Mountain Worship in Gunma, Joetsu Area and Medical Knowledge among Shugen-monks

Abstract

Purpose: Historically, mountain worship was popular in the Gunma and Joetsu areas.　Many monks called “Shugen-ja” were active in the area.　Studying their practices and knowledge can help us understand medical and health consciousness of local residents.

Methods: Stone monuments and statues in several mountains in Gunma prefecture, known as sacred zones, were surveyed on-site.　Classical documents stored in a Shugen temple, “Chouken-ji”, were examined for medical and pharmaceutical information.　Contents of the ancient documents called “Denpo-juunikan” were examined and compared to modern medical knowledge.

Results: There are many stone monuments in the mountains in Gunma prefecture.　The Chouken-ji documents contained several pharmaceutical suggestions.　In the “Denpo-juunikan”, there are 16 sections describing medicine and/or health related issues.　These descriptions included treatments for injures and burns, techniques for pharyngeal foreign body removal, methods to propagate infection or cause physical symptoms, and obstetric intervention and treatment regarding fertility, contraception and abortion.

Discussion: Mountain worship has been popular in the Kitakanto area since ancient times, and its practitioners have significantly influenced the medical and health consciousness of local residents.