of pilgrimage as a round trip (Ann Grodzins-Gold) so that the mountain and city were in productive tension, not isolation. We deliberately filmed power lines, concrete river embankments, industrial timber plantations and other signs of modern development within Shugendō training sites in the Kii Peninsula because they are ever-present. We inter-cut these moments on the mountains with scenes of pilgrims everyday life in Tokyo and Osaka to represent the myriad ways urban practitioners integrate lessons learned from nature in their home, work and play spaces. This illustrates the teaching, From mountain austerities to urban austerities (Yama no gyō yori sato no gyō e) often espoused by Kimpusen-ji priest Tanaka Riten during abbreviated retreats such as the Lotus Ascent of Mount Ōmine. Our premise throughout has been that what has been denigrated by conservatives such as Kitamura as a loss of traditional meanings, values and authenticity (a narrative of decline) might be imaginatively re-evaluated in a more positive light by progressives such as Tanaka Riten and counter-culture figures such as Tateishi Kōshō as the wholesale renewal and reinvigoration of hallmark practices in order for the tradition to thrive in a global age. The question of what resources a rural, mountain ascetic tradition provides for contemporary ecological, social and economic crises is one that has concerned me since initial research fieldwork in Climate change, global warming, species habitat destruction, loss of biodiversity, and alienation from the natural world are profoundly interconnected with and compounded by natural and human-made disasters such as the tsunami, earthquake, nuclear meltdowns and typhoons that have struck Tohoku and the Kii Peninsula recently. Our film Shugendō Now is also a vehicle for bringing these important topics for discussion with diverse audiences, many of whom know nothing about Japan or its religious traditions. Though short-term bouts of ascetic practices adapted by Kimpusenji s leadership for busy urban lay people have been decried as just walking, from another perspective they have afforded increasing numbers of disaffected pilgrims opportunities to reconnect with the natural world and address the various problems and conflicts they face, not the least of which are infertility, joblessness, lack of fulfillment, substance abuse, domestic violence, depression, even the suitability of nuclear fuel as a viable energy source in a volcanic, earthquake-prone archipelago. Gatherings of scholars and filmmakers of this nature against such a lively and poignant backdrop reveal, in my view, the value and necessity of making the fruits of academic research and cinematic expression broadly accessible to the general public and funded by the public purse. Proceeds from the sales of the films DVDs were donated to relief and recovery efforts in the Tohoku region. SOAS students, faculty and attendees also gave generously to raise additional funds. I am grateful to the organizers, facilitators, attendees, and co-participants for the chance to participate in this stimulating and memorable exchange. Mark McGuire has taught Humanities at John Abbot College (Montreal, Canada) since His interests include pilgrimages in Japan, environmental issues and social activism. 14

15 Centre Activities Report CSJR Spring Workshop Words, Deities, Icons: Exploring Ritual Performance in Pre-modern Japan Kensuke Chikamoto 前近代の日本におけるあらたな法会 儀礼学の構築をめざして ことば ほとけ 図像の交響 報告 前近代の日本における信仰と文化を考える上で 仏教の法会や儀礼の実態を分析し位置づけることは 極めて重要な研究課題であると言える 近年の日本における寺院聖教調査のめざましい進展は この研究課題についてあらたな見通しを立てることを可能にしつつある このような状況は 日本国内 国外双方の日本文化研究者の関心をも喚起し 共同研究による成果が次第に実り多きものとなりつつある 今回の問題設定は 法会 儀礼の領域複合的解明の必要性と必然性とに導かれたものであるが 西洋の堅牢な儀礼学の蓄積に比して 日本の法会学は緒に就いたばかりである そのような状況の中で 今回のワークショップは 唱導といったことばの領域 仏像彫刻や寺院空間の領域 図像や絵画の領域などから多面的に分析を加えることにより あらたな法会 儀礼学の構築を目的として開催するものである 法会や儀礼の場が これら ことば ほとけ 図像 が複合的に重なり合いながら執り行われた実態を それらの 交響 の総体として できる限り文献資料や図像を駆使しながら明らかにすることを目標としている 報告者のそれぞれが問題意識を突き合わせながら議論することで 多くの成果と 新たな方向性が示せるのではないかと考えている 本ワークショップは 5 月 12 日 13 日の両日にわたり ロンドン大学 SOAS 日本宗教研究センターにおいて開催された 初日のワークショップは Lucia Dolce 教授 (SOAS) による開催の経緯と趣旨説明に続き 近本 ( 筑波大学 ) から開催のねらいを補足した後 パネル報告に移った 2 日間のワークショップは 5 つのパネルから構成された 以下 それぞれのパネルにしたがって報告する Panel 1 Doing Things with Words 本パネルにおいては ことばの領域がいかに法会の場の本質と関わる要素たり得たかについてさまざまな角度からの報告がなされた 法会のことばの領域としての唱導の世界が そこで供養される画像や堂塔をどのように荘厳し さらに法会の背景を巧みに織り込むのかについて解脱房貞慶の唱導資料を分析した近本の報告に続いて Stephan Licha 氏 (SOAS) は曹洞宗における五位説を悟りから起源への反転の構図で捉え直し その発生学と身体論とを秘伝としての切り紙資料と胎内五位ということばと視覚的要素との相関において説いた 猪瀬千尋氏 ( 名古屋大学 ) は天皇家における師資相承の儀礼である秘曲伝授の厳密な復元的分析を通して ことばと図像に加えて音の要素が儀礼において結合していくさまを資料批判を踏まえつつ実証的に浮かび上がらせた コメンテーターは阿部泰郎氏 ( 名古屋大学 ) このパネルからは ことばの領域が法会 儀礼において担う多面的な意義と可能性が提示さ れるとともに その背景や趣旨を複合的に織り込むことで法会の場に生命を吹き込むことばの役割が認識された Panel 2 Texts and Images 本パネルは 絵画 図像における表象がどのようにテクストや儀礼そのものと関わり合うのかをテーマとするものである 阿部美香氏 ( 昭和女子大学 ) は融通念仏縁起絵巻の諸本を読み解き 絵巻の再構築と展開そのものが中世王権と社寺神仏を結びつけ 念仏のことばとほとけを図像において表象する営みであったことを説いた Benedetta Lomi 氏 (SOAS) は平安時代以来盛んに修された密教修法六字経法を取り上げ この修法の特色がさまざまな本尊や儀礼の形式の複合した性格を有することから 儀礼の必然性や修法の依頼者が儀礼に及ぼす影響について報告した 泉武夫氏 ( 東北大学 ) は密教修法における図像 画像の可視 不可視の観点から 修法の秘法化に伴う本尊の秘密化の傾向を如意宝珠法によって提示し 顕教の観想法における鏡像による間接的な可視化の事例も同様の在り方を示すものであることを説いた コメンテーターは John Carpenter 氏 (SOAS) このパネルからは テクストと絵画 図像とが相互に影響を及ぼし合いながら法会 儀礼が展開 再構築されること 法会の形式と本尊の在り方とが緊密に結びつきながらヴァリエーションを形成することなどが明らかになった 15

16 Panel 3 The Politics of Ritual Panel 1 Panel 2 においても 法会 儀礼における朝廷や幕府との関わり 王権との結びつきは話題に上っていたが 本パネルにおいては儀礼の政治学とも言うべき問題を正面から取り上げる報告がなされた 山野龍太郎氏 ( 筑波大学 ) は鎌倉幕府の成立過程に仏教儀礼が深く関わっていたことを安居院唱導資料 転法輪抄 所収の鎌倉関係法会の表白から提示し 幕府の権力基盤の確立と連動していた様相について報告した Gaetan Rappo 氏 (University of Geneve, EPHE Paris) は後醍醐天皇の仏法における国家戦略を担った文観による調伏儀礼 逆徒退治護摩次第 を取り上げ 調伏の論理を国家の安泰に結びつける正当化の論理を跡づけた 上島享氏 ( 京都府立大学 ) は僧侶を分類する際の学侶 堂衆 聖 ( 遁世 ) という分類を儀礼との関係から問い直すべく 諸記録 往生伝等を駆使しながら清浄や浄行の概念から儀礼を担う従来の分類意識から逸脱した僧侶像に迫った コメンテーターは Lucia Dolce 氏 このパネルにおいては 戦乱における犠牲者の鎮魂や逆徒に対する調伏という国家戦略としての儀礼の多様性に対する認識が資料的に深められたと同時に 儀礼を担う僧侶の在り方の根幹として清浄の概念の重要性が共有された Screening and Discussion The Flower Assembly Rite (Hanae-shiki) of Yakushiji: The Ceremony and the People Who Support It 初日の夕刻からは 松尾恒一氏 ( 国立歴史民俗博物館 ) が制作を担当した 薬師寺花会式 行法と支える人々 の映像を上映した上で 内容に関する議論を行った 薬師寺最大の年中行事花会式は平安時代より続く懺悔を中心とする儀礼であるが 密教的 民俗的な作法を含む儀礼の全貌を視覚的に追体験するとともに 儀礼を支える堂童子の役割にも注目することで 儀礼の総体を立体的に把握することができた Panel 4 The Construction of Ritual Space 本パネルは 法会 儀礼を空間というテーマから照射したときに どのような問題が抽出できるかについて 議論を深めようとするものである 松尾恒一氏の報告は前日の薬師寺花会式をめぐる問題を南都諸寺院における事例へと展開させ 儀礼の執行される空間と一体となった練行衆と関わる場を神仏習合の空間として また芸能との深い関わりから問い直した Tatsuma Padoan 氏 (University of Venice and LISaV) は 大和葛城宝山記 を俎上に載せ このテクストの形成を儀礼と神話的言説の相互作用によって葛城の空間をインドの創造神話と結びつけた独自の語りへと 翻訳 した所為であると位置づけた 山岸常人氏 ( 京都大学 ) は 中世仏堂形式の変遷を綿密にたどった上で法会の導師の向きに着目し 法然上人絵伝 に描かれる聖覚の真如堂における聴衆に向き合っての説法を転機とみなした上で 内包する問題とその後の展開にも説き及んだ コメンテーターは Timon Screech 氏 (SOAS) このパネルからは 法会 儀礼の空間がそれを取り巻く寺域を含めた一連の次第の中で捉えられるべき点や ことばの領域によって聖地としての空間が再構築されていく点 芸能や話芸としての説法を空間との関わりから見直す必要性が認識された Panel 5 Ritual Agency 本パネルにおいては 法会 儀礼を司る流派やグループの側面から儀礼研究の多様性に迫ろうとした Anna Andreeva 氏 (Heidelberg University) は 神道灌頂の本尊として祀られる天照大神の蛇体説および愛染明王における蛇体の表象の問題を大三輪神の事例へと 16

17 展開させ 西大寺流と三輪流における密教的神祇信仰に基づくすがたとして提示した Noriko Horsley 氏 (SOAS) は平安後期から鎌倉初期における本地垂迹説の複雑な展開から説き起こし 祇園御霊会もその例外ではない点として 牛頭天王をめぐるいくつかのヴァリエーションをともなう縁起や伝承に痕跡をとどめる疫病と関わる神としての性格の変遷について論じた 藤岡穣氏 ( 大阪大学 ) は 四天王寺聖霊院の聖徳太子聖霊像と童像の造立と生身性との関係に着目して 太子の聖遺物の納入を太子観音説に基づく垂迹神としての性格から説明した上で それが行像や儀礼における像の移動という行為 次第と結びついたことを検証した コメンテーターは Gaynor Sekimori 氏 (SOAS) このパネルからは 法会や儀礼を司る特定の流派や寺社の事例を検証していくことが 実は普遍的な儀礼の形成や変遷のありようを示唆すると同時に 儀礼の空間が生身性に見いだされるような神仏との邂逅の場として機能したことが再確認された すべてのパネルを終えた後に総括的コメントを阿部泰郎氏が述べた 各パネルの報告の後には質疑の時間を設けたが パネルが進むにつれて相互に関わる問題も多く見出され 最終的なディスカッションの時間をさらに設けたい状況であった 今回のワークショップは新たな法会 儀礼学構築に向けての一里塚であるが 少なくともことば ほとけ 図像の奏でる交響のさまは浮き彫りにできたように思われる また さまざまな領域からのアプローチの必要性と有要性に対する認識が共有できた点も今回のワークショップの大きな収穫である 有益な共同研究の作業を今後も継続していきたい なお ワークショップに先立ち 10 日 11 日には Lucia Dolce 教授の特別なお計らいにより 大英図書館 大英博物館での調査の機会を設けていただいた 大英図書館では日本における法会の原型をしのばせる敦煌文書の調査を敦煌の講唱文芸を専門とする荒見泰史氏 ( 広島大学 ) 同席のもと行うことができ 大英博物館では法会における音楽とも関わりが深い弁財天像をはじめ不空羂索観音像 聖徳太子伝等の貴重な美術品を拝見 調査することが叶った これらのプレ調査の場を経て 法会 儀礼の場に関する問題についてひとしきり議論を深めた上で 翌日からのワークショップに臨むことができた さまざまに便宜をおはかりくださった Lucia Dolce 教授 連絡や資料作成でお世話になった Benedetta Lomi 氏その他 SOAS の関係各位に 末筆ながら深く感謝申し上げます 今回のワークショップは 科学研究費補助金基盤研究 (B) 院政期の宗教施策に関する寺院文芸研究 鳥羽から後鳥羽院政をめぐる領域複合的解明 ( 研究代表者 : 近本謙介 )"Studies of Temple Literature Related to Religious Policies of the Cloistered Sovereigns Era: Crossdisciplinary Investigations of the Toba to Go-Toba Reigns" (Representative: Kensuke Chikamoto) (Scientific Grant for Basic Research (B)) との共催によるものである Kensuke Chikamoto is professor of Medieval Japanese literature at Tsukuba University. 17

