Japanese Pilgrimage

by Oliver Statler

Japanese Pilgramage is Oliver Statler's account of walking the Shikoku Pilgrimage, a thousand-mile trek around the fourth largest island in Japan following the path of an ancient Buddhist master. It is a fascinating story of a spiritual journey that shows the many sides of Japan.

Genres: Japan, Travel, Nonfiction, Buddhism, History, Religion

349 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1983

About the author

Oliver Hadley Statler (1915-2002) was a Bestselling Author and Japanese Art Expert. From his small-town, midwestern roots, Huntley native Oliver Hadley Statler found his life's passion in Japan and became an internationally acclaimed best-selling author and interpreter of Japanese art, culture and history.

Reviews

[Jean-Luke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oliver Statler's Japanese Inn is masterful, and Japanese Pilgrimage, published 22 years later, is even more so. In it he travels to Japan's fourth largest island and undertakes the nearly thousand mile Pilgrimage to the Eighty-eight Sacred Places of Shikoku. He details the history and customs of the Buddhist pilgrimage, undertaken for centuries in honor of Kobo Daishi, founder of the Shingon school of Buddhism, and beautifully captures the journey on the page. Statler explores how various legends have been tailored throughout the years, with Kobo Daishi, whose more tangible achievements include starting the first school in Japan open to the poor as well as the rich and compiling Japan's oldest surviving dictionary, superseding several others as the central figure. Buddhism and Shinto have long been interwoven in Japan and Statler explores this dynamic along with the histories of many notable figures, from henro to holy men, of the last 1,500 years. I especially enjoyed the digression on Ichikawa Danzô VIII, a kabuki actor who, upon retirement, completed the pilgrimage at the age of 84. Modern convenience means chartered buses carry many pilgrims from temple to temple, but Statler and his companion undertake the journey on foot.

[Smiley · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the writer's afterword in 1983 and its brownish pages, I did not think I would enjoy or finish reading this paperback at all. However, I found it amazingly readable and informative since Oliver Statler has written from his direct experiences as a pilgrim on the island of Shikoku with Nobuo Morikawa his Japanese friend along the formidable thousand-mile, almost two-month journey in 1971, his first being in 1968 (p. 335).

His style of writing is uniquely challenging, for instance, he narrates his pilgrimage like telling what he does, sees, reacts, etc. naturally to his friends; moreover, he does not write about all 88 temples but he simply states that it depends, rather he has told his readers intensively on those interestingly holy, charismatic and highly-respected priests dating back more than 1,000 years ago, for example, the great Kobo Daishi (774-835) as seen from a 14th-century copy detail of the original painting (p. 23) is possibly the most admired/revered one. One may be wondering or in doubt on such a remote figure, this excerpt reveals his fame: “The eminent historian Sir George Sanson called him the greatest figure in the history of Japanese religion, … As the founder of Shingon, a major sect, he is a giant figure in the naturalization of Buddhism, in molding it to flourish in Japan. He is one of his country’s greatest scholars: a poet, a calligrapher, an artist, an educator, a social worker, and, among other things, a first-rate civil engineer.” (p. 22)

Moreover, a few paragraphs of the following narration would shed more light on how the Daishi’s expertise in civil engineering has since been famous:

He arrived in the early summer of 821; the people rushed to him in such a haste (says the chronicle of those years) that many slipped into their sandals wrong-foot-too. He began with a fire ceremony and prayers (an inlet in today’s reservoir marks the spot). To the crowd assembled he explained that he had been given an imperial order to reconstruct the pond; he asked for their help, they gave it. The job was completed in less than three months.

This and other reservoirs that he was associated with demonstrate that he had an advanced knowledge of civil engineering. For instance, the dam is curved back against the impounded water; engineers today are often surprised to find that he knew that principle. The earthen dam that he built has never failed. …

… I feel a sense of exhilaration: after being asked so often to take on faith that he did this and that, it is tonic to stand before a certified achievement. This reservoir alone would account for the faith in the Daishi among farmers.

There is a statue of him overlooking the lake, and higher on the shore, a temple. We seek out the priest and he gives us some figures. This is the fourth-largest irrigation reservoir in Japan, the largest held by an earthen dam. The dam is more than 500 feet long, rises 105 feet from the valley floor. It is nearly 13 miles around the edge of the lake, which irrigates almost 12,000 acres – more than one-eighth of the Sanuki plain. It is named Manno-ike, the “Pond for Ten Thousand Fields.” (pp. 304-305)

This book is, I think, quite reader-friendly, that is, you would find it enticingly captivating due to its generous black-and-white illustrations: 2 maps, 16 paintings, 18 prints, 2 calligraphies, 7 illustrations, 8 sculpture carvings/photos and 2 drawings. Hopefully, some color ones should be considered and processed in its future hi-tech printing.

