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8Russian Japanology Review, 2021, 2, pp. 54-69 DOI: 10.24412/2658-6444-2021-2-54-69
Amidaist Practices in Zoku Honcho Ojoden ("Continuation of the Biographies of Japanese Reborn Into the Pure Land")
A. A. Petrova
Abstract. The article discusses practices for reaching rebirth in the Pure Land recounted in Zoku Honcho Ojoden ("Continuation of the Biographies of Japanese Reborn Into the Pure Land"), composed in 11011111 by Oe-no Masafusa. These practices include those mentioned in the stories as being performed during one's lifetime, intended to show one's strong devotion to Pure Land, as well as death-bed practices: the description of the death hour is the crucial point of every biography. Some of these practices belong to the Pure Land tradition (the most important to be mentioned is nenbutsu, "recollection of Buddha [Amida]"), while others are more likely to be attributed to other traditions (the most important one being reading and reciting the Lotus Sutra): the author obviously does not feel any need to draw a line between them. Normally, these practices are only mentioned in the text and not discussed in detail. This aspect of Zoku Honcho Ojoden is analyzed in comparison with other important Pure Land texts: Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki ("Japanese Records of Rebirth in the Land of Supreme Joy") by Yoshishige-no Yasutane and Ojoyoshu ("The Essentials of Rebirth in the Pure Land") by Genshin. As compared to Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki, in Zoku Honcho Ojoden, much stronger emphasis is placed on the death-bed practices than on the lifetime actions and evidence of rebirth. Often, the text focuses on the state of mind of the dying person, his or her determination in performing
death-bed practices. In his work, Öe-no Masafusa leans on the idea expressed in Öjöyöshü that these are the last moments of life that are decisive and determine one's rebirth, illustrating it with examples.
Keywords: Buddhism in Japan, Pure Land Buddhism, öjöden, Öe-no Masafusa, Zoku Honcho Öjöden, Nihon Öjö Gokuraku-ki, Genshin.
Introduction
It is believed that the first historically verifiable information about Pure Land Buddhism, or Amidism, in Japan dates back to 640, but it is since the 10th century that this school of Buddhism gains popularity. Representatives of the Tendai school actively participated in its development (here, one must mention Ryogen, 912-985), with the major role played by Ryogen's disciple, Genshin (942-1017), who composed Ojoyoshu fi^M®, ("The Essentials of Rebirth in the Pure Land") (985) - the first large Japanese text dedicated to the veneration of the "Pure Land" (about early Amidism, see: [Andrews 1989; Rhodes 2007; Trubnikova & Bachurin 2009, pp. 282-293]. Genshin's text is a theoretical work, consisting of a huge number of quotations (more than a thousand from over 160 various sutras and treatises). In the same time period, Yoshishige-no Yasutane (933-1002) creates Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki ("Japanese Records of Rebirth in the Land of
Supreme Joy") (for the Russian translation, see [Ojo Gokurakuki 2001]), a narrative text which started the genre of ojoden, "legends of rebirth in the Pure Land" - collections of biographies of people who, allegedly, gained rebirth in the Gokuraku (Sanskr. Sukhavati), the land of Supreme Joy of Buddha Amida, for their good deeds. Both texts laid the foundation of the tradition of Amidism, the former from the point of view of systematic elaboration of the doctrine, and the latter - from the point of view of "vitalizing" it by providing proof of the existence of the Pure Land and the means of achieving it by using the stories of concrete people [Rhodes 2007, pp. 251-252].
In 1101-1111, an aristocrat, scholar, and man of letters Oe-no Masafusa (1041-1111) composed Zoku Honcho Ojoden ("Continuation of the Biographies of Japanese Reborn Into the Pure Land"), thinking of it as the continuation of Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki (which he states directly in the foreword). Like Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki, Zoku Honcho Ojoden includes 42 stories arranged in a strictly defined order. It begins with persons of high standing: two stories about emperors - Ichijo and Go-Sanjo, three stories about aristocrats -Minister of the Right Horikawa, gon-chunagon Akimoto and sangi Oe-no Otondo. The larger part is composed of biographies of monks of various ranks: sojo (community elders), sozu (community heads), shamon (monks), ajari (spiritual teachers) (25 stories), and, in the end, there are biographies of lay men (7 stories), as well as women - nuns and lay women (5 biographies). All heroes of the stories whose years of life are known from other sources lived in the 9th-11th centuries (the are also many about whom there is no information except for what is present in this text), i.e. the text focuses on the relatively recent, from the author's point of view, past.
