Getting to know Japan's spiritual side; Koyasan and Ise-Jingu

Approximately 2 weeks ago our class went on a field trip to Koyasan and Ise-Jingu.  Ise-Jingu is the largest Shinto shrine in all of Japan and is dedicated to the Sun goddess Amaterasu.  It is considered to be one of the holiest places in all of Japan.  Koyasan, another important religious site, is the home of Shingon Buddhism.  Koyasan was founded by a great monk named Kobo Daishi (aka - Kukai) and had a profound impact not only on religion in Japan but also many other aspects of modern Japanese culture and society.

The entrance to the inner sanctuary of Ise-Jingu.  Taking pictures of the prayer and shrine areas is strictly forbidden.

A riverside where people can perform the purification ritual the old-fashioned way

The visit to both Koyasan and Ise-Jingu were interesting in their own ways.  First of all, both Ise-Jingu and Koyasan are very beautiful, but emit a different kind of beauty.  Ise-Jingu's architecture was very plain, simple and clean.  The city seemed to blend in perfectly with nature.  The thing that impressed me the most was that Ise-Jingu rebuilds their shrines every 20 years.  They do this in order to renew the power of the shrine.  As a result, Ise-Jingu cannot be marked as a world heritage site because it's architecture isn't ancient enough.  I had never heard of an ancient culture that did something like that. Most of the time religions place

Koyasan was also beautiful, but in a different way.  The shrines were very ornate and beautifully decorated.  Unlike Shintoism, which places an emphasis on life, Buddhism places emphasis on death.  I really enjoyed my stay at Ekoin temple.  Even though the temple had been turned into an inn and was highly touristy.  And the cemetery tour, while eerie and dark, was still fascinating in a wonderfully melancholic way.  Going to the mausoleum of Kukai at night was probably the highlight of my visit to Koyasan.  It was not only a beautiful place to be, but a type I omniscient solemn beauty that I don't think I will experience again for a long time.  And when the monks began to chant I felt a sense of somber peace.  My friends and I went there twice just to take in the majesty of the place and to take some time to reflect on our own lives once more.

The following morning we witnessed a meditation and Goma fire ritual.  Both of which were really fascinating.  The Goma fire ritual was my favorite of the two.  As one monk sang and beat the drum, and the other monk lit the tiny match that soon became a roaring flame, I was reminded of a phoenix rising from the ashes.  We tend to think of fire as a bad thing because it’s difficult to control and can cause great destruction.  But on the flip side of that coin, there is renewal, life, and rebirth.  As the monk took the prayers and sent them burning into the hands of the gods one by one, it then occurred to me that the Goma Fire Ritual in many ways was like the purification ceremony done at the Shinto shrines.  I’m not sure how that correct that idea is, but that was my interpretation of the whole experience.

Monk performing the Goma Fire Ritual

When we went on the cemetery tour, the Monk explained that Shintoism and Buddhism are like two flip sides of a coin which go hand in hand.  During the early stages of a person’s life, Japanese people often turn to Shintoism.  They will, for example, visit Ise Jingu to celebrate the birth of a child and pray for the health and safety of a new born baby.  In death, they will turn to Buddhism to conduct the funeral rites.  More often than not, Shinto shrines can be found within Buddhist sanctuaries, and Buddhist shrines can be found in Shinto temples.  This kind of cooperation amongst religions I find extremely refreshing, and this was probably the most interesting thing that I learned on the trip.  Western religions are very malicious in that sense: insisting that you only practice their religion and deem other religions as wrong.  While I may or may not ever practice either of these religions, I will always respect the flexibility and open-mindedness that they have towards other religions, cultures, and people from different walks of life.

My only regret was not having more time to spend at Koyasan and Ise-Jingu.  We spent a large period of our time on the bus, especially on the first day.  With such a tight schedule, it made it very difficult to take in the atmosphere.  I think I would have much preferred that Ise-Jingu and Koyasan be two separate trips, rather than crammed altogether in one very short trip.  Each place in my mind needed at least one to one and half days to be properly appreciated.  Because our team was also a bit stressed out about presenting at Ise-Jingu, especially since one of our team members had to drop out at the last minute, we weren’t able to appreciate being there as much as we could have. 

The other thing that made me sad was that we didn’t really get an opportunity to talk with the monks at Ekoin temple, or to try the various activities they had available (e.g. – Buddhist Sutra writing) because our schedule was so packed.  I was very curious as to why the monks there chose the lifestyle that they did, and just hear more about the religion in general.  Are there female monks as well?  Do they have to shave their heads?  Are you allowed to get married and have children?  Is eating meat strictly forbidden?  It is, of course, not a big deal that I didn’t get to talk to the monks, but I think it would have been an interesting experience.

Overall, I would have to say that I really appreciated the opportunity to go to Ise-Jingu and Koyasan, and would encourage Otemon Gakuin to continue to do field trips like these in the future.  It was also great to have our supporters along, and I was grateful to have them along on the trip with us.

I apologize to everyone about the delays with my blogs.  I will try from here on in to make a new post every 1 to 2 weeks, so please check in every now and again.  : )