18 Research Notes Japanese Religious Art at the British Museum Meri Arichi The aim of the research project I began in autumn 2010, with the help of the Meiji Jingu Small Grant programme, was to reassess the collection of Japanese Buddhist paintings from the Edo period in the British Museum, and to improve the information published on the British Museum website. Currently, approximately 200 items are listed under the category of Japanese Buddhist art on the British Museum website, and although a small number of early and important Buddhist paintings have detailed information, most of the later works have no image and the information is limited to brief entries. In order to capture the overall quality of the collection, I have examined and photographed about 100 paintings from the Edo period so far. The project is not complete yet, and the next step is to incorporate the photographs and my research on to the website. Most of the paintings I examined come from the Anderson collection which entered the museum in William Anderson ( ) was a British doctor who worked as the instructor of Anatomy and Surgery in the Imperial Naval College in Tokyo from 1873 to Anderson became an enthusiastic collector of Japanese painting during his six year stay in Japan, and built a systematic collection of over 2,000 paintings that encompassed all subject matter and style. He published The Pictorial Art of Japan in 1886, the first systematic history of Japanese art in the English language. Approximately 120 paintings from the Anderson collection depict Buddhist subject matter, and they date mostly from the Edo period. The quality and the condition of the paintings vary greatly, with some works that are fragments and un-mounted, and others that are in poor condition and not suitable for display in the museum. However many paintings reflect interesting beliefs and customs of the Edo period, and provide valuable insight into the religious practices of the time. The main activity beside the examination of paintings the Meiji Jingu grant enabled me to organize was the visit of Dr Yukiko Shirahara of the Nezu Museum of Art in Tokyo to the British Museum in March Dr Shirahara is a specialist in medieval religious painting and she examined several paintings from the collection during her one week stay. Her valuable advice and input will be incorporated in the information on the website when the project is completed. Dr Shirahara also conducted a study session for a group of MA students from SOAS in the Student s Room of the British Museum. One of the paintings she discussed was the fourteenth-century Kasuga Mandara (fig. 1), which depicts the landscape of Kasuga Shrine in the upper half with five lunar discs containing the honjibutsu of the kami of Kasuga Shrine above, and the geometric arrangement of Buddhist deities connected to the various halls in the adjacent temple of Kōfukuji in the lower half. This is an excellent example of visual representation for considering Figure 1. Kasuga Mandara Painting on silk 14th century AN Trustees of the British Museum medieval combinatory religious practices, and apart from benefitting from the rare opportunity to examine a medieval painting at close hand, hopefully it inspired the students to make further study on aspects of shinbutsu shūgo. The Kasuga Mandara was also the focus of Dr Shirahara s lecture for the JRC (Japan Research Centre) at SOAS. Her lecture introduced little-known examples of the Kasuga Mandara, and provided a preview of the forthcoming exhibition on the same topic at the Nezu Museum this autumn. In February, I participated in the symposium on 18

19 shinbutsu shūgo entitled Combinatory Practices in Japan: Rethinking Religious Syncretism organized by Professor Tadashi Mitsuhashi of the Meisei University and Dr Lucia Dolce. A viewing session of shinbutsu shūgo paintings in the British Museum s Students Room organised for the scholars of religions from Japan provided an opportunity to exchange ideas, confirming the importance of the aforementioned international and inter-disciplinary forum for the study of religious art as well. Particularly interesting to the group was a triptych of The Three Regalia from the Anderson collection (fig. 2). A set of three small hanging scrolls, each painted with the Buddhist adaptations of sacred sword, jewel, and mirror in the Shintō tradition, it reflects a strong esoteric Buddhist input, incorporating the motifs of lotus, vajra, and snake. The iconography of the sword and the single prong vajra below the jewel are similar to the Muromachi period drawings of Shintō kanjō honzon-zu that survive in Ninnaji, Kyoto, suggesting that the British Museum scrolls were used for the ritual of Shintō kanjō in the Edo period. The iconography of the third scroll depicting the mirror with eight smaller discs below is unique, and the image invited much speculation and discussion among the scholars. Another painting we examined was the Edo period Sannō Mandara (fig. 3), also from the Anderson collection. The mandara depicts twenty-two kami of Hie Shrine (Hiyoshi Taisha) in their suijaku form, neatly arranged in rows in hierarchical order. The Hie-Sanno cult developed in close association with the temple of Enryakuji on Mount Hiei from the Heian period. By the Kamakura period the twenty-one principal shrines at Hie were organised into groups of Upper Seven, Middle Seven, and Lower Seven Shrines, and the shrine flourished in Figure 3. Sanno Mandara Painting on silk 18th century AN Trustees of the British Museum Figure 2. The Three Regalia Painting on silk 18th century AN Trustees of the British Museum 19

20 A viewing session of shinbutsu shūgo paintings in the British Museum s Students Room. Figure 4. Benzaiten Painting on silk 14th century AN Trustees of the British Museum the climate of shinbutsu shūgo. Both the Hie shrine and Enryakuji suffered serious damage caused by the army of Oda Nobunaga in the sixteenth century. The cult of Sannō was revived with a new vigour in the Edo period by the Tendai Abbot Tenkai, and many examples of Sannō Mandara from the Edo period survive today. The British Museum mandara is a fine example, meticulously painted with attention to detail, and the iconography of one of the kami in the form of the Kurikara sword conforms to the Edo period text Hie-Sanno gongen chishinki. A unique feature of this mandara is the addition of the image of Goin, the kami of a subsidiary shrine, depicted with the face of a karasu tengu in a very prominent position in the bottom centre. Goin was a legendary ancestor of the Juge family who occupied the position of hereditary priesthood of Jūzenji Shrine at Hie. Only a few examples of Sannō Mandara include his image, and considering the fine quality of this British Museum example, it is most likely that it was created and used for rituals related to the Juge family. I also participated in another CSJR symposium Word, Deities, Icons: Exploring Ritual Performance in Pre-modern Japan at SOAS in May. Nine scholars from Japan led by Professor Yasurō Abe of Nagoya University, as well as participants from various institutions in Europe, presented their research in this two-day symposium which focused on the fascinating topic of medieval ritual practices from many angles. A viewing session for the Japanese visitors, again in the BM s Student s room, benefited greatly from the participation of Professor Takeo Izumi of Tōhoku University (formerly of the Kyoto National Museum), a well-known specialist in the field of Japanese Buddhist paintings. One of the most interesting paintings we examined during this session was an image of Benzaiten (fig. 4) dating from the Muromachi period. This is a very fine and large painting on silk, depicting the deity as a bodhisattva with the musical instrument biwa, rather than the more common iconography of the female deity in a Chinese style robe. On the following day, one of the participants in the symposium, Chihiro Inose, a PhD candidate from Nagoya University, gave a paper on the secret transmission of biwa music during the medieval period, and pointed out the similarity of the British Museum image to the hibutsu sculpture of Myoon-ten in Shirakumo Shrine in the Imperial Palace in Kyoto. He proposed an intriguing theory that the British Museum painting may have been used as an icon for the secret ritual performance of biwa music transmission. We look forward to reading his thesis in the near future. On 4 July 2011 Rev. Michinari Kujo, Rev. Hiroyasu Hirose, Rev. Kazuhiro Yoshida, and Dr Yoshiko Imaizumi of the Meiji Jingu paid a visit to the British Museum. Acknowledgement I would like to thank Professor Timon Screech of SOAS and Tim Clark of the British Museum for encouraging me to take on the project in the first place. I am grateful to Dr Ryoko Matsuba and Nobushiro Takahashi of Ritsumeikan University and Hiromi Uchida of the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Art and Culture for providing the practical assistance for the viewing of materials in the British Museum. Dr Meri Arichi is Senior Teaching Fellow in the Department of the History of Art and Archaeology, SOAS. Her interests focus particularly on the religions art of Premodern Japan. 20

21 Research Notes Exploring Ritual in Premodern Japan Anna Andreeva Ritual documents, known as giki 義軌, shidai 次第, injin 印信, kirikami 切紙, kuden 口伝, and kuketsu 口決, produced by the religious practitioners of premodern Japan entice scholars with a plethora of unresolved puzzles. The veracity of such documents can sometimes be disputed; some of them may remain unavailable for the scholarly gaze. In the majority of cases, the early modern copies of such ritual texts display what could at best be described as a collective scholarship and collective production. Based on a shifting body of doctrinal and ritual traditions, these documents were transmitted by different groups of religious specialists: Buddhist scholars, shrine priests, Yin-Yang diviners and mountain religion practitioners, associated with Japan s many temples, shrines, sacred mountains and other cultic sites. To complicate the picture, despite the persisting rhetoric of secrecy, these diverse groups of practitioners, including temple and sacerdotal lineage members, exchanged or reformulated the ideas they appropriated and borrowed extensively from other traditions and each other. Routinely, medieval ritual documents, and particularly, those coming from the Tendai and Shingon environment, display minute variations that must have been produced as a result of political struggles: between two prominent Buddhist monks, both claiming possession of a ritual technology sought by different branches of the imperial or an aristocratic family, between temple lineages appropriating neighbouring sacred sites enshrining powerful and unruly deities, or between temples competing for military and political power in the region. The possibilities for such ritual variations seem endless; almost at every turn there will be a labyrinthine opening inviting the exploration of yet more associations between deities, icons, legends and temple and shrine records. This makes exploring rituals of medieval Japan a solitary, time-consuming task. How are we to approach Japan s medieval ritual texts? What can we learn from them? Moreover, how can postmodern scholars of Japanese religions working in different cultural settings scattered across the world interpret them without projecting too many cultural expectations of their own? Take, for example, the rituals produced by one of the local Buddhist lineages, based in the Yamato province. The Miwa lineage, which emerged in the vicinity of Mt Miwa, a short distance from Nara and the mountainous areas of Hase, Tōnomine and Yoshino in the thirteenth and fourteenth century, was originally a group of local holy men, called hijiri 聖 and shōnin 上人. These men engaged in a variety of religious practices, which they painstakingly collected from the more established temple lineages, both of Shingon and Tendai affiliation. Accused by the proponents of proper esoteric Buddhism at Koyasan of dabbling in the darker shades of tantric rituals and producing misguided interpretations of esoteric scriptures worthy only of country bumpkins, the holy men of Miwa had actually gathered and produced a plethora of rituals which became a deposit for different Buddhist and mountain religion traditions. The ongoing investigation of the Miwa-ryū 三輪流 textual and intellectual heritage is now in full swing. Among the transmissions included in the document collection, encompassing the rituals of Miwa-ryū and their close counterpart, Goryū lineages, there is a short and curious item, entitled The Great Secret of Waiting [for the Moon] (Jp. Imachi no daiji 居待之大事 ). 1 The Japanese word imachi 居待ち means sitting and waiting. Often it is used as a short-hand for another expression, imachi no tsuki 居待ちの月, or waiting for the moon. In this form, imachi appears to be more a calendrical and poetic term, which refers to the eighteenth day of the lunar month, when the moon, after it reached its full phase on the fifteenth day, begins to rise gradually later and later each night. Modern astronomical knowledge tells us that throughout its monthly course the moon undergoes different phases in its geographical position and length of appearance in the night sky; that had certainly been noticed in premodern Japan. The term imachi no tsuki was used to refer in particular to the eighteenth day of the eighth lunar month, and thus became a metaphoric expression connected with viewing the moon during the autumn season. In classical Japanese poetry, the use of this and similar expressions in relation to the autumn moon in seasonal and love poetry had been already known since the times of the Man yōshū. However, why were the holy men, practising at local cultic mountains such as Miwa and Murō, waiting for the moon? What purpose could it possibly serve? And more importantly, why was it a secret? To answer these questions, we need to look at the contents of this short ritual. Part of the reason for the emergence of such a ritual in the late medieval period is, of course, historical. Buddhist meditation techniques had long included such practices as contemplation on the moon disc (Jp. gachirinkan 月輪観 ). This practice was referred to in Mahāyanic sutras and in one of the great scriptures of the Chinese Tiantai tradition, also well known in Japan, the Great Treatise on Pausing and Contemplation (Ch. Moho chikuan, Jp. Makashikan 摩訶止観 ) composed in 594. In the esoteric Buddhist tradition, this practice involved a visualisation of the eight-petalled lotus and the Siddham syllable A within the moon disc. It was used as a method for ritual meditation aimed at acquiring a pure state of mind, concentration and completeness, and attaining buddhahood with this very body. Monastic peregrines, such as the late-heian monk Saigyō 西行 ( ), famously 1 This item is recorded in a group of fourteen secret transmissions of the so-called Private Notes on the Reiki Initiation (Jp. Reiki kanjō 霊気灌頂 ) in the extensive collection of historical documents commissioned by the Ōmiwa shrine (Ōmiwa jinja shiryō 大神神社史料, vol. 5, Miwaryū Shintō hen 三輪流神道編, pp ; Imachi no daiji 居待之大事, pp ). This group of transmissions, containing colophons of 1328 and 1564, represent notes on different aspects of ritual practices centring on buddhas and kami and transmitted by the medieval Miwaryū and its close peer, the August lineage, Go-Ryū 御流, transmitted at nearby Murōji and other temples. 21

