Shugendō
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Shugendō
is a syncretic Esoteric Buddhist religion, a body of ascetic practices that originated in the Nara Period of Japan having evolved during the 7th century from an amalgamation of beliefs, philosophies, doctrines and ritual systems drawn primarily from Esoteric Buddhism, local folk-religious practices, Shinto, mountain worship, and Taoism. The final purpose of ''Shugendō'' is for practitioners to find supernatural power and save themselves and the masses by conducting religious training while treading through steep mountain ranges. Practitioners are called or . The mountains where ''shugendo'' is practiced are all over Japan, and can span multiple mountains within one range such as the Ōmine mountain range with Mount Hakkyō and Mount Ōmine or the Ishizuchisan mountain range with Kamegamori and Tengudake. The ''Shugendō'' worldview includes a large pantheon of deities (which include Buddhist and Shinto figures). Some of the most important figures are the tantric B ...
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Mountain Worship
is a faith that regards mountains as sacred objects of worship. Overview Mountain worship, as a form of nature worship, is thought to have evolved from the reverence that ethnic groups closely associated with mountains have for mountainous terrain and the natural environment that accompanies it. In mountain worship, there is a belief in the spiritual power of mountainous areas and a form of using the overwhelming feeling of the mountains to govern one's life. These faiths are mainly found in the cultures of inland mountainous regions, where mountains with inhospitable, rugged terrain are essential for their development. In areas with such beliefs, people depend on the river flowing from the mountains and the forest spreading at the foot of the mountains for all their food, clothing, and shelter, and are constantly being blessed by the mountains they see. On the other hand, the people who hold these beliefs are in an environment where even the slightest carelessness in the ru ...
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Esoteric Buddhism
''Vajrayāna'' (; 'vajra vehicle'), also known as Mantrayāna ('mantra vehicle'), Guhyamantrayāna ('secret mantra vehicle'), Tantrayāna ('tantra vehicle'), Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, is a Mahāyāna Buddhism, Mahāyāna Buddhist tradition that emphasizes Eastern esotericism, esoteric practices and rituals aimed at Sudden awakening, rapid spiritual awakening. Emerging between the 5th and 7th centuries CE in medieval India, Vajrayāna incorporates a Tibetan tantric practice, range of techniques, including the use of mantras (sacred sounds), dhāraṇīs (mnemonic codes), mudrās (symbolic hand gestures), mandalas (spiritual diagrams), and the visualization of Buddhist deities, deities and Buddhahood, Buddhas. These practices are designed to transform ordinary experiences into paths toward Enlightenment in Buddhism, enlightenment, often by engaging with aspects of Taṇhā, desire and Dvesha, aversion in a ritualized context. A distinctive feature of Vajrayāna is ...
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Mount Ōmine
, is a sacred mountain in Nara, Japan, famous for its three tests of courage. Officially known as , it is more popularly known as Mount Ōmine due to its prominence in the Ōmine mountain range. It is located in Yoshino-Kumano National Park in the Kansai region, Honshū, Japan. The temple Ōminesanji, located at the top of the mountain, is the headquarters of the Shugendō sect of Japanese Buddhism and the entire mountain is part of a pilgrimage and training ground for the Yamabushi (山伏, one who prostrates oneself on the mountain). History The monastery at Mount Ōmine was founded in the 8th century by En no Gyōja, as a home for his new religion of Shugendō. Shugendo literally means "the path of training and testing," and is based on the self-actualization of spiritual power in experiential form through challenging and rigorous ritualistic tests of courage and devotion known as ''shugyō''. During the Meiji period The was an era of Japanese history that ex ...
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Fudō Myōō
or Achala (, "The Immovable", ), also known as (, "Immovable Lord") or (, "Noble Immovable Lord"), is a wrathful deity and '' dharmapala'' (protector of the Dharma) prominent in Vajrayana Buddhism and East Asian Buddhism., Jp. rel. dict., pp. 242–246 Originally a minor deity described as a messenger or acolyte of the buddha Vairocana, Acala later rose to prominence as an object of veneration in his own right as a remover of obstacles and destroyer of evil, eventually becoming seen as the wrathful manifestation of either Vairocana, the buddha Akṣobhya, or the bodhisattva Mañjuśrī. In later texts, he is also called (, "Violent Wrathful One", ) or (, "Violent One of Great Wrath", ), the names by which he is more commonly known in countries like Nepal and Tibet. In East Asian esoteric Buddhism, Acala is classed among the Wisdom Kings () and is preeminent among the five Wisdom Kings of the Womb Realm. Accordingly, he occupies an important hierarchical position ...
