Inner Dharma began because of my interest in Shugendō, a mountain practice blending aspects of Mikkyō, Daoism, and native Japanese religion. This led to several pilgrimages and two volumes on how mountain asceticism relates to older martial traditions from Japan.
Shugendō and Heihō: Sacred Space and Martial Practice (opens in a new tab), Mountain, Sword, and Mind: Volume I. Inner Dharma, 2026. 407 pages.
In this work we begin by examining the practice of peak entry, discuss the Buddhist ten realms, the concept of tengu and their relationship to gongen, and provide a brief overview of two important early Shugendō figures: En no Gyōja and Rigen Daishi (Shōbō).
We provide an inventory of the tengu and yamabushi-related material in the Bujutsu Sōsho and then discuss historical sacred sites in Japan and the martial traditions attached to them, drawing from the Honchō Bugei Shōden (本朝武藝小傳) and Bujutsu Ryūso-roku (武術流祖錄) and other sources. This includes Kuramadera, Atago, Kashima, Katori, Mt Haguro and Dewa Sanzan, Kumano Sanzan, Udo, and Hikosan.
We then translate Kūkai’s Secret Key to the Heart Sūtra commentary and examine the Shugendō canon’s pantheon, including Mañjuśrī (Monju), Fudō Myōō, the Five Wisdom Kings, Zaō Gongen, Sanbō Kōjin, Māra, Marishiten, Mahākāla (Daikoku) and Bishamonten. We close with a discussion on military Shugendō including the kuji (nine syllables), goshinhō (protective rites), and the concept of the diamond (vajra) body.
