Sasaki Residence on Dogo

 

The Sasaki Residence on Dogo, the largest of the Oki Islands, is a traditional residence of a village headman.

The first noticeable thing was the roof. Whereas tile roofs were common on temples and wealthy properties, thatch was far more common, but required very steep roofs. Strips of overlaid cedar bark weighted down with bamboo with stones on was fairly common, but almost never seen nowadays.

The roof of the Sasaki Residence is the only example of this kind in the Oki Islands.

On my first visit to Dogo and the Sasaki Residence the first thing I noticed was the Kojin altar in the grounds. This was my first time seeing the larger type of straw snake.

In ny region with have Omoto, but the rope snake is better made, but smaller and with a small head. The Kojin on Dogo were much larger, and with larger heads, more like those I would later discover in Higashi Izumo.

It is said to be typical Oki-style residence with three entrances....

I was struck by the fact that it was only one single building, often such places have a cluster of connected buildings....

It was built in 1836, and the Sasaki have been headmen of the village for many generations...

It is an Important Cultural Property of Japan.

There are various artifacts on display, both domestic and agricultural....

There are , of course, plenty of artwork on screens and doors etc...

Entry is only 300 yen and they have a decent leaflet in English explaining about what you are looking at...

It is closed for a few months in Winter...

The previous post was on my walk around the upper reaches of Saigo Bay on my way here...

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Chichi Sugi... the Boob Cedar

Chichi Sugi, which translates as Boob Cedar is an 800 year old tree on the slopes of Mount Daimanji on Dogo, the biggest of the Oki Islands in the Japan Sea off the coast of Shimane.

It is an Urasugi, a species that grows on the Japan Sea side of the main Japanese island of Honshu.

Heavy snowfall causes the trees to produce stronger lateral branches that then grow vertically.

The rounded protuberances growing down from the branches... which is the origin of its nickname "boob", are believed to help absorb moisture from the air.

The other two species of sugi that grow in Japan are the Omotesugi which grows over the rest of Honshu and Shikoku, and the Yakusgi in southern Kyushu.

Cold air rising from the gaps between the big rocks that form the slope meets warm air from the sea, and mean that the area is often misty and foggy which adds to the otherworldly atmosphere.

As with many old, large, or unusual trees in Japan, it is marked as sacred by a shimenawa wrapped around it and a torii gate in front.

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Tamawakasu Shrine Dogo

 

Tamawakasu Shrine on Dogo Island was the primary shrine for all of the Oki Islands, which until the late 19th century constituted a separate province of Japan.

Little is known about he main kami, Tamawakasu, although he is believed to be the founder and pioneer of the Oki Islands, said to be a descendant of Okuninushi.

Other kami enshrined here are Okuninushi, Susanoo, Inadahime, and Kotoshironushi.

Pretty much the main pantheon of Izumo.

Whoever the chieftan of the islands was, in the late 7th century when the Yamato government attempted to unify Japan, the chieftain was installed  as the governor of the province. Behind the shrine is a group of keyhole tombs, said to be the graves of the rulers of the area.

The family of priests who have controlled the shrine since then, the Oki Family, are descendants of the governor.

Their house is next door and I will cover that in the next post in the series.

The house, the honden of the shrine, and the Zuijinmon gate are all Important Cultural Properties, and are all thatched. The architectural style of the buildings is unique to the Oki Islands.

The honden dates to 1793, the house to 1801, and the zuijinmon to 1852

There is a huge, ancient Sugi tree estimated to be at least a thousand years old. Another fell down fairly recently.

It is called Yao Sugi, because the nun who planted it vowed to return in 800 years.

June 5th is the annual festival and it features horses. 8 horses bring the local kami from 8 different districts and numerous ceremonies are performed including galloping horses and yabusame, horseback archery. In former times horses from 48 districts would arrive.

The previous post in this series was on a scenic boat ride exploring the coast, river and main port of Dogo.