Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage -----In My Order-----

The written record of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage dates back to 1710. According to the priest of #26 Hokai-ji Temple, the pilgrimage was organized to commemorate the 499th anniversary of the death of Taira Atsumori (1169-1184). If what he said was true, it must have been in 1683 that the pilgrimage was organized. He might be telling the truth at least partially. If the organizer(s) hadn’t had the Taira Clan in their minds, they hadn’t picked up the name “Fukuhara” but probably Hyogo instead.  It was the Taira Clan who tried to build a new capital around today’s Kobe Port and name it Fukuhara. By accident or by design, many of the member temples has “fuku” in their temple names.

After the anti-Buddhist movement at the beginning of Meiji era, some member temples went out of business, and Takei Yoshisada reorganized the pilgrimage in 1887.

Why 33?

According to the Lotus Sutra Chapter XXV, Avalokitesvara, to save people, manifests herself/himself/itself: #1 into the form of a buddha, #2 into the form of a pratyekabuddha, #3 into the form of a sravaka, #4 into the form of Brahma, #5 into the form of Sakra, #6 into the form of isvara, #7 into the form of Mahesvara, #8 into the form of the great commander of the devas, #9 into the form of Vaisravana, #10 into the form of a minor king, #11 into the form of a wealthy man, #12 into the form of a householder, #13 into the form of a state official, #14 into the form of a brahman, #15 into the form of a monk, #16 into the form of a nun, #17 into the form of a layman, #18 into the form of a laywoman, #19 into the form of a wife of a wealthy man, #20 into the form of a wife of a householder, #21 into the form of a wife of a state official, #22 into the form of a wife of a brahman, #23 into the form of a boy, #24 into the form of a girl, #25 into the form of a deva, #26 into the form of naga, #27 into the form of yaksa, #28 into the form of gandharva, #29 into the form of asura, #30 into the form of garuda, #31 into the form of kimnara, #32 into the form of mahoraga, or #33 into the form of Vajrapani. Many of the forms, or manifestations, are an enumeration of occupations at the time of Buddha. Thus most of the 33 manifestations haven't been carved into Buddhism statues or painted in Buddhism pictures in Japan. Instead, the number 33 came to mean a lot to Avalokitesvara believers in Japan.

#19 Fukutoku-ji Temple

#19 Fukutoku-ji Temple has Affectionate Mother Kannon Statue outside the main building. Tosa Hidenobu (?-?) published Butsuzo-zui (Illustrated Compendium of Buddhist Images) in 1783. In the compendium, he listed 33 popular subjects of Buddhism Avalokitesvara drawings and paintings. His #1 Holding-Willow-Spray Avalokitesvar is popularly regarded as Affectionate Mother Kannon, but some Buddhist sculptors have made Avalokitesvar statues with a baby in her/his/its arms, dubbing them as Affectionate Mother Kannon.

#1 Yakusen-ji Temple

I got off the train at Wadamisaki Station along Kobe Subway Kaigan Line about a half past nine in the morning. I climbed up the staircases and noticed a map on the wall. The title of the map said, “Hyogo Port Road: Guide Map.” I was not visiting the remains of Ancient Hyogo Port, but thought that would be some help, turned around, and walked down the stairs to find a smaller portable one.

I stepped out of the station with the map in my hand to find my way to my destinations: the temples of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage. I turned right and walked for a couple of minutes to find JR Wadamisaki Station. That was not the right direction. I turned around and took another road. Soon, I found Mitsuishi Shrine (literally 3-stone Shrine) and noticed 3 stones in the shrine.

In legendary times, Okinagatarashi, a legendary empress, was said to have made a military expedition to Silla in the Korean Peninsula. A historical record of the Three Kingdoms of Korea (Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla) recorded 14 organized piracies by Wa, the Ancient Japanese kingdom, by the end of the 4th century, and Okinagatarashi’s expedition to Silla might have been one of those piracies. According to one legendary story of her expedition, Okinagatarashi left Japan from the north coast of today’s Osaka Bay. As she was pregnant, she prayed to the 3 stones for a safe delivery. But I was not searching for a shrine.

Next to Mitsuishi Shrine, there lay Wada Shrine, the guardian god of the whole port area. Of course, it was not what I was looking for.

