Seisotei the Yunoki Residence & Gardens

 

I discovered the former Yunoki Residence quite by accident as I was walking the streets of Tamashima on my way to Entsu-ji Temple as part of the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage.

I had not heard of the place and was surprised to find entry was free and so went in to explore.

In the mid 17th century Tamashima grew into an important port serving the Bitchu Matsuyama domain on reclaimed land around several small islands.

Some of the historical warehouses and merchant properties still remain and the area has been made a historical preservation area by the prefecture.

It has also become a Japan Heritage site linked to Kurashiki and the Kitamaebune trade.

The oldest part of the house was built in the late 18th century and was named Seisotei by the Confucian scholar Suga Chazan.

It, along with the gate, gardens, and teahouse, are all registered Tangible Cultural Properties.

The gardens are particularly fine with some garden experts rating them higher than the garden of the Ohashi House in the Bikan District of Kurashiki.

The Yunoki family were owners of trading ships that operated along the Inland Sea

There are two main gardens, both dry, and a small courtyard garden.

The family operated as magistrates for the daimyo and were the village heads.

Many famous guests have stayed here over the years, including domain officials, though I can not find it defined as a honjin.

When I was there the friendly guide pointed to stains on the ceiling of one room and said it was blood from the time when Kumada Ataka, a local samurai, committed ritual suicide so his followers could get clemency. However, no sources now mention the supposed blood stains.

All in all, a very interesting site made all the more pleasant by the complete absence of tourists and a free entry.

Well worth the detour from the overly-gentrified and crowded Bikan District.

The previous post in this series on day 9 of my walk along the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage was on Haguro Shrine and its amazing art and decorations.

Hoanji Temple 40 Shodoshima Pilgrimage

 

Day 4 of my walk along the Shodoshima Pilgrimage started at temple 40, Hoanji.

It is located in Kamo village, about halfway between Ikeda and Tonosho on the coast in the southwest of the island.

It is situated at the top of a valley overlooking the village .

Photos 3, 4, and 5 are from the small "chapel" at the bottom of the stairs.

It is said that the temple was founded originally in the early 9th century, and then re-founded in the 14th century.

The honzon is an Eleven-Faced Kannon, said to be carved by Gyoki, but there is no information on its provenance.

While many of the temples on this pilgrimage are unmanned, this one is not, and the priests wife was helpful in showing me the foot path that heads up the mountain to the next two temples, both cave temples, one of which is the okunoin of this temple.

The temple is home to an unusual healing ceremony, said to have been brought by Kobo Daishi himself, in which amulets are inserted into cucumbers and then buried in the temple grounds. As the cucumbers decompose, ailments heal. Petitioners from all over Japan take part.

Statues of the Reclining Buddha are not unknown in Japan but are not so common.

The previous post was on the last two temples of day 3, number 36 and 37.

Haguro Shrine Tamashima

 

Adorning the roof of Haguro Shrine in Tamashima, Okayamama, is a ceramic Karasu Tengu, and it has become the symbol of the shrine and also a mascot for the town.

Tamashima was a cluster of small islands that have now become reclaimed land due to the efforts of the local daimyo Mizutani Katsutaka who started with the area immediately around where the shrine is now and spread out building embankments and reclaiming more land.

The area quickly became a major port on the trading route of the Inland Sea.

Mount Haguro is a sacred mountain in Yamagata in northern Japan with a major shrine called Dewa Shrine.

It is one of three sacred mountains  grouped together as Dewa Sanzan, and is and was a major Shugendo centre, hence the Karasu Tengu.

The shrine in Tamashima became the centre of the land reclamation project and was supported by the growing merchant population.

The current buildings date back to the mid 19th century and have a lot of fine decorations.

Within the grounds are numerous secondary shrines including a Sumiyoshi Shrine, and a Tenmangu Shrine, as well as a Mizutani Shrine, Kumada Shrine, and a Warei Shrine.

The Seven Lucky Gods are also enshrined and very popular.

There is a small pine tree that has had its branches woven together and is therefore known as Musubi no Matsu.

The figures on tye roof are particularly nice with dragons as well as the Karasu Tengu.

Photos 16 and 17 show two other figures which I believe to be Daoist Immortals. One is riding a turtle and the other a crane, both important Daoist symbols and prevalent in Japanese art and culture, especially gardens.

The kami listed as enshrined here are Tamayorihime, Susanoo, Okuninushi, and Kotoshironushi.

A little off the main tourist track, Tamashima is worth a visit, not least for the artwork adorning Haguro Shrine.

I visited at the start of day 9 walking the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage.

The previous post was on the shrine at temple 6 of the pilgrimage that I visited the afternoon previous, Yuga Shrine.

Akashi Kaikyo Suspension Bridge

 

When it was completed in 1998, the Akashi Kaikyo Suspension Bridge was the longest suspension bridge in the world, a title it held until 2022 when a bridge in Turkey, the Canakkale Bridge took the title.

Though only the second longest suspension bridge in the world, it is nonetheless an impressive sight.

It crosses from Akashi, near Kobe on the main island of Honshu, over to Awaji Island, from where another bridge crosses over to Shikoku. The bridge is clearly seen from the train line connecting Kobe with Okayama, as well as obviously the expressway that it carries across the channel.

Underneath the bridge on the Kobe side is a museum about the bridge and its construction, and is well worth a visit.

The bridge is 3.9 kilometers in total length, and with a central span of 1,991 meters, the dimension usually used in measuring longest bridges.

The two towers supporting the bridges are 282 meters high. It is possible to book a tour that takes you up to the very top of one of these towers, an experience I heartily recommend and which I posted on earlier.

The bridge is more than 65 meters above the water at its central point.

The museum has great exhibits showing how the bridge was built, methods used, and how it is maintained.

Member of a tour to climb one of the tours get a guided tour of the museum as well.

A cross section of one of the enormous cables that carry the bridge.

There is an observation deck below the bridge that is accessed vis a walkway under the bridge that has sections of glass floor.

There is a cafe and shop with great views up and down the coast.

Called the Maiko Marine Promenade, it is accessed via elevators next to the museum building and costs just 300 yen and involves a 300 meter walk. At the point of the observation deck you are 47 meters above the water.

Around the base of the bridge on the Kobe side is Maiko Park with a couple of historic buildings including the Sun Yat Sen memorial Hall, a 1915 building showing materials about the Chinese revolutionary.

Dream Lens is a circular stone sculpture that is a very popular spot for taking photos of the bridge. Top photo.

The previous post in this series was on the nearby Akashi Castle. In case you missed it I highly recommend the post on the view from the top of the bridge.