Religious practices in the Japanese mountains : from fleeing the hells towards the healthy, sustainable and spiritual practices of the consumer society = Les pratiques religieuses dans les montagnes japonaises : da la fuite des enfers vers les pratiques s

The study examines the Japanese mountains as places of religious practices. The author looks at both the historical and the present-day religious practices enacted in the mountains and asks how the logic of the market has shaped them. By looking through the historical development of religious practices in the mountainous locality of Tateyama, the first three chapters offer an understanding of the relationship between mountains and notions of the afterlife. The case of Tateyama, a popular pilgrimage site during the Edo period, provides an insight into the pilgrimage place and its mountain cult taking into account the economic aspects in the maintenance of the cult. Drawing on insights gained through field research in the Japanese mountains of Tateyama and Dewa Sanzan, the author explores the present-day re-enactments and sustenance of religious practices and their intersection with the cultural heritage concept. These observations have provided a useful perspective on adjustments between providers of religious practices and participants. Although seen as marginal practices, austerities such as taki gyō and the complexity of qualities associated with them are introduced in the last chapter as examples of the creative sustenance of present-day ascetic practices.

The study examines the Japanese mountains as places of religious practices. The author looks at both the historical and the present-day religious practices enacted in the mountains and asks how the logic of the market has shaped them. By looking through the historical development of religious practices in the mountainous locality of Tateyama, the first three chapters offer an understanding of the relationship between mountains and notions of the afterlife. The case of Tateyama, a popular pilgrimage site during the Edo period, provides an insight into the pilgrimage place and its mountain cult taking into account the economic aspects in the maintenance of the cult. Drawing on insights gained through field research in the Japanese mountains of Tateyama and Dewa Sanzan, the author explores the present-day re-enactments and sustenance of religious practices and their intersection with the cultural heritage concept. These observations have provided a useful perspective on adjustments between providers of religious practices and participants. Although seen as marginal practices, austerities such as taki gy? and the complexity of qualities associated with them are introduced in the last chapter as examples of the creative sustenance of present-day ascetic practices.

CONTENT INTRODUCTION Field work Conventions Structure of the book CHAPTER I: THE AFTERLIF Early textual traces Buddhist hells Returners from death in the Nihon ryōiki The Scripture on Jizō and the Ten Kings Picturing the damned Scenes from the Scripture on Jizō and the Ten Kings The Illustrated stories of Hell and the Stories of Hungry Ghosts CHAPTER II: THE TATEYAMA MANDALA1 What type of mandala is the Tateyama Mandala? The world of the Tateyama Mandala The story of the hunter The Realms of transmigration Suffering in the hells CHAPTER III: THE TATEYAMA CULT Aspirations for rebirth in Heavens Unblessed women The Cloth Bridge Consecration rite Uba Sustaining strategies Vanishing of the cult CHAPTER IV: IN THE NAME OF RELIGIOUS-CULTURAL HERITAGE The case of Tateyama Continuing practices in Ashikuraji Re-enactment of the Cloth Bridge rite The Japanese sense of nature Mediating Shugendō Retreat CHAPTER V: RELIGIOUS PRACTICES IN THE CONSUMER SOCIETY Culinary curiosity and healthy lifestyle Importance of body and senses Benefits – riyaku 利益 Mediatization Choose your experience CONCLUSIONS APPENDIX 1: ORIGINAL VERSIONS OF TRANSLATIONS FROM JAPANESE APPENDIX 2: THE CLOTH BRIDGE CONSECRATION RITE APPENDIX 3: RETREAT RÉSUMÉ BIBLIOGRAPHY