A Morning at Iwami Ginzan

 

The World Heritage Site of Iwami Ginzan is only 30 kilometers from my home, and as I had friend who had a business there I used to visit often, even before it became a World Heritage site in 2007. All these photos are from one such trip. The first needs no explanation.

This is a window in a small seated shelter along the footpath that runs along the stream from the main parking area up the valley towards the mine...

The next photo is  of the Fudo Myo statue at the entrance to Seisuiji Temple.

The photo below needs no explanation...

The photo below is a lightshade at my friends shop that seems to be based on the Japanese umbrella

The next couple of shots are of some flower displays along the main street of Omori;

I recently posted another set of such shots taken on a May 5th visit.

Below is a gate into the garden of a wealthy merchant's property.

No explanation need for the photo below....

A different photo of the some scene shown below is in a post I did on the facades of Omori.

Some other earlier posts on Iwami Ginzan include these posts on the Fall colours....

Hunting the Fall Colors in Omori

Autumn in Omori

Autumn Splendor at Kigami Shrine

Other posts on Iwami Ginzan include...

Omori Historic Preservation District

Kanzeonji Temple

500 Rakan at Iwami Ginzan

For a shot of this entrance to the wealthy merchants home, but with a different painting and different flower display see the Omori in 2D post.

Omori Floral

Up in the mountains not far from here is the Iwami Ginzan World Heritage Site, and the village of Omori is a large part of it.

Pretty much just one long street in the narrow valley below the mine, Omori is where the samurai, bureaucrats, and merchants lived.

Before it was made a World Heritage site the town was already a Preservation District and so is mostly made up of Edo Period architecture and had the unsightly power poles removed.

All these photos were take on a one kilometer walk down the main street of the town on a May 5th.

While some of the flowers are planted in planters, pots,or in the ground, many others are cut flowers displayed in sections of bamboo tied to drainpipes.

Uchihara Oji to Shishigasa Pass Kumano Kodo Kiiji Route

Saturday, March 26th, 2016, and I continue north on day 7 of my walk along the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage which at this point still follows the Kumano Kodo, the World Heritage registered pilgrimage routes.

I am following the Kiiji Route of the Kumano Kodo which ran from the imperial capital in Kyoto down to the Kumano Shrines. For the previous two days since I left Tanabe where the Nakahechi Route heads into the mountains The Kiiji route has followed the coast.

Now it heads inland and over the mountains on what was historically considered a difficult part of the route.

Heading north the narrow road passes several monuments to sites of former Oji, the 99 shrines that lay upon the route.

Some are still existant as shrines, and of course there are numerous roadside statues.

The route is pretty well marked and I believe the signage has gotten even more prolific since I walked it 8 years ago.

There are numerous artworks along the way depicting pilgrims, usual high-class, on the route in historical times.

The site of Kutsukake Oji, the 50th Oji, marks a kind of halfway point on the pilgrimage route.

As the road steepens the trail heads off along a section of cobblestone road. Apparently this is the longest section of the old paved route still in existence.

Eventually the trail levels out at Shishigasstoge, the pass at about 350 meters above sea level.

During the Edo Period there was a teahouse for travellers at the pass, and also other teahouses along the way. All have disappeared, mostly the the Meiji Period when trains and modern  roads led to the old paths becoming hardly used.

The plum blossoms were particularly appealing as they were in full bloom at this altitude.

Downhill from here is quite steep but mostly on a narrow asphalt or concrete road.

While not as dramatic as the far more popular Kumano Kodo routes to the south, this section is easily accessible for a shorter walk along the Kumano Kodo without necessitating much planning and expense.

The previous post was on Uchihara Oji Shrine at the start of the climb out of Gobo.

Sutra Storehouse at Anyoji Temple

 

Anyoji Temple in Iwami Ginzan, the World Heritage silver mine area in Shimane is known as the Crustal Temple, but I will cover that in a later post. For now we are looking at the Sutra Storehouse of the temple.

Originally located on top of the mountain, it was founded as a Tendai temple in the early15th century but converted to Pure Land sect in 1523.

The storehouse, said to be from when it was a Tendai temple, has an excellent piece of kote-e above the door. Kote-e, literally "trowel picture" are plaster reliefs found mostly on temples and storehouses, though sometimes on homes. Further examples can be found in this post on Kitsuki.

The storehouse also houses a statue of Shaka Nyorai, Shakyamuni, the historical Buddha.

Flanked by attendants, it is also said to date from when the temple was Tendai.

Ido Shrine

 

Ido Shrine in Omori, part of the Iwami Ginzan World Heritage Site, was established in 1888 and worships the deified spirit of Ido Heizaimon, a former magistrate of the district who is known as the "Potato Magistrate".

He became the magistrate of the district in 1731, and in the following year, the Kyoho Famine struck western Japan. Officially there were 12,000 deaths attributed to the famine but in reality, the number was much higher, probably about 169,000. The causes of the famine seem to have been a combination of bad weather and insect infestation leading to a massive increase in the price of rice.

Before receiving permission from the Shogunate, Ido opened the government granaries and distributed the rice to the local population, but mostly he is known for introducing Sweet Potato into the region, hence ensuring that no one in Iwami died from famine.

There are more than 500 monuments in Shimane, Tottori, Okayama, and Hiroshima to the introduction of sweet potatoes by him.

On this visit I was walking the Iwami Kannon Pilgrimage and the previous post was on the 500 rakan of Rakanji Temple.