ENSO - DER KREIS The ultimate symbol of Zen art is ... - Wieninger

G39*Shikoku 88 Pilgrimage :The Shikoku Pilgrimage is a pilgrimage of 88 temples on theisland of Shikoku, Japan. It is believed all 88 temples werevisited by the famous Buddhist monk K"kai, who was born inZents"ji, Shikoku in 774. However, K"kai only mentionsvisiting two of them in his own extant writings.In addition to the 88 "official" temples of the pilgrimage, thereare over 200 bangai — temples not considered part of theofficial 88. To complete the pilgrimage, it is not necessary tovisit the temples in order; in some cases it is even consideredlucky to travel in reverse order. The pilgrimage is traditionallycompleted on foot, but modern pilgrims use cars, taxis,buses, bicycles, or motorcycles. The walking course isapproximately 1,200km long and can take anywhere from 30to 60 days to complete. "Henro" is the Japanese word forpilgrim, but the inhabitants of Shikoku call the pilgrims o-henro-san. They are often recognizable by their whiteclothing, sedge hats, and walking sticks. Many pilgrims beginand complete the journey by visiting Mount K!ya inWakayama Prefecture, which was settled by K"kai andremains the headquarters of the Shingon sect of Buddhism.The 21km walking trail up to Koya-san still exists, but mostpilgrims use the train.In addition to the main pilgrimage on the island of Shikoku,there are miniature versions of the pilgrimage north ofTakamatsu on the island of Sh!doshima, and on the groundsof Ninna-ji Temple in Kyoto. A much larger scale imitation ofthe Shikoku pilgrimage is located on Chita peninsula, nearNagoya.2. H. 20. Jh