is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asian Buddhism. It is a form of Japanese Esoteric Buddhism and is sometimes called "Tōmitsu" (東密 lit. "Esoteric [Buddhism] of Tō-ji"). The word shingon is the Japanese reading of the Chinese word (), which is the translation of the Sanskrit word mantra.
The Zhenyan lineage was founded in China (c. 7th–8th centuries) by Indian vajrācāryas (esoteric masters) like Śubhakarasiṃha, Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra. These esoteric teachings would later flourish in Japan under the auspices of a Buddhist monk named Kūkai (, 774–835), who traveled to Tang China and received these esoteric transmissions from a Chinese master named Huiguo (746–805). Kūkai established his tradition at Mount Kōya (in Wakayama Prefecture), which remains the central pilgrimage center of Shingon Buddhism.
The practice of the Shingon school stresses that one is able to attain through its practices, especially those which make use of the of mudra, mantra and mandala.Hakeda (1972), p. 6Orzech (2011), p. 85 Another influential doctrine introduced by Shingon was the idea that all beings are .
The Shingon school's teachings and rituals had an influence on other Japanese traditions, especially those of the Tendai school, as well as Shugendo and Shinto.Hakeda (1972), pp. 5-8 Its teachings also influenced the ritual repertoire of Japanese Zen, including Soto Zen (through the monk Keizan).Taigen Dan Leighton; Shohaku Okumura (1996) Dogen's Pure Standards for the Zen Community: A Translation of Eihei Shingi, p. 23. SUNY Press. Shingon Buddhism also influenced broader Japanese culture, including medieval Japanese aesthetics, art, and craftsmanship.Hakeda (1972), p. 4-5
History
Shingon Buddhism was founded in the Heian period (794–1185) by a Japanese Buddhist monk named Kūkai (774–835 CE) who traveled to China in 804 to study Esoteric Buddhist practices in the city of Xi'an (), then called Chang-an, at Qinglong Temple () under Huiguo, a student of the Indian esoteric master Amoghavajra.Green, Ronald S. Kūkai in China, What He Studied and Brought Back to Japan. Education About ASIA, Volume 26, Number 3 Winter 2021. Kūkai returned to Japan with the teachings and scriptures of Chinese Esoteric Buddhism which became immediately influential with the island's elites and eventually coalesced into an institutionalized tradition in Japanese Buddhism. Shingon followers usually refer to Kūkai as or , the posthumous name given to him years after his death by Emperor Daigo.
Kūkai's early days and visit to China Kūkai was born to a family of the aristocratic Saeki clan in Shikoku and received a classical Confucian education at Kyoto's college (daigaku).Hakeda (1972), pp. 14-15 He converted to Buddhism in his 20s and was inspired to practice asceticism in the mountains and wander the countryside as an ascetic hermit (though he also visited cities to study texts).Hakeda (1972), pp. 15, 22-23 During this time his main meditation was the mantra of bodhisattva Ākāśagarbha found in the . While he was practicing in the mountains, he had a vision of the bodhisattva flying at him.Hakeda (1972), pp. 16-20.
During this early period of intense study, prayer and practice, Kūkai sought the highest truth to be found in Buddhism. One day he dreamt of a man telling him to seek out the Mahāvairocana Sūtra.Hakeda (1972), p. 26. He was able to obtain a copy in Chinese (and Sanskrit) but large portions of the text were undecipherable to him and thus he decided to go to China to find someone who could explain it to him.Hakeda (1972), p. 27.
In 804, Kūkai set sail on a fleet of four ships to China. The future Tendai founder Saichō was on the same fleet.Hakeda (1972), p. 29. When Kūkai first met Huiguo (a student of Amoghavajra) on the fifth month of 805, Huiguo was sixty and on the verge of death. Huiguo exclaimed to Kūkai that he had been waiting for him and immediately initiated him into the esoteric mandalas.Hakeda (1972), pp. 31-32. In the short space of three months, Huiguo initiated and taught Kūkai everything he knew on the doctrines and practices of esoteric Buddhism. During this time Kūkai also learned Sanskrit from some Indian masters living in China.Hakeda (1972), pp. 32-33.
Kūkai's return
Kūkai returned to Japan after Huiguo's death in 806. He brought back numerous Buddhist texts, mandalas, ritual items and other books. After returning, Kūkai asked the imperial court for permission to establish a new Buddhist school and waited three years for a response in Kyushu.Hakeda (1972), p. 34. In 809 Kūkai was allowed to reside at a temple near Kyoto known as Takaosanji (now Jingo-ji). This temple would become his major center of operations near the capital.Hakeda (1972), p. 38. Kūkai's fortunes rose steadily when Emperor Saga became his patron and Kūkai was appointed as the head of Todai-ji in 810.Hakeda (1972), p. 39. Kūkai began to give esoteric initiations (abhiśeka) at this time, including to elite laymen and to Saicho and his students. He also began to organize a new school of esoteric Buddhism centered around Jingo-ji and wrote some key works which outlined the main teachings of Shingon.Hakeda (1972), pp. 44-46.
In 818, Kūkai asked emperor Saga to grant him , in present-day Wakayama province, so that he could establish a true monastic center away from the disturbances of the capital and this was soon granted.Hakeda (1972), pp. 46-47. Kūkai and his disciples soon began to build the new monastic complex, which they imagined and modeled on the two mandalas, the womb and vajra.Hakeda (1972), pp. 49-50 This mountain center soon became the key center for Shingon study and practice. In his later life, Kūkai continued to actively promote the efficacy of Shingon ritual among the elite even while also working to build Kōyasan into a major center. Kūkai eventually achieved control of Tō-ji for the Shingon school, which was a major temple within the capital. His final request before his death in 832 was to construct a Shingon hall in Imperial palace grounds in order to accommodate the practice of the seven day ritual of chanting the Sutra of Golden Light. His request was eventually granted, a year after his death.Bowring (2005), p. 147.
