Shingon Buddhism

Shingon, lit., “True Words.” A sect of Mahayana Buddhism introduced into Japan by a monk named Kukai (also, Kobo Daishi, 774-835) who established a monastery in Mt. Koya in Wakayama Prefecture. Shingon Buddhism is a mystical teaching that seeks enlightenment during one’s lifetime through the cultivation of the three mysteries of Buddhism: Body, Speech and Mind. Its practice emphasizes chants, meditation, and rituals.

Morihei Ueshiba studied Shingon at the Jizo Temple in TANABE about age seven and is said to have been taught the nine Chinese classics and practices of esoteric Buddhism.