Men-Only Buddhist Spiritual Mountain Declared UNESCO World Heritage Site

September 5, 2004

Source: San Francisco Chronicle

https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Peak-s-spiritual-tradition-raises-hackles-No-2695729.php

On September 5, 2004 the San Francisco Chronicle reported, 'At 5 a.m. on a summer day already sticky with humidity, three dozen ascetic priests known as yamabushi -- 'those who lie down in the mountains' -- have gathered at the foot of this mountain in western Japan to pray before climbing its sacred slopes. Peaking at 5,640 feet, Mount Omine is far from the highest mountain in Japan. But the yamabushi who follow the Japanese religion of Shugendo and other pilgrims have been climbing it since the ninth century, drawn by a belief that the two-hour ascent up its rocky trails will help them touch the spiritual world above, while leaving their worldly concerns below. And that means leaving women behind, as well. Women are not welcome on Mount Omine. Never have been. For 1,300 years, only men have been allowed to huff and puff the rutted paths leading to the Buddhist temple at the top... The gender ban persists despite an 1872 Japanese government decree that struck down ancient conventions keeping women off many of the country's mountains -- including national icon Mount Fuji. Across the mountain-ripped Japanese landscape, only Mount Omine has ignored that order, its uniqueness nurtured by generations of like-minded monks and municipal officials who insist they are defending tradition, not discriminating against women. The locals can now point to a 21st century endorsement of their views, from an unlikely source. This summer, the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, or UNESCO, declared the entire Mount Kii range -- which encompasses the men-only pocket of Mount Omine -- a World Heritage site."