Abuto Kannon

 

Abuto Kannon is a Kannon Hall perched on a rocky outcropping overlooking the Inland Sea at the southern tip of Numakuma Peninsula between Fukuyama and Onomichi.

It has been promoted by local tourist authorities in recent years but is still hard to reach and virtually unkown.

It is part of Bandai-ji Temple,  which claims  an origin of 992, and is now a Rinzai Zen temple

However, the real history is lost in time, although for sure it is said to have been rebuilt in 1338 and then once again fell into disrepair.

It was certainly rebuilt in 1570 which is when Mori Terumoto built the Kannon Hall.

The legend says that a local fisherman found a Kannon statue in his net and placed it on the rocks where the hall is now.

The kannon Hall is a registered National Important Cultural Property.

I arrived from Tomonoura on a footpath that leads down from the main road and then approaches the hall from the East.

From the temple a covered corridor leads up to the hall which has an open veranda on three sides.

The views are amazing.

As well as safety at sea, the temple has a reputation for childbirth and child-rearing.

Abuto Kannon has the biggest collection of breast-shaped ema votive plaques I have seen outside of Karube Shrine which I had visited a few days earlier.

There is no public transport to Bandaiji Temple.

A nearby ryokan will organize a viewing of Abuto Kannon from the sea if enough people sign up.

This was my first stop on day 11 of my walk along the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage and entailed making a long detour off the most direct route, but was well worth it.

The previous post was on the Yosakoi dancing at the Fukuyama Summer Festival the evening before.

Kannonji Temple Demons Gate of Fukuyama Castle

 

After exploring Tomonoura I headed back into Fukuyama again to spend my second night there and as there was still plenty of daylight left I went to explore the area to the NE of the castle.

My first stop was Kannonji Temple which has a Niomon gate before a long Pine-flanked approach.

The Nio were quite impressive....

In Japanese culture, imported from China, the NE direction is considered where evil comes from, and so temples were often placed to the NE of important sites to protect them. These were called Kimon.

Perhaps the most famous example is the placing of Enryakuji Temple on top of Mount Hiei to protect Kyoto.

When Fukuyama Castle was built in the 17th century the daimyo had this temple brought from another area and placed as the kimon.

The Hondo and main gate are dated to 1651 and are registered as Important Cultural Properties.

Kannonji is a Shingon temple and was under the control of Myoo-in.

The honzon is a Kannon and the temple is on both the Fukuyama and the Bingo Kannon pilgrimages.

The previous post in this series on my walk along the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage was on Fukuzenji Temple in nearby Tomonoura.

Fukuzenji Temple & The Most Beautiful View

 

Fukuzenji is unusual in that, unlike almost all the temples of Tomonoura, which are clustered in one area along the town's edge, Fukuzenji is situated right in the middle of the town.

Like many of the other temples, Fukuzenji was used to accommodate visiting Korean dignitaries on their journey to the Japanese capital.

In 1711 one envoy claimed that the view from the temple was the best scenic view east of Korea and this has been often translated to mean the best view in Japan.

However, when the next delegation visited in 1748 they were told to use another temple as Fukuzenji had fallen somewhat into disrepair. The Koreans were indignant and stayed on their boats overnight in protest.

In 1763 when the next Korean mission arrived their were put up once again at Fukuzenji.

It was a Korean who named the reception hall Taichoro, the name it retains to today.

The Taichoro is also where Sakamoto Ryoma had a meeting.

Fukuzenji is a Shingon sect temple and is believed to have been founded around 950, but records are sketchy.

The main altar is quite colourful and has a Thousand-armed Kannon as honzon.

I was, of course, rather partial to the couple of Fudo's as well as the Aizen Myoo.

The main view from the temple is of Bentenjima Island with its Benzaiten Fukujudo, a small Buddhist hall on the island to Benzaiten, but also with a Torii indicating Benten's syncretic nature.

Behind it is Sensui Island and then the Inland Sea

The previous post was on the harbour of the old port of Tomonoura.