874 mark unno
the development and dissemination of the mantra of light, its function
in petitionary prayer has not necessarily followed his soteriologically
centered view of praxis. Today, many Shingon devotees engage in peti-
tionary prayer that, in terms of doctrine, would at best be described
as enzukuri, an instrumentally based view of bringing followers into
connection with the buddhadharma.
In the process of institution building, there may have been increasing
numbers of followers who adopted the practice of the mantra and sand
in the context of petitionary prayer. Though beyond the scope of this
essay, it would be instructive to further examine the relation between
faith, karma, this-worldly benefits, and petitionary prayer. Could it be
the case, as Myōe suggests, that this-worldly benefits, although unpre-
dictable, are more likely to issue as a consequence of faith and positive
karmic actions than if they are pursued through petitionary prayer?
The Mantra of Light as Devotion and as Yoga
Until recently, there has been a perception that devotional practices
are for the laity, and more advanced contemplative or yogic practices
are the province of monastics or religious professionals. Such distinc-
tions as karmic versus nirvanic Buddhism, as posited by Melford Spiro
(1982), though rejected by Richard Gombrich and others (1996), has
tended to reinforce the lay-devotion, renunciant-yogic associations
within the non-specialist view of Buddhism. Yet even in such monas-
tic-centered traditions as Chan/Zen, faith has played a key role from
early on, as evinced by works such as the Song of Faith (Xinxin ming
) by Sengcan (d. 606). Furthermore, in the lay-centered
movement of Shin Buddhism, in which faith is considered central,
Shinran described a trajectory of religious awakening moving through
three dialectical stages (sangan tennyū ), in which intoning
the name of Amida Buddha begins from a more devotional stance
but culminates with the Shin practitioner as “equal to the tathāgatas”
(Kaneko 1964, 585–86).
This trajectory from a more devotional attitude to a more yogic
understanding can be seen in the mantra of light as well. This is
especially clear in the case of Myōe. In works that are directed more
toward the laity, such as Recommending Faith and its Supplement, he
emphasizes more the devotional attitude. In works that are meant for
his fellow monks and nuns, such as the Kōmyō Shingon kaji dosha gi
¢ Õ (Significance of the Mystic Power of the Sand