8/8/2019 Rev. Jikai - Mikkyo and Ninjutsu

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by Reverend Jikai

Part l l

In the last issue, we d~scussedhe back-

ground of Japanese m~kkyo, nd how it was

transmitted from Ch~nao Japan. Before

continuing with the story of this transmission,

and of the development of the "later mikkyo"

in Japan, would bewell at this point to make

a br~ef igresson In order to discuss a subjectwhich has a great bear~ng pon the ninjutsu

tradition. This concerns the fabul0~~lSystic-

warrior known as En no Gyoja En no Gyoja

ations formed very close associations w

Shugendo temples, and, finally, controlthose Shugendo shrines.

The word shugen-domeans the way or paof obtaining mystical realization through

performance of rituals of the magical Dhar

(teachings of the ur~iversal aw). From t

earliest times of the introduction of Buddhi

into Japan, the mountains attracted thostrong religious personatitles who w~she

practice the meditations and rituals Buddhism in the qu~eteclusion of the wild

2 so known as En no Ozunu), was the

hch has been closely

2'53 :,l+h both ri~njutsu nd m~kkyo~ght-2 - z cCeserlt ay

- -tn n-, nn e3about three generations-

2.2 -2 - the founder of Tenda~

.;z-,z 32 S T , the founder of-

mlkkyc -e *crM n+ later mlkkyo",

ransm~tted o ~ a p c - +"" - T e ~ d a ~nd

ngon enom~nat~ors;ssc' <nzBb6bno Eno Gyoja However, the earlier fc,ms C- lkkyo

re already pouring Into Japc- zur 3 'he

f En no Gyoja He was ab e 'c s ps

w~thnsse cF

nd the nat~veaparese

bel~efs o make the b eg~ r~ n~ng sf

o Much later, the "pure m~kkyo" s

emples

s also absorbed by Shugendo and both

Buddhlst denom~n-

ness Also, the Buddhist be1 ef s that mounta

are the symbols of the Buddhas ("en~ght

ones"). Thus, En no Gyoja was one of those

build hermitages among the isolated pea

As a result of his practices, En no Gyoja w

able to develop many powers considered

the Japanese of that period to be magica

En no Gyoja attracted numerous dsciple

they and their spiritual descendants ha

come to be known as yamabushi ,or mountpriests. There is no doubt that many of t

magical practices iriitiated b y En no Gyo

were later taught to the early ninja, or at lea

+a hose who passed them on to the ninja.W

tqe passage of time, long and close assoc

tions were developed between certain of t

yamabushi and certain practionersof nnjuts

En no Gyoja developed the practice

making a long pilgrimage between certa

of the loftiest mountains, in particular betwe

8/8/2019 Rev. Jikai - Mikkyo and Ninjutsu

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e ninja carr ied the peaks of Mt. Kimpu in Yamato

province and Mt. Kumano n Kii province.

au i~ m e n t im ila r to SO important did this become, that

do followers.several generations later, the fi f th

patr iarch of the Japanese Tendai

denomination, Enchin, personally under-

took this pilgrimage so that he could

"walk i n the footsteps of the great En no

Gyoja". The famous Shugendo shrine

which presently exists on top of Mt.

Kimpu was personally founded by En noGyoja, and is associated wi th theTendai

Buddhis t head-quarters on Mt. Hiei. After

the "pure mikkyo" was i ntroduced into

Shugendo, the great mountains them-

selves were identi'tied with the two great

mandalas of esoteric Buddhism; Mt.

K impu rep resen ted the Kongoka i

mandala, while Mt. Kumano represented

the Taizokai mandala.

As is the case with all mikkyo practices,

in Shugendo there is the requirement of

a long period of purifacatory preparation

before one is permitted to enter a

Shugendo shrine for the purpose of

receiving instruction. The usual practice

is the requirement of a ninety-day period

of purifi cation, usually in the form of the

long pilgrimage through the mountians,

dur ing which timeone may not eat meat,

must drink only water or tea, and abstain

from sexual relations. Even after the

training has started, in between the

performance of the magical rituals there

are very difficult practices, including

standing under icy waterfalls for long

periods while reciting or hanging upside

down from the edge of a cliff. Such

practices are believed to produce the

"energy" which ensures the success of

the magical rituals.

Present-day Shugendo is acombination

of Buddhist yoga, with its breathing

practices, and esoteric Buddhism, incl ud-

ing the contemplation of the tw o great

mandalas, the recitation of mantras,

along with the origi nal Taoist and Shinto

beliefs. Although Shugendo cannot

properly be called pure Buddhism, its

close association with Buddhism cannot

be denied. The images of En no Gyoja

which are found in many Tendai templesin Japan depict him as carrying an

ascetic's staff in one hand, and a Buddhist

rosary in the other. No less a personage

than Dengyo Daishi visited Mt. Ki mpu

prior to his departure for China, i n order

to pray for the success of his mission.

By following the mikkyo practices of

the total unif icatio n of body, mind. and

speech, those who practice Shugendo

form a natural communion with all of the

great spirits who inhabit the sacred

mountains through which they make

their pilgrimages. As they walk, they

chant various Buddhis t sutras as well as

appropriate mantras. They offer

traditional Japanese sake rice win

various small shrines along the wa

should be noted that this is certainly

an orthodox Buddhist practice.

yamabushi and others who fol

Shugendo, wear aspecial white costu

They also carry special equipment w

them which would remind student

ninjutsu of certain instruments use

the nrnja.Perhaps the most important piec

equipment is a kind of small box strap

to the back, known as the oi or shou

box. This is used to carry smaller pie

of equipment within it. The yamabu

also carry a small ax known as a nyu

ono and a short sword known a

sankotsuka-ken. These could be u

for the purpose of cutting through

thick forests of the mountains,

obviously could also be used for purpo

of defense. The sword has a handl

the shape of a three-pronged vajra,

power-symbol used by the ninja, as

as in Tendai mikkyo). Eventually,

sword took on an even greater rituali

meaning, and today, is used in

mystical ceremonies such as the go

orfir eceremo ny. Weshould note, at

point, that the goma ceremony is

most important ceremony in both Ten

mik kyo and Shingon mikkyo. Here th

is seen another strong connect

be tween eso te r i c Bud dh i sm a

Shugendo.

The yamabushi also carry a ri

container known as the bussho-ba

Theseare beautiful bowls made of cop

and may be of different sizes. They

used to offer ric e to the Buddhas an

the gods. Also carried is the iron h

water kettl e known as the tetsu-yuga

which could also be used in purifi ca

rituals. Finally, the yamabushi carry w

them the hide or markers. These

small pieces of wood or boards. Sans

letters are written on the top of

board. Then the nameof the person w

wrote them follows, together with

date. As the yamabushi passed throu

the mountains, these were placed spadically as reminders to hose who wo

come after them.

Finally, it should be remembered t

the followers of Shugendo, seek

only magical powers to be used in

world, but follow a path which th

believe will lead them to enlightenme

Our discussion of mikkyo will be c

tinued in the next issue of Ninja Rea

For more informat ion contact:

Reverend JikaVKongosatta, IN

P.O. Box 21 2

Cape Girardeau, MO 63701

Please include return postage.