27.05.2025: Beginner's Mind update:
Added the Downloads sections and the first downloadable PDF - Introductory Practices.
The long promised PDF is finally here!
It offers a condensed version of the Practice Mode section with slightly different focus.
You will find there a broad set of mutually reinforcing practices that will help you develop skills and qualities needed for more advanced spiritual practice.
I hope it will be of use to you.
25.05.2025: The Way Home update:
Published The Way Home and The Soul in Touhou
It's partly a review of Thomas P. Kasulis' Shinto: The Way Home and partly an attempt to analyze what that "soul" in Touhou is by using his analysis of Shinto terminology.
May all fans of Touhou find their way home!
The promised PDF-booklet is now in the proofreading phase.
I have viewed the numerous typos on this site mostly as a way to make it clear that this was not written with AI.
But I want people to have a good impression of the booklet.
The site has reached 45 000 views.
17.05.2025: Closed Chapters, New Sources update:
Added the Purification and protection and Last Words on Practice Mode sections to the Starting the Practice Mode chapter.
I think this more or less rounds it up and presents a reasonable starting point for people interested in actually practicing spirituality, but who are hesitant to yet commit into any particular tradition.
There are of course many ways to go about these things, but this is a gentle, reasonable way, I think.
The promised PDF booklet on practice is nearing it's completion...please wait warmly...
Starting the Practice Mode will require some kind of coherency & redundancy sweep at a later date.
I'll however be focusing on other kinds of things in the near future.
I have some ideas for what Part 5 will be, but not quite sure yet which it will be.
A larger update of The Esoteric In Touhou is necessary at some point too.
...
I added some more sources to the External Sources too.
First is Grooving with Kami, an English language blog of a Shinto priestess.
Second is Paul Hine's Modern Shamanism with a Japanese translation attached to it!
Third but not least is The Saicho Repository project.
The Saicho Repository seeks to translate the writings of Saicho, founder of Tendai Buddhism, into English. Please donate to the project if you would like too such happen.
I am sure it would make Okina-sama very happy.
The site has reached 42 000 views!
I keep missing special updates for big fancy round numbers - I have been very busy with work, language studies and travel preparations.
04.05.2025: More Practice update:
Added four new sections to Starting the Practice Mode:
Divination
Visualization
Energy Work
Grounding
They are a bit barren compared to the other pages at the moment, but will be fleshed out a bit in the future.
I am working on a PDF booklet that will sum up the practices and have some things not at the moment presented on the site.
The site has reached 39 000 views!
21.04.2025: Whispered Oracles and Footnotes update:
Published an analysis of The Whispered Oracle of Hakurei.
There was a lot to unpack with this very peculiar book that had some strangeness going on around it's premature release.
Turns out that under the lighthearted surface it is a kind of a ritual aimed at re-defining and re-establishing Gensokyo.
Added a mention of the omikuji and Whispered Oracle to the Shinto section.
Added few little things to the mythosphere article related to some recent events.
Added a mention of the Japanese being aware of something like the ultraterrestrial hypothesis to the Ultraterrestrial Fantasy Organisms page.
Forgot to add a link to the "incredible fascinating article" I talk about in the Spring Equinox Letter...that has been now corrected.
Pretty sure I also made another minor update somewhere but I kinda forgot to keep track of it and what it was..! Sorry about that.
The site has exceeded 36000 views.
09.04.2025: Essence of Shinto update:
Published a Review of Essence of Shinto, a fascinating book with a somewhat troubling background.
What to make of it when good ideas come from questionable background? It is always a challenging question.
While I have not been quite as active as I hoped with updates, there is a very substantial update to the Practice Mode section incoming.
This will also include the long-promised first downloadable text...Please wait warmly, Emissary is editorializing...
The Whispered Oracle of the Hakurei Shrine will deserve it's own update.
It's incredible we have a canonical Touhou divination book now.
The site has breached 33000 views! Too bad I could not squeeze out something to celebrated 30k.