Constructing a Modern Esoteric Buddhist Breath Therapy
Nathan Jishin Michon
October 1, 2025 DOI: 10.5117/9789048559015_ch09 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Historical analysis |
|---|---|
| Topics | Buddhism Meditation |
| Keywords | Field mathematics Focus optics Buddhist philosophy Epistemology Psychotherapist Psychoanalysis Aesthetics |
| Key points | Argues that the meditative therapies of Ōshita Daien and Takayama Seiei serve as case studies in entangled influences and modern adaptation, blending esoteric Buddhist techniques with contemporary psychology and chaplaincy. |
Abstract
Combining esoteric Buddhist breathing techniques and visualisations, contemporary psychology and chaplaincy, and various world meditations, the meditative therapies used with clients of Japan's Ōshita Daien 大下大園 (1954–) and Takayama Seiei 高山誓英 (1948–) are case studies in entangled influences and modern adaptation. Ōshita Daien is a profoundly influential figure in the field of ‘spiritual care’ in Japan. Takayama was his student and further developed these methods for his own contexts. After briefly introducing their Shingon 真言 tradition and contextualising the term esoteric Buddhism, the chapter delves into the stories of these two priests with a focus on their individual paths and how their therapies came about. Finally, the chapter will reflect on their complex webs of influence and impact in terms of this volume's larger themes.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on buddhism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mental balance and well-being: Building bridges between Buddhism and Western psychology. | 2006 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Buddhist Modernism and the Rhetoric of Meditative Experience | 1995 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Buddhist and Psychological Perspectives on Emotions and Well-Being | 2005 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Too Early to Tell: The Potential Impact and Challenges—Ethical and Otherwise—Inherent in the Mainstreaming of Dharma in an Increasingly Dystopian World | 2017 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| From self to nonself: The Nonself Theory | 2016 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |