Buddhas, Jizo, and other statues of Kunisaki 3

The kunisaki Peninsular in northern Kyushu is home to a huge number of stone buddhist statues.

many are created by craftsmen and many are "folk".

I can usually recognize Jizo, Kannon, Fudo Myoo, and rakan, but others are still beyond my knowledge.

Not all of them are old.... these are Kannon, I believe, and were at a temple known as a "womans" temple.

Not sure who this guy is, but he is my kind of buddha!!

Gradually I am learning more about the huge diversity of gods and buddhas that populate Japanese buddhism.

These are the last I will post for now., next will be magaibutsu... carvings directly into cliffs and rocks. Kunisaki has more of these than any other area of japan.

Buddhas, Jizo, & other statues of Kunisaki 2

This set of Jizo are quite unusual, not only in their facial expressions, but also in that they are ceramic and not the usual stone.

Often large groups of statues of different figures will be rakan, disciples of the Buddha.

I am not sure who this guy is, maybe one of you can tell me, but like many of the buddhist pantheon it seems to have its roots in Hinduism.

These look like Jizo, guardian of children among other identities. Possibly Mizuko Jizo for children who died before birth.

Once again, I have no idea who this pair are. maybe some of you know?

All of thesae photos were taken on the Kunisaki peninsular in Oita Prefecture, north Kyushu, one of my favorite places in japan and home to an enormous amount of statues, mostly of stone.

Seamark Building

The Seamark Building is located on Island City, a man-made island in Hakata Bay.

It houses various offices and a "Cyber University".

It was designed by architect Kojiro Kitagawa, who I have not come across before.

It opened in 2008.

Buddhas, Jizo, & other statues of Kunisaki 1

The Kunisaki peninsular is home to an uncountable number of buddhist statues, mostly made of stone.

Some are by the roadside, and some are in the grounds of temples, but many are at the sites frequented by Yamabushi, the mountain ascetics who lived and visited here.

Some are carved directly into the rock itself, but many are placed in the man-made caves that were used by the ascetics for their meditation practices.

There are a bewildering array of characters in the Buddhist pantheon. As well as various buddhas there are numerous bodhisatvas as well as saints, disciples, and other deities often derived from hindu deities.

Its only recently that I have started to visit buddhist sites, mainly for an interest in the statuary and other art.

I am beginning to recognize some of the figures, but the identity of others still eludes me.

It is my hope that one day I can return to kunisaki and follow the old pilgrim trail as there are for sure many wonders to be found off the beaten track.

Tabira Church

Though it is located on the mainland of Nagasaki Prefecture, Tabira is included in the island Hirado.

Like many other churches in Nagasaki it was designed by Tetsukawa Yosuke.

Construction began in 1915, and the church was dedicated in 1918.

Built of brick, and using them decoratively, the church features an octagonal belfry and a lot of stanied glass and gold leaf.

Japan is trying to get the churches of Nagasaki listed as a World Heritage Site.

Infini Garden

Infini garden is a 16 storey block of flats, or if you prefer american, apartment block, with 389 units.

In Japanese its called a Manshon, derived from the english word mansion, though it bears little resemblance to the english meaning.

Built in 2008, its located on Island City, a man-made island in Hakata Bay, Fukuoka.

Apartments are very popular in Japan, though I can think of nowhere worse to live.

I have asked friends who live in apartments in local　towns where there are an abundance of big, empty, houses, why they dont choose a house, and most say that it is the wife who prefers the apartment as there is less housework and maintenance to do.

Island City is part of a big urban renewal project for Fukuoka. As well as residential areas and a huge park there is a new container port and businesses with links to mainland Asia are encouraged to move here.

Tenjin Inter Media Station

The Inter Media Station building in Tenjin, Fukuoka, is not much to look at from the outside.

But inside is another matter!!!!!

Basically its another shopping and entertainment complex.

I am not much of a shopper myself, in fact I loathe shopping. I would rather have sharp sticks poked in my eyes. But in Japan, perhaps more than most places, shopping and consumption are elevated to levels I would equate to religious.

Which is why these kind of places seem to be Cathedrals of Consumption.

The receptionists/information counter girls were something else too. With fake fur stoles and fake flowers in their hair are they the miko of a new religion?

Vacation 2011 Day1: Sumiyoshi Shrine

The last part of my first day of vacation I was in Hakata and I visited the Sumiyoshi Shrine there.

The head Sumiyoshi Shrine is in Osaka, but the one in Hakata is believed to be the original one.

The main kami are Sokotsutsuo-no-kami, Nakatsutsuo-no-kami and Uwatsutsuo-no-kami, which are kami connected with navigation and safe travel by sea. the mythical "Empress" Jingu is also now enshrined here as the myths say she received oracles from the Sumiyoshi Kami before her mythical "conquest" of Korea.

I recently read that the 3 kami were originally aspects of the undersea Dragon King, a kami long associated with distant lands.

Travellers and emissaries going from Yamato to Korea and China would first stop at the Sumiyoshi Taisha in Naniwa (Osaka) and then visit other Sumiyoshi Shrines along the Inland Sea until finally leaving from Hakata.

Its a nice oasis of green in an otherwise built-up area and has some fine Zuijin and komainu.

There is a secondary shrine to Amaterasu in the grounds, and an Ebisu shrine in front.

As a major shrine it is able to employ Miko.

Behind the main hall are 2 Inari shrines.