Tamonji Temple 46 & Enmanji Temple 74 Shodoshima Pilgrimage

 

Day 4 of my walk along the 88 temple Shodoshima Pilgrimage was fast coming to a close, and I needed to head across the narrow valley to the main road to catch a bus back into Tonosho to my room for the night.

In the distance is the Giant Kannon I would be visiting the next day.

Tamonji was founded in the late 12th century as a shrine-temple named Torinbo. Shrine temples performed ceremonies for thr enshrined kami but also looked after the funerals of the Shinto priests.

A groupof modern rakan statues were quite striking. Not sure what the mound is.

The temple changed it's name to Tamon-ji in the late 17th century, and in 1744 moved to the current location.

The honzon is a Yakushi Nyorai, attributed to Gyoki, but with no information where the statue was before this temple. It is a "secret Buddha" that has a reputation for healing eyesight problems.

I didn't notice it, but there is an underground Fudo Hall..... would have liked to se that.

There is a huge Yamamomo tree in the grounds that is listed as some kind of important natural property. Known as Japanese Bayberry, the small red fruits are much prized in many traditional dishes...

I climb up to the main road and check the bus timetable and see I have time to visit temple number 74 nearby.

Enmanji claims to have been founded by Gyoki, which would be around the turn of the 8th century. it was restored in the 10th century and was named Jionji. In the late 12th century it moved to its current location and was renamed Jufukuin.

In the mid Edo Period it was renamed Enmanji. After WWII it converted to Shingon, and the current buildings date to 1992.

The honzon is an eleven-faced Kannon. It is a secret Buddha, but in 1992 a new "stand in" statue was carved.

The temple also has an Amida triad, said to date to the Fujiwara Period.

The second oldest Juniper tree on the island stands in the grounds...

The previous post in this series on the delightful Shodoshima Pilgrimage was on temples 47 and 48 in the mountains.

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A Walk from Oi to Abu

 

Oshima Island, about 4 kilometers offshore from Oi on the mainland of Yamaguchi, has only one settlement, but big enough to have a small supermarket and an elementary school.

Oi has quite a large cemetery. In my area, we have no big cemeteries as graves and tombs are scattered throughout the community.

Along the way, a Buddhist statue with Inari fox guardians.....

The Ooi River begins about 10 kilometers away to the NE as the crow flies.

On this side of the river another shrine, this one a little smaller.

Like the previous shrine, Takakura Arahito Shrine, this one is also an Arahito shrine, and also has no informstion on site or on the internet.

The carving above the entrance to the main building perhaps offers a clue. It appears to depict some type of "wild" deity, suppressing a Jyaku, a lind of demon. Usually the Buddhist Shitenno, the four heavenly kings, are depicted this way. The main figure could also be Shoki, a Daoist "demon-queller, often equated with Susano.

My guess would be that Susano is now the kami enshrined in these Arahito shrines.

Up ahead the headland with the settlement of Abu...

More cormorants. I would guess that the differing head appearances would be due to gender or mating season factors...

It's a scenic section of coast, with plenty of rocky outcropping protruding from the sea. Nice to walk, cycle, drive, or take the train along.

This bird is, I believe, a Blue Rock Thrush, called isohirodori. I believe this one is male.

The previous post in this series on day 30 of my walk along the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage was on the Takakura Arahito Shrine.

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Luminous Wall OCAT Walk Namba

 

Not long after arriving in Japan, and having seen the massive complex of underground shopping malls and passageways in Osaka, I entertained the notion that maybe the Japanese were becoming troglodytes.

Of course they do offer protection from the traffic and inclement weather, including the dangerous sunshine that the Japanese female lives in terror of....

As a visitor, I hate them, not least because I get lost a lot and find the direction signage confusing...

However, in OCAT WALK, an underground passage that connects Namba Station with OCAT, I found this delightful art installation cum lighting system.

An undulating wall of fairly standard glass bricks with subtle lighting behind and miniature artwork in some bricks.

I have been unable to learn anything about it, who designed it, etc.

This is the first in a series of posts on an afternoon I spent in Namba.

I spend very little time in cities. I find them strange, and if I can I treat my visits to them as if visiting a theme park like disneyland

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Takakura Arahito Shrine

 

All decked out for matsuri, The Takakura Arahito Shrine seems to be the main shrine of Oi on the Yamaguchi coast near Hagi.

Just before reaching the banners and steps leading up to the big shrine, I syopped in at a little shrine.

It had a couple of banners flying, but only had a few small roadside-style shrines, and no buildings.

There was no sign and I could find out nothing about the kami enshrined here or any history.

Same goes for the main shrine, Takakura Arahito Shrine.

Arahito literally means "wild man". Arahitogami refers to a kami that is or was a human.

Aragami means a "wild" or "turbulent" or "rough" kami, often equated with Susano as storm deity.

Kami are generally considered to have a dual aspect, a rough, violent side, and a gentle side.

The shrine is obviously important, and it's unusual to see quite so many banners.

There is a good chance that most local people have no idea who the kami is.

I once stopped at a matsuri in a local shrine in the mountains of Hiroshima, and even the priest didn't know the name of the kami.

Still, not knowing bugs me, and I will keep my eyes open in the future for any reference to arahito...

The previous post was on the walk along the coast to here from Koshigahama.

if you would like to subscribe by email, just leave your email address in the comments below. It will not be published or made public. I post new content almost every day, and send out an email about twice a month with short descriptions and links to the most recent posts.