Chichi Sugi... the Boob Cedar

Chichi Sugi, which translates as Boob Cedar is an 800 year old tree on the slopes of Mount Daimanji on Dogo, the biggest of the Oki Islands in the Japan Sea off the coast of Shimane.

It is an Urasugi, a species that grows on the Japan Sea side of the main Japanese island of Honshu.

Heavy snowfall causes the trees to produce stronger lateral branches that then grow vertically.

The rounded protuberances growing down from the branches... which is the origin of its nickname "boob", are believed to help absorb moisture from the air.

The other two species of sugi that grow in Japan are the Omotesugi which grows over the rest of Honshu and Shikoku, and the Yakusgi in southern Kyushu.

Cold air rising from the gaps between the big rocks that form the slope meets warm air from the sea, and mean that the area is often misty and foggy which adds to the otherworldly atmosphere.

As with many old, large, or unusual trees in Japan, it is marked as sacred by a shimenawa wrapped around it and a torii gate in front.

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Hirohata Hachimangu

 

An hour or so after setting out from my hotel on my walk from Ine to Akiyoshidai I came across the first shrine of the day.

Yet another Hachiman Shrine.

This one was said to be a branch of the original Hachiman Shrine, Usa Hachiman, in what is now Oita. The date given is 732.

The shrine has been at its current site since 1660. It had moved several times before.

In 1221, following the Jokyu War, a new samurai lord took over the area. Unusually, he chose to make this Hachiman shrine his tutelary shrine, rather than establish a new one, which was normal.

The kami are Ojin, Jingu, and the three Munakata Princesses. This seems to be the norm for Hachiman shrines in this area.

In 1752 a Tenmangu Shrine was established within the grounds....

The main shrine was rebuilt in 1769, and in 1770 the shrine grounds were expanded and reforested.

The previous post was on the walk from Mine to Akiyoshidai, during which I stopped in at this shrine.

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Izumo Shrine Suo Ninomiya

 

The Ninomiya, second-ranked shrine, of the old Suo Province was the Izumo Shrine in the Tokuji District on the banks of the Saba River north of Hofu.

It is said tat it was established to appease the Izumo tribe as they expanded into the Saba River basin. It is generally accepted that Izumo controlled a large confederacy that reached from northern Kyushu up to the Niigata area.

It is recorded that it was established in 715 and in 738 it was granted imperial permission to be the Ninomiya of the province.

The shrine was well supported by the Ouchi Clan who ruled the area and then later by the Mori who took over from the Ouchi.

The main kami listed are Okuninushi and Kotoshironushi, although I note that until the 16th century the main kami of Izumo Taisha was Susanoo. The current building dates to 1750.

There are a couple of different Hachiman shrines in the grounds and twenty smaller shrines gathered from around the area.

Most interesting to me was the giant Sugi tree..... this would have been the kind of tree Chogen would have been looking for....

It is 43 meters high, with a 12.5 metre circumference at its base, and a diameter of 7.2 meters.

The previous post was on the monk Chogen and his rebuilding of Todaiji with lumber from this area...

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Itoga Inari Shrine. The Oldest Inari Shrine in Japan

 

Itoga, on the south bank of the Arita River in Wakayama was a stopping point on the most travelled of all the Kumano Kodo routes, the Kiiji route from Osaka and the capital, Kyoto.

The Inari shrine in Itoga lays claim to being the oldest Inari shrine in all of Japan.

The head Inari shrine, and by far the most famous, is the Fushimi Inari Shrine near Kyoto.

Founded by the Hata clan in the first years of the 8th century, most people would consider it the first Inari shrine.

The shrine here in Itoga was founded in the mid 7th century.

Inari, him or herself, has a complex history with many influences and identities, but primarily identifies as a rice-growing deity.

However, there are numerous deities connected with rice and grains, and unentangling historic names in Japan is not so much science as opinion.

Whatever the case, I am drawn to histories that question the official narratives...

There are three huge Camphor trees within the shrine, estimated to between 5 and 6 hundred years old.

Emperor Shirakawa is said to have stopped here on one of his Kumano pilgrimages.

There are numerous shrines that have been moved to within the grounds incuding the Itoga Oji.

Some of the kami enshrined in the grounds include 2 to Okuninushi, and shrines to Susano, Izanagi, Izanami, Kotoshironushi, Sugawara Michizane, Ichikishimahime, Ojin, Oyamatsumi, and many others...

Right next to Itoga Shrine is the Kumano Kodo History & Folklore Museum. As well as displays on the Kumano Kodo it also functions as a rest stop for pilgrims....

With free entry, cetainly worth a visit if you are in the area or walking the Kiiji.

The previous post in this series on my walk along the Saigoku Pilgrimage was on my walk over the pass to reach Itoga.

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