Among others, the collection includes biographies of Genshin (this is one of the longest stories; incidentally, it mentions six works by Genshin, including Ojoyoshu) and Yoshishige-no Yasutane. Generally speaking, most monks featuring in Zoku Honcho Ojoden are representatives of the Tendai school, many of whom are somehow connected to Ryogen and the Ryogen-in temple in the area of Yokawa on Mount Hiei. It is there where, in 986, the community of Nijugo sammai-e, ("Gathering of the Twenty-Five Types of Concentration") the goal of which was joint practice to reach rebirth in the Pure Land, was formed (Genshin was a part of this community, and Yoshishige-no Yasutane was close to it).1 Apparently, Oe-no Masafusa had close ties to Ryogen's disciples, and, therefore, his text can be called not only a continuation of Yoshishige-no Yasutane's
1 The establishment of this community is believed to be one of the major milestones in the formation of Amidism in medieval Japan (see, for instance, [Stone 2016, p. 29]).
work, but also an attempt to reflect upon (and apply in practice) the ideas of Genshin and his circle. It is interesting to see how the Amidist practices, elaborated by Genshin in such detail in his Öjöyöshü, are represented in Zoku Honchö Öjöden.
Lifetime Practices to Gain Rebirth in the Pure Land
Genshin did not deny the efficiency of various "open" and "secret" practices of the Tendai school, but proclaimed that, for the era of mappo, the End of the Law, the "simple way" of the Pure Land practices is most appropriate for the majority of people, the most important of these being nenbutsu ^ffi, "recollection of Buddha [Amida]". It is worth noting that, according to him, nenbutsu refers to several actions: from complex contemplation exercises based on the visualization of Amida, to simply repeating the phrase "namu Amida Butsu". Genshin devotes a substantial part of his text to the description of right ways to practice nenbutsu (shoshunenbutsu Eff^ffi) [Rhodes 2007, pp. 254-256].
In Zoku Honcho Ojoden, as well as in Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki, a lot of attention is paid to the nenbutsu practice. Suffice it to say that the term "recollection of Buddha [Amida]" is mentioned in 29 biographies out of 42. As a rule, this term is not elaborated (and this is, again, where Zoku Honcho Ojoden follows its predecessor): the heroes just ff^ffi or ^ffi^® - "practice recollection",2 but it is not stated how exactly they do it. An exception is the biography of Otsugi (37), which says: ttB^i Mt^So^ffi^^o - "On this day, having hung a bell on his neck, he was pacing the room while repeating nenbutsu."
As a rule, the heroes do it by themselves, with rare exceptions: for example, in the biography of Emperor Ichojo (1), the "recollection" is read for him by Abbot Keien. This is where Zoku Honchô Ôjôden differs from Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki, where there are more similar cases.
The only detailed theoretical discussion of this issue is given in the biography of Genshin (9): "Someone secretly asked: "Monks' knowledge and practice are so diverse. Which practice of perfection should be preferred?" [Genshin] responded: "First of all, nenbutsu." They asked again: "In various practices, one reaches success by means of the mind. Should one contemplate dharmakaya3 during nenbutsu? He replied: "[It is sufficient to] only repeat Buddha's name." They asked again: "Why is it not necessary to contemplate?" He replied: "To be reborn [in the Pure Land], calling is sufficient, that is why it is not necessary to contemplate. However, contemplation is not difficult. When one contemplates, the mind is clear and there are no hindrances."4
Some stories also imply other practices connected to the Pure Land. For example, in the biography of Kanshun (11), one can find the mention of contemplation sangannen "contemplative recollection", i.e.,
concentration on the images of Amida and the Pure Land. In the story of Riko (17), the term M^^M, "practices of the Western direction", is used, while, in the stories about Kakuson (28) and Otsugi (37), there is "practices of the Pure Land". In the story of Oe-no Takachika (34), it is said: "He built a pavilion and practiced the rite
of greeting."5 The biography of Ryohan (19) tells that, after his death, Buddhist images and sutras covered in blood were found in his secret stash, and then it became apparent that he had secretly performed practices for future rebirth.6
Nevertheless, as Genshin and his followers did not believe the nenbutsu practice (and other practices of the Pure Land) to be uniquely
One of the Buddha's bodies: the essential body.
Here and later, the translation is given by the edition [Zoku Honcho ojoden 1980].
It is probably a reference to the ritual of mukaeko "Welcoming
Ceremony", during which a sort of a "rehearsal" of posthumous arrival of Bodhisattvas who come to take the dying person to the Pure Land is conducted (see [Horton 2008]).
Hereinafter, "rebirth" refers to rebirth in the Pure Land.
3
4
5
possible for gaining rebirth, so did Oe-no Masafusa not consider it such, and his texts mentions other ascetic practices. These are, for example, sitting meditation zazen (29), the practice of toso (28),7 the practice of repentance zange (15)8, contemplation gachirinkan (10).9 Two stories tell about contemplating the dead body of a deceased relative, the outcome of which was enlightenment (29 and 33). Substantial attention in the collection is paid to reading sacred texts. For example, the biography of Akimoto (5) says that he ff^ffiMIS, "practiced nenbutsu and reading sutras" (Komyo in biography 23 does the same), with the former and the latter obviously perceived as actions of the same nature, equally useful for future rebirth. Reading10 and copying sutras, pronouncing various mantras (dharani) is frequently mentioned in other stories as well. For example, Genshin's biography provides a whole list of his lifetime "merits":
"Recited nenbutsu 20 kochi11 times. Read: the Lotus Sutra - 1,000 times, the Sutra of Perfect Wisdom (Prajnaparamita Sutra) - more than 3,000 times, the Amitabha Sutra - 10,000 scrolls. Recited: the Larger Amida Mantra - 1,000,000 times, the Spell of the Thousand-Handed One - 70,000,000 times, Vijaya Dharani - 300,000 times. Also, the mantra of Amida, Fudo, Luminous Light, Buddha Lochana -the number of this is not known. Besides, making Buddhist statues, as well as copying sutras, giving alms - all [good deeds] cannot be counted."12
7 A practice aimed at abandoning the "three desires": the need for clothes, food, and shelter.
8 See [Marran 2013]
9 "Concentration on the moon circle."
10 Obviously, in most cases, what is meant is not only reading, but also reciting the text.
11 iiE, a number (Sanskr. Kofi): 10,000,000, sometimes also 100,000 or 1,000,000.
12 In the beginning of Genshin's biography, there is another list, somewhat different from the one quoted here, which is, it seems, a later addition.
In other stories one can also find the names of various sacred texts, but the most frequently mentioned is the Lotus Sutra,13 fe^lS (literally "the Sutra of the [Lotus] Flower of the [Wonderful] Law"), which is sometimes referred to just as (literally "Flower of the Law"). It is mentioned in 10 biographies, which is comparable with Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki, where it is also very important and where it is mentioned in 9 stories. Both texts clearly show that reading the Lotus Sutra is directly linked to good rebirth - this action, obviously, is thought of as one of the lifetime merits facilitating it. As the most vivid examples, one can name the story of Eijitsu (14), which says: -
"For his whole life, he was reading the Lotus Sutra and was striving only for future rebirth," and the story of Kakushin (26), which ends with the words =
ISoW^Afc - "For more than 30 years, every day he was reading the Lotus Sutra: [the number] exceeded ten thousand times. In his death hour, he was only reading this sutra and died, turning to the west." In this respect one should also note the biography of Reverend Shin'en (16), who passionately desired to see the Buddha in his physical body and, for this purpose, diligently and for many years read and revered the Lotus Sutra. Finally, due to a miraculous dream, his prayer came true - and this led the biographer to draw the following conclusion from the story: pf ff B
- "Shin'en beheld the Buddha in his physical body. So, did he not obtain rebirth?"
The quoted biography contains a quote from the Lotus Sutra - and this is notable, as the text of Zoku Honcho Ojoden contains few direct quotations from sacred texts, which, as a rule, are only named, but not "elaborated". The author was, of course, absolutely confident that the texts mentioned by him were well known to the potential reader, and so no clarifications were necessary, while simply naming them was enough. In the biography of Shin'en, however, the quotation was necessary, as it
13 The full name is the "Sutra of the White Lotus of the Supreme
Teaching" - a Mahayana sutra, one of the most revered and well-known in East Asia.
was the driving force of the plot. This is a quote from the 26th chapter: "Constantly I have dwelled on Holy Eagle Peak and in various other places."14 Guided by these words, Shin'en concludes that "various other places" must include Japan as well and, consequently, he must be able to see the Buddha in his physical body.