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Acala
or Achala (, "The Immovable", ), also known as (, "Immovable Lord") or (, "Noble Immovable Lord"), is a Fierce deities, wrathful deity and ''dharmapala'' (protector of the Dharma) prominent in Vajrayana, Vajrayana Buddhism and East Asian Buddhism., Jp. rel. dict., pp. 242–246 Originally a minor deity described as a messenger or acolyte of the Buddhahood, buddha Vairocana, Acala later rose to prominence as an object of veneration in his own right as a remover of obstacles and destroyer of evil, eventually becoming seen as the wrathful manifestation of either Vairocana, the buddha Akshobhya, Akṣobhya, or the bodhisattva Manjushri, Mañjuśrī. In later texts, he is also called (, "Violent Wrathful One", ) or (, "Violent One of Great Wrath", ), the names by which he is more commonly known in countries like Nepal and Tibet. In East Asian Buddhism, East Asian Chinese Esoteric Buddhism, esoteric Buddhism, Acala is classed among the Wisdom Kings () and is preeminent among the ...
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Gongen
A , literally "incarnation", was believed to be the manifestation of a buddha in the form of an indigenous kami, an entity who had come to guide the people to salvation, during the era of shinbutsu-shūgō in premodern Japan.Encyclopedia of Shinto''Gongen''accessed on October 5, 2008Tamura (2000:87) The words and are synonyms for gongen. is the term for belief in the existence of gongen. The gongen concept is the cornerstone of the honji suijaku theory, according to which Buddhist deities choose to appear to the Japanese as native kami in order to save them, which is based on the Mahayana Buddhist notion of upaya, "expedient means". History It is sometimes assumed that the word ''gongen'' derives from Tokugawa Ieyasu's posthumous name (Tōshō Daigongen). However, the term was created and started being used in the middle of the Heian period in an effort to harmonize Buddhism and indigenous religious practice in what is called shinbutsu-shūgō or "syncretism of kami and ...
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Mount Ishizuchi
is a mountain on the border of Saijō, Ehime, Saijō and Kumakōgen, Ehime, Kumakōgen, in Ehime Prefecture, Ehime, Japan. This mountain is one of the List of the 100 famous mountains in Japan, 100 famous mountains in Japan. It is the highest mountain in Western Japan and the island of Shikoku. Once upon a time it was a stratovolcano with large scale magma activity. Over time the magma activity ceased and it became extinct with no eruption activities in the past 10kya years or recent signs of eruption Outline Mount Ishizuchi is the highest mountain on the island of Shikoku and also the highest mountain west of Mount Haku. It is known as 'the roof of Shikoku' and the sharp, rocky summit resembles a huge . Mount Ishizuchi is an important object of worship in this region and one of the major centers of Shugendō, a sect of mixture of Shinto and Buddhism in Japan, Buddhism. At the top of the mountain there is a small shrine called the Ishizuchi Shrine. This mountain is also ...
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Mount Hakkyō
is a mountain of Omine Mountains, which is located on the border of Tenkawa and Kamikitayama, Yoshino District, Nara Prefecture, Japan. Outline This mountain is the tallest mountain in Kansai Region including Nara Prefecture. This mountain is one of the 100 Famous Japanese Mountains is a book written in 1964 by Mountaineering, mountaineer and author Kyūya Fukada.Hyakumeizan, Hiking Japan ...
. The name of this mountain, ‘Hakkyō’, literally means ‘eight Buddhist scriptures’, derived from the legend which says a famous En no Gyōja, believed to be a founder of Shugendo, buried eight Buddhist scriptures on the top of this mountain. This mounta ...
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Vairocana
Vairocana (from Sanskrit: Vi+rocana, "from the sun" or "belonging to the sun", "Solar", or "Shining"), also known as Mahāvairocana (Great Vairocana), is a major Buddha from Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. Vairocana is often interpreted, in texts like the '' Avatamsaka Sutra'', as the Dharmakāya of the historical Gautama Buddha. In East Asian Buddhism ( Chinese, Korean, Japanese and Vietnamese Buddhism), Vairocana is also seen as the dharmakāya (the supreme buddha-body, the body of ultimate reality), and the embodiment of the Buddhist concept of wisdom and purity. Mahāvairocana is often translated into East Asian languages as "Great Sun Buddha" ( Chinese: 大日如來, pinyin: ''Dàrì Rúlái'', Japanese: ''Dainichi Nyorai''). In the conception of the Five Jinas of Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism, Vairocana is at the centre and is often considered a Primordial Buddha. In East Asian esoteric Buddhism, Mahāvairocana is considered to be a Cosmic Buddha whose body is th ...
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