Themes and Implications of the Heisei Era Shikoku Henro Literature Boom

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26370074
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Religious studies
• Research Institution: Kansai Gaidai University
• Principal Investigator: SHULTZ John A. 関西外国語大学, 外国語学部, 講師 (90722728)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: Shikoku henro / pilgrimage / pilgrims / asceticism

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In general, the project proceeded smoothly, on schedule, and produced high-quality data from which some original analysis could be made. The results have significance both for research directly into the Shikoku henro and for the global field of pilgrimage studies. With regard to the former, perhaps the greatest achievement was an analysis of the array of terminology used to describe asceticism (修行、苦行、etc.) in the context of the pilgrimage. With regard to the latter, the work has exposed the role of outliers in an evolving pilgrimage system and has challenged previous theoretical characterizations of the pilgrimage.

Free Research Field

Religious Studies