22 recorded their experiences of gazing at the moon against different local landscapes in private poetry collections and anthologies. Drawing on the previous traditions, the above-mentioned ritual sequence of Waiting for the Moon appearing in the late medieval Miwa-ryū and Go-ryū collection reveals motivations and imagery that dwell on astronomical knowledge and Buddhist mythology and is constructed with the use of correlative and metaphoric logic. On the evening of the twenty-third day of the month, to practice the transmission of the Buddhist teaching repeat the following invocation one thousand times: Hail Bodhisattva Seishi 勢至菩薩 2 Then, [practice] the secret Black Moon ritual 黒月秘法. First, perform the ritual for body protection (Jp. goshinpō 護身法 ) as usual. Then, during the time when Bodhisattva Moon- Light (Jp. Gekkō bosatsu 月光菩薩 ) 3 appears, face it and give praise. With the middle finger of your right hand, write the Siddham syllable HÛM against the bright moondisc three times. You must observe Dakiniten 吒枳尼天 4 riding on the black cloud in the middle of the moon disk. After that, recite syllable HÛM 5 one thousand times. [Bind] the Amida-samadhi mudra (Jp. [A]mida jōin 弥陀定印 ) 6 and [intone] the mantra A DHIH(?) RA HÛM KHAM In your mind, face the deity Aizen myōō 愛染明王. After that, observe [the following:] Receive seven wish-fulfilling gems from Dakiniten and place them in your body. Next, invite them into your chest with both hands three times. Within six months all your wishes will be granted. This ritual must be kept secret. 2 Bodhisattva Seishi or Daiseishi 大勢至 (Sk. Mahā-sthāma-prāpta) is a Buddhist deity of wisdom light, illuminating all places and granting unlimited powers. In Buddhist iconography, it is often depicted as one of the two attendants of Buddha Amida, standing on his right (with Bodhisattva Kannon on the left). Seishi is often depicted wearing a water receptacle on top of its headdress and holding a lotus in its arm. Here, bodhisattva Seishi simply means moon. 3 Together with bodhisattva Sun-Light (Sk. Suryā-prabha), bodhisattva Moon-Light (Sk. Candra-prabha) is one of the attendants of Buddha Yakushi 薬師如来 (Sk. Bhaiśajyaguru). The Yakushi triad statues were installed in the Golden Hall of Yakushiji and Lotus Hall of Tōdaiji in Nara. 4 Dakini (Sk. Ḍākinī) are female demons (Sk. yakśa, Jp. yasha 夜叉 ), residing in the outer hall of the Womb Mandala (Jp. Taizōkai 胎蔵界 ) and thought to fall under the jurisdiction of the Deva Mahākāla (Jp. Daikokuten 大黒天 ). In premodern Japan, these Indic deities were transformed into the figure of Dakiniten. It was believed that through their powers, Dakini could perceive a human s death and eat their heart six months in advance. In medieval Japan, Dakinis became connected with fox spirits and the worship of Inari 稲荷. See Iyanaga 2006: According to the Yogin sutra (Jp. Yugikyō 瑜祇経, T ), the syllable HÛM represented a concentrated essence of the esoteric wisdom king Aizen Myōō, who promptly appears in the following step of the ritual. 6 The mudra of buddha Amida, indicating that the practitioner is entering a meditative state of samādhi. Both hands are calmly resting folded together below the belly button of a practitioner. For more on symbolic hand gestures, see Saunders In the ancient Indic calendar, the two-week phase lasting from the beginning to the middle of the synodic lunar month, until the moon reaches its full form, was called the white moon (Jp. byakugetsu 白月 ). Consequently, the latter phase, lasting from the full moon eclipse on the sixteenth day of the lunar month to the thirtieth day, was called the black moon (Jp. kokugetsu 黒月 ). Here, the name of the ritual points to its calendric scheduling, i.e., it has to be performed during the receding moon phase, otherwise known as waning gibbous. Depending on the phases of the Moon, and its relative position to the Earth and the Sun, as well as the latitude of the observer, on the eighteenth day of the eighth lunar month, the Moon is likely to rise in the north-east and set in the north-west. As can be seen from its contents, this ritual consists of a sequence of ritual actions: specifically timed invocations, symbolic body protection, calm waiting, greeting and contemplation of the moon, hand gestures and visualization of deities. Despite its deceptively short description, this ritual, if performed as prescribed, appears to be built on a plethora of astronomic and religious ideas, Buddhist mythological lore and diverse ritual motions. The metaphors of all-pervading light and darkness, the deities embodying luminous wisdom and arriving from the deadly realm of darkness riding on a black cloud suggest that the ritually constructed and ritually protected body of a practitioner was temporarily placed at the boundary of these opposite but co-existing realms. First, the practitioner appeals to Bodhisattva Seishi, the deity of luminous wisdom and attendant of a Buddha dwelling in the Pure Land, to whom this deity usually presents the dead to partake in the Buddha s benevolence and compassion. 7 Lit only by a receding moon, the practitioner summons the wrathful esoteric king Aizen Myōō, who stands on the border between ignorance and worldly passions, and the realm of enlightenment. Aizen, whom I believe needs no introduction, is envisioned in this ritual as a guardian figure, who can and will pacify the dangerous deity, Dakiniten, arriving from the realm of darkness. The high point and meaning of this ritual is in the exchange between the practitioner and Dakiniten, performed under the guidance of the esoteric wisdom king. The practitioner offers his or her body to the heart-eating demonic goddess, receiving instead seven wish-fulfilling gems which are to be placed inside the practitioner s own body. Given that Dakiniten was thought to know the timing of one s death six months in advance, the additional meaning of this ritual text could be that the practitioner voluntarily defines the moment of his or her ritual death, by inviting Dakiniten into their heart. Such ritual procedure, symbolically speaking, is by no means a safe or secure way of ensuring the achievement of the practitioner s goals. However, the tantric logic would have it that it is precisely the most dangerous, critical ritual actions that can ultimately lead towards enlightenment. Even a quick reading of this ritual text reveals a web 7 Teeuwen 2003: 137,

23 of metaphoric relations between esoteric and exoteric deities, invoked in the Black Moon ritual, which no doubt can be deepened further. Although the minute details of the ritual may remain obscure, the Buddhist practitioner enters this web with the recognition of a metaphoric language and imagery used in this ritual performance. The timing of it is such that the ritual ought to coincide with the receding moon in the autumn, and remind the practitioner about the waning forces of nature and the proximity of the world of the dead. Undoubtedly, the Black Moon ritual, with its strong esoteric Buddhist flavour and connection to the cults of the Pure Land and celestial bodies, 8 has medieval roots. Recent research continues to reveal the new significance of Dakiniten and Aizen worship, 9 Wish-Fulfilling Gems, luminous and dark deities hailing from various corners of Japan s premodern religious landscape. In that respect, we can anticipate that unravelling the web of relations in symbolic and spatial terms will shed more light on the processes of appropriating concepts, ritual formats, deities and icons arriving from India and China and repositioning and re-inventing them in the context of premodern Japan. To return to our earlier question posed in the introduction, perhaps, the answer is this: we should study and interpret these rituals just as they were produced in premodern Japan, - with a sense of endless wonderment. Regardless of the difficulty in tracing the doctrinal sources, upon a closer look, Japan s many ritual documents, especially those produced at the periphery of the formal Buddhist temple environment, expose the spectacular creativity and flows of religious imagination that went into their composition. In discovering and mapping these flows, the twists and turns of medieval myth- and ritualmaking make the study of Japanese religions more than worthwhile. Anna Andreeva received her PhD from Cambridge University in 2006, where she worked on the issues of esoteric Buddhism and Shinto in medieval Japan. Currently she is a research fellow and Assistant Professor in Japanese History at the Cluster of Excellence Europe and Asia, based at Karl Jaspers Centre for Advanced Transcultural Studies, University of Heidelberg, where she coordinates the project Religion and Medicine in Premodern East Asia. 8 On astronomic knowledge in Tang China, see Schafer 1977; on the worship of stars and other celestial bodies in premodern Japan, see Dolce Iyanaga 2002 on Daikokuten and 2010 on invocation of Dakiniten in the Tachikawa skull ritual, Bernard Faure 2000: 186 and 2003: 211 on the cults of Inari, Dakiniten and fox spirits, Teeuwen 2003: 130, 137 onwards on sun and moon discs. Broader discussions of these themes appear in Yamamoto 1993 and Teeuwen On Aizen s iconography and cult variations see Goepper 1993; translation of the Yugikyō can be found in Vanden Broucke On wish-fulfilling gems and the worship of relics, see an extensive study by Rupert Medieval iconographic and ritual developments are discussed in detail by Matsumoto 2005, and Dolce This is by no means an exhaustive bibliography. Selected Bibliography DOLCE, Lucia Ed. The Worship of Stars in Japanese Religious Practice. Special issue of Culture and Cosmos: A Journal of the History of Astrology and Cultural Astronomy, Vol. 10/1-2. (Bristol, UK); Nigenteki genri no gireika Fudō, Aizen to chikara no hizō 二元的原理の儀礼化 不動 愛染と力の秘像. In Dolce, Lucia and Matsumoto Ikuyo 松本郁代, eds. Girei no chikara: Chūsei shūkyō no jissen 儀礼の力 中世宗教の実践 (Tokyo: Hōzōkan, pp ). FAURE, Bernard Visions of Power: Imagining Japanese Medieval Buddhism (Princeton U. P.);2003. The Power of Denial: Buddhism, Purity and Gender (Princeton U.P.) GOEPPER, Roger Aizen Myōō: the Esoteric King of Lust, an Iconological Study. MCMXCIII, Artibus Asiae, Museum Rietberg Zurich, Switzerland. IYANAGA Nobumi 彌永信美 Daikokuten hensō, Bukkyō shinwa gaku I 大黒天変相仏教神話学 I, (Tokyo: Hōzōkan); Secrecy, sex and apocrypha: Remarks on some paradoxical phenomena. In B. Scheid and M. Teeuwen (eds.), The Culture of Secrecy in Japanese Religion, (London: Routledge, pp ); Mikkyō girei to nenzuru chikara 密教儀礼と 念ずる力. In Dolce and Matsumoto 2010, pp MATSUMOTO Ikuyo 松本郁代 Chūsei ōken to sokui kanjō: shōgyō no naka no rekishi jojutsu 中世王権と即位灌頂 : 聖教の中の歴史叙述. Imperial Authority and Accession Initiation (Abhiseka) Rituals in Medieval Japan: Historical Evidence from Buddhist Texts. (Tokyo: Rinwasha); with Lucia Dolce, eds. Girei no chikara: Chūsei shūkyō no jissen 儀礼の力 中世宗教の実践 (Tokyo: Hōzōkan) RUPPERT, Brian 2000 Jewel in the Ashes: Buddha Relics and Power in Early Medieval Japan (Cambridge, MA: Harvard U.P.). SAUNDERS, E. Dale [1960] Mudrâ: A Study of Symbolic Gestures in Japanese Buddhist Sculpture (New York: Pantheon Books). SCHAFER, E Pacing the Void: T ang Approaches to the Stars (Berkeley: University of California Press). TEEUWEN, Mark J and Rambelli (eds.), Buddhas and Kami in Japan: Honji Suijaku as a Combinatory Paradigm (London and New York: Routledge Curzon); and Bernhard Scheid (eds.), The Culture of Secrecy in Japanese Religion, (London: Routledge) VANDEN BROUCKE, Pol (tr., annot.) Yūgikyō. De Shriftuur van alle Yoga s en Yogî s van het Paviljoen met Vajra-Top (T. 18, no. 867, pp ). Dissertation, Rijksuniversiteit Gent. YAMAMOTO Hiroko 山本ひろ子 Henjōfu: chūsei shinbutsu shūgō no sekai 変成譜 中世神仏習合の世界 (Tokyo: Shinjūsha) 23