After Kūkai
After Kūkai, the main Shingon temples were taken over by key disciples like Jitsue, Shinzen, Shinzai, Eon and Shōhō. The main leadership after his death was Shinnen (804–891) and already at this time there was some conflict between Tō-ji and Kōyasan.Bowring (2005), p. 151. Some Shingon monks also followed in Kūkai's footsteps and visited China to receive more teachings and texts. Likewise, several Tendai monks also visited China and brought back esoteric teachings, making Tendai esotericism a major competitor to Shingon.Bowring (2005), p. 152.
Under Kangen (853–925), Tō-ji temple rose to become the head temple of Shingon. Mount Kōya experienced a period of decline afterwards, until it recovered in the 11th century through the support of Fujiwara clan nobles like Fujiwara no Michinaga.
Shingon Buddhism enjoyed immense popularity during the Heian period (), particularly among the nobility, and contributed greatly to the art and literature of the time, influencing other communities such as the Tendai school.
During the late Heian, Pure Land Buddhism was becoming very popular and Shingon was also influenced by this popular devotional trend. Mount Kōya soon became the center for groups of wandering holy men called Kōya Hijiri, who merged Pure Land practices focused on Amida Buddha with devotion to Kūkai and were also involved in raising funds for the rebuilding of many temples.Yamasaki (1988), pp. 39-40. Kōya-san soon became a major center for pilgrimage for all Japanese.
The Shingon monk Kakuban (1095–1143) was one Shingon scholar who responded to the rise in Pure Land devotionalism. He studied Shingon along with Tendai and also incorporated Pure Land practice into his Shingon system, as well as promoting an esoteric interpretation of nembutsu and Pure Land.Stone, Jacqueline I. By the Power of One's Last Nenbutsu: Deathbed Practices in Early Medieval Japan in Richard K. Payne & Kenneth K. Tanaka (2004) "Approaching the Land of Bliss: Religious Praxis in the Cult of Amitābha" (pp. 77-119).Yamasaki (1988), p. 41. Unlike other Pure Land schools, Kakuban held that the Pure Land exists in this very world and he also taught that Vairocana is Amida.
Kakuban, and his faction of priests centered at the soon came into conflict with the leadership at Kongōbu-ji, the head temple at Mount Kōya. Through his connections with high-ranking nobles in Kyoto, Kakuban was appointed abbot of Mount Kōya. The leadership at Kongōbu-ji opposed him and after several conflicts (some of which involved the burning down of temples of Kakuban's faction), Kakuban's group left the mountain for Mount Negoro to the northwest, where they constructed a new temple complex now known as .
After the death of Kakuban in 1143, attempts to make peace were unsuccessful and after further conflicts, the Negoro faction (led by Raiyu) founded the new Shingi Shingon School based on Kakuban's teachings. As such, Shingon became divided into two major sub-schools, , and .Yamasaki (1988), p. 42. Over time, the two Shingon sub-schools also diverged doctrinally on such issues as the attainment of buddhahood through a single mantra and the theory of how the Dharmakāya teaches the Dharma.
Following in Kakuban's footsteps, the Koyasan monk Dōhan 道範 (1179–1252) has been seen as a key figure in the promotion of what has been called an “esoteric Pure Land culture”, a Shingon variety of Pure Land Buddhism that became very popular during this period and influenced other figures and schools like Eison of Saidaiji's Shingon Risshu. This esoteric pure land culture included esoteric uses and interpretations of the nembutsu along with the popularization and use of the Mantra of Light.Quinter, D. (2018). Mantras and Materialities: Saidaiji Order Kōmyō Shingon Practices. Japanese Journal of Religious Studies, 45(2), 309–340.
During the Heian period, the adoption of Shinto deities into Buddhism became popular, something that became known as . This movement saw local Japanese deities as manifestations of the Buddhas. For example Amaterasu was seen as an emanation of Vairocana in Shingon. This emanation theory was called honji suijaku by Buddhists. Major Shingon centers participated in this development, with key deities like Hachiman being worshipped at temples like Tō-ji for example.Yamasaki (1988), p. 52.
Also during the Heian period, the syncretic religion of Shugendō started to develop and the influence of Shingon was one major element in its development. Shingon was especially influential on the Tōzan branch of Shugendō. which was centered on Mount Kinbu.
Kamakura to Sengoku period The Kamakura period (1185 to 1333) saw the rise of another new Shingon tradition, the Shingon-risshū school. This new tradition stressed the importance of keeping the monastic Vinaya, along with esoteric practice. It was promoted by figures like Shunjō (1166–1227) and Eison (叡尊 1201–1290) and centered around Saidai-ji.Yamasaki (1988), p. 50. Ninshō carried on the work of this tradition, which was known for its many public works projects, including building hospitals, hostels for the poor and animal sanctuaries.Yamasaki (1988), pp. 50-51.
Also during this period, many followers of the Ji sect founded by Ippen (1234–1289) made Kōya-san their home, joining with the Kōya hiriji groups, and many halls for Amida centered Pure Land practice were built on the mountain.Yamasaki (1988), p. 40.