There is also a huge, ancient Katsura tree that is registered as a National Monument. It is 40 meters tall and the trunk has a girth of 14 meters.
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Hihara Shrine
There is also a huge, ancient Katsura tree that is registered as a National Monument. It is 40 meters tall and the trunk has a girth of 14 meters.
Monday, May 5, 2014
An unexpected Matsuri
On the afternoon of September 4th, 2011, I was approaching Byodo-ji, Temple 22 of the Shikoku Pilgrimage, when I spied a torii with banners flying, a sign that a matsuri is underway.
As I got closer I could hear the shouts of children which suggested that the matsuri was underway at the moment. For me, there is no greater pleasure than coming upon a matsuri, especially one in a rural village shrine.
It was a Yasaka Shrine, a branch of the famous shrine in Kyoto formerly lnown as Gionsha. The main kami is Susano, and also many of his "family", which is kind of apt as he is known as the kami of storms and the last 2 days this area has been hit with a massive typhoon.
There wasn't anything going on right now. Kids were running around and playing, and a small group of the village elders were inside eating and drinking. They invited me in for food and beer, and though daytime drinking in the heat of the day is not a usual habit of mine, as I was a pilgrim I could not refuse their offer.
After a second beer I insisted I had to leave and they showed me a path leading out of the shrine which was a shortcut over the hill to Byodo-ji
Thursday, May 1, 2014
Serida Shrine
This area is between the entrance to Yomi where Izanagi visited Izanami, and Izamani's tomb on top of Mt. Hiba.
Labels:
engi shiki,
hayatamano,
izanami,
Izumo Fudoki,
izumo33,
kanayago,
kanayamabiko,
kotosakano,
Shrine
Monday, April 28, 2014
Naka Homan Shrine
Climbing out of the Fukuoka Plain on a small road that leads over to the next pilgrimage temple I spied a torii and went to investigate and found Naka Homan Shrine.
Less than a kilometer away is Homan Shrine, and I'm guessing this was built as a branch of it in 1675.
The three kami listed are Tamayorihime, Okinagatarashihime, and Homuda Wake. The latter two are more commonly known as Empress Jingu and Emperor Ojin, but this is not called a Hachimangu. According to the myth Jingu gave birth to Ojin not too far from here in Umi.
Exactly who Tamayorihime is remains a mystery. There are several famous kami with the same name as it really just means a woman who lies down with a kami and bears his child.
Saturday, April 26, 2014
Izumo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage Temple 14 Renge-ji
Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Toko-ji Temple, Hagi
The gate to Tokoji in Hagi has a somewhat Chinese feel because it is an Obaku Zen Temple founded in 1691. Obaku was a new sect of Zen founded by Chinese monks who came to Nagasaki to serve the Chinese community there.
Tokoji was founded by the third Mori lord as a second temple housing the graves of the Mori and their wives. The 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, and 11th Lords are buried here. The other are buried at Daishoin on the other side of town.
Most of the structures date from the 17th Century and are listed Cultural Properties. The temple complex is much reduced in size from earlier times, but it is still quite large and spacious, set in woods on the eastern edge of town.
The honzon, the principle deity statue, is Shaka Nyorai, which in English we would call the historical Buddha.
Monday, April 21, 2014
Ayo Shrine
Labels:
izumo33,
kunitokotachi,
shimenawa,
Shrine,
Susano
Saturday, April 19, 2014
Manhole Ohanami
The annual cherry blossom viewing season is now over for most of Japan, but the cherry blossom can be seen year round by looking down. Not surprisingly given its cultural prominence the sakura appears as a design element in many, like this first one from Tadotsu in Kagawa, Shikoku.
It features as a minor design element in countless designs, like this one from Kamo Town in Izumo.
As I sorted through my files to find these I was expecting sakura to much more common than it is. I was surprised to find the Azalea being more common. The sakura above is from Mizukami in Kumamoto.
From Miyahara, also in Kumamoto, also featuring a rose.
From Toyoshi in Kagawa, with azaleas in the center.
Labels:
drainspotting,
manhole,
Sakura
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum
The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum and Park was completed in 1955 following a competition to find a design in 1949. It was designed by Kenzo Tange, and brought him to international recognition.
It is generally considered to be the first Modernist piece of architecture in Japan and is considered the birth of post-war architecture.
The park and structures are laid out along an axis that points directly to what is now referred to as the A Bomb Dome, the ruin that stands at the epicenter of the blast.
One of the focal points is the Peace Flame located at the Cenotaph.
Since its original building in 1955 many new structures and monuments have been constructed in the park. In 1994 the Tange designed Memorial Hall was added.
Labels:
Architecture,
hiroshima,
kenzo tange,
Museum
Saturday, April 12, 2014
Izumo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage Day 6, May 19th, 2012
Labels:
izumo33
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