24 Research Notes A Glimpse into the Past: Notes on a Collection of Documents Recently Acquired Gaynor Sekimori Recently I acquired a box containing a total of 35 documents, most related in some form or another to pilgrimage. The box, 32 cm x 14 cm, is made of woven wood and painted black. It seems to have been stored in very dry conditions; the paint is flaking off and the wood is brittle. (Figure 1) The documents can broadly be divided into six types: kakemono, either loose or mounted; sutra books and related materials; omamori; ofuda; pilgrimage guides and goeika; and miscellaneous. There is no direct indication to whom the box belonged, but the owner may have been surnamed Kamei 亀井 or Kamegawa 亀川 and have lived in the village of Shimadachi(machi)-mura, which is now incorporated into the city of Matsumoto in Nagano prefecture. These names and that of the village are found in the back of an Ontakekyō liturgy included in the collection, as well as on scraps of paper, but further assessment is required. The documents can be dated from around the 1850s or 1860s (from references to the pre-shinbutsu bunri situation) to Kakemono Figure 1 There are six larger woodcut pictures, two of which are mounted (kakejiku). The first of these (35 mm x 22 mm; some insect damage) is from Togakushisan (Nagano) and depicts the nine-headed dragon associated with that mountain. (Figure 2) The legend Kuzuryū Daigongen on the right, Gohonji Benzaiten on the left and Shinshū Togakushisan on the bottom, attests to a pre-meiji origin: the shrine-temple complex centred on Kenkōji (a matsuji of Kan eiji) was forced to become Togakushi Shrine at the end of 1868 and the name of its kami became Kuzuryu Ōkami. Of course all reference to Benzaiten as the honjibutsu then disappeared. The second kakejiku (45 mm x 25 mm) is a standard depiction of the Oracles of the Three Shrines (sanja takusen), featuring the written titles of three deities, Tenshō Kōtai Jingū (Amaterasu) in the middle, Kasuga Daimyōjin on the left and Hachiman Daijin on the right, with their three associated oracles (concerning purity, honesty and compassion) printed beneath. (Figure 3) Though Hachiman is usually entitled Daibosatsu, the other titles, and the oracles, are standard pre-meiji forms, and I presume this scroll is pre- Meiji as well. Brian Bocking (personal communication) suggests it may relate to institutions such as Yoshida that were already emphasising a non-buddhist identity before Meiji. For example, there is a sanja takusen scroll with a similar inscription dating to the Edo period owned by Jingū Chōkokan in Ise. The scroll in this collection gives no indication about provenance. The remaining four pictures are: (a) a Togakushisan print on washi identical to the mounted version described above. (b) a print on washi (65 mm x 29 cm) with the title of Toshitokujin Ōmikami, with three verses beneath and two figures (male and female) below. The female holds a Figure 2. Togakushisan: Kuzuryū Daigongen Figure 3. Sanja takusen scroll: Oracle of the Three Shrines Figure 4. Daikokuten 24

25 jewel and the male a shape that could be a candle. I presume they represent Izanami and Izanagi. On the left is written Ōkume no mikoto son(?) gongūji 大来目命孫權神主. The seal is faint and almost illegible. Toshitokujin is a New Year deity with Onmyōdō associations, and the picture may have some connection with Sata Shrine in Izumo, which is associated with the sending off of the kami (Karasade rite) from Izumo Taisha at the end of November. (c) a print on washi of Daikokuten (57 cm x 26 cm). (Figure 4) The legend above the figure reads: Dai Nihon saisho kaiun Daikokuten; En no Gyōja onsaku; Ōminesan shutsugen 大日本最初開運大黒天役行者御作大峰山出現. There are two seals, but they are unidentifiable. The provenance is unclear. (d) a print on washi (39 cm x 15 cm) depicting Yakushi, the twelve generals, and Nikkō and Gakkō. Shinshū Kokubunji is written at the bottom. This Kokubunji temple is located in Ueda, Nagano, and Yakushi is enshrined in its hondō. In addition there is a small picture (24 cm x 11 cm) of the 33 Kannon of the Saigoku (West Country) pilgrimage, issued by Tanigumisan. This refers to Kegonji in Gifu, the 33rd temple of the pilgrimage. (Figure 5) Figure 5. The Saigoku Kannon (Tanigumisan Kegonji) 2. Sutras There are four documents that can be loosely defined as sutras. (Figure 6) The first is a handwritten copy of the Tenjinkyō, a short apocryphal sutra invoking the name of Sugawara no Michizane (Tenjin) that used to be read before classes in the Tokugawa period terakoya. The text reads in full: 如是我聞 一時仏在須菩提王 八万四千寶蔵 金剛般若波羅密多 第一梵天王 第二帝釈天 第三閻羅王 釈迦牟尼仏道 三千大千世界 広大福寿経 一切諸仏奉行礼拝供養慧命 須菩提王 一切明神等 三千大千世界 供養諸説奉行 南無天満大自在天神 Figure 6. Ontakekyō liturgical text, Heart Sutra, Tenjinkyō The copy of the text has a number of mistakes. There are two other pieces of paper containing this sutra, obviously practice scraps. The second document is a small (14.5 mm x 5 mm) paper sutra book containing the Heart Sutra with hiragana readings attached. There is no indication of its provenance. The third and fourth documents are identical service books entitled Ontakekyō 御峯経. One is handwritten on good quality washi in book format and the other in a standard concertina format sutra book. The latter is probably a copy of the former. They contain the liturgy for morning and evening services, preceded by prostrations, the offering of incense and performing the goshinpō (these are all listed as being kuden). The identification of this text as belonging to Ontakesan is verified by deities listed as kami to be venerated: they include the three deities closely associated with mountains opened by Kakugen Gyōja-Zaō Daigongen of Ontakesan, Daizura Shin ō (one of the Hannya jūroku zenjin) of 25

26 Hakkaisan and Tōri Tengu of Mikasasan. The theme of metsuzai is strong, as the liturgy consists of reciting the verse of repentance and three oharai: the Issai jōjū no harai, the Rokkon shōjōbarai and the Sanjū no harai. Other texts recited include the Sanjō shakujō, the Fudōkyō, the Shariraimon and the Heart Sutra; there is also a long list of darani to be chanted. 3. Omamori There are eight omamori or parts of omamori in the collection. Generally they consist of an outer paper wrapping with the venerated object inside. They include a Jūichimen Kannon ( 厄除観世音 ) from Nikkō, a Kannon from Sensōji (outer paper wrapping missing), and a seated Kūkai beneath a circular Kōmyō shingon in Sanskrit characters around the rim from Sanshū Zentsūji, the 75th of the 88 temples of the Shikoku pilgrimage (also without a wrapper). There are as well unidentified omamori consisting of a piece of material wrapped in paper, a square piece of paper wrapped in a cover with the word omizu written on it, and a small rectangle with the kami of the five elements topped with three small circles on the front and the words 開運 (?) 諸張道 on the back. In addition there are three larger omamori (between cm x 9-11 cm). (Figure 7) The first was issued by the Honzan-ha Shugen temple of Kongōin, the Bettō of Ontakesan (at Ryōjinsan in Chichibu), which was an important propogation point in Kantō for the Kiso Ontake faith. Inside the wrapper, on which the words Ontakesan Kongōin Goshugo were inscribed, is a sotoba shaped paper inscribed with the seed syllables A-bi-ra-un-ken. The second is inscribed Kotohiragu omamori 金力比羅宮御守 ; inside is a fold of paper with 神邇 written on it, and sealed within that inside another paper cover is a square of paper with the watermark 金 printed with red characters 金刀比羅宮印. This orthography is post-meiji. The characters 力 and 比 are compressed to suggest the pre-meiji 毘 and so people tended to read the title as Kompira, rather than the newly-introduced Kotohira (see Sarah Thal, Rearranging the Landscape of the Gods, p. Figure 7. Omamori: Kongōin, Kotohiragū, Tarōsan Figure 8 Goeika and pilgrim guides: Anshin goeika, Goeika of the 33 Saigoku Temples, Guide to the Chichibu Pilgrimage 135). The third is a sealed wrapper inscribed with the words Tarōyama Jinja and Kaiko yashinai goshugo. Tarōyama Shrine is located in the Ueda basin in Nagano and was popular as a silkworm protection deity; the shrine also performed rain-making rites. 4. Ofuda There are seven rectangular pieces of washi that may be termed ofuda. In the main they have been received for prayer rites offered. Three come from Toyokawa Inari (Toyokawa Daimyōjin [1] and Dakini sonten [2, identical]), one has been issued by the aforementioned Kongōin (as sendatsu ) of Ontakesan (for the performance of an Ontakesan honji goma ), and one is entitled Ōji Inari gohonji-ku, referring to the Inari Shrine at Ōji in Edo (whose honjibutsu were Shōkannon, Yakushi and Dakiniten). In addition there is a roughly hand-written ofuda, Furumine Daijinja mamori, which probably refers to the shrine at Kobugahara, an important ritual site in Nikko. This designation is post-meiji. Finally, there is an ofuda shaped pictorial representation of Konpirasan with the honsha at the top, a woodblock print issued by Ichinosaka Seikōdō 一ノ坂成功堂. Both the characters used for Konpirasan 金毘羅 (not Kotohira) and the printer indicate this is of Edo period provenance. There is in addition to these ofuda a paper shaped like a cone which contains a five-layered stick just over 9 cm long. The container has the words Tenshō Kōtai Jingū and Shō mikagura 小御神楽 written on the front. 26

27 There is a scrap of paper contain writing practice, apparently of the owner s own name, a covering sheet for a cash donation for oyomi, a sheet on which is written the kuji goshinpo (Figure 9), and a list, perhaps of petitions. There is also a slip containing the name of the lodging of Maruya Heitarō (?) that belonged to a federation of guaranteed quality lodgings called Rōkakō ( 浪花講 ; the name changed from 浪花組 in 1841); the lodging was apparently in the post town of Inariyama in Shinshū, on the way to Zenkōji. The name of Yanagiya Kanroku 柳屋寛 (?) 六 is written on the back. Finally, there is an empty medicine packet bearing the name of the manufacturer Inoue Seishichi of Kyoto. Dated June 1884, it states it was medicine for gonorrhoea for men and women and it is sealed with a 5 rin duty stamp. The instructions leaflet is included. The Inoue Seishichi pharmacy still exists at the same address in Kyoto: it is now famous for eye medicine. Conclusion Figure 9. Kuji goshinpo 5. Pilgrimage guides and goeika There are three collections of pilgrimage songs (goeika) (Figure 8): Anshin goeika, a collection of 18 compassionate songs issued by Zenkōji in Nagano; Goeika of the 33 Saikoku temples; and Guide to the Chichibu pilgrimage and its goeika, a woodblock print in booklet form, published by Gōdōji, the 18th temple of the circuit, perhaps in The third introduces the Saigoku, Bandō and Chichibu pilgimages and gives a detailed description of the latter. Each page has three temples, with a picture of the Kannon image, the name of the artisan who carved it, its height, the temple name and its sect, as well as directions to it. Underneath is the goeika. Its pre- Meiji origins are attested by the presence of temples designated Honzan Shugen (Imamiyabō, Gōdōji, Hōsenji, Hashidatedō, Kannon in) or shajinmochi (Jōrinji, Iwanouedō). Entries also occur for Chichibu Jinja, enshrining Myōkengū (the 15th temple Zōfukuji was its bettō) and Hinatasan and Mitsuminesan (whose bettō was the Honzan Shugen temple Kannon in, the 31st on the route). What can we surmise about the religious life of the owner of the documents? First, his activities centred on his home province of Shinshū (Nagano). He went to Togakushisan, Zenkōji, the Ueda Kokubunji, Tarōyama in the Ueda basin and was connected with the Ontake cult in some way. Second, he made a number of pilgrimages to more distant places, mostly dedicated to Kannon. Two Kompirasan documents exist, dating to both pre- and post- Meiji, which means at least two journeys. He also travelled to Nikkō, perhaps in the post-meiji period, to Edo, since he has talismans from Ōji Inari and Sensōji, and to Toyokawa Inari. He seems very likely to have made the Chichibu Kannon Pilgrimage, and perhaps even the Shikoku henro (Zentsūji omamori) and the Saigoku pilgrimage (kakemono from Tanigumisan, Saigoku goeika). The kagura talisman probably comes from Chichibu, not Ise. Third, he probably acquired for enshrinement in his home the Toshitokujin Ōmikami kakemono and the sanja takusen scroll. If readers can cast light on any of the above documents, or their provenance, I would be grateful particularly so regarding three of the omamori: the one with cloth inside, the one depicting the kami of five elements with three small circles on top, and the one with omizu written on it. Gaynor Sekimori (SOAS) was holder of the CSJR Postdoctoral Fellowship, and associate professor at the Institute of Oriental Culture at the University of Tokyo , where she was also the managing editor of the International Journal of Asian Studies. She is now a research associate at SOAS. 6. Miscellaneous 27

