Sacred Mountains and Pilgrimage

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Sacred Mountains and Pilgrimage

• Pilgrimage(Victor Turner)
• A social process
• Rites of passage (separation, transition,
  incorporation)
• Basic elements
• Sacred space/place holy city or mountain,
  sanctuary, temple, monastery, relic site, shrine,
  etc.
• A sanctified man or woman (deity)
• pilgrims
• A religion or a cult associated with the space
  deity

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Efforts Required to Make a Pilgrimage

• Austerity, patience, and perseverance needed to
  make a long and distinct journey
• Different from (1) an ordinary worship at a
  sacred place, (2) travel to a historical or
  scenic site, (3) procession of gods, sacred
  objects, and devotees to a series of holy places
• Be involved in sophisticated or complex rituals
  and ceremonies
• Perform prayers and penance

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Buddhism and Pilgrimage

• The paradox of pilgrimage
• Mahayanas idea of emptiness does not
  differentiate spaces
• No place or site should be more sacred than
  others
• The idea of the path (marga) leading to
  enlightenment and nirvana serves as a metaphor
  for pilgrimage
• Buddhist pilgrimage
• Places sanctified by history (hagiography)
• Lumbini, deer park
• Places marked by remains of enlightened beings
• Bodhgaya
• Buddhas relics and stupas, Bodhisattvas holy
  mountains

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Chinese Pilgrims

• Chinese monks made pilgrimages to India from the
  third century to the twelfth century.
• Most famous pilgrim Xuanzang (Hsuan-tsang)

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• the most respected Chinese pilgrim and one of
  the greatest Buddhist masters
• Traveled to India for 16-18 years (629-645?),
  brought back 657 items of Buddhist scriptures, as
  well as translated and compiled translations of
  74 works in 1335 volumes

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• Founder of a new Chinese Buddhist school in the
  Tang dynastythe Faxiang or Weishi
  (Consciousness-only) School
• Probably responsible for the composition of the
  Heart Sutra (Xinjing), the shortest Buddhist
  sutra, but the most-recited one.
• His pilgrimage, which was to resolve the
  controversy regarding Buddha nature, inspired
  storytellers to write stories about his
  adventurous journey.The Journey to the West

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Pilgrimage in China

• Three Great Seats of Enlightenment
• Mt. Wutai (Wenshu or Manjusri), Mt. Omei (Puxian
  or Samantabhadra), Mt. Putuo (Guanyin)
• Four Famous Mountains
• The above three and Mt. Jiuhua (Dizang or
  Ksitigarbha)
• It took Putuo several centuries to become a
  sacred place
• 10th C, 16th C, 18th C.
• One reason existence of other Guanyin centers
  prior to Putuos prominence
• The Cliff of Hidden Dragon (in Guilin, Guanxi)
• Xiangshan monastery (in Henan)
• Southern Mt. Wutai (near Xian)
• Upper Tianzhu Monastery (in Hangzhou)
• It assumed the status of Patalaka

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Further Reasons for Guanyins Prominence

• Myths and Legends
• Thaumaturgical presence (to subdue poisonous
  dragon)
• Compassionate feat/work done for a community
• Magical and spontaneous manifestation in
  different forms (e.g., sculptor cuts wood and
  sees her image)
• Her saving power (rain making etc.)
• Imperial and official patronages
• Pilgrims continued to show gratitude to Guanyin

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Characteristics of Pilgrims in China

• National rather than local/regional
• Pilgrims from different provinces pay tribute to
  Guanyin
• Many large groups
• Multifarious purposes
• From Vow-making, vow fulfilling, to spring outing
• Different levels of devotion
• More women than men and more country folks than
  urban residents

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Mt. Putuo or Pu-tuo-shan

• Places known for their numinousness and efficacy
• Cave of Tidal Sound
• Diamond Boulder
• Purple Bamboo Grove
• Dragon Princess Cave
• Sudhanas Rock
• Parrot Stone
• Cave of Brahmas Voice
• Patrons historicized the pilgrimage site
• Compiled local gazetteers, systemized the history
  of pilgrimage
• Seven gazetteers stress the influence of
  historical accounts
• They provide records of efficacious wonders