In the year 774, in the small town of Zentsūji on the island of Shikoku, Japan, a child named Kūkai was born. This child would grow up to become one of the most influential and revered figures in Japanese religious history. Known posthumously as Kōbō-Daishi, Kūkai would not only found the Shingon school of esoteric Buddhism but would also leave a profound legacy that shaped both religious practices and Japanese culture for centuries to come.