"Master Kanbara, you certainly have a sense of humor."
The government employee paused, then broke into a smile.
"The higher-ups want you to serve as abbot of the new temple. As for the chief priest of the other shrine dedicated to the Lord of Mount Tai, someone else will fill that position."
"With all haste, in accordance with the law" was a common closing phrase in official documents during the Han dynasty. It meant that a matter was extremely urgent and should be handled swiftly according to the law. In later ages, it was mostly used as the closing line of Taoist exorcism incantations.
Onmyodo had copied this Taoist incantation, too. It appeared frequently in films and television shows about Japanese Onmyoji, and through repeated exposure, ordinary people naturally came to regard it as their signature incantation.
"A shrine?" Yuuji Kanbara was completely baffled.
"Besides a new temple, a new shrine dedicated to the Lord of Mount Tai will also be built on the original site. Just like Senso-ji and Asakusa Shrine before."
The little-known Asakusa Shrine stood on the eastern side of the former Senso-ji grounds.
Senso-ji and Asakusa Shrine were not irreconcilable enemies. On the contrary, they got along well.
This was a product of Japan's distinctive fusion of Buddhism and Shinto. Although temples and shrines were different religious structures, in theory, they worshipped the same deity.
The Tendai School had brought the Lord of Mount Tai back to Japan as a guardian deity of the Esoteric Buddhist Tradition. Abe no Seimei had incorporated him into Onmyodo, turning him into a localized deity.
Given that, building a separate shrine to worship the Lord of Mount Tai alongside the temple was only natural.
It had to be said that Japan's leadership had been exceedingly thorough in their efforts to