Such great attention to the Lotus Sutra is far from surprising, as it is the foundational text for the Tendai school, and Masafusa's connection to it has already been mentioned before. Since the times of Ryogen, in the Enryaku-ji temple, it became a custom to combine the nenbutsu practice with the repentance ritual of hokke senbo which included
reciting the Lotus Sutra and repentance actions aimed at purifying the six sensing organs (this ritual was conducted four times a year). Eventually, such combination of the two practices spread to other temples and was adopted by private persons [Stone 2016, p. 40-41]. Accordingly, it is only natural that, for Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki, Zoku Honcho Ojoden, as well as other ojoden collections, nenbutsu and the Lotus Sutra go hand in hand, pointing the way to good rebirth.
The biographies in the Zoku Honcho Ojoden often emphasize conscious deep striving of the heroes towards the Pure Land and future rebirth. Let us give several examples:
Minister of the Right Horikawa (3): ^^««^o^ "n^^Po - "During his life, [the Minister of the Right] only performed practices for future rebirth and studied the teaching of Tendai."
Community elder Jinin (7): - "He only
wholeheartedly hoped to gain refuge in the Pure Land."
Temporary junior community head Kakuun (8): - "From
his younger years was striving for enlightenment."
Monk Zoga (12): - "From his younger years
gave an oath and only devoted himself to future rebirth."
Monk Ninga (13): - "Was deeply worried
about future life, completely abandoned [striving] for [worldly] fame."
14 Translation by B. Watson.
Ajari Eijitsu (14): - "He was only striving for future
rebirth."
Monk Ryohan (19): ^^ffi^o - "His soul was striving for the Land of Supreme Joy."
Monk Anshu (25): i!Attl^±o - "He completely abandoned the world of the people and was only hoping for the Pure Land."
Oe-no Takachika (34): SEftto^^i
¿Mo - "For his whole life, he only devoted himself to rebirth. Every time, looking at a Buddhist statue, he was always unwillingly shedding tears."
Yoshishige-no Yasutane (31) and the spouse of Minamoto-no Mototada (42) are described as people who had compassion (jihi
Ajari Hankyu (20) was exceptionally zealous in venerating the Pure Land: "For his whole life, he devoted himself to the Land of Supreme Joy. Whether he was walking or standing, sitting or lying - he did not turn his back to the west. When he was spitting or defecating, he did not do it in the western direction. From his yearly years, he did not expose his back to the rays of evening sun."
This is contrasted by the biography of Minamoto-no Yoriyoshi (36), about whom it is said that he came from a warrior family and therefore was killing people all his life. However, "after that, he built a pavilion and [a statue of] the Buddha, deeply repented his sins, read nenbutsu for many years and, finally, "left his home." After his demise, there were many dreams about rebirth in the Land of Supreme Joy (K^M^^
^o ) Oe-no Masafusa concludes that
MSK^So - "It is known that even ten crimes and five sins can be forgiven and [the one who committed them] will be accepted [in the Pure Land], all the more in such a case."
The quoted concluding words of the biography of Minamoto-no Yoriyoshi refer not only to it, but also to the previous story (35): its hero, Minamoto-no Noritau, is described as a talented, wealthy, but exceptionally greedy person. Nevertheless, -
"But, in his death hour, he obtained the right state of mind and reached
the Land of Supreme Joy." These words are followed by an important conclusion: - "It is known that
rebirth is defined not necessarily only by the merits of the present life, but also by the merits of the previous life." This quote makes it clear that, from the author's point of view, striving towards rebirth during one's lifetime and performing appropriate actions for this purpose are very good, but, under certain conditions (gaining merit in previous lives), are not necessary. Here, one can also see the reflection of ideas expressed by Genshin in Ojoyoshu.
Generally speaking, it is clear that the author of Zoku Honcho Ojoden (as well as his predecessor, Yoshishige-no Yasutane) has no intention to single out the Pure Land practices and specifically separate them from the practices of other schools: all practices mentioned in the text are perceived as "links" of a single system, together helping to achieve the goal - obtaining rebirth in the Land of Supreme Joy (and it is no accident that the heroes of many biographies are described as possessing extensive knowledge in the field of Buddhist texts).15 Nevertheless, frequent mentions of the term nenbutsu show that this practice is still perceived as the most important one - but, first of all, it is critically important at the moment of one's death, rather than during one's lifetime.
