The smoke from Mount Fuji swirls in the wind,
scattering in the sky.
Where is the tranquility of my thoughts that go with it?
Poet-hermit Saigyo (1118-1190)
Japanese culture is based on a deep respect for nature. Phenomena in nature were the ones that awakened the artistic sensibility of Japanese artists, and the sacred mountain Fuji stands out in that sense. There is hardly a significant Japanese poet, painter, or calligrapher who has not found inspiration in Fujiyama. Japanese art is rich in works dedicated to Fujiyama, and one of the most famous is the woodblock print series by the renowned Hokusai known as “Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji.”
Located in the middle of the Japanese archipelago, surrounded by five lakes that reflect its image, with its 3776 meters, Fuji is the highest mountain and symbol of the Land of the Rising Sun.
First revered as the home of the god of fire, later as the abode of the Shinto goddess of blooming cherry trees, Konohane, and since the arrival of Buddhism, it has been seen as a spiritual retreat for many.
The oldest records in Japanese speak of mountains as the abodes of kami and ancestors, considering them sacred places, and the most revered of all mountains is Mount Fuji, which is still considered an active volcano and has had a strong cult since ancient times.
Mountain Cult
The development of the mountain cult in Japan, which has partly persisted to this day, has been influenced by the hilly and mountainous terrain that occupies over eighty percent of Japan’s territory, as well as the multitude of volcanoes. This has shaped human activity in coastal and lowland areas, while the mountain heights and the uniqueness of the landscape have inspired deep awe and admiration.
Life in such natural conditions in ancient times gave birth to a unique tradition of religious beliefs and customs associated with the mountain. The bodies of the deceased were buried at the foot of the mountains, believing that their spirits gather at the mountain peaks. Mountains The mountains were considered a mysterious world of spirits that ancient Japanese worshipped from afar, not wanting to disturb their peace with their presence.
An explanation for this attitude towards the mountain can be found in Shintoism, the original Japanese religion. Shintoism is based on the worship of nature spirits and ancestors. According to this animistic religion, all of nature is alive, and the habitat of kami, nature spirits, and all natural phenomena are manifestations of different deities. Kami means something that evokes awe, and it is believed to possess supernatural power and beauty. The Japanese believe that Fujiyama is a kami, as well as the abode of gods, and as such, it has been a source of spiritual power since ancient times.
It is believed that kami dwell mostly in mountainous areas, where they regulate the flow of water through clouds and descend from the peaks in early spring to protect and maintain rice fields, returning to the mountaintops in autumn (the spirit of the mountain – yama no kami, in spring becomes the spirit of the rice fields – ta no kami). Special ceremonies were held to welcome and bid farewell to kamis. Kami have an influence on human actions, while human beings can influence kamis through prayers and rituals. In this sense, mountains as sacred places played an important role in people’s lives.
With the influx of Chinese cultural influences in the 6th century, especially Buddhist and Taoist traditions, mountains began to be used as residences for Buddhist hermits, and later as pilgrimage destinations for members of the imperial family and ruling aristocracy.
When Kukai (Kobo Daishi) brought esoteric Buddhism to Japan in 806 and established the Shingon school, he and his disciples retreated to the peace and quiet of Mount Koya; this school particularly emphasized sacred mountains as ideal places for esoteric teachings and attaining enlightenment. In addition, climbing the mountain was considered a metaphorical ascent to the path of enlightenment. During the Heian period (793-1185), Buddhist temples were built on the slopes and peaks of many mountains. The ancient Shinto mountains. It was believed that the original Shinto kami of these mountains represented Buddhist deities, resulting in a peaceful coexistence of the two religions and an intertwining of the two traditions.
The cult of the mountain was further deepened by the esoteric sect of Shugendo, which enriched the simple Shinto worship of mountains with teachings of Taoism and Buddhism. The concept of shugen refers to special magical powers that were acquired through rituals on the mountain with the help of nature spirits. Such individuals were called yamabushi (those who retreat to the mountains) or yama no hijiri (holy men of the mountains). Under the influence of Shugendo, the cult of sangaku shinko developed in Japan, which means the worship of mountains based on the belief that they are sacred and a place of spiritual power because kami and ancestral spirits reside on them. Shugendo had its headquarters on Mount Fujiyama until the Edo period when its significance declined.
There were also numerous brotherhoods of the Fujiyama cult, Fuji ko, which developed a distinct school of painting, Fuji. Mandara. Their paintings represented a description of the pilgrimage to Mount Fuji and aimed to remind pilgrims that the pilgrimage is a reflection of the journey of life and the goal – the Pure Land of Buddhism.
Under Buddhist influence, over time even laypeople began to climb the sacred mountains, although women were only allowed to do so in 1872. According to legend, En no Gyoja, the founder of Shugendo, was the first to climb Fujiyama, and Prince Shotoku, who played a crucial role in spreading Buddhism in Japan, is also mentioned among the first climbers.