28 Postgraduate The SOAS MA Programme in Japanese Religion is the first European taught graduate programme devoted to the study of Japanese religion.the degree provides an overview of Japanese religion, both past and present, and supplies the tools of analysis for further research in the field. The degree comprises four components: three taught courses and a dissertation. The programme may be completed in one calendar year (full time), or in two or three calandar years (part-time). The programme centres around the course Religious Practice in Japan: Texts, Rituals and Believers, which presents Japanese religious phenomena in historic context and devotes attention to specific themes relevant for the understanding of the social aspect of Japanse religion and the influence of religion upon Japanese culture. Students have the opportunity to select other courses, depending on their specific interests and previous knowledge, in order to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the characteristics of Japanese religion. Options include the study of Asian context, contemporary developments outside Japan, and methodoligies for the analysis of religious phenomena. A previous knowledge of the Japanese language is not required for entry in the programme. However, the degree offers language courses in modern Japanese. Students on the programme will benefit from seminars, discussion groups, guest lectures, and international workshops organized by the Centre for the Study of Japanese Religions. Application forms are available from the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, SOAS. For further information on the programme, please visit the SOAS web site at: or contact: Dr Lucia Dolce, Room 342, ext Recently Awarded PhDs at SOAS on Japanese Religions Satomi Horiuchi, Contemporary Japanese Christianity: Ancestors, Rites and Graves (Dr L Dolce) Tullio Lobetti, Faith in the Flesh: Body and Ascetic Practices in Contemporary Japanese Religious Context (Dr L Dolce) Benedetta Lomi, The Precious Steed of the Buddhist Pantheon: Ritual, Faith and Images of Batō Kannon in Japan (Dr L Dolce) Masaaki Okada, Nature in the Healing and Farming Practices of Okada Mokichi of Sekai Kyūsei Kyō (Dr L Dolce) Fumi Ouchi, The Somatic Nature of Enlightenment: Vocal Arts in the Japanese Tendai Tradition (Dr L Dolce) PhD Research at SOAS on Japanese Religions Kigensan Licha The Esoterization of Sōtō Zen in Medieval Japan (Dr Dolce, Study of Religions) Shinya Mano, Eisai and the development of Zen- Esoteric Buddhism (Dr Dolce, Study of Religions) Yaara Morris, Cult of Benzaiten in the village of Tenkawa in the Kii peninsula her rituals, texts, and mandalas (Dr Dolce, Study of Religions) Anna Schegoleva, Ghosts in Japan: reconstructing horror in modernity (Dr Dolce, Study of Religions) Terumi Toyama The replication of sacred spaces in Edo (Prof. Screech, Department of Art & Archaelogy) Carla Tronu Montane, Christianity in pre-modern Japan (Dr Angus Lockyer, Department of History) MA Japanese Religions Dissertations James Hoyle, Kaji: The Power of the Buddha in the Thought and Action of Kūkai 28

29 Members' Research Related Activities Lucia Dolce Throughout the year Lucia presented a number of invited lectures on her current research at universities in Europe, the US and Asia, including: In Amaterasu's Likeness? Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies, Harvard University (October 8); The Embryonic Generation of the Ritual Body, at the International Symposium "Imagining the Feminine in East Asian Religions and Medicine", Heidelberg (Nov. 5-7); Ritual Embriology in the Japanese Tantric Tradition: Another Medieval Soteriological Shift? Nagoya University (16 February); The Secret Iconography of Empowerment: Triads and Other Ritual Bodies from Mediaeval Japanese Material, at the Centre for Buddhist Study, University of California Berkeley (April 28); Stars across Asia: The Ritual Translocation of Buddhist Astrological Imagery in Japan, panel Dynamics of Locativization, Translocation, and Re-contextualization of Buddhism in and across Asia, sponsored by Bochum University, International Association of Buddhist Studies Conference, Taipei (June 20-26). She was also a guest speaker at the international conference Japan: A Return Trip from the East to the West, Dimitrie Cantemir University, Bucharest (30-31 August), where she delivered a lecture on Ritual Interfaces: Tantric Buddhism in Mediaeval Japan. In London she gave two gallery talks at British Museum, on Sutras, Buddhas and Their Devotees: Enshrining the World of Japanese Buddhism (10 November) and Iconography and Patronage in Japanese Buddhism (18 December), and a public talk at the British Library on Practices of the Lotus Sutra in Japan (23 November). At Soas she co-organized three international workshops, where she also acted as a discussant and presenter: Reassessing Buddhist Visual Culture: New Findings and Global Perspectives (November 11); Combinatory Practices in Japan: Rethinking Religious Syncretism (24-25 Feb); Word deities icons: Exploring ritual performance in pre-modern Japan (12-13 May) (See reports in this Newsletter). She made two research trips to Asia. In February she spent 10 days in Japan by invitation of the University of Nagoya to do research at the Shinpukuji archives for her current project on Buddhist embryology (Feb 11-21). She later organized a panel on this topic at the European Association of Japanese Studies in Tallin (August 24-28), where she presented the results of this research. In July she spent two weeks in China to do fieldwork on her new project, Contemporary Religious Art in China and Japan, graciously sponsored by a JRC small grant. Publications: Readings in Japanese Religions, 4 vols., London: SAGE Publications, 2011(edited). The Practice of Religion in Japan: An Exploration of the State of the Field, in Readings in Japanese Religions, L. Dolce, ed., Sage Publications, 2011, pp. xix-lvii; Taimitsu: The Esoteric Buddhism of the Tendai School, in Esoteric Buddhism and The Tantras in East Asia, Charles Orzech general ed., Leiden: Brill, 2011, pp ; Godai in Annen, in Esoteric Buddhism and The Tantras in East Asia, Charles Orzech general ed., Leiden: Brill, 2011, p (with Shinya Mano); Taimitsu Rituals in Medieval Japan: Sectarian Competition and the Dynamics of Tantric Performance, in Transformations and Transfer of Tantra in Asia and Beyond, Istvan Keul ed., Berlin/New York: Walter de Gruyter Publishers, 2011, pp ; Re- John Breen was meant to be my third of three years of unpaid leave at Nichibunken. I was planning on returning to London to start the new academic year with you this September. In the autumn of 2010, however, I got an offer from Nichibunken that I could not refuse, and decided that the time had come for me to change tack, leave SOAS with feelings of great sadness and spend the rest of my academic life here in Kyoto. I shall stay in touch, of course, with all my SOAS friends. I hope very much to maintain my links with the Centre for the Study of Japanese Religions as well. Please let me know if you come to Kyoto! Anyway, since I last contributed to the CSJR newsletter, I have been pretty busy. I have given talks and participated in conferences in Jakarta, Hanoi, Honolulu, London, and Jerusalem. Within Japan, I spoke at Nichibunken, Kyodai, Dōshisha, Ochanomizu Joshi Daigaku, Meiji Jingū and Tsurugaoka Hachimangū. At present, I am working on a history of the Ise shrines (in English with Mark Teeuwen of Oslo University), and a modern history of Ise (in Japanese). Publications Girei to kenryoku: Tenno no Meiji ishin, Heibonsha 2011; Chōhei kensa kō in Susuki Sadami ed., Japan Today: senjiki Bungei Shunjū no kaigai hasshin, Tokyo: Sakuhinsha, 2011; Resurrecting the sacred land of Japan: the state of Shinto in the 21st century, Japanese Journal of Religious Studies, 37, 2 (2010); A New History of Shinto (co-authored with Mark Teeuwen), Wiley- Blackwell, 2010; Conventional wisdom and the politics of Shinto in postwar Japan, Politics and Religion 4,1 (2010); Shinkoku Nippon no fukkō: 21seiki ni okeru Shintō no dōkō, Rekishi hyōron 722 (2010) Popes, bishops and war criminals: reflections on Catholics and Yasukuni in post-war Japan," The Asia- Pacific Journal, , 2010; Kindai Sannō matsuri no genten: Kanpei taisha Hie jinja no hitokoma Jinbun gakuhō, 98 (2009); Honchō no yukue, Nichibunken 43 (2009). 29

30 Members' Research Related Activities Gaynor Sekimori Dr Gaynor Sekimori delivered a number of lectures and talks in late 2010 and throughout 2011:November 2010 (Heidelberg, workshop): Foetal Buddhahood: From Theory to Pratice Embryological Symbolism in the Autumn Peak Ritual of Haguro Shugendo ; February 2011 (SOAS, Combinatory Practices in Japan): Combinatory Practice in the Life of an Edo - Period Village Shugen: Secret Rituals from the Archive of Koshikidake Kannonji ; February 2011 (Urasenke London): Shugendo ; August 2011 (Tallinn, EAJS): The Kuginuki Nenbutsu of Nikko ; October 2011 (Paris Diderot University): Shugendo and Japanese Religion. Publications: (joint) Shugendō: The History and Culture of a Japanese Religion. Cahiers d Etrême Orient 18 (2009). Introduction (with D. Max Moerman); Defining Shugendō Past and Present: The "Restoration" of Shugendō at Nikkō and Koshikidake, Cahiers d Etrême Orient 18 (2009). Shugendō and its Relationship with the Japanese Esoteric Sects: A Study of the Ritual Calendar of an Edo Period Shrine-Temple Complex in Esoteric Buddhism and the Tantras in East Asia, eds Orzech, Sørensen and Payne, Leiden & Boston: Brill, 2011; The World Shall Come to Walsingham, Dharma World, vol. 39, Jan-Mar Special Issue, The Meaning of Modern Pilgrimage. Review: Death and the Afterlife in Japanese Buddhism. Edited by Jacqueline I. Stone and Mariko Namba Walter. Honolulu: University of Hawai i Press. Nihon Bukkyō Sōgō Kenkyū, 9 (2011). Other activities: Organiser, CSJR Film workshop: Documenting Japanese Religions: A Shugendō Film Festival in Memory of Carmen Blacker ( ) (March 24-15, 2011). Discussant, Words Deities Icons, Exploring Ritual Performance in Premodern Japan (SOAS May 2011). Benedetta Lomi I am currently spending one year at UC Berkeley s Center for Japanese Studies as a postdoctoral fellow. I took up the post in August and, since then, I have been working on a research project on Heian-period healing rituals. In particular, I am focusing on a liturgy called the Ritual of the Six-Syllable sūtra (rokujikyōhō 六字経法 ), in high demand among Heian aristocracy, that was specifically aimed at curing from fox possession (kitsunetsuki 狐付き ), and at protecting women during childbirth (anzan 安産 ). The liturgy derives its name as well as its health-giving power from a secret six-syllable dhāraṇī of Kannon, the recitation of which is at the centre of the practice. Nevertheless, this was not the only therapeutics employed during the ritual, which also included the burning or ingestion of talismans; the creation of medicinal remedies, mainly in the forms of pills; the use of substitute bodies (hitokata 人形 ), that were rubbed against the body of the sick person then hit repeatedly and disposed of in the river. At present, I am investigating these different healing strategies, the origins of their systematization within the rokujikyōhō liturgy, as well as the nature of the ailments the ritual is aimed at preventing and curing. This is a project that started as a side-aspect of my doctoral dissertation and that I have already had the possibility of presenting at SOAS last spring and more recently at the EAJS in Tallinn. It is nevertheless only now, thanks to this research opportunity, that it is beginning to take a shape of its own. Eventually, I will expand it by including similar rituals and tackle broader questions relating to the concepts of disease and health that informed these practices. I am also organizing the event Healing Texts, Healing Practices, Healing Bodies: A Workshop on Medicine and Buddhism in East Asia, that will be co-hosted by the Center for Buddhist Studies and the Center for Japanese Studies, with the generous support of the Shinnyo-en Foundation. The workshop wishes to be a platform to discuss notions of health, disease and body with a broad focus on medieval/pre-modern periods by looking at the intersections of religious and medical knowledge in Tibet, China and Japan. Therefore, besides looking at regionalspecific instances, the idea is to bring together experts in Chinese, Japanese and Tibetan Buddhist medicine to encourage a multicultural approach as well as stimulate a broad range of questions. The workshop will take place on the 6th and 7th of April and I encourage everyone who might be in the San Francisco Bay Area at that time to participate. The San Francisco Bay Area is truly an ideal environment for researchers in the field of Buddhist studies. Besides being a historically fertile ground for many Buddhist associations, it boasts important academic centers such as UC Berkeley s own Center for Buddhist Studies (CBS), the Stanford Ho Center for Buddhist Studies, and the Institute of Buddhist Studies (IBS), also in the city of Berkeley. The programme at UC Berkeley in particular fosters a variety of scholarly events, cultural and intellectual activities, collaborative projects and challenging seminars. I am extremely thankful to the Shinnyo-en Foundation for generous funding to conduct my research in this stimulating context. I will remain in Berkeley until the end of July 2012 but I hope to be able to visit SOAS and see many of you in the near future. 30