Death-Bed Practices
In his work, Genshin emphasizes the crucial importance of deathbed practices: recollection of Amida in the last moments of one's life can, allegedly, make incomparably more for salvation than performing
All the above-said is linked to the approach to Amidism characteristic of recent research. According to this approach, during most of the Japanese medieval period, Amidism was not a separate movement or school, but, rather, Amidist symbols, rhetoric, and practices crossed all borders, combining with practices and rhetoric of various schools, with rebirth in the Pure Land being the "common goal" (see, for example, [Stone 2016, p. 36]).
15
similar actions during one's lifetime. The last thought of a dying person must focus on the hope that Amida will lead them into his Pure Land, and they must not divert their attention to anything else, with the actions described by Genshin assisting them in it [Stone 2016, p. 51-53]. Ojoyoshu says:
"This single reflection [on the Buddha] at death outweighs the karmic acts of a hundred years. It this instant should pass you by, rebirth [in samsara] will be unavoidable." [Stone 2016, p. 81]16
At this time, these ideas and practices started to spread among aristocrats (see [Horton 2004; Avdyushenkova 2015]). Their importance is clearly seen in Zoku Honcho Ojoden as well: every biography is necessarily concluded by the description of the hero's death hour. As a rule, the description includes the actions of the person at the death hour and the evidence of this person really reaching rebirth. The biography of Ichijo (1) textually emphasizes the power of ^^^ffi, the "last recollections": M^PBo^^&oM^M^o&^fft rn^iAo - "The destiny of an emperor has a
limit; this is beyond our power. But there are ties that formed during one's lifetime. One must necessarily read the last recollections. If one does not do it, there will be no end to sorrow."
Further stories show the importance of the last recollections implicitly, "by default." The text often mentions the firmness of the dying person's spirit, their determination in reciting the "recollection": nenbutsu is read "without turmoil" (^SL), "intently" "unceasingly"
(^№), "without rest" №№), "wholeheartedly, single-mindedly" (^k), "hundreds of times" But, most often, the narration of the hero's
death-bed minutes features the term shonen E^, which describes the "right state of mind" at the moment of one's death. All these words, emphasizing the ability of the dying person to take their mind under control, reflect the ideas expressed in the Ojoyoshu. In this case, of key importance is the word shonen E^, as a state without which gaining rebirth in the Pure Land is simply impossible. Let us note that it is this
For the Russian translation of this passage, see [Avdyushenkova 2015, p. !
16
term which is used in the above-quoted biography of Minamoto-no Noritau (35): the fact that, on his deathbed, he remains in the "right state of mind" ultimately defines his successful rebirth. Interestingly, Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki does not use this term, even though its heroes are also diligent in their practice.
Besides nenbutsu, the heroes do the following actions in their death hour: perform ablution hold colored ropes in their hands (¡№^),17
fast burn incense practice sitting meditation
read sutras (MIS), turn to the west (Mfa; there is also another variant described in Genshin's biography (9): "turned his neck to the
north, and his sides to the right"), fold their hands into various sacred mudra signs (for example, Zoga (12) folds the Diamond Mudra ^i'J-^ ^ when dying; and about the Minister of the Right Horikawa (3) the text says that, after his death, his hands were folded into WK^S^P, the greeting "seal" of Buddha Amida,18 with the added remark that ^^^^ - "As he did not know the secret teaching, it probably became so on its own"), sing kassatsu (^^).19 All these practices (except for direct references to kassatsu and zazen) are also mentioned in Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki.
Among the above-named practices, the most frequently mentioned are turning to the west (in 10 stories) and ablution (in 5 biographies), while other actions deserved only few mentions. Eight stories (16, 30, 31, 33, 34, 36, 38, 41) do not describe death-hour practices at all (but, evidently, imply them). For example, the biography of bikuni Enmyo (41) tells about her death hour simply: »¿^gftg^o - "During her death hour, there were many good omens," or, in the biography of Nichien (30): - "According to the omens of his
17 Five-colored ropes bound to the hands of a Buddhist statue, so that it helps the dying person to concentrate. Genshin writes about them in Ojoyoshu, but it is surprising that, in Zoku Honcho Ojoden, they are only mentioned twice.
