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8/8/2019 Rev. Jikai - Mikkyo and Ninjutsu
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/rev-jikai-mikkyo-and-ninjutsu 1/2
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
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/rev-jikai-mikkyo-and-ninjutsu 2/2
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.