Sakagawa Shrine to Itoga Inari Shrine Over The Itoga Toge Pass

 

After leaving Yuasa I continued north on the Kumano Kodo Kiiji Trail, first up river and then into the mountains.

First stop was Sakagawa Shrine, site of the Sakagawa Oji.

The main kami enshrined here are Izanami, Susano, and Hayatama. 

Versions of the three kami of Kumano,...... not surprising

From here a small, narrow road that later becomes a track, then a trail, heads up towards Itoga Pass.

I am heading into "orange" country. While oranges are grown in many places in Japan, in the mountains in this area the crop dominates....

Beacuse so much of the natural forest has been cut down to make way for the orange orchards, there are more views over the surrounding area....

The path is not so steep

I believe that nowadays a few more people are walking this section of the Kumano Kodo, but back in 2016 when I walked it, I didn't pass a single other walker/pilgrim.

Orange farmers tend to work on very steep slopes, so the preferred method of carrying things is small, motorized monorails. Construction workers also use such things when working on steep slopes.

Itoga Pass, 190 meters above sea level, used to have a couple of teahouses servicing the multitudes of pilgrims who passed this way in the Edo Period.

The way down to the Arida River is steep.

This was the end of March, so the colours are not of approaching Autumn but the pink and red of cherry blossoms forming.....

I very much enjoyed this section of the Kumano Kodo..... I found the most popular section, the nakahechi, a little bit too over-touristed, somewhat pretentious, and too much of it covered in sugi tree farms.....

Coming into Itoga on the south bank of the Arida River, I spied Itoga Inari Shrine, so headed over to investigate. The previous post in this series on my walk along the oldest pilgrimage route in Japan, the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage, was on the birthplace of soy sauce, Yuasa.

Hayashi Kumano Shrine The First Kumano Shrine?

Hayashi Kumano Shrine

This was a completely unexpected site I visited while heading down towards the next pilgrimage temple, Rendaiji. From the first torii up to the main shrine buildings was quite a distance and around the shrine was a lot of open space.

I now believe this area was until around 1868 filled with many Buddhist structures, the three-storey pagoda remaining.

The arrangement of the shrine was also unusual, with a long line of 13 hondens in 4 structures.

Originally called Kumano Junisha Gongen, and renamed Kumano Shrine in 1868, the junisha refers to the 12 kami enshrined in the line of hondens, the 12 kumano kami plus a local protective kami.

According to the founding legend, in 699 the famed mystic and legendary founder of Shugendo was exiled to Izu. A group of 5 of his disciples carried the spirit of what is now Hongu Taisha shrine in Kumano and eventually, in 701, decided upon this spot to found a new shrine. This is why the shrine now claims to be the very first "Kumano" shrine.

The five disciples also founded 5 temples in the area and this became a major shugendo centre with two other sites in the area for a Shin Kumano.

The shrine temple complex went through cycles of destruction like most major religious centres and the oldest remaining structure is the one called Second Hall. It was rebuilt in 1492 and is a National Important Cultural Property.

The remaining structures date back to a rebuild by the Okayama  Daimyo Ikeda Mitsumasa in 1647.

The  kami are listed as Izanami, Izanagi, Amaterasu, Ninigi, Amenoshihomimi, Hikohohodemi, Ugayafukiaeizu, Haniyamahime, Kagutsuchi, Wakamusubi, and Mizuhanome.

Among the secondary shrines in the grounds are Susanoo and Ichikishima.

In 1868 the shrine was separated from all the temple structures and renamed Kumano Shrine.

In 1872 Shugendo was outlawed until 1945.

The previous post was on the remaining temples in the complex and the three-storey pagoda.

Goods From Japan

Washio Atago Shrine

Washio Atago Shrine

Washio Atago Shrine sits atop a 68 meter  tall hill overlooking Fukuoka City.

It is considered one of the top 3 of the 900 Atago shrines in Japan, with the other two being the head shrine overlooking Kyoto and the one in Tokyo

Originally called Mount Washio, according to legend a shrine, Washio Shrine, was established here in 72 AD enshrining Izanagi and Amenoshihomimi, the oldest of Amaterasu's five sons. These are the two main kami of Hikosan, the major Shugendo site in northern Kyushu, and one theory is that the kami were moved to Hikosan from here.

Since the 10th century the shrine was under the jurisdiction of a shugendo Tendai temple, Torin-ji, and in fact for a while after a period of warfare only the temple building remained.

In 1634 the new daimyo of the domain established Atago Daigongen at the site and a Shingon temple. He had successfully prayed at the shugendo site atop Mount Atago in Kyoto and brought the kami Izanami and Homusubi from there.

In 1901 the Washio Shrine and Atago Shrine were merged and the temples removed. The Buddhist statue shintai, a Shogun Jizo, was moved to what is now Kannonji Temple a little lower down the hillside.

Within the grounds is an Uga Shrine enshrining Susano, Yamato Takeru, and Ugatama, and as well as the Kannonji Temple there is also a Jizoson shrine.

There is an Inari shrine and I will cover that in the next post.

It is a very popular shrine especially during cherry blossom season when I visited as it has 2,000 cherry trees.

It also has great views over Fukuoka City.

The previous post was on the Kannonji Temple just below.

Goods From Japan

Kurokami Shrine

 

I came down Mount Kurokami along a walking trail and as it got closer to the base passed though an old, Hizen-style torii, indicating this was the route used to reach the shrine at the peak.

There was another, slightly smaller torii where the trail emerged from the trees into the countryside. According to the sign it was built in the late 18th century.

Not far away I reached the entrance to Kurokami Shrine. Technically this is Lower Kurokami Shrine, and the one on top of the mountain the Upper Kurokami Shrine.

The approach to the shrine passes over a small bridge. This was the ancient and traditional way of purifying before entering shrine space. passing over running water. If you look at many of the oldest shrines they all have this feature.

There were lots of people in suits and kimonos milling around, and several priests.

A Shinto wedding had just taken place. Shinto weddings are one of the many "traditions" that were either invented in the modern period or moved to within shrines in the modern period. Christian weddings have a much longer history in Japan than Shinto weddings.

The shrine is said to have been founded in ancient times, but the shrine history recognizes the huge impact Kumano Shugendo had on the shrine, including listing the Buddhas connected to it.

The upper shrine enshrines Izanami as well as Hayatama and Kotosaka. The secondary shrine at the top of the mountain is a Hakusan Shrine enshrining Izanagi.

Secondary shrines here at the lower shrine include a Tenjin, Taga, and a Konpira.

At the peak of its power, Kurokami had 50 branch  shrines. It was popular with samurai during the Warring States period and a yabusame event is held here once a year.

There is also a secondary shrine to Amaterasu, though I am certain that is very much a modern addition, as is the Ise-style architecture.

The previous post was on the giant cliff carving of Fudo high up on the mountain.