Mikkyo ,"secret teaching," refers to the esoteric Buddhist teachings (vajrayana or mantrayana) transmitted from India to China. These arrived in Japan in the 9th century, carried by great masters like Kobo Daishi, Jikaku Daishi, and Chisho Daishi.

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Mikkyo practice centers on penetration of the "Three Mysteries" of body, speech, and mind, making use of mudra, mantra, and visualization. Thus identifying experientially with enlightened beings, the mikkyo practitioner's own body becomes itself the body of a buddha. 

 

Mikkyo historically has tremendously influenced Japanese Buddhism and culture as a whole. It is preserved today primarily in the Shingon and Tendai schools, which still transmit its methods privately from teacher to student through oral instruction.