In my previous post about my visit to Daishoin Shingon Buddhist Temple I mentioned the founder of that sect, Kobo Daishi, and how he travelled around Japan founding temples and discovering hot springs all over the place.
https://liketu.com/@hirohurl/walking-to-daishoin-shingon-buddhist-temple-miyajima
Well, that is only one account of how Shingon Buddhism spread across Japan.
Tanuki Shape-Shifters Were Mischievous Missionaries!
Another story relates how those notorious shape-shifters, Japanese racoon-dogs - or "tanuki" in Japanese - were the ones that did it.
Apparently, tanuki began to shape-shift into the very likeness of Kobo Daishi - complete with wicker "kasa" hat and monk's robe, and spread Shingon Buddhism wherever they went.
In short, the tanuki shape-shifters were having a bit of a laugh, as is their wont.
Esoteric Buddhism and Secretive Tanuki
Shingon is considered an "esoteric" form of Buddhism, with hidden teachings and mystical practices passed down from teacher to student in an oral tradition.
Tanuki also enjoy a certain "esotericism." They are said to hold secret meetings away from human eyes, deep in the woods and forests of Japan where all sorts of revelry and sakē-drinking takes place. Perhaps that common esoteric grounding is how the story of their shape-shifting into Kobo Daishi came about.
Whatever it was that caused tanuki to play this merry jape, it is obviously celebrated by the Shingon sect who were ultimately its chief beneficiaries.
Cheers!
David Hurley
#InspiredFocus
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