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Tommi Mendel

PhD Candidate
Institute of Religious Studies
University of Zurich

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This paper contains embedded links to film sequences recorded  by the author, Tommi Mendel, in the course of producing his film Arukihenro (2006). The film sequences can be viewed by any multimedia software that supports the '.mov' format. Please click on the links provided to watch these sequences. For a review and more information about the film, please click here.

Matsuyama, Ishite-ji – Temple 51 on the Shikoku pilgrimage route, March 2003 early morning: A group of older people dressed in white firmly steps off the bus to walk together through the temple area to the main hall. There, they stand with a slight bow and palms pressed together while reciting mantra prayers before hurrying back on the bus to be driven to temple 52. A little aloof, in the opposite building, another man in his mid-forties, also dressed in white, packs his little backpack, seizes his walking stick and walks with a limp towards me. Encounter, mutual astonishment. Neither did he expect to meet a foreigner in this place, nor was I prepared to come across a henro, a pilgrim. Curious and interested, we exchange information. He hands me some chocolate and his card before vanishing through the temple gate, dragging his right leg – thirty trekking days behind him, twelve more to go.

Introduction

Ideas often come unintended and in an unexpected context, more often than not when one is far from the comfort of a writing desk. That was the case in the above recounted incident when the pilgrim and I met. This chance encounter was the starting point and inspiration for the project Arukihenro, my master's thesis in social anthropology at the University of Zurich.

As a passionate traveller and explorer of worlds new to me, my visit to the Ishite temple was rather accidental, a stop on my return journey from Kyushu via Shikoku to Tokyo. Before, I had not known of the Shikoku henro, and I was surprised to learn that in modern Japan numerous people still leave their daily routine to undertake a pilgrimage, and march for several weeks. My astonishment at that chance encounter turned into a strong desire to learn more about it.

My interest in Japanese culture had grown out of long periods living in and journeys across the country, as well as due to me marrying my Japanese wife Atsuko. The Shikoku pilgrimage was a good opportunity to continue my interest in learning more about Japan and Japanese culture; 'step-by-step'. Such a venture would require me to undertake the entire pilgrimage as a participant observer, and thus the plan grew into a field research project of several months' duration. It was a prospect that I was doubly intrigued by – being at once a globetrotter and social anthropologist. The decision to realise the theme as a film was easy at hand: the sensuality of the Ishite temple together with the traditional clothing of the pilgrims and their joint chanting of the Heart Sutra represented perfect scenery. To render this unique atmosphere accessible, together with the thoughts and experiences of the pilgrims, priests and residents of Shikoku, to collect the tales and legends, and to present the reoccurring rituals at each temple, film was certainly the best medium to choose.

Pre-Production

After the initial idea, a plan had to be drawn up and then put into action. The theme had to be specified and narrowed down, and a concrete thesis had to be formulated. Back in Switzerland, in Spring 2003, I started my research and studied the little literature available (not in Japanese) on the Shikoku pilgrimage. Interestingly, the literature did not differentiate between motorised and walking pilgrims. Walking pilgrims account for only about one percent of the pilgrims, in absolute numbers that equals about 2,000-3,000 persons per year. Compared to Japan's 127 million inhabitants, this is a tiny minority. However, it is striking that this number has doubled in the last ten years. Furthermore, it has to be pointed out that a period of 40-60 days – which the foot pilgrimage requires – is a long time out from professional and daily life. Thus, one wonders about who the people who undertake such a journey are and why they do it. Hence, the Arukihenro project focuses on what triggers their pilgrimage, and the motivations of today's walking pilgrims. How does it come about that one decides to break out of daily routines, to leave one's social environs for almost two months, to be a walking pilgrim? Is the trigger to be found in the general structure of society or are personal reasons the decisive factor? What are the pilgrims hoping for by embarking on their journey and what kind of inner transformation are they expecting to occur during, or as a result of, the pilgrimage? These questions were the starting point and guideline for my research.

