Komo Shrine Revisited

 

Komo Shrine is quite a large, impressive shrine in the countryside near Nakatsu.

This was my third time visiting, and a previous visit was documented in this post.

I was here this time on day 6 of my walk along the Kyushu Fudo Myoo Pilgrimage.

There is much to see, but perhaps the most noticeable thing is the magnificent two-storey gate.

This is a 1622 reconstruction, and is a national Important Cultural Property.

Next is the torii floating in the pond.

Originally a triangular pond, it is actually the inner shrine of Komo Shrine and is the source of shrine itself.

The chief priest of Usa Shrine visited the pond and was instructed by the kami to take some reeds from the pond and construct a sacred pillow with them.

In 720, in response to yet another "rebellion" of the Hayato people of southern Kyushu, the central government sent a punitive force.

It was joined by an army from Buzen and was led by a portable shrine made of the reeds from Sankaku Pond.

Komo Shrine itself is said to have been founded as a branch of Usa Hachiman in the early to mid 9th century.

This roofed bridge was in poor condition.... not sure if it is still standing....

There are numerous huge, ancient camphor trees within the shrine...

As well as the main Hachiman there is also a Wakamiya Shrine which also enshrines Ojin, and a Yasaka Shrine enshrining Susanoo and his "family"

The shrine crest is a single Tomoe, and some link it to the Munakata Princesses who are part of Hachiman.

Interestingly, one version of the Munakata myth in the Nihon Shoki has the princesses descending to this area before moving to their current homes on the coast and islands of Fukuoka...

The previous post in this series on my walk along the Kyushu Fudo Pilgrimage was on the nearby Sanmei-in Temple.

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Tada-ji Temple 22 Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage, Temple 24 Iwami Kannon Pilgrimage

 

I begin day 38 of my Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage walk at Tada-ji Temple on the mountain top overlooking Shimoko. It is temple 22 of the pilgrimage.

It has been 7 days since the last temple of the pilgrimage, the Tamae Kannon-in down in Hagi.

Tada-ji is also the 24th temple of the Iwami Kannon Pilgrimage which I have been concurrently walking along since yesterday.

The Nio of Tada-ji are truly impressive....

Each is carved from a single piece of camphorwood. I am unable to find a date but they seem quite recent.

The name Tada is unique among Japanese temples, apparently.

It was founded in 806 by a monk who had travelled to China with Kobo Daishi to study.

He returned two years earlier than Kobo Daishi, and while passing through this area had an experience which caused him to establish a temple here around a tiny statue he brought back from China.

The honzon of the temple is a 11-faced Kannon. It is a secret Buddha revealed once a year at the Hatsuumasai Festival.

That takes place on the Day of the Horse, on the second month of the lunar calendar, the festival day of Dakini Ten, a deity on the head of the Kannon statue.

Dakiniten later became equated with Inari, but was originally a set of female demons/goddesses connected with death.

This is one of the three major festivals of Iwami, and unfortunately, I have yet to attend.

At the small Inari Shrine (was it Dakiniten before Shinbutsununri?) there is a viewpoint looking out at the Japan Sea.

Around the Kobo Daishi statue at the base ( top photo of the post) is a miniature 88 temple pilgrimage about ten meters long.

There are two huge, ancient trees in the grounds, a camphor tree said to be over 1,000 years old, and a Cypress said to be over 1100 years old.

There is a Kumano Shrine in the grounds connected to another experience by Ryusei Shonin, the founder.

Tada-ji is believed to be the oldest extant temple in Hamada.

Perhaps the most intriguing sights at Tadaji are to be found inside the main hall, and that I will cover in the next post in the series...

The previous post was on the walk over from Hamada.

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Daikoji Temple 67 Shikoku Ohenro Pilgrimage

 

Daikoji, temple 67 on the Shikoku Pilgrimage, is located in a fairly out-of-the-way rural area at the bottom of the mountains, with no big towns nearby.

It was established, about 1 kilometer from its current location, in 742 as a branch of Todaiji temple.

The Nio Gate was built in 1318 but rebuit at its current location in 1796.

The Nio are dated to the mid Kamakura Period, around the mid 13th century.

They were repainted in 1790 and are the biggest wooden nio in Shikoku.

Kobo Daishi visited in 792, and thirty years later came back and rebuilt much of the temple.

Two huge trees flanking the approach are said to have been planted by Kobo Daishi himself.

Daikoji was unusual in that it was partly Tendai and partly Shingon, with a Tendai hall still remaining today.

At one point there were 24 Shingon halls and 12 Tendai halls....

A major fire detroyed most of the temple, possibly caused by Chosokabe Motochika, possibly not.

When I visited in 2012 they were already flying banners to celebrate the 1,000th anniversary of the Pilgrimage in 2014...

The temple moved to its current location and was rebuilt in 1597. The current main hall dates to 1741.

The honzon is a Yakushi Nyorai, commonly known as the Medicine Buddha. It is a secret Buddha unveiled to the public every 60 years.

Known as Sanko (triangle) Pine...

Kumano Sansho Gongen Shrine was seperated from the temple after shinbutsu bunri...

The previous post was on Unpenji, temple 66....

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