I kept walking for another block, turned left, roamed another couple of blocks, turned right, and finally found a vacant lot with the sign saying, “Yakusen-ji Temple’s Temple-Building Site.” Over the lot, I recognized temple-building-like roofs. I turned at the corner and found Yakusen-ji Temple itself. That was it: #1 temple of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage.

A stone monument told me there used to be Kaya Palace, where Emperor Shirakawa II (1127-1192) was confined by Kiyomori.

I happened to learn that Emperor Kazan (968-1008), who had reorganized Saigoku 33 Kannon Pilgrimage, composed a tanka poem here: 

"The fog at the foot of Mt Arima looks like the sea

"'Are they waves?', asked I and

"Just the winds through the pine trees answered me." (Emperor Kazan)

Saigoku 33 Kannon Pilgrimage is the first 33 Kannon pilgrimage in Japan. No wonder, Yakusen-ji Temple became #1 of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage.

#33 Shinko-ji Temple

I walked out of #1 Yakusen-ji Temple, and crossed the Hyogo Canal. The bridge over the canal was named Kiyomori Bridge, after Taira Kiyomori (1118-1181). I kept walking to find #33 Shinko-ji Temple on my left. It is sometimes the case #1 and #33 of a Kannon pilgrimage sit almost side by side to form a kind of a loop with the 33 temples. I was going to visit some of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage in a reverse order.

Shinko-ji Temple had kept a well whose water Taira Kiyomori, who built Fukuhara Capital in the area, made tea with. I was surprised to know they also have Kiyomori something. Not minding it deeply, I walked strait to the main building, which had the main deity, which was not a Kannon statue. It’s sometimes the case a Kannon statue is not a main deity of a Kannon-pilgrimage temple, and I walked half way back to the temple gate, wondering where the Kannon statue was in the temple. I bumped into the Kiyomori well again, on my right I found a stone monument inscribed with a Kannon tanka poem. Almost all the 33 temples of any 33 Kannon pilgrimage have its own Kannon tanka poem. I looked around and over the well I found a Kannon building.

After Shinko-ji Temple, I visited some other temples of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage. I had been wondering why the pilgrimage had taken the name of Fukuhara, but not Hyogo nor Wada. Some temples of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage had preserved legendary something related to Kiyomori. By noon, I thought I realized why they used the name Fukuhara. The people there might have loved Kiyomori, who had built Fukuhara Capital in the area at the end of Ancient Japan.

#32 Nofuku-ji Temple

After #33 Shinko-ji Temple, I walked on to #32 Nofuku-ji Temple, which is better known as Hyogo Daibutsu. I walked past Tsu-no-michi Mural, and found Nofuku-ji Temple on my left. Through the temple gate, I couldn’t miss Daibutsu. I walked up the stairs to make a bow to Daibutsu, which is the third largest statue of Buddha in Japan. I proceeded to the main building, expecting to find a Kannon statue there. Of course, with such a large Buddha statue out there, where else can there be a Kannon statue? No, the main deity was not a Kannon statue. I was just confused, but managed to remember a small sign which said they have the statue of Ekadasamukha, who has 11 faces. I walked back to the sign, and looked around to find a double doors under Daibutsu. A plate of the doors said their Ekadasamukha statue is so invaluable that it usually is not shown to public but just to the supporting members of the temple.

Disappointed half with the closure half with the Ekadasamukha statue sitting under the other statue, I left the temple to find #31 Konko-ji Temple.

#31 Konko-ji Temple

#31 Konko-ji Temple was just a block away from #32 Nofuku-ji Temple.

The double doors of the main building were not locked. I walked into it to find a notice to show the waiting room for the relatives. That meant a memorial service was being or was going to be held. I quietly and softly walked off.

#29 Raigo-ji Temple

After #31 Konko-ji Temple, I looked for #30 Eifuku-ji Temple, in vain. Konko-ji Temple was in Nishi-Naka-machi (West Naka-machi) and Eifuku-ji Temple was to be at Minami-Naka-machi (South Naka-machi). Finding a 33-Kannon-pilgrimage temple is usually tricky, but it cannot be so far. I walked into the Minami-Naka-machi area, which has only 2 blocks, in high spirits. I walked around the blocks to find no temple. I walked around the 2 blocks in a figure of eight knot this time, checking each and every house or building carefully. In Japan these days, some temples have gone out of business, with a sign/monument or a buddhist-temple-like building left. No clue at all.