Regarding what motivates the Shikoku pilgrims, there exist two quantitative studies. However, these do not differentiate between walking pilgrims and their motorised counterpart. In 1991 Ian Reader (1996: 274) studied 3,164 osamefuda at the Gokuraku temple, of which 569 were furnished with individual wishes.[1] The other empirical study was executed by sociologists Osada Koichi and Sakakita Masaaki of Waseda University (2004). In this study 1,237 pilgrims filled in a 35 point questionnaire, of which one question asked about motivations and another one the trigger. Their results were as follows, with the most frequent answers stated first in the table:

Further information can also be found in MacGregor's (2002) qualitative research, which involved interviews conducted with 161 pilgrims in Shikoku in 2000 and 2001. However, she also did not differentiate between walking and motorised pilgrims. She summarises the motivation of the interviewed pilgrims as follows: 'To pray for the repose of the soul of a deceased person', 'to improve one's health by walking in the fresh air' and 'to be in harmony with nature'. However, she also mentions 'self-discovery', 'the historical significance of the pilgrimage', 'sightseeing', 'to meet other people', 'faith', and 'ascetic training'.

The so far quoted results were of only limited use for my project as they are rather general and their validity might be challenged for the following three reasons. Firstly, as stated before, the studies did not differentiate between walking and motorised pilgrims. Secondly, the inquiries were conducted anonymously – on one occasion via analysis of osamefuda, and once by using questionnaires – which may not be suitable for bringing out personal motivations, especially not in a reportedly collective culture as Japan. Thirdly, it is possible that a walking pilgrim does not disclose his or her true reasons, wishes and what he or she hopes for in a five minute marching break, especially not to a stationary stranger. Studying the table above, we notice that categories like 'Private problems' along with 'Career problems' are named in the last position, a psychological field correlating to MacGregor's abstract terms like 'self-discovery' and 'ascetic training'. It seems that '[...] pilgrimage can, and frequently does, take the form of a personal therapeutic act or an explicitly instrumental plea for divine intervention to sort out some earthly woe' (Morinis 1992: 9) – and this is exactly the aspect I wanted to look into in my research on the Shikoku walking pilgrims.

Motivations and triggers to undertake the Shikoku foot pilgrimage have to be placed in the broader context of the socio-cultural and political as well as religious factors present in modern Japan. Thus the documentary film Arukihenro on the one hand aims at documenting the process of change the pilgrims undergo during their trekking as well as to document their motivation in the first place, and on the other hand, to transmit information on modern day Japanese society and Japanese religiosity. To collect my data I chose qualitative methods such as unstructured conversations, and a semi-structured interview, which followed for this purpose specially developed interview guidelines. A further method was participant observation documented continuously in a research dairy. To ensure validity, I also wanted to involve the priests and residents of Shikoku, thereby complementing the inside view of the pilgrims with external onlookers' observations.

One important factor in planning my field research was to recognize the dynamic character of a pilgrimage. Compared to a study conducted in a stationary location, it is more difficult to approach candidates, to build up closeness, to gain confidence, and to persuade protagonists to be part of a film. If the plan is also to document the process of change a pilgrim undergoes throughout walking the pilgrimage, the task is further complicated. Keep also in mind that most foot pilgrims are solitary travellers and that this is often part of the pre-conditions for undergoing the process of change. Thus, a sudden companion who was not considered to be part of the journey from the outset, and furthermore, who is a foreigner and travels with a camera filming most of the time, hardly counts as a welcome addition. Complications like this had to be considered when drawing up the production schedule. As the main seasons of pilgrimage are Spring and Autumn, I scheduled nine months to collect my data, including both peak phases of pilgrimage.

Yet, pre-production not only meant developing my research concept, but also to reflect on the realisation of a film – inspired by the literature on the Shikoku pilgrimage. As the progress of my research was not predictable, and as I was dependent on fruitful encounters during the first production phase, I was deprived of the option to have a pre-created film structure or a scheduled shooting script. However, while the film structure and the images captured had to be reflected upon continuously during shooting, the decision on the narrative style of my research project had to be taken at the beginning and then to be adhered to subsequently. Thus, I decided to focus exclusively on the protagonists as carriers of the narrative of the film Arukihenro, considering all statements and, disregarding whether they occurred diegetically or as voice-over. In other words I would not employ a so-called 'Voice-of-God'[2] commentary. This decision was taken in respect of my maxims of ethnographic film, especially regarding the participation of protagonists and of their addressing of the audience. I believe that when a film maker restrains himself to edit a film completely out of protagonists' statements, he imparts some of the creational influence on the film's structure onto the protagonists themselves. Furthermore, this results in a communication between protagonist and spectator, thus providing space for identification. We should not forget the fact that a recipient receives guidance in assessing the protagonists' statements by the insight offered on the collaboration between film-maker and protagonists – it allows for a kind of glimpse onto the pre-filmic reality.[3]