31 CSJR Visiting Scholar 日本と海外における日本宗教研究の差違明星大学人文学部教授 三橋正 私は明星大学から特別研究期間制度の適用を受け 昨年度 (2010 年 4 月 9 日 ~2011 年 3 月 15 日 ) SOAS の CSJR に在籍して研究することができた テーマは 日本および諸外国のシンクレティズムに関する総合的研究 とし 日本の神仏習合などの諸宗教の交わり方と 諸外国 ( 特に西洋 ) の様相との共通点 相違点を明確にしながら総合的な考察を試みようとした 私はこれまで主に古代から中世にかけての日本宗教のあり方を歴史学の手法に基づいて研究し 日本古代神祇制度の形成と展開 (The Establishment of the Jingi System and its Development (into Shinto) in Ancient Japan) (2010, 法蔵館 ) と 平安時代の信仰と宗教儀礼 (Religious Belief and Rites in the Heian Era) (2000, 続群書類従完成会 ) という 2 冊の著書を執筆し 小右記註釈長元四年 (Annotated Edition of the Shoyuki, Year 1031) (2009, 八木書店 ) と 校註解説現代語訳麗気記 Ⅰ(Annotation and Translation into Modern Japanese of the Reikiki 1) (2001, 法蔵館 ) という 2 つの註釈書を作成した もちろん 海外の研究にも目を通してはいたが それらを十分に斟酌できなかったという反省がある その原因には 言葉の壁と もう一つ 日本における研究の細分化がある 歴史学と宗教学 また同じ歴史学でも古代史と中世史 ( 以降 ) などと それぞれ分野で緻密な考察が必要とされ 包括的な日本宗教論の展開は憚られる傾向があった 神道の形成を論じる場合でも 黒田俊雄に代表される中世史研究の立場からは古代国家による神祇令の考察が不十分で 逆に古代史研究では中世神道論を評価しない という現象が起こっているのである 諸研究を再整理して将来的な発展を目指すためにも 海外に身を置いて日本の学界を客観視する必要があったが SOAS で私を受け入れてくださったルチア ドルチェ教授は中世の神道 仏教を幅広く研究されており お互いの立場から研究テーマについて議論できたことは大変有意義であった 滞在中は 3 つの方針を持って活動するように心懸けた 第一には これまでの日本宗教に関する研究成果を英語圏での研究方法で見直すことである これについては SOAS 内で "How did the Japanese image their gods?"(csjr Seminar 5 月 13 日 ) と "On annotating a Heian noble's diary and syncretic religious texts "(JRC Lecture 6 月 2 日 ) の 2 回の講演をする機会をいただいた 慣れない英語でのスピーチにも聴衆は熱心で 多くの質問 意見をいただいたことには とても感謝している その中で特に感じたことは 日本人があたりまえとする宗教についての感覚を説明することの難しさである 例えば神道について触れる際 ( 日本を研究している専門化は理解していることであるが ) 西洋的な概念に基づく宗教という範疇ではなく 習慣に近いものであり 日本人の宗教の一部分であることを丁寧に説明しなければならない さらに 麗気記 のような中世の神道書を英訳するには 日本語の現代語訳をする以上に繊細な注意が必 要で 日本と海外の研究者が共同して濃密な議論を重ねなければならないことにも気づかされた 第二には 欧米における日本研究の現状を知り 海外から見た日本観を把握することである SOAS 内で行なわれたセミナーや講演会だけでなく 8 月にトロント大学で開催された IAHR( 国際宗教学宗教史学会 ) 9 月に SOAS で開催された BAJS( イギリス日本研究学会 ) ダイワ 東芝 セインズベリー財団などによる諸講演会に参加し 発表 ( 講演 ) 者 参加者との議論を通じて 日本における研究関心との相違点を追究することができた 日本への関心は非常に高く 幅広い分野の研究が展開しているだけでなく 歴史 文学 宗教 美術のような伝統的な学問と 現代政治 経済 マスコミ サブカルチャー 漫画などの新しい研究分野とが混在し 垣根を越えた質疑応答が展開されていた そこでは 日本では決して取り上げられない内容を問題にしたり 決して結びつけられない点を合わせて論じたりすることがあった これこそ 研究対象を客観視していることで多様な視点 自由な発想に基づく学術的進展が生み出されていく原動力であるが 日本人からは大胆すぎるように見えることもある 特に歴史学の立場からは 史料の原点から離れて議論を展開させる発表スタイルに戸惑いを覚えた 第三には 諸外国の宗教史跡を訪ね それぞれの地域における諸宗教統合の現象を調査し 日本のそれと比較することである ヨーロッパ内だけでなく 日本からの往復にインドや中米にも立ち寄り 多くの文化的宗教現象を見たことで 日本宗教の特殊性が再認識され 今後の研究について課題と展望を見いだすことができたが これについては 別の機会にまとめたい さて 日本における日本研究と 海外における日本研究の差違は どこにあるのだろうか かなり乱暴であるが 原点史料の実証的分析にこだわる立場と 論への展開をより重視とする立場の違いがあると思う ( もちろん そのような立場の違いは日本国内にもあり 歴史学ならば東京と京都の差違であるという指摘がよくなされる ) しかし 学問にとってその両方が必要であることは言うまでもなく 言葉の壁を越えて 両者が議論する意義は大きい 幸いなことに 私は 秋学期 (9 月から 12 月まで ) にルチア ドルチェ教授の大学院の授業を担当させてもらい 若い SOAS の研究者たちと親密な交流を持つことができた そこでは神道 仏教 陰陽道についての重要な史料を取り上げ 英訳のあるものは英訳との対比 ないものは新たな英訳を試み それぞれの史料について議論をしながら理解を深めるという形式を取った 31

32 Information on Japanese Religions ここでも翻訳の限界を痛感したが その限界を意識しながら 史料の価値を追求し その上で日本宗教について理解するという姿勢が伝わったと思う また 漢文の読解について指導をして欲しいという要請に応えて 23 回にわたる漢文セミナーを開催した 平安時代の貴族の漢文日記である 小右記 を読みながら 当時の政治 社会 風習などを解説したことは とても良い経験になっただけでなく 日本文化の研究方法を発信するという重要な意義を感じた これからも機会があれば 積極的にこの役割を果たしたいと思う 日本と海外における日本研究の差違を痛感し その克服を目指そうという思いは 日本の学界に精通しているルチア ドルチェ教授にもあった そして 私の研究期間の最後にCSJRの春期ワークショップ Combinatory Practices in Japan: Rethinking Religious Syncretism を開催することにつながった 2011 年 2 月 23 日 ~24 日になされた本ワークショップについての解説は別の報告に譲り ここでは反省点と展望を述べるに留めたい 日本からも神仏習合研究の第一線で活躍している研究者を呼んで開催された本ワークショップでは 単に日本の神仏習合の現象を見直すだけではなく それを翻訳できる英語を探し出すという目的があった 三橋の報告 "The formation of Shinto as a Combinatory Religious System" で 神道 仏教 陰陽道を使い分ける日本宗教のあり方の中で部分的に神仏習合という融合現象 combinatory phenomenon が起こるという指摘や Tullio Lobetti(SOAS) の報告 "When Two Become One: On the Meaning and Use of 'Syncretism' in Religious Studies" で シンクレティズムの語源や西洋の事例との比較から神仏習合の特異性を導き出そうという試みは 日本での研究に不足している比較の視点から 論 翻訳 を目指そうとしたものであった しかし ( 特に日本からの ) 発表者の多くは神仏習合現象の分析および歴史的位置付けに重点を置き 必ずしも海外との比較や 論 翻訳 についての議論に十分な時間が割けなかった ( 言葉の壁が大きかったことも その要因の一つであることは言うまでもない ) けれども 従来にはない貴重な論点がいくつも出され その成果を日本で出版する準備を進めている 重要なことは 日本 海外の研究者がこの差違を意識して研究に取り組むことである その一歩を踏み出すことができたという意味でも SOASでの滞在は有意義であった 最後に 1 年間の長きにわたってお世話になったルチア ドルチェ教授をはじめとする SOASの先生 スタッフ 学生の皆さんに 心よりお礼申し上げる Haguro Shugendō in Paris Gaynor Sekimori In October 2011, a group from Mt Haguro (Yamagata prefecture) visited Paris to introduce the local tradition of shōjin ryōri. As part of this programme, a public seminar on Shugendo, together with a food tasting, was held on October 13 at Université Paris Diderot Paris 7. The event was given in Japanese, with French translation provided by Professor Yatabe and Matthias Hayek. Gaynor Sekimori gave the opening talk about the place of Shugendo within Japanese religious history. Sekimori discussed the characteristics of sacred mountains, the tradition of visiting, and practising on, sacred mountains, as seen at Mt Haguro, the religious symbolism and iconography of the Omine mountains contrasted with that of Dewa Sanzan (the three mountains of Dewa, of which Haguro is a part), and different types of practices associated with mountain religion. She contextualised Shugendo within the broad tradition of combinatory religion (shinbutsu shūgō) and spoke of the disruption casued by the Meiji policy of separating buddha and kami worship (shinbutsu bunri). Naruse Masanori, who works for the Haguro Tourist Promotion Group, gave the second lecture on the local character of Haguro Shugendo, determined to a great extent by its geographical setting. Haguro Shugendo was traditionally marked by four seasonal practices, known as the Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter Peaks. Unlike the Autumn Peak, which is a period of ascesis for professional yamabushi, the Winter Peak is centred on nurturing the spirit of the grain over a hundred days, with two senior yamabushi (called matsu hijiri) reciting liturgies before a small straw container called koya hijiri holding the five grains. The grains, contained within a bamboo tube inside the koya hijiri, are thought to give birth to the grain child and the grain mother. This belief in the grain spirit was spread widely through the region spread by yamabushi, and in the past, the grains contained in the koya hijiri were delivered to the important temples on Mt Haguro and then distributed by the yamabushi living at the base of the mountain in the form of a talisman (ofuda). The majority of the recipients were farmers, who first placed the talisman on the kamidana inside their house, and later stuck it into the bale containing rice seeds to be planted. After transplanting, the talisman was placed where the water to irrigate the field entered. It was believed that this transmits the power of the grain spirit into the field and brings about a bountiful harvest. Following the two lectures, there was a question and answer session in the canteen, conducted by Ito Ken ichi of the Ideha Bunka Kinenkan in Toge (Haguro), Yoshizumi-san (Myokobo), Naruse Nasanori and Gaynor Sekimori. There was much interest in the yamabushi garb that three of the participants wore. The day ended with various dishes associated with Haguro shōjin ryōri made available to all who attended. 32

