Fukushoji Temple Cherry Blossoms, Sacred Waterfall, & Tengu Legend

 

After crossing over the small Kamo River in  Kitsumoto, the Kiiji Route of the Kumano Kodo starts to head uphill towards the next pass, but a huge swath of cherry trees in full bloom beackon to take a small detour.

The climb up to Fukushoji Temple was well worth it, as evidenced by the large group of day-walkers also there...

Not only a ton of sakura, but great views, and a sacred waterfall....

I have to say that this section of the route, from Yuasa to Kainan, was one of the best sections of the Kumano Kodo for me....

The falls are named Urami no Taki, given that name by Yorinobu Tokugawa, the first daimyo of the Kishu Domain.

It is possible to walk behind the 20 metre high falls.....

It is said to be a bit more spectacular after a period of heavy rain, when it can be up to 30 meters wide.

Not sure when the temple was founded, but it is recorded that Kobo Daishi visited the temple in 804 and performed rituals in preparation of his upcoming trip to China.

The honzon is a Thousan-armed Kannon, but there are also a a Kokuzo and a Fudo Myoo.

The main hall dates to at least 1512, maybe earlier. The Gumonji Hall dates to 1650 as does the Bell Tower. All three are Important Cultural Properties.

The legend about the tengu is as follows..... One lived in one of the huge sacred trees behind the temple, but as it was cold in winter a local family allowed him to stay in their storehouse.

The daughter-in-law of the family would bring the tengu food, and he would respond with requests to be able to offer something in return as it was driving him crazy just taking and not being able to repay the kindness...

Eventually the daughter-in-law suggested that the uncle of the family was old and now bedridden but had always wanted to visit the Kumano Sanzan, and so the tengu carried the old man on his back down the pilgrimage trail to Kumano.

There is the imprint of a tengu foot in the floor of the veranda of the temple, though I didn't notice it...

The previous post in this series on my walk along the Saigoku and Kumano Kodo Pilgrimages was on a couple of nearby shrines connected to the introduction of mandarins into Japan.

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From Susa Bay to Esaki Bay

 

Susa Bay and Esaki Bay are two inlets either side of Mount Takayama that protrudes out into the Japan Sea. There are no roads or trails that go around the coast so my route cuts across.

The cherry blossoms are in full bloom as I meander around the convoluted inlets of Susa Bay.

There is actually not a lot to report..... mountain road was almost completely trafficless and, other than one small roadside shrine, with not much to see...

I can't resist a "Geometric Abstract".....

I have walked thouands of kilometers along roads like this..... no traffic, almost no buildings..... but lots of up then down.... the mountain roads of Japan, now bypassed by new main roads with tunnels...

Esaki Bay, like Susa Bay, is a delight....

In fact, when the sea is calm and the sun is out, the Japan Sea coast of Yamaguchi and Shimane can't be beat, but because there are no shinkansen lines, it remains one of the "hidden" delights of Japan.

Esaki Bay is long and narrow, and at the end where the biggest fishing village is there is a new concrete bridge connecting the two sides of the village.

The previous post in this series on day 32 was on the walk from Utago to Susa.

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Atagoyama Kannonji Temple 85 Kyushu Pilgrimage

 

Kannonji, the 85 the temple on the Kyushu Pilgrimage is located an Atagoyama in Meinohama, Fukuoka.

It is linked physically and historically with the Atago Shrine on top, and shares the approach which is lined with plenty of cherry trees, in full bloom when I visited.

The shrine, and mountain, was originally named Washio, and is said to be the oldest shrine in Fukuoka City with a founding in the 2nd century.

In 859 a Tendai temple, Torin-ji, was established as part of the shrine.

In 1634 the local daimyo Kuroda Tadayuki enshrined the kami of the famous Atago Shrine in Kyoto after having success praying there.

He also established a Shingon temple, Enmanji, at the site.

The original Washio Shrine was merged with the Atago Shrine, and Torinji temple and Enmanji temples were also merged. The mountain was renamed Mount Atago.

With the shinbutsubunri decree the two temples were destroyed although the Kannon Hall remained.

The original statue of the Atago Shrine, a Shogun Jizo, was moved to the Kannon Hall, now Kannoin-ji Temple.

There is a particularly spectacular cherry tree in the main temple compound as well as plenty of statues including a fine Fudo Myoo

The Kannon-do has a very beautiful Thousand-armed Kannon.

The honzon's official name is Atago Daigongen Shogun Jizo. Kannonji also has a Yakushi-do.

I visited on day 77 of my walk along the Kyushu Pilgrimage when I returned to Fukuoka City to finish a ten-kilometer segment I had missed a few days earlier. The previous post was on temple 84 Hozo-in.

Weeping Cherry of Senjuin Temple

 

Senjyuin Temple to the northeast of Matsue Castle is a hidden cherry blossom viewing spot.

The temple was moved here from Gassan Toda, the site of the original domain castle and rebuilt here when the new Matsue Castle was built. It occupies the strategic NE position to protect the castle from evil influences in much the same way that Enryakuji protects Kyoto.

It has some regular cheery trees but the pride of place is a shidare zakura, a weeping cherry, said to be at least 200 years old.

The venerable tree has its branches supported by a framework of bamboo and there were a couple of photographers there taking pics of the ephemeral blossoms. I did not know it was blooming before I visited.

I have visited Senjyuin Temple numerous times, and as a temple on the Izumo Kannon Pilgrimage I posted about it a long time ago.

The previous post in this series exploring Matsue was the nearby Togaku Zen Temple and its intriguing statues.