Shingon: Japanese Esoteric Buddhism

by Taiko Yamasaki, Carmen Blacker (Foreword)

Shingon: Japanese Esoteric Buddhism is the first comprehensive study of the subject to appear in any Western language. This book traces the history of the school from its mysterious origins in India and describes the remarkable men who brought the teachings to China and Japan in the eighth and ninth centuries, who translated the texts, and who carried the initiatic chain of teaching. It discusses the Metaphysical doctrines of Shingon, its founding scriptures, and its views on levels of consciousness and stages of samadhi. And it covers the whole range of Shingon meditations and exercises—such as mudras, incantations, and visualizations of deities and symbolic forms—hitherto virtually unknown in the west.

Genres: Buddhism, Japan, Religion, Philosophy

Hardcover

First published June 12, 1988

About the author

Taikō Yamasaki is abbot of Jokoin Temple in Kobe, Japan, and Dean of the Department of Esoteric Instruction at Shuchi-in University in Kyoto, Japan. He is one of the worlds recognized experts in Ajikan and other forms of Meditation.

Reviews

[WryPriest · Rating 5 out of 5]

Published in 1988, 'Shingon: Japanese Esoteric Buddhism' was abbot/professor Taiko Yamasaki's subject primer written specifically for western and international audiences. Upon release it was the first complete conveyance of Shingon Buddhism's history, doctrine, and practice written for an English language audience. Though showing its age 34 years later, it remains a worthwhile introduction and foundational textbook on the material—material which while further examinable recently thanks to some impressive scholarly works, remains fairly scarce due to a surprisingly small amount of topical published resources.

The first portion of the book, with the background development of Shingon and its doctrines and practices, is necessary and quite fascinating to any students of Buddhist history. This section does have some aspects to it which seem dated now—or perhaps seemed much more minimal as the sole work of its subject matter at time of release. Noticeably, the historical overview lacks for proper descriptiveness in describing the political, cultural, religious elements of India and China which range much beyond Shingon's developmental Buddhist origins. For example, the military forces which eventually force the last states of Buddhist patronage from India are merely described as "Muslim invaders." An internal account of a tradition's history is not expected to grant valuable attention to its own violent oppressors, and obviously a full history of the periods covered is beyond the scope of this work; there are simply moments which are awkwardly abrupt in this manner which can undermine the momentum the historical account seeks to accumulate.

The founder Kukai's development of doctrine and his integration of Shingon into the Imperial court and political aristocracy (basically the transitional moments into Heian culture) is more thoroughly covered in more recent works like Abe's 'The Weaving of Mantra,' but this background remains worthwhile for its succinctness. The second section of the book, which translates essential doctrine and cosmology of the Shingon school, along with most of the curriculum, rituals, and training syllabus for ordained disciples, remains mandatory material to anyone with a deep interest in Buddhism. There are more complete translations of some of this material around currently, but this has a lot of the sought after information in one survey.

An unfortunate aspect of this book is its lack of availability and affordability: a clean, used, softcover edition is $60-80 (USD) and possibly more. Its original MSRP on the rear cover lists it as $20—it's probably a book which would go for $30-ish today new. A reissued hardcover edition with perhaps some further material via Yamasaki's religious or academic students would be quite welcome indeed.

In the past 10-15 years, new research, new translations of primary doctrine and writings, and other Shingon Buddhism material regularly in print has made this self-contained overview less mandatory for everyone eager to learn about this culturally definitive and remarkably important Japanese school of Buddhism. But then again, many more contemporary works tend to be denser prose, academic and scholarly discourse, and so not as accessible for the average reader as this classic title. And it should be noted that nearly every substantial Shingon Buddhism book in print tends to cost close to $40 minimum. There are few-to-zero affordable, short-to-medium length books on the subject.

But hey, Kukai was a mystical prodigy and it's not every religious school which offers complete awakening and Buddha-hood in this lifetime via original tantric practice. So, if you have to know as much as possible about what was going on with his school, are into pre-Tokugawa martial arts or religious practices, or just want to have a proper study of Japanese cultural history, picking up the essential handful of Shingon texts in English isn't a huge expense at all. Still—see if you can find this one digitally or from a library unless you need to own it.

[Mariasole · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my first book on the esoteric Buddhism world and I have found it a marvelous source for future learning, although I find it very difficult to follow. This is not a book for DIY manual seekers because it is closer to an academic work than to an easy getaway for dummies. It starts with detailed information about the history of this philosophy, that was born in India and carried throughout the Chinese regions until it reached Japan, thanks to the exchange of religious and language knowledge put into practice by monks. Then there is the real distinction between Exoteric and Esoteric Buddhism, highlighting the importance of the latter, which Shingon belongs to. In Japan, esoteric Buddhism is called Mikkyo and I was overwhelmed by the complexity and richness of its rites, deities, sutras, most of them still orally transmitted and reserved to the clergymen. There are only a few rites that also laymen can have access to, after a hard practice, and the author himself has tried and described as a change of consciousness. It is a book that one should read from time to time because the first reading can arouse a great deal of confusion. Great book, immense knowledge, and wisdom