haguro corrections

posts/haguro_book_review.md

@@ -8,21 +8,21 @@ Wait, that isn't entirely accurate! One of the first misunderstandings that the
 
 The book does a great job at explaining what Shugendo is exactly. I think anyone with a little bit of knowledge about Buddhism and Japanese history should have no problem understanding the writing. As previously shown, the author also excellently cleared up misconceptions and prevented misunderstandings.
 
-Another thing the book did well was describing both the many rituals were, and the meaning behind them. Or rather, the meanings. The author uses two main sources, which ascribe multiple different meanings to aspects of the rituals, and the author also adds in his own knowledge, from his participation in the Aki no Mine (Fall Peak) ritual period, and his conversations with practitioners. Combined with the well-written glossary, this book seems like an incredibly useful guide to understanding the ceremonial parts of Shugendo.^\[1\]^ The rituals themselves were of course, very interesting and certainly worth writing about. Though the Fall Peak was given the most in-depth explanation, I found the Winter Peak to be the most interesting, with its initial long period of confinement for two senior ascetics, and ending with a thrilling festival full of competitions and celebrations. I understand why the Fall Peak was given much more coverage, given that it is slightly less public, and since the Winter Peak is more under the jurisdiction of the Shinto Dewa Shrine in modern times. The Summer Peak is the season where pilgrims come. The Spring Peak is no longer done, and is essentially a bunch of rituals perfomed privately by the highest-ranking members. I had no problem with how much each peak was covered, and thought it made sense. It was decently fascinating, and I was not aware of the lay pilgrimages in Shugendo before; I had mostly only thought of Shugendo in terms of the ascetics/priests that practice it, and had not thought too much about what the lay followers did.
+Another thing the book did well was describing both what the many rituals were, and the meaning behind them. Or rather, the meanings. The author uses two main sources, which ascribe multiple different meanings to aspects of the rituals, and the author also adds in his own knowledge, from his participation in the Aki no Mine (Fall Peak) ritual period, and his conversations with practitioners. Combined with the well-written glossary, this book seems like an incredibly useful guide to understanding the ceremonial parts of Shugendo.^\[1\]^ The rituals themselves were, of course, very interesting and certainly worth writing about. Though the Fall Peak was given the most in-depth explanation, I found the Winter Peak to be the most curious, with its initial long period of confinement for two senior ascetics, and ending with a fun festival full of competitions and celebrations. I understand why the Fall Peak was given much more coverage, given that it is slightly less public, and since the Winter Peak is more under the jurisdiction of the Shinto Dewa Shrine in modern times. The Summer Peak is the season where pilgrims come. The Spring Peak is no longer done, and is essentially a bunch of rituals perfomed privately by the highest-ranking members. I had no problem with how much each peak was covered, and thought it made sense. It was decently fascinating, and I was not aware of the lay pilgrimages in Shugendo before; I had mostly only thought of Shugendo in terms of the ascetics/priests that practice it, and had not thought too much about what the lay followers did.
 
 With his own experience of the rituals, the author is able to provide details on how modern practices differ from the pre-Meiji ones. Besides modern practices generally being more abbreviated, it seems some holy sites no longer exist, or in one case, are inaccessible due to hydroelectric dam.
 
 What I liked most is the explanation of the history of (Haguro) Shugendo, and how it changed through the ages. It seems it arose from the interaction of already ancient indigenous^\[2\]^ beliefs about the sacred role of mountains, and the imported Buddhist, and later Taoist, beliefs. As it became more organised, a formal hierarchy arose, divided between ascetics practicing on or near the mountain year round, and wandering folk priests serving various communities. Lay adherents received charms and various ceremonies (eg, to protect crops), and undertook long pilgrimages from across the country to the mountain. By the Edo/Tokugawa period, these wandering priests started growing more and more settled, and eventually stopped wandering entirely. After Shugendo was banned by the Meiji government, Shugendo priests and ascetics were either forced to give up their practices or become Shinto priests or Buddhist monks. A great deal of sites associated with Haguro Shugendo disappeared. But, enough was preserved and survived that it was revived post-war, even if in an abbreviated form.
 