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Statler followed the pilgrimage trail of Kobo Daishi, one of the men who brought Buddhism to Japan. The modern pilgrimage bears little resemblance to the original Buddha's teachings (or perhaps even to Kobo Daishi's); it co-exists with Shinto shrines (and even shamanism), although there are tales of the intermittent struggle between the two major Japanese belief systems. Statler has open eyes and an open mind, and his prose is fluid and full of interesting stories and legends about temples, their keepers, priests, monks, royal struggles, and, of course, fellow pilgrims, past and present. The most vivid stories are probably those of: Shunkan, the abbot of a wealthy Zen temple, who become co-conspirator in a royal plot and was exiled to a remote island; Danzo VIII, the octogenarian member of a Kabuki acting dynasty; Chogen, the manipulative temple builder; Sutoko, the unlucky prince and postumously-named emperor; and Saigyo, the courtier turned monk and poet who was visited by Sutoko's ghost. Statler is the ideal guide to this world of obscure and often clashing doctrine, of battles between temples, neither reverent nor disrespectful, but always knowledgeable and thoughtful.

[Smelloftrees · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book chronicles the 88-temple Shikoku pilgrimage of the Shingon sect of Buddhism, as experienced by the writer and his travel companion.
Having started reading without knowing anything at all about the topic, it was a bit challenging to be immediately catapulted in its journey, however things start to clear up the further one reads. Shortly after it felt as taking part in the pilgrimage in first person.
The volume is divided in three main chapters: Master (centering on the figure of the Kobo Daishi, the priest the pilgrimage is based on), Savior (focused on the lives of holy men who popularized the pilgrimage and raised efforts for the upkeep of temples and shrines), and Pilgrims (dedicated to the memory of several pilgrims, some well known, others less).
I personally believe a chronological order would have proved more effective than this chapter division, as it often happens that the same temple is mentioned in two different sections of the books, which might be cause for confusion.
Nonetheless, it was a beautiful read, spread with interesting anecdotes and uplifting stories, while also offering a glimpse into the Japanese culture and customs.
It is a must read for whoever loves Japan and its people.

[Dustin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very evocative - a fairly dense book, and I did find myself wishing it was more of a travelogue in order around the pilgrimage path (it actually jumps around a lot). It really does give a feeling for what it might be like to walk the circumference of Shikoku, both when it was written in the 1980s, and in the more distant past.

[Philip McCarty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm wicked glad to have come across this in a little bookshop in town. Reading this book has been a great pleasure and gave me a real sense of peace as it evoked many memories of my pilgrimage across Shikoku. I thought that the historical and religious notes were eye opening and found that they explained things I had wondered on as I traversed the island. The many myths he recounted throughout the book kept things interesting. The writing is very straightforward and made reading through an easy task. I like that he looked at both the historical, mythical, and religious stories and ideas around Kobo Daishi and the pilgrimage to give a well rounded exploration of them. One thing that stood out to me, was his explanation of Binzuru, a follower of the Buddha who has to wait outside the buildings his whole life and has red skin. He's rubbed where you hurt so he can heal that spot. I'm a big fan of this gent. Hearing about the many types of people that undertook the pilgrimage and the ways the path has changed over time were also highlights of the book. I have got to recommend this to anyone who enjoys books about religion, travel, or have done/thinking of doing the Shikoku Pilgrimage.

[Simon Pockley · Rating 4 out of 5]

熊野古道
I'm soon to go on a Japanese Pilgrimage, so this book looked interesting. Indeed, I found it fascinating, although rather more about the way stories accrete over time and less about an actual pilgrimage. Here, there are layers of cautionary tales as a cast of characters plod over mountains and through valleys in a large circle, where it is hard to distinguish who is from deep history and who is more recent. The book was published in 1984 and it will be interesting to see how dated it is.

Legends have a way of procreating, but I cannot help but feeling that here at Saba Daishi is a modern and self-conscious case of borrowing. p.166

. For a Picador, I was surprised to encounter so many typos

e.g. It did not use to be easy. p.226

In 1918, Takamure Itsue set out on pilgrimage at 24, looking for a way to live. She made the following resolutions (p.273-74):
*to accept whatever happened, however unexpected, without anxiety
*to ask for my needs in a straightforward manner
*if my request for lodging or for food was refused, to leave immediately
*not to cling to life tenaciously
All seem like worthwhile resolutions to me.

The pilgrimage is ascetic exercise for the layman. Its essence lies in the physical, mental, and spiritual demands made by the henro, and the physical, mental, and spiritual rewards that accrue. p.298.

[Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting book into Japanese culture. The only reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 is because it took a while to digest before moving on in the reading. However, I would definitely add an extra half star for the fabulous illustrations.

[Ad · Rating 5 out of 5]

"This is where one begins. On this mountaintop, at the holiest spot of this sprawling complex of temples, in the shadow of these towering cedars, one stands before the tomb of the saint whose life and legacy inspire the pilgrimage. Here one asks his blessing, his guidance and protection, his company, on the pilgrimage to come."

