Ushitora Shrine Fukuyama

 

Ushitora Shrine is said to be the oldest shrine in Fukuyama.

It is said to have been founded as Gozu Tenno Shrine in the early 12th century when the area that is now Fukyama was a big estate of the Fujiwara Clan.

In  1334 it was moved to its current location and renamed Akitsushima shrine after Izanagi was also enshrined here.

When Fukuyama Castle was constructed the shrine was in the NE direction of the castle and so was supported by the lords of the castle as a kimon, demon gate to protect from the NE. 

Gozu Tenno would seem to be originally of Hindu origin and in Japan became known as the god of plagues, both as cause and prevention. The origin of the Gion Matsuri , Gozu Tenno was widely enshrined throughout Japan and equated with Susano. Gion Shrines, Yasaka Shrines, and others were all originally devoted to Gozu Tenno but in Meiji officially became shrines to Susano.

Fukuyama Ushitora Shrine appeared in a 2022 TV program and has since become even more popular as a shrine for seeking protection.

The previous post was on the temple immediately adjacent, Kannon-ji, also functioning as a kimon of the castle.

Oda Hachimangu

 

Heading up the Yato River from my home on day 7 of my walk along the Iwami Kannon Pilgrimage, I first walked through Kawado, and then the second village was Oda. It was in the middle of Oda that I stopped in at the Omoto "shrine". At the far end of the village the steps lead straight up to the village shrine, a Hachimangu.

Like most shrines in the countryside it is uninhabited and to all intents and purposes seems abandoned.

However, once a year, after harvest, the matsuri is held and the shrine is dusted off, aired, and all-night kagura will be performed.

Once every 4 years they will also hold an Omoto Matsuri, and that is what I posted on in the previous post in this series.

The main road to and from the shrine leads down to the river...

Being a Hachiman shrine the main kami is Ojin, but curiously the Prefectural Shinto Shrine Association says it is combined with Susanoo

Which may explain the second crest next to the hachiman Triple-Tomoe above the fine pair of Kote-e dragons.

Tomonoura Temple Walk Part 1

 

Tomonoura is an historic port on the coast near Fukuyama. In mid August I walked around the town before visiting the Historic Preservation District.

I decided to explore the large number of temples along the hills at the back of the town.

As it was Obon, many of the temples had curtains on the gates and main halls displaying the temple crest.

The first nine photos are from Ankokuji Temple, a Rinzai Zen temple founded in 1273.

Originally called Konpo-ji, in 1339 the Ashikaga Shogun designated it an Ankoku Temple, one established in every province. The Ankoku system was an attempt for the samurai class to establish a national temple system for political purposes in a similar way to the establishment of the Kokubunji temple centuries earlier.

The Shakado Hall was originally the main hall of Konpji Temple and is a fine example of the Chinese style Zen architecture of the time. It was extensively repaired in the 16th, 18th, and 20th centuries.

It is a National Important Cultural Property, a;long with the triad of statues inside.

The first photo of this post is a Jizo statue also dating back to the Kamakura Period.

Immediately adjacent to Ankokuji is Shohoji Temple, another Zen temple.

Founded in 1598, it is also a Rinzai temple, a branch of Myoshinji.

In its early days it is said to have had a delightful garden, though it no longer exists. It is also said that Korean Delegations on their way to Kyoto were lodged here.

There is a small dry garden dotted with Jizo statues.

In plan form it is a "circle, triangle, square" garden favored by some zen gardeners and based on a famous piece of calligraphy.

Some of the Jizo statues are old, but some are of the more modern "cute" style.

When I was there the lotus was blooming....

Not far away was Jitokuin, yet another Rinzai Zen temple. Founded in 1601 with a Kannon as honzon, the small hall pictured above contains a Yakushi statue "brought" from Korea. In reality probably looted during Hideyoshis invasion.

Honganji was much larger and more important in earlier times. said to have been founded in the 13th century, it is a Jushu Sect temple, one of the lesser Pure Land Sects.

A lot of the temple town area has narrow lanes with high walls and is quite evocative.

Overseeing the area is Nunakuma Shrine, the main shrine of the town. Originally two shrines, both with ancient origins, the Watatsu Shrine, said to be established by Jingu on her return from her failed invasion of Korea, and a Gion Shrine dating from at least the Nara Period.

On this visit I didn't go in, but I will post about it later. In late Meiji with the shrine consolidation program the two shrines were merged and renamed Nunakuma Shrine.

Daikanji was curious because the gate carried a different crest than the main hall. Founded in the 12th century as a Shingon Temple, it later spent a century as a Pure Land Temple before reverting to Shingon in the 16th century.

However it seems that it was established by merging 5 different temples in 1938., with one of the former temples also used to lodge senior Korean envoys.

The new main hall was built following a fire in 2014.

Myorenji was founded at the start of the 17th century.

It is a Nichiren sect temple and was supported by the local Daimyo of the time, Mizuno Katsutoshi. The main temple structures date back to the mid 18th century.

The previous post in this series on day 10 of my Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage was on the National Treasure,  temple 8 Myoo-in.

Haguro Shrine Tamashima

 

Adorning the roof of Haguro Shrine in Tamashima, Okayamama, is a ceramic Karasu Tengu, and it has become the symbol of the shrine and also a mascot for the town.

Tamashima was a cluster of small islands that have now become reclaimed land due to the efforts of the local daimyo Mizutani Katsutaka who started with the area immediately around where the shrine is now and spread out building embankments and reclaiming more land.

The area quickly became a major port on the trading route of the Inland Sea.

Mount Haguro is a sacred mountain in Yamagata in northern Japan with a major shrine called Dewa Shrine.

It is one of three sacred mountains  grouped together as Dewa Sanzan, and is and was a major Shugendo centre, hence the Karasu Tengu.

The shrine in Tamashima became the centre of the land reclamation project and was supported by the growing merchant population.

The current buildings date back to the mid 19th century and have a lot of fine decorations.

Within the grounds are numerous secondary shrines including a Sumiyoshi Shrine, and a Tenmangu Shrine, as well as a Mizutani Shrine, Kumada Shrine, and a Warei Shrine.

The Seven Lucky Gods are also enshrined and very popular.

There is a small pine tree that has had its branches woven together and is therefore known as Musubi no Matsu.

The figures on tye roof are particularly nice with dragons as well as the Karasu Tengu.

Photos 16 and 17 show two other figures which I believe to be Daoist Immortals. One is riding a turtle and the other a crane, both important Daoist symbols and prevalent in Japanese art and culture, especially gardens.

The kami listed as enshrined here are Tamayorihime, Susanoo, Okuninushi, and Kotoshironushi.

A little off the main tourist track, Tamashima is worth a visit, not least for the artwork adorning Haguro Shrine.

I visited at the start of day 9 walking the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage.

The previous post was on the shrine at temple 6 of the pilgrimage that I visited the afternoon previous, Yuga Shrine.