33 Information on Japanese Religions Heian Japan in the East Asian World: Cross Currents in Art and Culture: Mimi Hall Yiengpruksawan s Lectures Noriko Horsley For the academic year, the Toshiba Lectures in Japanese Art series and the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures invited Mimi Hall Yiengpruksawan (Yale University) to present three lectures, in which she shared with UK audiences her insights into the life of ancient Japan. The overall theme of the lecture series was entitled Heian Japan in the East Asian World: Cross Currents in Art and Culture. The lectures focused on diverse aspects of religious and cultural flows between Japan and the continent in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, and set out to show that what she termed the putative insularity of Japan, which had long been accepted by both Japanese and international academics, had no basis in fact and that instead the country continuously sought out and adopted the most up-to-date objects, knowledge and fashions from various countries in East Asia. The titles of the individual lectures indicate the range of subjects: Some Peacocks, A Parrot, and the Heian World in Global Perspective (held at the BP Lecture Theatre, British Museum, on 5 November); Two Supernovae and the Buddhist Astronomical Imagination in Japan of the 11th Century (held at the Brunei Gallery, SOAS, on 10 November); and Kiyohira s Golden Tomb: The North Asian Factor in Japanese Culture of the 12th Century (held at Norwich Cathedral Hostry, on 18 November). Each lecture attracted a large and enthusiastic audience. On the eleventh of November, Professor Yiengpruksawan also participated in a specialist seminar organised by CSJR entitled Reassessing Buddhist Visual Culture in Japan: New Findings and Global Perspectives. The speakers included Prof. Cynthea Bogel (University of Washington, Seattle), Gregory Levine (University of California, Berkeley), and Benedetta Lomi (SOAS). Professor Yiengpruksawan described in her first keynote lecture how the Japanese aristocrats of the time, in her words, were closely plugged into the East Asian geopolitical theatre, enabling Japan to play a role in the medieval world exceeding its geographical boundaries. Peacocks, for example, symbolised the inclination Andi Sapey toward foreign trends of a strong body of aristocratic patrons; the Peacock Sutra was imported in the early Heian Period, together with several painted images of the Peacock King, which were realised in a strikingly elegant and extravagant style. Thereafter, this exotic and novel motif was employed to adorn many palaces and temples. Great efficacy was attributed to the secret Peacock Sutra ritual by the imperial and regent families. These birds were much admired in real life for their other-worldly beauty, and possessing them was a measure of the wealth and power of the owners. The construction of hexagonal and octagonal towers or high multi-tiered towers (one of which measured over 90 metres in height) also became fashionable, reflecting a new wave of architectural influences from abroad. The phoenix temple at Uji in particular embodied such increased receptiveness to various international architectural styles and religious concepts of the time. A precise calendar based on Chinese Yin-yang astrological data became popular among a wider section of aristocratic society, providing detailed information on cosmic phenomena and essential instructions on the correct courses to be followed by individuals, as dictated by the current astral positions and movements. Needless to say, the calendar played a significant part in political culture as well, and its coded language was a source of supposedly scientific knowledge that enabled people to predict or solve various problems beyond ordinary human powers. 33

34 The multiple examples presented by Professor Yiengpruksawan all served to demonstrate that Japan was not in fact shrouded in a mystic veil of so called kokufū bunka, or true Japanese original culture and that the country could fairly be described as quite international and modern, in spite of the long-lasting suspension of official diplomacy with foreign countries after 894. Her account in fact echoes recent attempts by some Japanese scholars who have sought to re-assess the term, kokufū bunka, from many angles. Some have directly questioned the meaning attributed to the term and the periodic demarcation applied to it, arguing that it is quite mistaken to assert that Japan saw itself as having created a pure-distilled culture of its own and ignored the rest. Many strands of research have been conducted in recent decades into the maritime movements of people and goods, covering the Nara Period onwards, suggesting that the number of priests studying abroad and the volume of foreign trade showed a large increase in the second half of the Heian Period ( ). The epitome of the aspiration for novel and foreign things, according to Japanese researchers, can be found in the extensive catalogues of imported books compiled for the imperial and aristocratic houses. Korea and Japan were the most avid customers in the book market of China s Tang Dynasty. Their appetite for knowledge was insatiable. As a result, the Song court later sent a series of missions to both countries to buy copies of an extraordinary number of precious books lost after the collapse of the Tang Dynasty. Ouyang Xiu says in his Ode to A Japanese Sword that hundreds of books long lost in the flames of war in China are still safely preserved in Japan. The catalogue of the Japanese court archive maintained a fairly complete and up-to-date record of these imported books. In addition, some aristocrat-scholars collected impressive amounts of seminal works on classics, religious and philosophical texts and other specialist books newly published in China. Emperor Goshirakawa, who tried to create a complete treasury of books and art objects, was said to have given up expanding the foreign book section of his archive, after admitting that he could not match the collection assembled by polymaths such as Fujiwara Yorinaga or Shinzei. Thereafter, word that Japan had amassed many precious archival collections spread through the continent, and many foreign priests visited Japan to read rare books which were unavailable elsewhere. It should be stressed that it was not a one-way cultural flow from China to Japan; some Japanese manuscripts (written in Chinese), from the 7th century to the 11th century, found their way to China as well. The invention of the Japanese alphabet and various Japanese artistic styles did indeed have a formative impact on national culture in Japan, but rather than replacing the dominant continental culture, it enriched the whole gamut of life in the Heian capital. A good many contemporary Japanese scholars actually take a position similar to that of Professor Yiengpruksawan over the issue of the international character of early mediaeval Japanese culture. In her final talk, Professor Yiengpruksawan presented a new and astonishing hypothesis that Fujiwara no Kiyohira, the lord of Hiraizumi in the northern Japan, might have been a relative or descendant of the Khitan Royal family. She presented several pieces of evidence, including the decorative designs applied to the Golden Mausoleum which entombed Kiyohira and three other members of his family, the fact that all the remains were mummified, and the use of particular devices for the purpose of preserving the mummies intact all similar to the Khitan royal tradition. If the theory is borne out, many aspects of the geo-political, religious and cultural development of Western Japan may have to be thoroughly reexamined. The lecture caused a considerable stir among the audience, and ended with a standing ovation. Prof. Richard Bowring of Cambridge remarked that he had not heard such a stimulating talk for a long time. He also entered a note of caution, asking why the Khitan would have chosen to cross the steep Ōu mountain range and settle on the Pacific coast. Obviously we have to wait a little while for the verification of Prof. Yiengpruksawan s theory, as she is scheduled to explore the Tibetan, Tangut and Khitan regions in 2012, to research the cultural flows linking ancient Japan to those areas. Noriko Horsley is currently a PhD candidate at SOAS, Department of the History of Art and Archaeology. Her research focuses on the court patronage and collecting of art in twelfth century Insei-period Japan. Andi Sapey 34

35 Publications Cynthea J. Bogel, With a Single Glance: Buddhist Icon and Early Mikkyō Vision, University of Washington Press, Reviewed by Yaara Morris With a Single Glance: Buddhist Icon and Early Mikkyō Vision is an examination of the formative stage of esoteric Buddhist visual culture in ninth century Japan, and an immense contribution to our understanding of Heian period sensibility and materiality at large. Cynthea J. Bogel demonstrates that images transmitted esoteric Buddhism along with a visual culture that was rooted in a rich philosophical framework pertaining to visuality and materiality. She argues that vision was one of the driving forces of Mikkyō and examines both images and their apprehension within broad cultural and ritual contexts. Kūkai taught that the material and visual forms of his teaching instantiate the transcendent Dharmakāya Buddha, and he wrote: With a single glance one becomes a Buddha. But what did Kūkai mean by the word glance? In a fascinating analysis of visual, textual and ritual sources, Bogel unravels a complex field of vision that embraced the contradiction between form and formlessness and the ritualised glance. The book is divided into five parts that discuss different aspects of Mikkyō visuality and demonstrate the profound influence Mikkyō had on Japanese visual culture. Part one Definitions and Dynamics introduces a framework to the understanding of Japanese esoteric Buddhist visual culture. It looks at the religious taxonomies and the historical and sectarian context of Mikkyō, and presents new terms for the investigation of its visual culture. One of the key concepts that Bogel introduces and develops throughout the book is entitled the logic of similarity. Focusing on the mandala, she argues that the visual operated in Mikkyō similarly to ritual in the sense that it empowered the practitioner and altered his position by his partaking in the source of power embodied in the image. Kūkai explained that ultimate reality transcends words and forms, and yet in taking form it is comprehended. He validated words, forms, images, as well as the practitioner s body and ritual acts as embodiments of the Dharmakāya Buddha and he bestowed upon them an equal ontological standing to that of the divinity. Bogel maintains that the logic of similarity, which encapsulates Kūkai s philosophy of form, altered visual apprehension and icon worship, allowed visual efficacy to inhere in ritual and in the creation of icons and to reside in the icon as a locus of power. Her investigation, however, is not limited to form. Bogel argues that immaterial mental constructs partook in this logic of similarity and were immanent participants in the making of the Mikkyō visual culture and ritual framework. Part Two Mikkyō Visual Culture and Its Sources discusses the historiography of Mikkyō art through a close examination of icons defined by the Tendai and Shingon sects as esoteric. It then investigates Kūkai s and Saichō s transmission of Mikkyō materiality from China and its reception in Japan, highlighting continuity and change. It focuses on Kūkai s cargo of visual culture, as a form of cultural exchange, and as part of a Buddhist ritual economy, blurring the lines of demarcation between the material and doctrinal value of religious objects. It even includes visiting priests as part of the trade between the two countries. But the discussion also shows that beyond being a commodity, visual culture was an active participant in the relations between Buddhism and the state. Bogel demonstrates that the items Kūkai transmitted, many of which were used in rituals for the protection of the state and the legitimation of the ruler introduced into Japan the Chinese model of relations between Buddhism and the court. At the same time, she shows that their reception in Japan was from the very beginning accompanied by an exegetical process, which gave the items a genealogy and an efficacy that altered their meaning and function to legitimise Kūkai s legacy. Of special interest is the discussion of patriarch portraits and their new ritual function in Japan. The chapter analyses the objectified charisma of the material transmission, its reception and taxonomy within a new cultural context. Parts three and four Visions and Cosmologies, and Vision, Ritual and Imagery are the core of this research. They proffer a highly stimulating analysis of image, vision, cosmology, knowledge and power that goes beyond the borders of visual culture studies and opens myriad venues for further research. Focusing on eidetic contemplations, Bogel argues that the most visual component of Esoteric ritual was (not the icon but) the mind, and that vision in ritual operated beyond the optical realm. She also stresses that the icon was not exclusively a pictorial object of sight. It partook in a range of vocal, spatial, and mental practices, such as recitation, circumambulation, and contemplation that attributed diverse sensory functions to the icon. Correspondingly, the field of vision that is explored in this research relies primarily on how rather than what the mind sees and the argument 35

