February
18
/ 2022
Immuring themselves in an underground stone chamber, sealed tight, waiting to die: that is what more than 24 known individuals did in northern Japan from the 1200s until the 19th century, though it may have been done before that timeframe and even after the Meiji restoration in 1867. The practice likely originated in India or China centuries before. This process is known as sokushinbutsu: becoming a Buddha in this very body, becoming a Buddha while still alive. Individuals who engaged in this process adopted an ascetic life. They often trained at a location called Senninzawa, and the name reflects those who trained there, as sennin can translate to “otherworldly humans” and sawa, pronounced zawa when combined with other words, means