For any kind of field research the formation of the collaborating team is crucial. In principle, regarding ethnographic film, the best results are achieved in a small team – especially taking into account today's technical possibilities. If one plans to go on a foot pilgrimage of more than 1,200 kilometres, the idea of a large team does not occur in the first place, as the physical challenge would present too high a risk of including members who drop out along the way. Thus, the Arukihenro project was planned as a two-person quest, involving my wife Atsuko and myself. The advantages were as follows. As a Swiss-Japanese couple we not only complemented each other regarding gender roles, but also regarding an insider-outsider perspective. Especially regarding rural Shikoku which is not often confronted by foreigners, the Japanese dichotomy of uchi and soto – belonging and being an outsider – had to be respected. Atsuko with Japanese as her mother tongue belonged and, she provided a more familiar point of contact, thus hopefully reducing potential participants' inhibitions. On the other hand, my status as 'exotic' might be a bonus on a different level, for example regarding opening doors reserved only for guests. Moreover, Atsuko intended to accomplish her own project, an art-work, and at the same time use the project as a way to bid farewell to her deceased grandmother.[4]

During pre-production, the technical equipment also had to be chosen and tested, along with the trekking gear. In addition, a fundraising mission was executed, although with a disappointing result. Pre-production found its end with the flight to Japan in early August 2004. Now it was time to put the concept into practice and to write the according images.

The interview went on for almost two hours and took place in Professor Osada's office at Waseda University in Tokyo. Professor Osada's research on the Shikoku pilgrimage started over 15 years ago and he has published regularly on that topic. The purpose of the interview was to test the so far established hypotheses, while at the same time gaining competent and scientifically grounded facts and insights into the walking pilgrims, i.e. statements which could be used in the filmic narration as an alternative to an off-commentary. This double purpose was met thanks to Professor Osada's generous cooperativeness. He not only confirmed my hypotheses, but supported my findings with actual references to the social and economic changes within Japanese society throughout recent years.

At the end of March 2005 we returned to Shikoku, this time setting out at temple 88 and driving the pilgrimage route in the reverse direction until we reached temple 38. Matsumoto Myōkei, the priest of temple 42, had done us the favour of arranging a meeting with his father, a high-ranking priest of the Shingon school, whose temple in Uwajima belonged to one of the twenty Bangai.[11] The interviews with Okuni Taikei at the Ryukoin temple were held to gain access to the view and experience of a priest concerning my central thesis and hypotheses, and in addition to document his contact with the walking pilgrims.

After the exceptionally fruitful talks with Okuni Taikei, we travelled on to stay again a few days with Kanehira-san. As in the previous month, we helped with the daily maintenance of the shelter; Shirakawa-san was still lodging here. Working side by side again and thanks to our talks in February, the ice was broken and Shirakawa-san gave his consent to be filmed. Thanks to the knowledge gained in February and, moreover, thanks to the by now developed familiar atmosphere, Shirakawa-san was ready to relate his personal story in front of the camera. I assume that thanks to the following factors all restraint was dropped. We had been walking pilgrims ourselves and thus counted as part of the in-group; we were able to recount our experiences regarding certain places and routes during the conversations. Thus, a shared interest was established, and a discussion on an equal basis was possible. To work side by side at the shelter did also help to overcome his initial inhibition and the fact that Atsuko is Japanese also deserves mentioning.

So, Shirakawa-san turned out to be our second protagonist after all, complementing Ryūta. I wanted to film him not only in interaction with passing pilgrims, but also together with Kanehira-san. As we had no footage of Shirakawa-san together with Ryūta, in filming these interactions I followed a double purpose: to integrate Shirakawa-san into the filmic narration, and, moreover, to document informal talks among pilgrims which were not initiated by me. Inspired by films by David MacDougall, I see these kinds of scenes as primary aspects of any ethnographic film, as they allow the audience to take on the position of participant observer. Thanks to the help of Shirakawa-san we could film such moments. As he sees his duties at the shelter also in mental support of the passing walking pilgrims, he always tries to start a conversation. Being almost his partner, I could be present and record the dialogues.