18 Right hand raised, left hand lowered.
19 On kassatsu, or gassatsu, see [Takeuchi 1996].
death hour, there is no doubt that he gained rebirth." As one can see from the quoted passages, in the event of lack of information about the heroes performing the necessary actions at the moment of their demise, the author puts an emphasis on "good omens", i.e., proofs of rebirth (this is also the case with other six stories, where "good omens" are described in more detail).
Often, the heroes of the biographies know about their death beforehand and gather people around them in these days (this probably relates to Genshin's ideas that, on their deathbed, a person must be supported by an assistant or assistants). Interestingly, while Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki often describes end-of-life visions of the dying person (in particular, it tells about the arrival of miraculous "guests", visible only to the hero of the biography, who are to guide them into the Pure Land), in Zoku Honcho Ojoden, such descriptions are much less numerous (as an example, one can name the description of the visions of Genshin (9), or the saints who came to meet Henjo (6);20 other biographies contain a couple of mentions of beautiful music (for example, biography 37), or wonderful fragrance (for example, story 42) which the dying person feels.21
Comparing Zoku Honcho Ojoden with Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki, M. Nakao finds two important differences. First, he notes that, compared to the latter text, the former one pays much less attention to the proof that the heroes have, in fact, been reborn. Second, in his opinion, unlike Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki, in Zoku Honcho Ojoden, the description of lifetime practices assisting in rebirth is often presented as a secondary,
The biography of Henjo contains one of the mentions of term raigo which is very important for Genshin's Ojoyoshu and which means the arrival of a host of saints to meet the dying person. The text of Zoku Honcho Ojoden mentions this word two times (for the second time - in the story of Oe-no Sadamoto (33), where it is featured in a poem composed by the biography's hero before his death).
Much more often, the fragrance or music (or other miraculous phenomena) are observed by other people after the biography hero's death.
20
"superficial" topic. Instead, Zoku Honcho Ojoden places much greater emphasis on the right actions of the heroes at the moment of their demise. M. Nakao believes that Oe-no Masafusa has a lighter, more optimistic view of the problem of rebirth in the Pure Land, which, it seems, reflects the views popular among the aristocrats of that time [Nakao 1980].
In our opinion, one should speak about a certain shift of accent, rather than "lightness" or "optimism". Indeed, Yoshishige-no Yasutane pays much more attention to lifetime practices and proof of rebirth. But, for Oe-no Masafusa as well the piety of his heroes is important (and, as we believe, the mentions of their talents and, especially, their miraculous abilities are supposed to strengthen this impression). As has already been said before, in the only case where this is not obvious (the biography of Minamoto-no Noritau (35)), the author mentions the merits from the previous life. At the same time, for Oe-no Masafusa, the death-bed practices are of special importance: his work takes up and illustrates with examples the idea from Ojoyoshu that the final moments of one's life are the decisive ones (essentially, at this moment, one can wipe out all the merit earned during one's lifetime), and this is why it places such emphasis on the right state of mind and firmness of spirit at the hour of one's death.
Conclusion
Zoku Honcho Ojoden mentions life-time and death-bed practices the goal of which is to obtain rebirth in the Pure Land. First of all, this is nenbutsu recollection; reading the Lotus Sutra is also mentioned frequently, but, episodically, many other practices are mentioned as well. The text pays substantial attention to death-bed practices, often emphasizing the firmness of spirit of the dying person and their "right state of mind".
Like Yoshishige-no Yasutane in Nihon Ojo Gokuraku-ki, Oe-no Masafusa in his text does not elaborate the contents of the practices described (generally limiting himself to only mentioning them), even
though, without any doubt, he is well-versed in them and wants to show the reader their importance and value. This is not surprising given that, obviously, teaching how to obtain rebirth was not the goal of this text (there were other sources for this, for example, Genshin's Ojoyoshu). It was created to demonstrate the "living" examples showing that it was indeed possible and to perpetuate the names of those who, from the point of view of the collection's author, were worthy of it.
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PETROVA Anastasia Andreevna - PhD, researcher at the Institute of Oriental Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences
107031, Russia, Moscow, Rozhdestvenka St., 12 E-mail: al.maat48@gmail.com
Russian edition of the article:
Yearbook Japan, 2021, 250-264
