Shinnyokai Shonin

Shinnyokai Shonin Human Mummy
Biographical Information
Name(s)	Shinnyokai Shonin
Age	1687-1783
Sex	Male
Status	Self-Mummified
Height
Source
Culture	Japanese
Date(s)
Site
Current Location
Location	Dainichi-Boo Temple
Catalog #

Biography

Born in 1687, Shinnyokai Shonin adopted the teachings of Buddhism early in his life. Spending most of his life in Dainichibo Temple, he wanted to become a "Living Buddha".

Mummification

Shinnyokai was mummified using a Japanese practice known as Sokushinbutsu. This ritual is a death ritual that was used to have complete preservation of the body if successful. Today, this practice is known as self-mummification. The Japanese monks achieved this by eating only nuts, seeds, and fruits and doing intensive exercise for 1000 days. This is so that they are stripped of as much body fat as possible. Near the end of this process, they would drink poisonous tea created from the sap of the Urishi tree. This tea caused vomiting and loss of bodily fluids but the main purpose of it was to kill off all maggots that cause the body to decay. Finally, the monks would lock themselves in a tomb and meditate until death.

External Links

http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-ancient-traditions/sokushinbutsu-and-ancient-japanese-monks-mummified-to-death-012938

http://en.japantravel.com/yamagata/the-mummy-of-dainichibo-temple/432

http://www.wa-pedia.com/religion/japanese_buddhist_mummies.shtml