Production stage four: screening of Gaijin to Shikoku Hachijūhakkasho wo iku

To complete the production process, the screening of the February version of the film had to take place for Ryūta, and to be filmed in turn. As mentioned before, the film Gaijin to Shikoku Hachijūhakkasho wo iku should present the research of the first production phase and allow Ryūta opportunity for feedback. The purpose of this screening was twofold. Firstly, Ryūta as main protagonist could take part in the production process, and, secondly, I hoped to gain further insight by studying his response and comments, both regarding the time of the pilgrimage and regarding the weeks following. Although I had held an interview with Ryūta the day after completing the pilgrimage, I was convinced that a pilgrim – throughout the pilgrimage or at the moment of completion – might still not be aware of his or her true motivation and of the changes taking place. I think that to mentally process such a quest, to allow time and distance are necessary for a thorough reflection. Hence, I wanted to have an additional conversation with Ryūta. The screening and the interview with Ryūta took place in Kobe in April 2005, about seven months after completion of the pilgrimage. My concept worked in as far as Ryūta responded directly and naturally to the images, and he verbally expressed his reactions. His spontaneous comment when confronted with the interview passage from the previous summer regarding changes taking place was a success for the post-filmic dramaturgy. In retrospect he had recognised that some changes had indeed taken place. However, Ryūta's critical input regarding the rough cut of the film was minimal. He did not find it necessary to wish for changes.

So, after a period of nine months our field research and production phase found its close. Back in Switzerland, it was now about time to start the overall analysis and to edit the final version of the film.

Post-Production

The whole process of overall analysis, editing, test screenings, alternations, until deciding on a final version, spanned from May 2005 until February 2006 and took place in Zurich. The guideline for the analysis of a total of 47 hours of footage was as follows: Conversations and interviews with each protagonist had to be filtered and the passages had to be checked against the double purpose of supporting my research results (thus the scenes would carry the intended message of the film), while also further the film's dramaturgy. Yet, I did not want to have the film dominated by the verbal layer, as my aim was to combine the parameters of image, language, and content into a unity of filmic narration. I wanted to limit and balance the 'talking head' scenes with meaningful images. In so doing, the audience would not just be confronted with facts, but would be given space and time for their own experience, to follow their own thoughts and to find inspiration.[12] Also, I decided to exclude the issue of the homeless who had established a new kind of homeland along the pilgrimage route by constantly living on it. Although I had material covering that topic, I saw it as such a complex aspect worth its own research project and a more thorough filmic treatment.

The film's framework should follow Victor Turner's (1978) tripartite structure of pilgrimage.[13] This posed a problem, as we did not have material of protagonists prior to setting out on the pilgrimage. I had to play an arty trick to fill that gap and to still achieve the intended structure. Therefore, Arukihenro should start with the screening of Gaijin to Shikoku Hachijūhakkasho wo iku, filmed seven months after completion of the pilgrimage, showing Ryūta in the profane world. Then, in flash backs, I would introduce the life as a pilgrim, follow the route as the liminal stage, and finally would arrive back at the starting point, at ordinary daily life. Thus, the film's structure resembles a circle, similar to the Shikoku pilgrimage itself.

Prologue and epilogue were therefore situated at an identical spatial and temporal level, featuring Ryūta as the only protagonist and therefore was easy to edit. Likewise, the transition sequences did not pose any problems, as I had made sure to shoot enough images of temple gates, bridges and tunnels, i.e. transition symbols and situations. The main corpus of the film, however, was split into two not only on the spatial, but also on the temporal level. There was the route material of Ryūta's pilgrimage, and the stationary scenes of Shirakawa-san at the pilgrims' shelter. We had to find a dramaturgical form which constituted the film as a construed unity able to bridge spatio-temporal diversity. For this purpose we used recurring elements like the Heart Sutra, wind and water wheels, marching legs, gates, bridges and tunnels, signposts and the numbered temples. In addition, the scenes of Professor Osada acted as a kind of bridge between the two spatial complexes, he could introduce them and point out their relatedness. Another structuring principle was to continually portray the process of change Ryūta went through, which went hand in hand with his growing trust of the camera and his opening up towards the implicit audience. The spectator should develop the feeling of being somehow on pilgrimage alongside the protagonist, while growing closer with Ryūta.

Content wise, I aimed at a structure breaking the central thesis into thematic blocks which would move the filmic narration from a micro onto a macro level. Based on the motivation of the pilgrims and via their process of change during pilgrimage, information on the Japanese understanding of religion and of the socio-economical situation of the country should also be passed on.