36 is supported by a wealth of Chinese terms pertaining to different modes of vision. This esoteric field of vision is ingrained in the eye(s) and vision(s) of the Buddhist episteme (which Bogel surveys, starting in Sanskrit and Pali literature and continuing in eight century Japanese Buddhist literature); it is part of a broader sensory sphere that pertains to the human body; it manifests new and old pantheons of earthly and astral deities that re-shaped the medieval imagination; it incorporates material and immaterial images as well as material and immaterial modes of seeing, such as eidetic contemplation, visualization, divination, imagination and dream; and finally, it partakes in the logic of similarity and is thus efficacious in both material and immaterial spheres. Visual efficacy partook in the sacralization of the medieval reality at large. The research shows that it was integral to the transmission of the Buddhist truth and to the pursuit of enlightenment in this body, as well as to political and social domination. In a reality that wove together cosmology, mythology and polity, vision was efficacious also in the sense that it had direct material consequences. Divination, for instance, could determine the movement of troops. It was thus implicitly in the hands of the emperor, and was under social, political and sectarian regulations, which were in turn informative of the efficacy of divination and the status of diviners and their sect. The chapter unravels the fluidity between material and immaterial images and modes of seeing in both the ritual and political spheres, and situates the immaterial immanent to Mikkyō visual culture. Part Five Choreographies of Ritual Space examines the transmission and reception of Mikkyō ritual space. It looks at how visual culture changed the spatial design and ritual function of worship halls associated with Mikkyō in a range of early Heian sanctuaries. It also examines the politics of space, and, focusing on sites of abhiṣeka (and their Chinese origins) it demonstrates how visual culture and ritual space participated in Japan in the protection of the state and the formulation of divine rule. The core of the investigation, however, is the Tōji karma mandala. Bogel states that the mandala was the locus of Mikkyō visual culture and sacred economy in the capital, and a key to understanding the formulation of early Mikkyō Buddhism. The altar links ideology, mythology, ritual, text, and image in an internal act of interpretation and referentiality that is based on the knowledge and imagination of particular audiences. The sculptures come to life in the discussion as active participants in the making of visual culture and its apprehension. Bogel shows that the mandala is not restricted to a single iconographic, ritual, or textual source. It rather relates to several sources, such as exoteric iconography, the Diamond World mandala, the Benevolent Kings Sūtra, and the Ninnōkyō-hō rite performed for the protection of the state, in a complex visual dialogue. The choreography of the sculptures, according to Bogel, is an enactment of meaning that transpires in a particular space and in reference to a rich body of ritual, visual, mythological and doctrinal sources. With a Single Glance is a thoroughly researched historical and theoretical discussion of Mikkyō visual culture that articulates the dialogue between mind and image, which is encapsulated in the word glance. It further situates this dialogue within a broad cultural, ritual and political expanse. The research covers a vast amount and a broad range of materials in a highly detailed analysis, which is at times overwhelming. However, the discussion sheds new light on the most fascinating aspects of Heian Japanese religiosity, and opens numerous avenues of thought that will undoubtedly stimulate readers long after they return the book to the shelf. Yaara Morris is currently a PhD student in the Department of the Study of Religions at SOAS, under the supervision of Lucia Dolce. The title of her doctoral dissertation is: Cult of Benzaiten in the village of Tenkawa in the Kii peninsula her rituals, texts, and mandalas. New Publication ジョン ブリーン, 儀礼と権力 : 天皇の明治維新 (Girei to kenryoku: Tenno no Meiji ishin), Heibonsha

37 Publications Jun'ichi Isomae, Japanese Mythology: Hermeneutics on Scripture. Translated by Mukund Subramanian Religion in Culture: Studies in Social Contest and Construction and Nichibunken Monograph Series No. 10 (2010) Equinox, London and Oakville; International Research Center for Japanese Studies, Kyoto. Hardcover, 181 pages, includes bibliographic references and index Reviewed by KS Licha Readers should not be misled by the main title of this attractively designed volume. Isomae does not offer a straightforward treatment of the Japanese mythology recorded in the Nihon shoki and Kojiki, known together as the Kiki. What he is interested in is how readers of these two texts, both past and present, came to speak of Japanese and Mythology in the first place, what these terms meant at each critical juncture of the texts history and why people persisted in elaborating them with reference to those texts for over a thousand years. In other words, as Isomae himself states in the introduction, this book is not about what is actually written in the Kiki but about how the Kiki were interpreted over time. Isomae calls these two forms of questioning the essentialist and the hermeneutical (8). In and of itself, such a hermeneutical approach is not uncommon in the study of intellectual history. What sets this book apart is its unflinching thoroughness and methodological sophistication. Isomae starts from two premises: First, there is no means to establish any definite meaning of the Kiki or any other historical text. There is no mark outside or before discourse against which different readings can be measured. And secondly, the relation between the reader or interpreter and the text he or she seeks to elucidate is characterized by a radical alterity. This fissure, as Isomae terms it (9), between interpreter and text creates the discursive space of commentary wherein the interpreter tries to familiarize the text. According to Isomae, this attempt to make the text one's own is based on an attitude of nostalgia, a term he borrows from Eliade (10). The sign of nostalgia is the desire for an origin in terms of which one's living world can be justified. In other words, nostalgia not only orients an interpreter towards the past but marks him as located in a present. Thus any given interpretation of the past is always relative to the position of the interpreter. It is the careful attention given to the social and historical positions of the various commentators on the Kiki which distinguishes this book. In each of the six chapters Isomae discusses one aspect of the process of interpretation in a roughly chronological order. Chapter One serves as a general introduction to his concrete methodology and the history of writing on the Kiki as he conceives of it. Isomae borrows the comparative categories of canon, scripture and commentary and their mutual relations in the process of canonization in order to develop an overall framework within which to discuss the Kiki and their interpretations. He differenti- ates three general periods in the interpretative history of the Kiki. Firstly, the Ancient Period, roughly the Nara and early Heian period, secondly the Medieval Period which comprises the Kamakura and Muromachi, and finally the Modern Period from late Edo until the present. The late Heian and early Edo are considered transitional (33f). Each of these periods is characterized by a specific form of relating to the Kiki. In the Ancient Period we can observe the compilation of the Kiki as the formation of the canon. This is intimately linked to the emergent Ritsuryō state. In this context, the Kiki, and especially the Nihon shoki, served as prescriptive texts governing relations among the ruling elite. In the Medieval Period the influence of the court receded and the interpretation of the Nihon shoki moved beyond court circles. During this period the commentary flourished as the texts are no longer read as straightforward history but interpreted according various historical and metaphysical paradigms. Thus arose the military chronicles, the temple and shrine histories and the texts of medieval Shintō (28). These texts reflected the desire of powerful actors to establish their respective social position. Finally, in the modern period, the Kiki were recast once more, this time as the national memory of the Japanese people. What is most intriguing about Isomae s account is that he does not simply end his exposition with the Nativists and the uses to which they were put post-restoration. Rather, he discusses the emergence of the scholarly essay as a fourth, distinct textual category in addition to canon, scripture and commentary. In other words, he includes modern scholarly works in the very history of interpretation scholars themselves seek to write. This is part of his attempt to render our own horizon of understanding as an object of analysis in order to resist what would be but another attempt to write the true myth of the Japanese nation. Only by understanding our own 37

38 interpretation as historically conditioned and subject to fissure and otherness from the text, Isomae seems to argue, can we overcome the nostalgia which would have us invoke a pure origin. In Chapter Two Isomae further investigates the problem of canon formation. Taking as his example the myth of Susanoo, he starts from Lévi-Strauss insight that myths necessarily create variations. He proceeds to show that the Susanoo myth actually exists in various forms in the Kiki and observes that already at the time of their composition there was a sense that the true form of the myth had been lost. In other words, nostalgia is not a modern prerogative but drove the very formation of the canon itself. Finally, he demonstrates that canonization was not a once-and-of-all event but rather an ongoing process of differentiation and integration in the Ritsuryō state, closely related to the promulgation of laws and regulations. Chapter Three traces this motive of plurality in the written canon, rather than just the oral variant, diachronically into the Kamakura and Muromachi period. Turning to the story of Yamatotakeru, Isomae shows how the variations of this myth contained in the Kiki themselves were adopted and reworked in the pluralistic medieval environment. Chapter Four and Five address the early-modern and modern periods. In Chapter Four Isomae addresses the various rationalist and non-rationalist interpretations of the Kiki. He shows that the yearning for a pure origin was not absent from rationalist interpretations of the texts. In fact, rationalists argued for the preeminence of the imperial institution, or for the existence of a pre-imperial, ideal commune while projecting their own preferences and notions of the perfect society onto the Kiki. In this they resembled non-rationalist interpreters such as the Nativists, who turned to the ancient text to establish their own utopia, the Divine Age. Finally, it is this period that Isomae argues is pivotal in the history of interpreting the Kiki, as rationalist writers turned to Western thought to establish psychological and mythological readings of the Kiki. Thus each camp of interpreters is shown as painting the picture of the past by tying the ancient world illustrated in the myths with the self situated in a given period (106). The myths thus became an attempt to secure the interpreter's self by means of the past. Chapter Five discusses the contribution of Motoori Norinaga towards establishing the Kiki as a mythology of the Japanese people. Isomae argues it was Motoori who disassociated the Kiki from the ruling elites and reread them as expressive of a specific sensibility of the Japanese people as a whole. Although the imperial system was still marginal at the time of Motoori s writing, it was this shift from a restricted elite to a public mythology which eventually enabled the political use of mythology after the Restoration. Finally, Chapter Six presents the debate on the Heroic Age initiated by Ishimoda Shō and its influence on leftwing post-war scholarship on the Kiki. Isomae ends with a call towards a renewal of Ishimoda s critical intention, if not his method. It is the longing for the true, unified origin which weaves through all the essays of this book. In each and every period and interpretation, from the ancient to the modern, Isomae discovers the nostalgia which manifests as a tendency to ground one s own self and world in the ancient past, thus eradicating the otherness of the text and producing a mythical true interpretation. Modern scholars are not exempt from this desire, and indeed Isomae seems to understand what he calls essentialist scholarship as implicated in this illicit yearning and thus prone to repeating the worst mistakes of the past. He eloquently describes the scholarship he advocates as an alternative as follows: [...B]y freeing one's interpretation from an essentialist understanding of the past, and by creating one's own foundation with dissimilar interpretations, one is able to construe a new interpretation. [ ] In this milieu, the evaluation of a text in light of its authenticity would virtually not matter, and the Kojiki and the Nihon shoki would merely be one formation of a worldview [ ]. Thus different interpretations would be valid in their own right, and each interpretation would potentially stand on an equal footing [ ]. Each interpretation would not assert itself as being absolute but rather maintain a relative standing [ ]. In practice, this would not amount to the proclivity to return to a unitary past but rather signify a chance to constitute a multifarious past as it signifies the present and future (65). It is on this point I would like to register two doubts. Firstly, Isomae does not seem content to entertain his multifarious pasts as a purely academic exercise. He links essentialist readings to American Evangelism and the presidency of George W. Bush as well as to Islamic fundamentalism and terrorism (8). He seems to imply that in each instance it is the notion of the true interpretation which is at the heart of the problem. And the scholar attempting to establish the actual meaning of a text is as guilty of committing truth as the fundamentalist or the evangelist. The solution, one presumes, would be the different, equally valid interpretations pointing to the multifarious past. Here it bears to remember that James Barr pointedly argued that it is in fact post-modern, not modern readings which best serve fundamentalist ends. One could cite the recent campaign to Teach the Controversy launched by the Discovery Institute as a case in point. Arguing that Intelligent Design and the theory of evolution represent but two alternative accounts of the origin of life between which one cannot choose on the basis of evidence, the campaign urged the teaching of the former in American schools. It thus seems that a call for pluralism in itself is not enough to safeguard against fundamentalist tendencies. Secondly, it appears to me that Isomae s conclusions regarding interpretation outrun his (explicit) premises. He makes reference to existential hermeneutics as elaborated by Heidegger and Gadamer in order to give 38

39 CSJR Publication credence to his assertion that there is no form of evidence that allows one to clearly grasp and confirm the meaning of historical texts as such, prediscursively (1f). This might be the case. Yet it is a conceptual leap from the assertion that there is no independently verifiable one true meaning inherent in the text to the assumption that all possible readings are created equal, and not one universally supported by theory continuing from the Heidegger-Gadamer line. To name but two examples, both Jürgen Habermas theory of detranscendentalised reason and communicative action and Paul Ricoeur s reflections on narrative, history and memory seem to point to positions which avoid the extremes of either assuming a directly accessible absolute meaning or asserting the impossibility of eliciting a truthful interpretation. In short, to argue that the abolishment of Truth necessarily leads to interpretative relativism itself smacks of the essentialism Isomae abhors. This is amply demonstrated by the structural resemblance that this line of thought bears to some remarks made by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger regarding the dictatorship of relativism, if attached to an inverted judgement on the desirability of such a situation. Yet these doubts in themselves bear testimony to Isomae s achievement. Were it not for the sophistication of his argument, they would not have been voiced. This is definitely a book which will stir debate and should be widely read. Kigen-san Licha completed his PhD research in the Department of the Study of Religions at SOAS in 2011 under the supervision of Lucia Dolce. The title of his doctoral dissertation is: The Esoterization of Soto Zen in Medieval Japan. New Publication HOW TO ORDER THE WORSHIP OF STARS IN JAPANESE RELIGIOUS PRACTICE The cover price of this special edition is 20, or 7.50 through the CSJR. To order a copy please send a cheque by post to: Dr Nicholas Campion, Editor Culture and Cosmos 51 Bellevue Crescent, Bristol BS8 4TF UK Please be sure to include the title and your contact details. OR your mailing address, visa/mastercard number (in successive s for security, if you wish), name on card and expiry date to: subs@caol.demon.co.uk Lucia Dolce ed., Readings in Japanese Religions, 4 vols., London: SAGE Publications, 2011 **NB. Credit card subscriptions will be billed to NCE-Bristol** 39