Researching Place, Emplacing the Researcher: Reflections on the Making of a Documentary on a Pilgrimage Confraternity

Abstract

This essay reflects on the roles of the researcher, gender, place, and nostalgia in the making of an ethnographic documentary film on a contemporary pilgrimage confraternity.Every year the group visits Ōyama, a sacred mountain in central Kanagawa Prefecture, on the occasion of the mountain-opening ceremony on 27 July.The Ohana Confraternity mainly consists of members working at two manufacturing companies in Tokyo.A sense of belonging to the group is mostly based on professional and personal relationships rather than a common sense of faith.The yearly pilgrimage is an example of how contemporary corporations use religious rituals to foster social relations and promote a productive work ethic among their employees.The presence of a foreign researcher and a local archivist influenced the ritual activities of the confraternity in many, sometimes unexpected, ways.Gender determined the place of individual members (including the researcher) in the group and their mode of association with the confraternity.The group's approach to traditions and rituals of the pilgrimage was nostalgic yet playful and malleable.

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