The renowned French ethnographic director Jean Rouch once said that to make a film is to tell a story. I think that the great challenge in editing is to tell a story in an interesting way, while, at the same time, conveying the content accurately, and to be aware of the audience's receptivity, while not forgetting about the pre-filmic reality. Atsuko was part of the whole editing process, so as to check and clarify any questions of understanding on the verbal, image or content level. Yet, Atsuko had also been involved in the field research and thus she was also missing the necessary distance between pre-filmic and filmic reality to comment objectively on the editing. Test screenings with non-involved persons took place to check the film's comprehensibility and effectiveness. Therefore, I presented the different versions of the rough cut repeatedly to friends, acquaintances and specialists from the ethnology and religious studies circles, but also to film experts. Thanks to their constructive and objective criticism I altered the rough cut over a period of three months, until I finally decided on the 73 minute final version of Arukihenro. The post-production found its end in January 2006 with the release of the film on DVD. To close the research circle, the DVD was distributed among all the people involved.

Sequel Instead of Closure

Despite the fact that Arukihenro was my first film project, and thus represented learning by doing in audio-visual methods, I believe that the result bridges the disciplines of social anthropology, documentary film making and maybe even art. Thanks to the chosen medium of film, the research focus of this project found a broad audience. Thus, the information is not only accessible to experts, but also to interested laypersons, something that I count as an 'academic excess value'. Arukihenro has not only been invited to several international ethnographic film festivals, but finds itself also in demand by different pilgrims and people generally interested in Japan and Japanese culture. Pilgrims of the Way of St James, for example, often give the following reason when ordering the DVD: they would like to continue their own experience as pilgrims in Spain in a new, i.e. unfamiliar cultural and geographical framework. I keep asking about their individual motivations for their pilgrimage-interest when they order the film, as that information presents an additional research perspective. Arukihenro ends 'openly' with Ryūta's final statement 'I would like to set out again on the 88 temple path', and, equally, the hereby reflected research process seems not yet to have completed its full circle.

[1] Osamefuda are name cards which pilgrims sometimes furnish with wishes and which they place at temples along the pilgrimage.

[2] See Nichols 1991:32ff.

[3] Hohenberger (1988:28ff) distinguishes five reality references: the non-filmic reality, the pre-filmic reality, the filmic reality, the reality of the film, and the after-filmic reality.

[4] The art-project Farewell in Shikoku was successfully exhibited in Switzerland twice in 2007. For further information see: http://www.azkotoda.com/Art%20Work.html

[5] Miyata Taisen wrote a pilgrimage guide for Shikoku, which was published in 1984 (see bibliography).

[6] Kukai, also known posthumously as Kobo Daishi (774–835), was a Japanese monk, scholar, artist and founder of the Shingon sect of Buddhism. All of the 88 Temples are associated with him.

[7] O-settai stands for the support the pilgrims receive from the Shikoku residents who provide small services and treats like gifts, food and drink, and sometimes even the possibility spending the night in the shelter of the giver's home.

[8] Tatemae refers to stated intentions and public behaviour patterns, while honne refers to a person's true personal feelings. See also Hendry 2003:49ff.

[9] See Shinno 2002: 469.

[10] This translates into English as follows: 'With a Foreigner on the 88-Temple Pilgrimage'.

[11] Next to the 88 temples on the pilgrimage route, there are 20 more Buddhist temples which historically are connected to the work and legacy of Kobo Daishi. These temples are called Bangai and many pilgrims visit them too when undertaking the pilgrimage.

[12] See Schlumpf 1995: 115.

[13] Victor Turner (1978) formulated a model for the structure of pilgrimage, which itself was based on the structure of the Rites of Passage as established by Arnold van Gennep in 1908. Rites of Passage are initiation rituals which alter an individual regarding his or her actual condition, social status or age. They are marked by three steps. (1) Separation: the candidate leaves his previous status behind. (2) A liminal, go-between phase: here, the social daily norms and hierarchies are no longer valid and the initiant is being prepared for his or her future status. (3) Reintegration: by-passing the ritual of transformation, the initiant acquires a new status in society. Turner transferred this three-step-model onto the structure of pilgrimage.

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Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank Daniela Casanova for translating this paper into English.

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