I left Minami-Naka-machi, feeling so low, to find #29 Raigo-ji Temple.

Raigo-ji Temple was supposed to be in Shimagami-cho, but my map shows only Tsukishima-dera Temple in the area. That made me more skeptical and distrustful.

The area was along a narrow canal, and I found a floodgate and a small park exhibiting an ancient huge block rock. Soon, I found a temple along the canal which had 2 signs: Raigo-ji and Tsukishima-dera. I was relieved to know they were the same temple.

Building Hyogo Port got deadlocked, and Taira Kiyomori (1118-1181) was going to make 30 human sacrifices. One of Kiyomori’s pages, Matsuo from Sanuki Province, proposed, “Making so many human sacrifices is too sinful. Instead, please submerge me alone as a human sacrifice.” On July 13, 1161, with a thousand of Buddhist priests reciting sutras, Matsuo was sank to the bottom of the sea, and the breakwater island was constructed. The Emperor was moved to found Raigo-ji Temple here to pray for him. The temple’s nickname became Tsukishima-dera, literally Construct Island Temple.

The breakwater island came to be called Kyogashima, Literally Sutra Island. When Kiyomori died, his bones were said to have been put on the island. The Tale of Heiki puts it, “Enjitsu Hogen took his (=Kiyomori’s) bones and brought them down to the province of Settsu, where they were deposited at Kyogashima. Thus though he wielded such great authority that his name was feared through the whole Empire, his body rose up in smoke to the sky of Kyoto, and his bones mingled with the sand of the shore.”

#27 Gokuraku-ji Temple

Usually, we go on a pilgrimage either in a numeric order or in a reverse order to get better blessings. But as an elevated highway has cut the area in 2 (Let me call the two "port-side" and "mountain-side.), I chose a convenient order. For #1 and #33-#29, I had been hovering about the port-side area. Now I had to cross the wide road running under the elevated highway to get into the mountain-side.

After #29 Kokon-ji Temple, I walked westward along the elevated highway, searching for a light-controlled crosswalk. I found one, crossed, and walked eastward this time along the highway. #27 Gokuraku-ji Temple was closer to the crosswalk. Where I was to find the temple, however, I found a mere modern building. Did the highway cause the temple to abandon the old one? Or did the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake have something to do with the renewal? No monument or sign told me that it belonged to Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage.

#28 Erin-ji Temple

After #27 Gokuraku-ji Temple, I visited #28 Erin-ji Temple, which was just a block away. The temple seems to belong to the Zen sect. Anyway, no monument or sign said that it belonged to Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage either. Did the highway cut those in-the-mountain-side temples away from the pilgrimage?

#4 Fujino-dera Temple

Mysteriously, #26 Hokai-ji Temple is a little far away in Suma Ward. In some 33 Kannon pilgrimages, some member temples have relocated, some have gone out of business with their Kannon statues taken care of by other temples or institutions, some have just withdrew from their pilgrimage, and/or some have been replaced by other new temples. I didn’t know what was the case for #26, but, after #28 Erin-ji Temple, I just walked to #4 Fujino-dera Temple, which was also mysteriously not between #3 and #5, both of which were in Nagata Ward. The temple was just a couple of blocks away from #28. No monument or sign told me that it belonged to Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage either.

I walked out of the temple, with the idea to visit #24 Fukugon-ji and #23 Fukukai-ji Temples, which were in the mountain-side of the highway, before #25 Manpuku-ji Temple, which was in the port-side over the highway.

#24 Fukugon-ji Temple

After #4 Fuji-no-dera Temple, I visited #24 Fukugon-ji and #23 Fukukai-ji Temples, which were in the mountain-side of the highway, before #25 Manpuku-ji Temple, which was in the port-side over the highway. In Fukugon-ji Temple, no monument or sign told it belonged to Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage either.