One of the things still squarely on my ToDo list, is the Shikoku Pilgrimage of 88 Temples. A few times, I have dipped in a toe, so to speak, by visiting No. 1, Ryozenji, in Tokushima; No. 31, Chikurinji in Kochi; No. 51, Ishiteji, in Matsuyama; and No. 84, Yashimaji near Takamatsu. But these were random visits and not part of a pilgrimage. While this big but pleasant task is still glittering in my future, I am thinking about the book that first aroused my interest in the Shikoku Pilgrimage: "Japanese Pilgrimage" by Oliver Statler. It was Statler's fascinating account that made me fantasize about threading in the footsteps of Kobo Daishi. In this expertly written book, the author combines a personal account of the Pilgrimage with substantial cultural information on the topic. I first read "Japanese Pilgrimage" in the mid-1980s and that book now is so brown and broken that I have to be careful when turning the brittle pages. I think I have read it at least three times.

Oliver Statler (1915-2002) graduated from the University of Chicago and came to Japan with the American army in 1947. He was gripped by the beauty of wood block prints of which he became an internationally known expert. His interest in the Pilgrimage dated from a first visit to Shikoku, in 1961; he first performed the whole 1000-mile circular pilgrimage in 1968. From 1969-1971 he lived in Matsuyama on Shikoku in order to further study the pilgrimage, and in 1971 he made the entire pilgrimage again (with a Japanese friend - this is the biographical account we find in the book). It was a Guggenheim Fellowship which permitted him in 1973 to finally write the book, which was first published in 1983.

As "Japanese Pilgrimage" shows, Statler was a beautiful stylist of the English language. His account is a lyrical, impressionistic portrait of the Shikoku Pilgrimage, anecdotal and episodic and yet securely built on an underlying narrative plan. It is well-researched and highly evocative of Japanese religiosity as it functions in daily life. It also contains biographical information about the priests and pilgrims prominent in the long history of the pilgrimage, starting with Kobo Daishi (774-835), saint, miracle worker, flamboyant evangelist, scholar, poet and even (later) a deity. He struggled to find the "right way" here in the mountains of Shikoku; and he sought it in China where he inherited the mantle of a great esoteric Buddhist master. He finally reached the understanding that all human beings possess the seed of Buddha and can, with hard effort, nurture that seed and reach enlightenment during this present life.

The book is divided into three sections. In the first one ("Master"), Statler gives an outline of the historical personage of Kukai (later known by his honorific as Kobo Daishi), the 8th/9th-century monk and founder of the Shingon school of Buddhism in Japan upon whom the pilgrimage is focused. In the second part ("Savior"), Statler attempts to portray how layers of legend and belief enlarged Kobo Daishi and how faith in him as a divine savior was spread among the populace by wandering, itinerant holy men (hijiri). Finally, in the third section ("Pilgrims"), the pilgrimage itself comes into sharper focus, both through discussions with current pilgrims and priests and accounts of past pilgrims such as the Kabuki actor Ichikawa Danzo VIII and haiku poet Masaoka Shiki.

And while telling these three stories Statler shares with the reader his own experiences of the thousand-mile journey, a demanding route through deep mountings and along rugged coasts, taking almost two months to walk. All three sections are full of legends, folk stories, anecdotes and miracle tales that perfectly capture the mood and feel of the pilgrimage.

Perhaps to cut back on Japanese names for those not used to the language, Statler calls the 88 temples by number ("Number One," etc.) , but at the back of the book he provides a concordance with the temple names. The author also skips back and forth (without discussing all 88 temples) and doesn't give any practical information - in other words, this is not a guidebook. It is a book about the spirit of the pilgrimage, its history and its culture. You don't even actually have to perform it to enjoy this fine account. But that is a dangerous thought for me - it could make me lazy, for the Pilgrimage is still waiting, on my very doorstep as I now live in Kobe instead of Tokyo...

"Remember, the Pilgrimage is circular, and like a circle, it has neither a beginning nor an end; like the quest for Enlightenment, it is unending..."

Also see my blog https://adblankestijn.blogspot.com/.

[Valerie P · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was so much to learn from this memoir/history book about the pilgrimage on Shikoku island in Japan. Minus a star for its rambling nature; the history and stories presented might have been easier to follow if the author had more rigorously edited and organized them.

[William Ash · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best English book on the 88 Sacred Places of Shikoku Pilgrimage. Statler completed this journey several time and researched it extensively. Statler weaves a fascinating tale of Japanese culture crossing centuries of history. But be warned-if you read this book, you may just end up on the island of Shikoku as a pilgrim yourself (and I speak from experience). An excellent book for those interested in Japan and Japanese religion.

[Miriam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meet the author in Miami.

[Erik · Rating 5 out of 5]

I lived in Shikoku for six years, and I did the 88 Temples pilgrimage in 2011 with my dad. This book was the inspiration for that. An excellent and deeply personal travelogue.