From Kyoto, we took three trains, one cable car and a bus which lead us to our inn at Mount Koya. Mount Koya is the headquarters of the Shingon sect, a school of Buddhism with over 10 million members in Japan. On Mount Koya alone, there are more than 120 temples. Much of the accommodation is owned by the temples and Fukuchi-in, where we stayed, was founded approximately 800 years ago.
(Entrance to Fukuchi-in)
Fukuchi-in offers traditional Japanese style accommodation, with public bathing facilities (onsen) for guests and Buddhist vegan meals served in guests' rooms. Let's just say we never knew how versatile tofu can be! The gardens were designed in a dry landscape style, recreating a variety of natural settings including mountains, forests and oceans through the careful placement and arrangement of stones, pebbles and plants.
On Tuesday, we attended a morning ceremony held in the ceremonial hall. Dimly lit and with a strong scent of incense in the air, it was very atmospheric listening to the monks chant their morning prayers. Following the ceremony, we went straight to the public baths to warm up before heading out to explore the sites.
Mount Koya was founded in 816 by a monk named Kukai. As a young man, he spent time studying in China before returning to Japan to found the Shingon School of Buddhism. Before leaving China, it is said that he threw a sceptre from China which landed in Japan. When searching Japan for a suitable place to build his monastery, he chose the site where he found his sceptre to have landed.
It is believed that Kukai did not die but lives on in a state of eternal meditation, waiting for the day when the Buddha of the Future will appear. Monks still prepare two meals a day for Kukai, which are delivered to his tomb. Our first stop of the day was the cemetery, Oku-no-in, where Kukai's tomb is located.
(Oku-no-in)
(Huge old Cedar trees line the paths of Oku-no-in)
Following the cemetery, we visited The Garan, Mount Koya's central temple complex where important religious ceremonies and meetings still take place. Fires have struck the complex many times but the buildings have been rebuilt every time.
One full day was all the time we had on Mount Koya and so following one final onsen and a final vegan dinner, we packed our belongings and prepared for the big city lights of Osaka where we would travel to on Wednesday.
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