#23 Fukuka-ji Temple

After #24 Fukugon-ji Temple, I walked to #23 Fukukai-ji Temple in a reverse order after some interval. The stone monument claimed that the temple was a member of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage. So, not all the temples in the mountain-side across the highway had given up belonging to the pilgrimage.

The main deity of Fukukai-ji Temple, however, is not Avalokitesvara, Kannon in Japanese, but Mahākāla, the god of great darkness or blackness, or Daikokuten in Japanese. As the name suggests, Daikokuten should be all black, but, In Japan, Daikoku is considered to be the god of wealth, and is portrayed with his wide face with wide smile, wearing a flat hat and holding a golden mallet called Uchide no kozuchi, or the "mallet of fortune," and is seen seated on bales of rice, with rats nearby signifying prolificacy. The main deity of Fukukai-ji temple looks black. The statue might be preserving the prototype or the original form of the god.

#25 Mampuku-ji Temple

After #23 Fukukai-ji Temple, I walked under the highway to get to the other side, the port-side, to visit #25 Manpuku-ji Temple. Of course, the stone monument claimed the pilgrimage membership. Near the temple, I found a sign talking about the historic gate between the port town and outside. That means those Fukuhara-33-Kannon-Pilgrimage member temples that were in the mountain side of the elevated highway used to be outside the Hyogo Port Town, which was the successor to Owada Port near Fukuhara Capital, which was constructed by Taira Kiyomori. Owada Port was also largely renovated by Kiyomori so that large Chinese ships could lie at anchor. Did their locations have something to do with how deeply the member temples feel attached to Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage?

By Manpuku-ji Temple, there stood Ebisu Shrine. Ebisu, or more popularly known as Ebessan in Osaka, is a god for merchants. Do you remember that #23 Fukukai-ji Temple enshrined Daikokuten, a god of wealth, just outside the port-side area. By chance, or by intention, the Shinto god for merchants and the Buddhism god of wealth stood side by side just across the port town gate. That might have matched the historic trading port town, Hyogo.

#22 Hachio-ji Temple

After #25 Manpuku-ji Temple, I crossed not only the highway but also JR Sanyo Line to visit #22 Hachio-ji Temple. There came another mystery. My first map showed it’s Hachio-ji Temple, but the map I got at Wadamisaki Station insisted it’s a shrine. Yes, if it is Hachio-ji, it can be a temple, but if it’s Hachi-oji, it must be a shrine. Oji used to be branch or station shrines to lead to a main shrine, and Hachi-oji could have been #8 of those Oji’s.

Once I stepped into Hachioji (sorry for not being specific), the mystery was cleared up. At first, it used to be Hachi-oji Shrine. In 1839, a Buddhist priest started residing temporarily in the shrine. He was a good trainer of wandering monks. In 1867, when the next-generation priest was doing religious education there, a member of Kitakaze Family became a patron of the "temple." He came across a priest-less temple in the northern foot of Mt. Rokko, and moved it not physically but legally to Hachi-oji Shrine. The temple name was Fukusho-ji. In 1952, the temple renamed itself as Hachio-ji. Can you follow the story?

By the way, the Kitakaze Family could trace back to the mythical times. Either Hikomuraji, the legendary 6th head of the family, or Hikomaro, the legendary 7th head of the family, fought for Okinagatarashi, a legendary empress, made a contribution, and was entrusted with the management of the Owada (or Big Wada) Port. Their descendants lived at the base of Mt. Egoe. The family became a follower of the Fujiwara Clan, the most powerful clan in the ancient times, and got their first surname, Shirafuji.

Just an aside, we have so many surnames in Japan such as Fuji-something or Something-fuji. They are supposed to have had something to do with the Fujiwara Clan, unless they pretend to.

The Shirafuji Family moved to the coast to participate in the renovation and enlargement of the Owada Port by Taira Kiyomori (1118-1181). In the period of the Northern and Southern Courts, the family contributed to the Southern Court with their art of navigation, and was given another surname, Kitakaze, by Nitta Yoshisada (1301-1338), the most powerful general of the Southern Court. The Kitakaze Family went down on until 1895, 28 years after the Meiji Restoration. Ironically, the family who entered the history stage by supporting the royal family had to step down from the stage because of the socioeconomic transition caused by the restoration of the royal ruling.

