diff --git a/fs/reiserfs/journal.c b/fs/reiserfs/journal.c
index cce8e87..c3cf54f 100644
--- a/fs/reiserfs/journal.c
+++ b/fs/reiserfs/journal.c
@@ -2678,16 +2678,10 @@
 	char b[BDEVNAME_SIZE];
 	int ret;
 
-	/*
-	 * Unlock here to avoid various RECLAIM-FS-ON <-> IN-RECLAIM-FS
-	 * dependency inversion warnings.
-	 */
-	reiserfs_write_unlock(sb);
 	journal = SB_JOURNAL(sb) = vzalloc(sizeof(struct reiserfs_journal));
 	if (!journal) {
 		reiserfs_warning(sb, "journal-1256",
 				 "unable to get memory for journal structure");
-		reiserfs_write_lock(sb);
 		return 1;
 	}
 	INIT_LIST_HEAD(&journal->j_bitmap_nodes);
@@ -2695,10 +2689,8 @@
 	INIT_LIST_HEAD(&journal->j_working_list);
 	INIT_LIST_HEAD(&journal->j_journal_list);
 	journal->j_persistent_trans = 0;
-	ret = reiserfs_allocate_list_bitmaps(sb, journal->j_list_bitmap,
-					   reiserfs_bmap_count(sb));
-	reiserfs_write_lock(sb);
-	if (ret)
+	if (reiserfs_allocate_list_bitmaps(sb, journal->j_list_bitmap,
+					   reiserfs_bmap_count(sb)))
 		goto free_and_return;
 
 	allocate_bitmap_nodes(sb);
@@ -2727,27 +2719,11 @@
 		goto free_and_return;
 	}
 
-	/*
-	 * We need to unlock here to avoid creating the following
-	 * dependency:
-	 * reiserfs_lock -> sysfs_mutex
-	 * Because the reiserfs mmap path creates the following dependency:
-	 * mm->mmap -> reiserfs_lock, hence we have
-	 * mm->mmap -> reiserfs_lock ->sysfs_mutex
-	 * This would ends up in a circular dependency with sysfs readdir path
-	 * which does sysfs_mutex -> mm->mmap_sem
-	 * This is fine because the reiserfs lock is useless in mount path,
-	 * at least until we call journal_begin. We keep it for paranoid
-	 * reasons.
-	 */
-	reiserfs_write_unlock(sb);
 	if (journal_init_dev(sb, journal, j_dev_name) != 0) {
-		reiserfs_write_lock(sb);
 		reiserfs_warning(sb, "sh-462",
 				 "unable to initialize jornal device");
 		goto free_and_return;
 	}
-	reiserfs_write_lock(sb);
 
 	rs = SB_DISK_SUPER_BLOCK(sb);
 
@@ -2829,9 +2805,7 @@
 	journal->j_mount_id = 10;
 	journal->j_state = 0;
 	atomic_set(&(journal->j_jlock), 0);
-	reiserfs_write_unlock(sb);
 	journal->j_cnode_free_list = allocate_cnodes(num_cnodes);
-	reiserfs_write_lock(sb);
 	journal->j_cnode_free_orig = journal->j_cnode_free_list;
 	journal->j_cnode_free = journal->j_cnode_free_list ? num_cnodes : 0;
 	journal->j_cnode_used = 0;
@@ -2848,24 +2822,37 @@
 
 	init_journal_hash(sb);
 	jl = journal->j_current_jl;
+
+	/*
+	 * get_list_bitmap() may call flush_commit_list() which
+	 * requires the lock. Calling flush_commit_list() shouldn't happen
+	 * this early but I like to be paranoid.
+	 */
+	reiserfs_write_lock(sb);
 	jl->j_list_bitmap = get_list_bitmap(sb, jl);
+	reiserfs_write_unlock(sb);
 	if (!jl->j_list_bitmap) {
 		reiserfs_warning(sb, "journal-2005",
 				 "get_list_bitmap failed for journal list 0");
 		goto free_and_return;
 	}
-	if (journal_read(sb) < 0) {
+
+	/*
+	 * Journal_read needs to be inspected in order to push down
+	 * the lock further inside (or even remove it).
+	 */
+	reiserfs_write_lock(sb);
+	ret = journal_read(sb);
+	reiserfs_write_unlock(sb);
+	if (ret < 0) {
 		reiserfs_warning(sb, "reiserfs-2006",
 				 "Replay Failure, unable to mount");
 		goto free_and_return;
 	}
 
 	reiserfs_mounted_fs_count++;
-	if (reiserfs_mounted_fs_count <= 1) {
-		reiserfs_write_unlock(sb);
+	if (reiserfs_mounted_fs_count <= 1)
 		commit_wq = alloc_workqueue("reiserfs", WQ_MEM_RECLAIM, 0);
-		reiserfs_write_lock(sb);
-	}
 
 	INIT_DELAYED_WORK(&journal->j_work, flush_async_commits);
 	journal->j_work_sb = sb;