A Tourist in Japan Part 2

Mt. Koya (Koya San)
Earlier I described the stretch from Kansai Airport to Osaka in a northeasterly direction as somewhat depressing; however, the next train trip taken two days later, which went due south from Osaka to Hashimoto and beyond, was very pleasant. After a relatively short time we saw suburbs and exurbs. The local train then started to climb noticeably and began to snake between steep hills and over foaming rivers. It was reminiscent of similar trains in Switzerland except that the mountains were much lower and the vegetation more lush, consisting of a mix of deciduous trees and evergreens. We next took a funicular to Mt. Koya (also called “Koya San” as a sign of respect for the centre of Shingon Buddhism) — not only a mountain but also a municipality. We were quartered at the Shekisho-In Temple which operates a traditional Japanese Inn (Ryokan) as a source of income and also to re-aquaint Japanese guests with their roots. This arrangement is not unusual and we stayed at a similar temple later in Kyoto. The buildings of Sekisho-In date from the 19th century but we were told that there had been a temple and a monastery on the site for a thousand (!) years. Because Ian, our tour leader, knew the man in charge (he would have been called an abbot in a Christian context) we were not only invited to a morning service, but also had a chance to ask him questions while we were having a vegetarian supper which leaned heavily toward tofu. At one time Buddhist monks were not allowed to marry, but this is no longer a requirement. In any event, it would seem that this calling is not particularly compatible with family life.

As part of the report of our short stay in Osaka, I described a Shinto shrine found in a commercial street. Now, with the emphasis on Buddhism at Mt. Koya, it was necessary for our guide to give us some basic information on the two religions. For a Westerner, Shinto is definitely the more difficult to appreciate. As previously mentioned, it has evolved from an indigenous form which had a pantheon of eight million supernatural spirits — the kami — which include one’s ancestors. We were told that Shinto celebrates purity and fertility. Ian writes in his information sheet that one branch is followed only by the Imperial house, and the other by everyone else. One of the striking characteristics for us was that Shinto and Buddhism co-exist. Polls have shown that the Japanese are not particularly religious, somewhat like contemporary Europeans, but a substantial minority sustains the two religions. Just as in Europe, where many churches and cathedrals are a focal point for tourists, so the Shinto shrines and the Buddhist temples, many of which are very old, are fascinating to foreigners. Most weddings are civil. Some of them are Shinto, while many funerals are Buddhist, but not the other way around. Quite by accident I saw parts of two Shinto weddings. The participants (bride, groom, priests and assisting religious officials) wore traditional dress and the majority of the guests wore their best European-style clothes. Yet some of them — both men and women — were dressed like their ancestors which made the party more colourful for everyone, including the photographers. The bride wears a fairly large white hat with an upturned brim on top of which is a collection of what seemed like very attractive artificial flowers.

Buddhism is far more accessible to North Americans and Europeans. There are a numerous followers of Buddha everywhere, and not just among immigrants and refugees from Eastern countries. Many of us are familiar with the writings of the current Dalai Lama who is the head of Tibetan Buddhism. But while Buddhism requires serious study, contemplation, and has a significant ethical side, it does not claim exclusivity, as do Christianity, Judaism and Islam. Consequently, an observant Japanese Buddhist can be married by a Shinto priest in a Shinto ceremony, without anyone finding this unusual. At our temple we were invited to attend a service in the sanctuary the morning after our arrival. By 7:00 a.m. the place was packed and we sat or knelt on the tatami mat floor — there being no chairs. The liturgy was read in Japanese, interrupted occasionally by a drummer. The inn, which was part of the temple, was our first traditional lodging, which turned out to be quite representative of the other half a dozen places at which we stayed. (Life at the Ryokans will be described at the next installment of this series.) Buddhist temples have certain characteristics in common and this was noticeable at Mt. Koya where there are more than 80 of them. They are basically square structures with steep roofs which are curved inward and generally covered with clay tiles. At both ends of the roof’s ridge is usually found the representation of a fish’s tail as if the fish were about to flip out of the water. This is to symbolize the protection of the temple against fire. Wood is the traditional building material and is obviously a great deal more flammable than brick or stone. Since I am used to large buildings being made of concrete or steel or a combination of the two, I had trouble at the beginning to believe that what I was seeing were very large structures made almost entirely of wood. In fact, when large posts or beams were required, entire tree trunks were used and the sides squared off. The temples are either built at ground level or placed on a base with a number of steps leading to the entrance. I did not notice wheel-chair access. The temples differ in the kind of artwork found in them, particularly in the screens which are often of significant artistic value. Decorations of the sanctuary are generally beautiful. This was certainly the case with “our” temple. There are also sculptures of Buddhist saints or of personages from Buddhist mythology and always a statue of Buddha. Many temples are solitary structures, but we also occasionally found whole “campuses” of them, with a central building and smaller auxiliary ones. These campuses sometimes contain pagodas which are defined in my Oxford Dictionary as “.... a sacred tower built over the relics of Buddha or a saint or a work of devotion.” Pagodas are not rare in Japan, but they are much less common than in south east Asia.

The high point of the visit to Mt. Koya was the Buddhist cemetery located a five-minutes’ walk from our lodging. As in the case of our temple, its oldest portions are reputedly a thousand years old and the whole has the distinction of having been named a UNESCO world site. It contains thousands of gravestones which are arranged on both sides of a broad pedestrian path. These memorialize not only monks and important religious figures but also contributors to the various temples and their protectors. The place is heavily wooded by cypress trees (conifers) which are very tall and very dark green. The gravestones are all similar reflecting various elements of the world. For example, each one has a ball representing the earth and the top looks like a four-cornered hat. As we continued our walk for more than half an hour, with the trees keeping out most of the light from outside, the total impression was one of unforgettable, melancholy beauty.

January 2005