Anyway, as it was past noon and other member temples were far at the foot of Mt. Rokko, I called it a day and headed to the nearest station, JR Hyogo Station.

Genko-ji Temple

"From Naniwa they continued their voyage, sailing in the bay. As they proceeded they looked back on the scenes they had left. They saw all the mountains veiled in haze, growing more and more distant, while the rowers gently pulled against the rippling waves. It seemed to them as if they were really going 'three thousand miles' distance.'

"Our home is lost in the mist of the mountain,

     Let us gaze on the sky which is ever the same.

"The day was long and the wind was fair, so they soon arrived at the coast of Suma. The place was near the spot where the exiled Yukihira had lived, and had watched the beautiful smoke rising from the salt ovens. There was a thatched house in which the party temporarily took up their residence.”

Thus Hikaru Genji arrived at Suma, so did I on a rather warm winter day. By train though.

I stepped out of Suma-dera Station, and found Suma-dera Shopping Mall running from the station toward Suma-dera Temple, #7 temple of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage, the main destination of today. Yet I walked into a narrow crooked street along the station to visit Genko-ji Temple, to virtually follow the steps of Hikaru Genji.

The temple where Hikaru Genji spent his half-political-refugee life. The pine tree over which Hikaru Genji admired the moon. The signs and stone statues in the temple had me forget that Hikaru Genji was a fictional figure in the fictional story, the Tale of Genji.

#7 Suma-dera Temple

I stepped out of Suma-dera Station, and found Suma-dera Shopping Mall running from the station toward Suma-dera Temple, #7 temple of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage.

Last time, almost a month before, I visited some member temples of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage in Hyogo Ward. This time, I’m visiting those in Suma Ward. Isn’t Suma-dera Temple the best one to start today’s pilgrimage in Suma?

The main deity of Suma-dera Temple is Senju Kannon, or Sahasrabhuja, who has 1,000 arms.

Suma-dera Temple is the westernmost among all the member temples of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage. So I was to walk eastward on the whole to visit other temples on the day.

#26 Hokai-ji Temple

I walked out of #7 Suma-dera Temple’s northeast exit, and stepped down onto the Sumadera Park, not to #6 Jotoku-ji Temple but to #26 Hokai-ji Temple. I tried a couple of exits from the park, but each time I wondered if I were walking toward #26. Finally, I found a ladder at the depth of the park. The steps led me to the road which runs east and west at the foot of Mt. Rokko. I walked along the bus road, passed by Suma Rikyu Park, went under the elevated highway, and stepped down a narrow outdoor staircase. After a block or two, I found a rather Japanese-style-like but almost ordinary-house-like building. It took me sometime to realize that it was what I was looking for, #26 Hokai-ji Temple.

The building, presumably the temple main building, had an ordinary entrance with 2 sliding doors, and another larger almost-window-like sliding doors.   I tried to open the last one, in vain. I rang ding-dong without any hope. BUT there came out an ordinary-middle-aged-man-like priest through the smaller entrance.

He opened the larger one, and started talking about the histories of the temple and, unexpectedly, Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage with extraordinary hospitality.

Hokai-ji Temple was established in 952 in the Hyogo Port as the only temple to console the souls of shipwrecked sailors. Without any powerful parishioners, when it was burned down under the air raids in World War II, it had to evacuate to the present place. That’s why the temple isn't geographically between #25 Manpuku-ji and #27 Gokuraku-ji Temples but between #7 Suma-dera and #6 Jotoku-ji Temples.

The main deity of Hokai-ji Temple used to be Sarasvati. Legend had it that the statue was chiseled by Kukai (774-835), and long afterwards became the guardian deity of Taira Kiyomori (1118-1181). In 1184, when the Taira Clan lost to the Genji Clan and hastily evacuated westward, all they could take away from the temple was its head. By the end of the 17th century, Renchi-in Temple, Hagi, Yamaguchi Prefecture, gained the head. Later, the body was sent to Hagi, and they (?) are enshrined in Renchi-in Temple peacefully now.

