Shuffling in our stocking feet at
6:30 a.m. along the dark wooden corridor of the temple from our
room, we headed to the prayer hall. The other overnight guests, a
Japanese group, were doing the same. Recorded choral music had
awoken everyone shortly before. We were now about to experience
morning prayers in a temple on Mount Koya, in the Kinki region of
central Japan. [Top]
We entered a sumptuous space,
quite unlike the sober style of the rest of the temple's wooden
buildings. The room was dimly lit by numerous delicate Japanese
lanterns, and by candles on the altar. The columns were clad in
luminous orange and yellow silk fabrics, and golden curtains of
filigree metal were suspended from the ceiling. Beyond a low railing
was the large altar, adorned with many ritual ornaments including
elongated bronze lotus-shaped vases containing white and yellow
flowers. Lush incense wafted from three porcelain bowls. [Top]
The congregation took their
places kneeling or sitting cross-legged on the tatami mat floor. A
solemn Buddhist monk, his head shaved, entered the altar area. He
wore ornate vestments, including a diaphanous fabric over patterned
robes, and ceremonial sandals. Holding his prayer beads, he
proceeded to provide a detailed explanation of the religious
significance of the rituals involved in honoring ancestors at a
cemetery. These included the number of incense sticks to be lit, the
role of flowers to provide a resting place for the deities, the need
for an offering of fruit, and of drink, which could range from water
to sake, and even coffee. Buddhism is associated in Japan with
death. This temple has responsibility for thousands of tombs in the
vast Okuno-in Cemetery, a magnificent necropolis nearby containing
memorials to the elite of Old Japan. [Top]
A younger monk appeared. This was
the person who had arranged registration the day before. He looked
then like a member of the maintenance staff. Now, he was transformed
by his elaborate ochre-colored robes and the dignity of his office.
The service commenced, with the monks turning their backs to the
congregation, and the senior monk sitting cross-legged on an orange
silk cushion on the edge of the altar. To the uninitiated, the main
features of the service were the continuous deep chants in unison of
the officiates, their occasional striking of a bell and gentle
banging of ancient cymbals. The effect was deeply moving and
timeless. [Top]
When the service was well under
way, the 30 Japanese members of the congregation started
unexpectedly to rise from the tatami mats, and without further ado,
they all left. Uncomfortable at being the only participants, we
withdrew as well, leaving the monks to conclude the service on their
own. The others headed to the entrance of the temple grounds, where
a large tour bus had pulled up for them. [Top]
We were at Kongosanmai-in Temple,
built in 1223 by the widowed Hojo Masako, one of the most powerful
women in Japanese history. She had it constructed in memory of her
husband, Minamoto Yoritomo. He had been the leader of the Genji clan
which struggled for supreme power in 12th Century Japan with its
arch enemies the Heike. In a decisive battle, he had vanquished them
and had become shogun. The approach to the temple is along a lane in
the village of Mount Koya. The traveler follows a long high wall
until reaching the gate, which opens into a scene of breathtaking
beauty and serenity. Surrounded by majestic
black cedar trees, the main buildings in the complex are made of
dark, weathered wood. Their striking roofs are of the graceful
Japanese up-swung design, covered with a thick layer of finely
trimmed shingles. Ornate wood carving including fanciful depictions
of elephants, lions - and dragons - surround the entrance porch. To
one side of the grounds is an elegant two-storied pagoda from the
13th Century. The sober flagstone-covered courtyard is interspersed
with formal Japanese gardens, containing pruned pine trees and
shrubs, a pond, a few selected rocks, and surrounded by a low bamboo
fence. The only sounds are of birds and of water flowing into the
pond from a bamboo spout. [Top]
Upon arriving the previous
afternoon, we had been shown to our simple tatami mat room, with
small seating area looking out onto a Japanese garden including a
stone lantern. The tranquility was extraordinary. The room had no
chairs, and its only furniture was a low lying table, on which had
been set some traditional small pastries, cups and pot of green tea.
There was no bed. During our dinner, served in an identical room
across the hall, our futon bed was prepared on the floor. We
indicated to the attendant that we wished three layers of mats, but
even that Western extravagance did not ensure a particularly
comfortable sleep. And the hard pillow consisting of buckwheat was
not a positive factor. [Top]
Our meal was served in numerous
small bowls and dishes on a red lacquer tray, set about six inches
off the floor. We sat cross-legged on thin cushions to eat it. The
menu consisted of vegetables, two kinds of tofu, miso soup, pickles
and a savory custard. A generous container of rice provided
additional sustenance. Dessert consisted of two poached plums.
Unlike most other meals in Japan, there was no fish, and certainly
no meat. Fortunately, the sect's rigorously vegetarian diet permits
beer. The monk serving us surprisingly proposed large bottles of
beer. The repast was delicious, albeit lightly flavored. After our
meal, there was no opportunity to enjoy any village nightlife, as
the gate to the temple was closed at 9:00. The evening recreational
activity, as in other traditional accommodations in Japan, was the
communal bath. [Top]
 This temple is one of about 60
which receive overnight visitors. In all, there are about 120
Buddhist temples on Mount Koya. In its heyday, there were over a
thousand. Its history stretches back to the early 9th Century when
Saint Kukai, the founder of the Shingon sect, established a monastic
retreat. Buddhism first arrived in Japan in the 6th Century, from
China, a thousand years after its founding in India. Mount Koya
still attracts a million pilgrims every year, many wearing
distinctive white cotton coats and carrying a ritual walking stick.
It is most conveniently reached by train from Osaka. The train
rushes across the plain past villages and rice paddies, before
starting to climb the mountain. Passengers transfer to a funicular
which whisks them up through a virgin forest to the enclave of Mount
Koya, where, at 900 meters, the air is purer and more temperate than
in the plain below. There things move at a more measured pace. This
seems appropriate, given the community's religious vocation for the
last 1200 years. [Top]
Copyright D Paget, All Rights Reserved, 2003 Re-printed with permission
Other Useful Ryokan Information
If you have never stayed at a ryokan, then Planning
Your Stay at a Japanese Ryokan will help you better plan
your stay.
Our Ryokan Styles page
will tell you about the various types of ryokans available
If it is your first time staying at a ryokan, you may want to
read our page on Ryokan Customs
Here is some more detailed information about Staying
at a Ryokan including ryokan cuisine
For more information about dining on Japanese "kaiseki," please
see Japanese "Kaiseki" (traditional,
multi-course dinner)
In A Ryokan Experience,
a guest describes his stay at a ryokan on Miyajima Island
Read Interviews with
Three Kyoto Ryokan Owners and their experiences hosting foreign
guests
A step-by-step explanation of how
to put on a Japanese "yukata" (robe)
Here is a description about the dos and don'ts of Japanese
Bathing Etiquette, and here is how to use a Japanese-style
toilet
How big is a tatami mat room? Go to this Tatami
Mat Conversion Table and find out.
Read David Paget's article "Japanese
Buddhist Temple Overnight" and a guest's article "A
Night on Mount Koya" about
their experiences staying overnight at Buddhist Temples on Mount
Koya in Wakayama Prefecture.
Read guest's Comments about
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