Fujisan Hongu Sengen Taisha
According to ancient records, during the reign of the seventh legendary Emperor Korei, an eruption of Mount Fuji frightened and scattered the population of central Japan, which had been devastated for many years. The eleventh emperor, Suinin (there is no reliable information about the time of his reign), ordered the construction of a shrine at the foot of the mountain to appease the volcano goddess, then called Asama-no-okami (Sengen Okami), the kami that was most closely associated with Mount Fuji at the time. This was the establishment of the first shrine. Shrine. “Asama” in old Japanese means “volcano”, and the shrine is named Asama because it houses the goddess of volcanoes. The shrine was originally dedicated to the goddess of the volcano, Asama-no-okami, but in later periods, this goddess was identified with the female Shinto deity, the mythical Princess Konohana-no-Sakuyahime, so today they are more associated with Konohana than with Asama-no-okami.
Over time, numerous shrines were built, and in 806, the 51st emperor Heizei ordered the construction of a new large shrine in Fujinomiya, at the southwestern base of the mountain, at the fifth of ten stations from which the ascent to the summit begins. Since then, Fujisan Hongu Sengen Taisha has been the main shrine for over 1300 shrines dedicated to the deity of Mount Fuji, and it is also called the “front entrance” to Mount Fuji (abbreviated as Sengen Taisha or Asama Taisha).
Sengen Taisha was a place where pilgrims purified themselves in the water of the mountain lake Wakutama before climbing to the top, along a path that ends at the shrine. Located at the top of Mount Fuji, Fuji Sengen Taisha – Okumiya is a series of ritual sites, the main one being Dainai-in, which is the crater of Mount Fuji also known as Yukyu (Shrine of Depths). Pilgrims ceremonially visit the crater, a practice known as ohachi-meguri. Around the crater, which has a diameter of 500 meters, there are eight sacred peaks called the “Eight Petals of Fuji.”
Sengen Taisha Shrine enjoyed great prestige, and the imperial court regularly sent offerings, treasures, and bestowed land upon it. It also held the same prestige during the time of the samurais, when the shrine expanded even further and the main hall was renovated. In 1604, when Tokugawa Ieyasu declared himself shogun, he constructed internal and external shrines, entrance gates, and other buildings in its name. He also gifted the shrine an area on Mount Fuji above the eighth station. During the Meiji period (1896), the shrine was elevated to the status of “Grand Imperial Shrine.”
Today, the shrine hosts over sixty annual ceremonies, with the main ones being esubun – a celebration dedicated to the end of winter, celebrated on February 3rd or 4th, during which evil spirits are expelled and prayers for happiness are offered. The rice planting ceremony, held on July 7th, involves the ceremonial planting of rice in a dedicated rice field belonging to the shrine. The fire festival, himatsuri, is held annually to appease the kami of Mount Fuji and prevent an eruption until the following year.
Fujiyoshida-no-Himatsuri takes place on August 26th to calm the kami of Mount Fuji and prevent an eruption until the following year. The festival begins with the symbolic procession of the goddess from the Fuji Sengen shrine to a small portable shrine called omikoshi, and ends with her return to the shrine. The main event is a procession through the streets of Fujiyoshida, in which 30 men carry the omikoshi. The festival culminates in the lighting of large torches, taimatsu. This also serves as a ceremony marking the end of the climbing season on Mount Fuji.
Fuji ideal
Although it is one of the most common motifs on postcards and photographs from Japan, Mount Fuji is not often seen. The most In winter and early spring, Mount Fuji is visible, when the snowy cap adds to its beauty. However, regardless of or perhaps precisely because of its unobtrusiveness and modesty, Fuji is considered the embodiment of the sabi-wabi aesthetic ideals by the Japanese: it inspires with the simplicity and purity of its appearance, the calmness and steadfastness it exudes, and thus “teaches without words to cultivate a pure and noble heart,” as the Shinto priest of the Sengen shrine says. With its sublime and tranquil presence, it also seems to invite detachment from everyday worries and their transcendence in the spirit of Buddhism. Even today, numerous pilgrims climb Mount Fuji to witness the goraiku, the first rays of the rising sun, and thus replenish and renew themselves.
We will conclude this article with a poem by the poet Akahito from the collection Manyoshu (translated as “Collection of Ten Thousand Leaves,” an anthology of poetry compiled in the 8th century) dedicated to the sacred Mount Fuji.
Since heaven and earth
Separated from each other,
Your tall, radiant summit
Aspires above the land. I am Saruga.
And when I raise my gaze,
Gazing into the heavens,
The sun that circles in the sky,
Dims before your brilliance,
(Or the moon’s glow fades
As soon as it touches you.)
Even the white clouds are afraid
To fly over you.
Only eternal snow covers you
With its whiteness.
Oh Fujiyama, your beauty
Will be praised by people forever,
And songs will be sung about you
By countless generations.