-Again, I learned about the involvement of the lay followers, and was surprised by the great (historical) reach and power of Haguro Shugendo. At its height, it had great financial and even military power. Overall, the book touched on many interesting topics and tidbits, far too many to list. I learned about the involvement of the lay followers, and was surprised by the great (historical) reach and power of Haguro Shugendo. At its height, it had great financial and even military power. It quibbled with other Shugendo sects (such as the Hozan-ha, associated with the Tendai Buddhist sect^\[3\]^).
+Overall, the book touched on many interesting topics and tidbits, far too many to list. I learned about the involvement of the lay followers, and was surprised by the great (historical) reach and power of Haguro Shugendo. At its height, it had great financial and even military power. It quibbled with other Shugendo sects (such as the Hozan-ha, associated with the Tendai Buddhist sect^\[3\]^).
 
 The book presents convincing evidence of pre-Shugendo beliefs around mountains, which besides being fascinating, gave a good idea of how Shugendo arose. I find it plausible that Shugendo independently arose in many areas of the country, and based on inter-group influences came to have some common characteristics. I don't really know whether Haguro Shugendo really predates En no Gyoja (or even if En no Gyoja was real [probably?]), but I don't see why not.
 
 ## What I wish was different
 
-While the pre-Meiji history and doctrine of Shugendo is described in good detail, the post-Meiji history and doctrine of Shugendo is confusingly, barely covered. I was left with many burning questions. How exactly did Shugendo survive and revive? How did they decide which rituals to continue, and which to discontinue? When revived Haguro Shugendo matures, will more rituals and practices be revived? What is the relationship exactly with Dewa shrine? What do the modern lay practitioners believe? Where did the shugenja of revived Shugendo come from, exactly? And what are their motivations?
+While the pre-Meiji history and doctrine of Shugendo is described in good detail, the post-Meiji history and doctrine of Shugendo is confusingly, barely covered. I was left with many burning questions. How exactly did Shugendo survive and revive? How did they decide which rituals to continue, and which to discontinue? When the resurrected Haguro Shugendo matures, will more rituals and practices be revived? What is the relationship exactly with Dewa shrine? What do the modern lay practitioners believe? Where did the shugenja of revived Shugendo come from, exactly? And what are their motivations?
 
-When reading, small bits of answers are teased, but never fully fleshed out. For example, some of the modern Haguro Shugendo believers don't seem to like Dewa shrine, and how they carry out the rituals, but the other hand, (presumably Haguro) shungeja participate in some of the shrine's rituals. What's up with that? Who knows, no elaboration is made. Another example, the author at one point "accidentally observed an unofficial but interesting religious activity", where an older woman, who seemed to be in a "mild form of possession", and a young man were praying together. Afterwards, he talked to the woman (who he had, apparently, previously interviewed, though this is news to us) explained that they were praying for the young man's dead father. She also said she had seen images of the founder (Prince Hachiko) while praying before. This short, off-hand passage is unfortunately the closest readers get to understanding the modern followers of Haguro Shungendo.
+When reading, small bits of answers are teased, but never fully fleshed out. For example, some of the modern Haguro Shugendo believers don't seem to like Dewa shrine, and how they carry out the rituals, but the other hand, (presumably Haguro) shungeja participate in some of the shrine's rituals. What's up with that? Who knows, no elaboration is made. Another example, the author at one point "accidentally observed an unofficial but interesting religious activity", where an older woman, who seemed to be in a "mild form of possession", and a young man were praying together. Afterwards, he talked to the woman (who he had, apparently, previously interviewed, though this is news to us) who explained that they were praying for the young man's dead father. She also said she had seen images of the founder (Prince Hachiko) while praying before. This short, off-hand passage is unfortunately the closest readers get to understanding the modern followers of Haguro Shungendo.
 
 I don't understand why the author neglects the modern history. They obviously have plenty of sources to draw on, including his own experience and his conversations with modern practitioners, who surely remember the recent revival, and likely the pre-war underground state of Shugendo, so that isn't the issue. The modern history and motivations should be the easiest part to research! I also don't see why this would be out of scope of the work^\[4\]^, since revived Haguro Shugendo is still Shugendo. In my opinion, if the author would've included some of his takeaways from the interviews he clearly conducted with many followers and senior priests, the work would be greatly enhanced.