Ishiteji Temple Part 2

 

Through the tunnel to the Okunoin

This is the second part of four on Ishiteji Temple in Matsuyama, Ehime.

It is the 51st temple on the Ohenro Shikoku Pilgrimage but is also very popular with non-pilgrims.

There are two tunnels that lead from the main temple, through the hillside, to emerge in a small valley behind the temple where the Okunoin, the inner temple, is located.

The tunnels have no lighting at all, so you need to take flashlights with you.

What you will encounter are some fairly standard jizo statues,....

But, a lot of very crude, wooden statues.....

I did hear one time that the carver of these statues was a relative of the head priest, however there are dozens and dozens of them throughout the temple, if not hundreds...

I took so many photos of these weird statues, which is why this post on Ishiteji is so big and spread over multiple parts.

There are a couple of "chapels" or altars along the way....

before the tunnel emerges into daylight and an imposing statue of Enma, king of Hell

There are also a series of other crude statues, some type of cement of plaster over a chicken wire frame....

These are already starting to deteriorate....

A huge, almost spherical, golden structure appears.....

This is the Okunoin, guarded by golden komainu.....

but thats for the next post....

Just outside the Okunoin was this skeletal statue of the historicalBuddha fasting.....

Ishiteji Temple Part 1            Ishiteji Temple Part 3

Ishiteji Temple Part 1

 

Ishite-ji Temple is number 51 on the 88 temple Shikoku Pilgrimage known as Ohenro.

It is located near Dogo Onsen in Matsuyama City and is very popular with non-pilgrims as well as pilgrims.

My dilemma when it came time for this post was in how to choose from the almost 200 photos I took here, and decided to post about half of them but spread over 4 posts to make them manageable.

The temple was said to be founded by Gyoki in 728.

Later Kukai visited and changed it to be a Shingon temple.

At that time it was called Anyo-ji.

The Niomon, dating all the way back to 1318, is a National Treasure.

The honzon of Ishiteji is a Yakushi Nyorai.

The three-storey Pagoda is about the same age as the Niomon, and it is an Important Cultural Property.

Ishite-ji literally means "stone hand temple" and refers to the legend of Emon Saburo.

His story can be found in the post on Monjuin Temple that I had visited earlier in the day.

A small stone with an inscription is viewable in the temple treasure house is said to be the one found in the hand of the new-born baby.

The belfry, 3 photos above, also dates back to the early 14th century, though the bell is said to be a little older.

Many temples are quite, sedate, meditative places, conforming to a certain image of Buddhist temples.

Some, however, are noisy, colourful, and crowded, and Ishiteji is one of this katter kind.

There are numerous smaller halls and shrines scattered around, and an unusually large number of statues and paintings.

Part of the reason I took so many pictures was that the light was great, but also there werejust so many statues, many of which, in the upcoming posts, are most unusual

The previous temple was Hanta-ji Temple, number 50.

Next part click below

Ishiteji Temple Part 2

Jodoji Temple 49 Ohenro Shikoku Pilgrimage

 

Jodoji Temple is just a couple of kilometers from temple 48, Sairinji, as the pilgrimage route approaches Matsuyama City centre from the south. It is situated at the base of some hills.

To the right of the main hall is the obligatory Daishi-do, but to the left stand an Amida-do and an Aizen-do.

There is a fine pair of Nio in the gate, though they are missing their eyes, said to have been stolen.

The temple was founded in the early 8th century. There is some confusion as some sources say it was a monk named Emyo who founded it, whereas other sources claim Gyoki. Gyoki is climed to be the carver of the honzon, a Shaka Nyorai.

Kobo Daishi came here in the 9th century and rebuilt the temple and converted it to Shingon.

In the middle of the 10th century a famous, itinerant, philanthropist monk, Kuya Shonin, spent three years here helping the local people. Before he left he carved a statue of himself that is now an Important Cultural Property.

In the late 12th century Yoritomo Minamoto prayed here and funded some reconstruction of the temple. The temple propspered and at one point controlled more than 60 sub-temples.

In the early 15th century much was burned down and was later restored by the local Kono Clan.

The main hall, with Ming features, was built at this time though was dismantled and extensively repaired and renovated in 1965.

A graveyard is set among the trees and bamboo on the hillside behind the temple and a path takes you up to an observation platfrom with some far-reaching views.

The previous temple was number 48 Sairinji.