. the dissemination of esoteric scriptures 673
temples, sometimes not, spent their lives in the mountains trying to
attain enlightenment and thaumaturgical powers. From time to time
they would come down to the villages to perform various religious
activities, and were even invited to court or to major temples to per-
form rituals. It is very hard to clearly define these “mountain and
forest” ascetics, as they practiced a mixture of Buddhism, Daoism,
Confucianism, and native shamanism, but one primary common fea-
ture was their use of magic spells, especially esoteric dhāraṇīs. Without
doubt, the most famous example is the semi-legendary En no Gyōja
(also known as En no Ozuno or En no Shokaku , fl. late
seventh to early eighth century), who is said to have lived on Mount
Katsuragi , a very important center for this type of practitioner,
especially in later times.
The most important site for this activity was the area of Yoshino
and its religious center, Hisosanji (Hisodera), other-
wise known as Hōkōji or Genkōji (Ōji 1991, 7–39). It
served as the headquarters for those trying to attain “natural wisdom”
(jinenchi ) through purificatory austerities and other religious
activities, above all the questioning ritual to Akāśāgarbha (Sonoda
1970, 45–60). It is not exactly clear what the term “natural wisdom”
actually meant, but as far as we can infer from texts, including the writ-
ings of Saichō and Kūkai, who actually practiced in these mountains,
the aim was not simply to develop superhuman memory to retain all
the Buddhist teachings but also to recover the so-called innate knowl-
edge (shōchi ), as opposed to commonplace acquired knowledge
(gakuchi ). After all, the term itself is very specific and appears
already in the Lotus Sūtra (T. 262.9:31a13) to refer to the wisdom that
one possesses innately, which is not the result of conditioning.
The earliest references to people practicing these teachings brings
our attention to the Chinese monk Shenrui (d. 737), who came
to Japan around the time of Dōji’s return; and to Dōji himself and
his lineage, with his subsequent disciples Zengi (729–812) and
Gonzō. Then follows Daoxuan, Jianzhen’s disciple Fajin (709–
778), and Doshō’s lineage that, through Gien (d. 728), Rōben,
and Gyōgi, takes us to Shōgo (732–811) and Gomyō (750–
834), who were renowned members of the group. Initially, Hisosanji
was a sort of branch temple of Gangōji, where monks could practice
or be trained, but it soon also established strong ties with Daianji,
and even monks from Tōdaiji and Kōfukuji can be found. Mountain