Ennin’s (793–864) Sillan connections on his journey to Mt. Wutai: a fresh look at Ennin’s travel record

ABSTRACT Ennin’s pilgrimage to Mt. Wutai resulted in several significant new developments for guiding Tendai followers back in Japan. This study looks into Ennin’s travel record, which sheds new light on the relationship between particular networks of Buddhists and the transmission of Tendai doctrine and practice. In this article, I will provide a survey of the Buddhist networks through which Ennin possibly learned the Lotus Repentance and the Tendai Constant-practice Samādhi. Through a historical reconstruction of Mt. Wutai in Ennin’s time, I argue that Ennin’s study of Buddhism in China was greatly influenced by his contact with Silla Buddhists on Mt. Chi and Mt. Wutai.