Tsubaki-do Bangai Temple 14 Shikoku Ohenro Pilgrimage

 

Jofukuji Temple, commonly called Tsubaki-do, is the 14th of the 20 extra temples on the Shikoku Pilgrimage. It is one of the ones commonly visited by pilgrims as it is located right on the main pilgrimage route and does not involve a detour.

It was established in 807 as a small hermitage enshrining a Jizo statue.

In 815 Kobo Daishi visited while the local people were suffering from influenza. He planted his walking stick into the grounds and prayed so that the sickness left the people and transferred into the stick.

Later a camellia, tsubaki in Japanese,  grew from the stick, and so the name of the hermitage became Tsubaki-do

The hermitage burned down in 1859, and the current camellia is said to have grown from the burned stump.

The red Fudo Myoo was known as  a fire prevention Fudo, but has been changed to a Non-Nuclear Fudo.

It has received a fresh coat of paint since I visited, as has the unusual gate.

I was lucky as I visited in mid-February, so the camellias were blooming

The previous post in this series was Sankakuji Temple 65.

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Tozenji Temple 10 Shikoku Fudo Myoo Pilgrimage

 

27th December, 2016, and I begin day 7 of my walk along the Shikoku Fudo Myoo Pilgrimage at temple 10, Tozenji.

It is located in Ishii, between the mountains and the south bank of the Yoshino River, not too far from Awa Kokubunji Temple.

Since I visited, the main hall with the tin roof covering the thatch has been demolished and a new buiding built.

The temple was a branch of the famous Naritasan temple in Chiba but separated from it in 1905.

Naritasan seems to have major branch temples in most prefectures. This one was known as the Ofudo-san of the southern islands.

There was no signboard, no-one home when I visited, and I have been unable to find any other information in English or Japanese....

The previous post in this series on my walk along the Shikoku Fudo Myoo Pilgrimage was on the illuminations and art festival the evening before in Tokushima City.

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Nakanokawachi Kokuzodo & Nakanokawachi Butsumokuji Temples 24 & 42 Sasaguri Pilgrimage

 

Day 2 of our walk along the Sasaguri Pilgrimage, and we are continuing up into the mountains on the south side of the river, main road, and railway line that bisects the area and the pilgrimage.

Number 24, Nakanokawachi Kokuzodo has a memorial stone to the birthplace of Fujii Tosuke, a man who was influential in finishing the construction of this 88 temple pilgrimage in the mid 19th century after the death of Jinnin, the nun were started the project

Many of these smaller "temples" still have the original stone statues that were the honzon. They are all quite small, simple reliefs, with donors' names inscribed on them. They have all been replaced with larger, more elaborate statues. Obviously the local people have been supporting this pilgrimage route since the beginnings.

Many of the other statues that have been added are quite simple and made fairly quickly, at the lower end of the proffesional scale, but this adds something, to my mind at least.

The numbering system is quite weird..... there is no chance to walk the route sequentially...

After 24, the next was number 42, Nakanokawachi Butsumokuji.

The honzon here is a Dainichi.

It has adopted attributes of the Dainichi at  Shikoku temple 42, Buttsumokuji, and is known for protecting livestock.

As with most of these 88 temples, numerous, diverse statues of Fudo Myoo abound...

The previous post in this series on day 2 of my walk along the Sasaguri Pilgrimage was on the nearby  Ninotaki Temple with its two waterfalls

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Mudo-ji Temple 10 Kinki Fudo Myoo Pilgrimage

 

After emerging from the forested mountain I come into what is in essence a suburb of Kobe, albeit in a valley separated from Kobe by Rokko Mountain. I cross the Yamada valley to the northern side and find the entrance to Mudo-ji, the tenth temple on the Kinki Fudo Myoo Pilgrimage.

The long approach is lined with statues representing the 88 Shikoku Pilgrimage temples.

Mossy steps lead up to the compact temple grounds with a bell tower, an elegant main hall, and an imposing, thatched residence.

The origins of Mudo-ji date back to the end of the 6th century, the very early days of Buddhism in Japan, and to the semi-legendary Prince Shotoku Taishi.

Along with his Soga Clan relatives, Shotoku Taishi was in conflict with the Mononobe Clan, and he asked a sculptor to carve a series of statues of Dainichi Nyorai and other Buddhist deities. Upon the defeat of the Mononobe he ordered the construction of seven halls to house the statues and this became Fukuji Temple.

The temple went through numerous changes and by the mid 18th century was in a dilapidated state. A twenty year fundraising campaign led to it being rebuilt in 1752. The main hall and priests' quarters date to that time.

There was a private ceremony going on when I was there so I was not able to enter the main hall, which is a real shame as I found out later that the Treasure House, entered through the main hall, houses 5 Important Cultural Properties.

The 5 ancient statues are a 3-meter-tall statue of Dainichi, the honzon of the temple, a seated Shaka Nyorai, believed to be the oldest of the statues, a seated Amida, a seated Fudo Myoo, and a standing 11-headed Kannon. They are all believed to have been carved in the mid-Heian Period.

There was a small, seemingly fairly new, Goma Hall in which I found a Fudo....

I wish I had been able to see the one in the Treasure Hall...

Immediately adjacent to the temple, and once its guardian shrine, is Wakaoji Shrine, another Important Cultural Property.

It was established in 1297, the current shrine , within its protective outer structure, dates to 1408.

It enshrined Wakaoji Gongen, the mountain guardian of the temple.

In the late 19th century, when the shrine was separated from the temple, the main kami changed to Izanagi.

Mudo-ji is now a Shingon sect temple.

As well as the Kinki Fudo Myoo, the temple is on several other pilgrimages; it's number 12 on the Kobe 13 Buddhas  Pilgrimage, and number 9 on the Settsu Kannon Pilgrimage.

The previous post in this series on day four of my walk along the Kinki Fudo Myoo Pilgrimage was on Shiogahara Pond in the mountains nearby...

if you would like to subscribe by email just leave your email address in the comments below. It will not be published and made public. I post new content almost everyday, and send out an email about twice a month with short descriptions and links to the last ten posts.