Case file · Apparition / miracle
Kūkai's eternal meditation
Shingon Buddhists believe that Kūkai (Kōbō Daishi) did not die in 835 but entered eternal meditation in his mausoleum at Okunoin on Mount Kōya, where monks still bring him meals twice a day.
835 CE · 34.22, 135.60 · status: legend
The account
The belief grew in the 10th century, when a monk who opened the tomb was said to find him unchanged. Pilgrims on the Shikoku 88-temple route walk 'with' Kūkai.
The sceptical view
Contemporary records describe his death and cremation-free burial in 835; the eternal meditation is a matter of faith.