The temples and mausolea of Koyasan

Okunoin, Koyasan

From Miyajima, we took the Shinkansen, a local train, and a funicular train, up to the Danjo Garan complex, at the top of Mount Koyo. This is Koyasan, a centre for the study and practice of enlightenment, with some 117 temples and a vast cemetery. The main temple is Kongobuji.

The plateau sits around 900m high, and is nestled in amongst eight mountain peaks. This situation is part of the reason Koyasan is so highly regarded, as the eight peaks are said to represent the eight petals of a lotus flower.

Konpon Daito, Kongobuji, Koyasan

Way back in 816, Emporer Saga granted use of Koyasan to Priest Kukai, for him to establish the first monastic complex dedicated to the teaching and practice of Esoteric Buddhism. Unfortunately the priest died, or entered eternal meditation, on 21 March 835, before the site was completed. After his death he became known as Kobo Daishi.

Cubby-hole room, Koyasan

There are many nice temples to look at here, and you can choose to stay in some of them, although it is pretty expensive. Not that any accommodation here is cheap. We stayed in a capsule style hostel, where we had double decker little wooden cubby holes to sleep in. Actually, they were quite nice for a short stay.

Okunoin, Koyasan

I am sure that if you are a Buddhist yourself, this place would have much significance. Certainly many thousands of people make pilgrimages to the temples here every year. We saw numerous groups in their oizuru (white shirts), suge-kasa (conical hats), and carrying their kongo-zuo (walking sticks) and often a bag containing prayer beads, nameslips offerings and maybe sutras.

Kongobuji, Koyasan

Not that women were permitted here before the ban was lifted in 1872; if women came to visit their sons, for example, they stayed in one of the Nyonindo, or womens' halls, and had their own routes that they could take. These days the women join the men in their pilgrimage.



Okunoin, Koyasan

We have read accounts from non-Buddhist visitors who talk about what a spiritual experience they had here too. We didn't feel that way. Maybe that's just because were not religious people ourselves. Maybe we would have felt more spiritual had we stayed in one of the temples. But I don't think so. Part of our problem, at least, was that we would find it hard to regard anywhere particularly spiritual, when it is so full of people.





Okunoin, Koyasan

Koyasan is very busy around the town and the temples. Firstly, there are many tourists here. I know we're tourists too, and I take photos etc, but we do always try to behave respectfully and appropriately; not everyone does. And seriously, it is hard to feel spiritual when all you really want to do is ram a few hundred selfie sticks in unmentionable places!



Okunoin, Koyasan

But it is also the pilgrims themselves. Gone are the days that the pilgrims walked up Mount Koya. These days they come in by the coachload. And they all have their matching shirts and hats, which they were presumably given on the coach as part of the package. It doesn't seem very meaningful to me.



Okunoin, Koyasan

But whilst Koyasan may not feel spiritual, it is beautiful, and the primary attraction is the huge cemetery, with so many varied and interesting mausolea in amongst the old cedar forest. This is the place to be interred, and so you will find over 200,000 tombs of all manner of famous, wealthy or otherwise important people, including Toyotomi Hidetoshi, an old samurai ruler, three generations of Tokugawa shotguns, and Kobo Daishi himself. It is his being here that makes it so popular.



Kongobuji, Koyasan

Kobe Daishi rests in eternal meditation in Okunoin, making it a most sacred place, so it is important to be respectful when you visit. The start of the approach to the mausoleum is marked by the Ichinohashi Bridge, where Buddhists especially should bow to show their respects before crossing.



Okunoin, Koyasan

Further in, when you reach the Gobyonohashi Bridge, it becomes more sacred, and all photography, food and drink are not permitted (water seems to be acceptable though). Hence no photos of this area.



Okunoin, Koyasan

If you want to check how your own karma is doing, you can take a shot at the Miroku Stone, which is sat in a cage. If you can manage to lift the heavy stone from the bottom level to the top level, using just one arm through the bars, then you are in luck. The stone is said to feel lighter to good people. We watched for a while, and it seems everyone we saw attempting it needs to do a bit of self-improvement.



Okunoin, Koyasan

The mausoleum itself is thronging with people worshipping and chanting sutras, and to be honest, we left pretty quickly, as we felt to stay would just be in the way of others to whom it was far more meaningful. If you are here at the right time then you may see Kobo Daishi being given one of the two meals that he is given daily, to see him through his eternal meditation.

Okunoin, Koyasan

We did enjoy visiting the next door Torodo Hall, which contains over 10,000 eternally lit lanterns that have been donated by worshippers. Don't miss the side door (on the outside of the hall) that goes down into the basement, where there are 50,000 tiny statues, which were donated in 1984 to mark the 1150th anniversary of Kobo Daishi's passing.


Okunoin, Koyasan

If you visit the cemetery, it would be worth getting the audio guide, so that you can hear who lays in some of the more important or interesting mausolea.

I have to admit that some of my favourites, just for the slightly comical look of them, were the ones with the bibs. The bibs are traditionally, though not always, placed on statues of Jizo Bosatsu, who is believed to look after children in the afterlife.



Okunoin, Koyasan





Okunoin, Koyasan



Okunoin, Koyasan



Okunoin, Koyasan

Okunoin, Koyasan

Kongobuji, Koyasan



Koyasan

 

Konpon Daito, Kongobuji, Koyasan

Kongobuji, Koyasan



Kongobuiji, Koyasan

Koyasan



Koyasan

Okunoin, Koyasan

Koyasan