Dissertationsprojekt Josko Kozic, M.A.

In recent years, religiously connoted phenomena and practices deriving from Japan such as Zen, mindfulness, or forest bathing are gaining popular interest, with many of them promising both physical and mental well-being for their practitioners. However, among these there is also an increasing interest in Shugendō, a syncretic religion based on mountain worship and ascetic exercises. Shugendō recently becomes remarkably popular through so-called "Yamabushi workshops" through which laypeople can experience rituals originally deriving from Shugendō. The scope of Shugendō's discourse and practice has expanded to a larger public, thereby attaching Shugendō to the popular belief in so-called "power spots".

In my dissertation, I aim to unveil the latest tides of this religious phenomenon in the discourse of material religion, while also putting a focus on how it lately becomes branded and mediatized through the internet. Shugendō has not only aroused public interest in the media in recent years, it has become a subject of increased academic discourse and research. Interestingly, various practicing groups across the country are expanding beyond their sanctuaries and gather in social networks, even creating new structures and international groups practicing outside of Japan.

In Japanese discourses it is sometimes referred to as a "primordial, original religion" of Japan, which supposedly has the potential to make the world more peaceful and safe, especially during times of crisis. To what extent, however, is Shugendō detached from its original values, rematerialized and staged in the course of its popularization? Would such circumstances indicate a possible decline in values, or does Shugendō, according to the claims of some scholars, represent an “embodiment of Japanese culture” that is worth spreading?