The secret world of Shugendō : sacred mountains and the search for meaning in post-disaster Japan / Shayne A. P. Dahl.

Author/creator Dahl, Shayne A. P. author.
Format Book
PublicationChapel Hill : The University of North Carolina Press, [2025]
Descriptionxiv, 252 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm.
Subjects

SeriesWhere religion lives
Where religion lives. ^A1406485
Contents Mountains of Time: A Tour of Mount Haguro -- Summits and Waterfalls: The Shugyō Experience -- Rebirth in the Mountain's Womb: Shugyō Interpreted -- The Buddha and the Kami: Mountain Politics and Historical Consciousness -- Autumn's Peak: Buddhist Temporality and Ascetic Ethics -- Summits Where Souls Gather: Ancestral Spacetime and Disaster Pilgrimage on Gassan -- The Buddha Mummies of Mount Yudono: Cosmic Bodies of the Future Past The Mountain Vista.
Abstract "In this compelling narrative of discovery set in Japan's remote Dewa Sanzan mountain range, Shayne A.P. Dahl describes Shugendo, a secretive religious tradition that combines aspects of Shinto, Buddhism, and mountain worship. As a participant-observer, Dahl invites readers into the practices of contemporary ascetics who see the sacred mountains as wombs within which cycles of life, death, and rebirth can be harnessed for the sake of personal transformation and existential realization. As Dahl argues, immersion in Shugendo provides ascetics and pilgrims with an escape from capitalist modernity and an avenue for self-reflection in the wake of the earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disaster near Fukushima in March 2011. Immersing readers in the intimate and hidden dimensions of Shugendo, Dahl sheds light on how practitioners sustain their traditions in the face of modern temptations and tensions within their religious communities. Filled with insight into Shugendo's contribution to Japanese cultural identity, this book offers groundbreaking perspective on the intersections of ecology, disaster, religion, the human condition, and death"-- Provided by publisher.
Bibliography noteIncludes bibliographical references and index.
Genre/formEthnographies.
Genre/formÉtudes ethnographiques.
LCCN 2025015442
ISBN9781469690599 hardcover
ISBN1469690594 hardcover
ISBN9781469690605 paperback
ISBN1469690608 paperback
ISBNelectronic book
ISBNelectronic book

Availability

Library Location Call Number Status Item Actions
Joyner General Stacks BQ8822 .D33 2025 ✔ Available Place Hold