Ryuukoji Temple & Many Fudo Myoo's

 

In Shimizu, there is just one small temple, though it is intriguing for me because of the multiple Fudo Myoo statuettes in the grounds.

I recently learned that it is a temple of a relatively new sect called Nakayama Shingo Shoshu, founded in the early 20th century and with the head temple in NE Saga close to the Fukuoka border.

I believe this is a statue of the founder of the sect, Kakue Shonin, and the story of this temple in Shimizu is that a local man, in 1947, had a series of dreams about Kakue Shonin and so established the temple.

I can't say I understand much about the sect, except that Fudo Myoo is the main object of worship, that asceticism is encouraged, and that so is charity and social engagement, all plusses in my book.

The last photo of the post is a signboard showing a trail up the mountain with numerous small halls and with a Fudo carved into a rock face and a waterfall at the top.

I have yet to find the trail and walk it, but plan to this autumn.

It reminds me of another small temple in my area of a modern sect that also practises asceticism with a small waterfall, Zenkakuji.

The previous post in this series on my walk along the Iwami Ginzan Kaido while on day 38 of my walk along the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage was on the little settlement of Shimizu where this temple is located.

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Shimizu on the Ginzan Kaido

 

After leaving Yunotsu, the Ginzan Kaido again becomes a footpath and crosses over the old Route 9 and the new expressway, as both run through tunnels at this point.

The next settlement is the delightful Shimizu, a place I enjoy every time I visit as it seems cut off from the outside modern world, though there is a narrow road that leads into it.

It is late April, and the azaleas are in full bloom...

Shimizu means pure water, and sure enough, in the middle of the village is a spring surrounded by deep stone walls.

The water is cold, even in summer, and is guarded by a Fudo Myoo...

There is a small but very interesting temple in Shimizu which I will cover in the next post in the series.

After Shimizu, the Ginzan Kaido once again becomes a footpath.....

The previous post in this series on day 38 of my walk along the Chugoku Pilgrimage was on the hot spring resort port of Yunotsu.

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Yunotsu: World Heritage Site & Historic Preservation District

Yunotsu

After a short walk along the Ginzan Kaido from its start, I take a diversion into the main part of the hot spring town of Yunotsu.

Okidomari Port & the Ginzan Highway

 

I started day 38 of my walk alog the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage at Okidomari, the small port that serviced the Iwami Ginzan silver mines. The port and the mines as well as the road I am taking, the Ginzan Kaido, are all part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

For more info on the port and Ginzan Kaido, please see this earlier post.

The next temples on the pilgrimage are a cluster around Izumo. The fastes way would be togo straight up the national highway, route 9, but it would also be the most boring. One of the temples is in the foothills of the Chugoku Mountains, so I have decided to cut inland and head along a mountainous route.

There are still a few houses inhabited in the old harbour village, but less each time I visit.

The Ginzan Kaido heads up through the settlement and then into a  bamboo grove before climbing out.

Not as manicured as the Arashiyama Bamboo Forest, but 10,000 percent fewer people....

The previous post was on the last stop of the day before, Kannonji Temple in Gotsu Honmachi

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Hiso Natural Arch

Hiso Natural Arch

Hiso Domon translates literally as the "cave gate of Hiso", but in English we would call it a natural arch.

It was the kind of sight I was hoping to discover on my walk of exploration along the coastline of the Japan Sea, and this was my third day.

The tiny settlement of Hiso is now considered part of Yunotsu and is the first settlement reached after taking the narrow coast road out of the back of Yunotu and Okidomari, the World Heritage silver mine port.

The road to Hiso passes a small Omoto Shrine that has no buildings at all....

And a small, roadside, Buddhist altar......

Hiso itself is very small, although a largish house has been renovated and modernized and is available as an upmarket guesthouse.

There is a small beach and a very small harbour protected by small stone barrier walls with a handful of small boats pulled up onto the beach. Surprisingly there are  no concrete structures in the harbour

The previous post in the series is Kushijima.

Kushijima Near Yunotsu

Kushijima

Kushijima is a small uninhabited islet at the mouth of the entrance to the World Heritage Site ports of Yunotsu and Okidomari.

It can be reached on foot at low tide and a small bridge over a deep and narrow channel in the rocks makes this safe and easy.

During the time that the Mori clan controlled the silver mine and the surrounding area they had a small castle on the island to protect the harbours.

Nothing now remains, but it must have been at least a little substantial as it withstood an attack by Amago forces in the Warring States period of the mid 16th century.

There is a small beach and campsite here now and its quite a dramatic bit of coastline.

I am guessing that these man-made excavations in the rock are a fairly modern attempt to make pools for pleasure bathing, but I may be wrong.

Buy Goods From Japan

Yunotsu Harbour

Yunotsu Japan Travel

Early morning on Oct 15th 2019 and I start the third day of my walk along the Japan Sea Coast exploring as many of the nooks and crannies as I can.

Yunotsu is one of the sites included in the Iwami Ginzan World Heritage Site, and the old street of traditional hot spring guest houses and public baths is also a preservation district, but today I bypass that part of town and stick to the waters edge.

The port is now mostly a fishing port although there is a section where tetrapods are produced.

During the Edo and early Meiji periods it was a harbour used by the Kitamaebune ships on the major trade route that connected Osaka with Hokkaido.

Carved into the cliff is a small Buddhist shrine......

There are several side-inlets to the harbour filled with smaller fishing boats. Twenty years ago when we first came to the area one inlet had the remains of a large, modern boatbuilding factory, but it has long since gone.....

From one inlet a small tunnel leads through to Okidomari another site of World Heritage and one of the original Mori-controlled ports that served the silver mines..... I have already done a post....