In 1683, Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage was organized to commemorate the 499th anniversary of the death of Taira Atsumori (1169-1184). Who was Taira Atsumori? On February 7, 1184, the battle in Suma between the Taira and Minamoto Clans was toward the end, and the Taira Clan commanders and soldiers were fleeing on their vessels. Kumagai Naozane (1141-1208), who was fighting for the Minamoto Clan, was still scanning the beach to get a valuable head of any enemy commander. He spotted Atsumori swimming towards the fleeing vessels on his horse. The Tale of Heike continues, “Kumagai beckoned to him with his war fan, crying out: ‘Shameful! to show an enemy your back. Returnl Return!’ Then the warrior turned his horse and rode him back to the beach, where Kumagai at once engaged him in mortal combat. Quickly hurling him to the ground, he sprang upon him and tore off his helmet to cut off his head, when he beheld the face of a youth of sixteen or seventeen, delicately powdered and with blackened teeth, just about the age of his own son, and with features of great beauty.” Kumagai hesitated, but knew the young enemy would be killed by other Minamoto warriors in either case. Crying, Kumagai beheaded the boy.

#6 Jotoku-ji Temple

Kobe is basically on the alluvial fans spreading at the foot of Mt. Rokko. The river-bed water running beneath the alluvial fans have supported the good Japanese sake breweries in Nada and some other areas there.

After #26 Hokai-ji Temple, I returned to the reverse order, and searched for #6 Jotoku-ji Temple. #26 and #6 are on the same alluvial fan, and the difference in altitude between them is little. The problem was that the ares is divided into 4 with an elevated highway, which runs northwest and southeast, and also with Sanyo Railway, which runs northeast and southwest. With the wisdom of hindsight, I should have visited #6 first after #7, and then #26. That way, I just had to go under the highway once, which was the trickiest for walking around the area.

I sneaked into Hokai-ji Temple from the back gate, visited the main building to pray, and walked down the steps to go out of the temple from the front temple gate. The difference in alutitude within the precincts reminded me of the fact that the temple is on an alluvial fan.

#5　Mampuku-ji Temple

Stone walls were usually constructed with rocks quarried out of hills. Sometimes we used stones around us. Some stone walls even had gravestones, tombstones, stone statues, lantern stones, and so forth. Some other stones were carried out of riverbeds. They were rolled, curled, and rounded there with river water. Round stones can be also found in seabeds.

The stone walls surrounding Manpuku-ji Temple on all 4 sides were built all with round stones in almost the same sides with different petrologic formations. They might have been gathered from riverbeds and seabeds around the area. For what purpose? Considering the temple being located near the sea, the architects or designers might have wanted to express their connections with the sea.

I walked around the temple, fascinated at the beautifully composed stone walls with uniform round stones, to find all the gates utterly closed and locked. I tried ringing ding-dong, just to get no answer.

Later at home, I searched for the information on the temple. On September 30, 2018, the priest killed his wife within the precincts, and he was sentenced to 15 years in jail on March 15, 2019. The parishioners might have had hard times since then. Remembering I peeped at the precincts over the stone walls to find them neatly tidied up, I just hoped the temple will not be closed up for good. 

#3 Kaisen-ji Temple

Emperor Toba (1103-1156) reigned since 1107 till 1123. Yet, after 1129 till his death, he had the executive power of the central government as a cloistered Emperor. He located his cloistered office in Toba as his name suggests. South to Toba, there used to lay lakes and marshes called Ogura-Ice Lake. The lake was 7 square kilometers at an altitude of about 11 meters and had 1.7 meters of the water depth. Toba used to be a river port of Heian-kyo Capital at the south-western corner of the city. Cloistered Emperor Toba intended to control the logistics of the taxes and goods to the capital.

After Toba’s death, Taira Kiyomori (1118-1181), who gained hegemony in the central government, moved his hegemonic office, and later the capital itself, further south-west, to today’s Kobe, and named the capital Fukuhara.

After Kiyomori’s death, Minamoto Yoritomo (1147-1199) challenged the Taira Clan’s hegemony. When the army of the Minamoto Clan advanced to Fukuhara Capital, the Taira Clan put 2 defense lines: East and West. The Eastern defense line was laid around today’s Sannomiya area, and the Western defense line somewhere between today’s Suma and Nagata Wards. Taira Atsumori (1169-1184) joined in the Western defense line. He was defeated and beheaded, accordingly, somewhere on the beach between Suma and Nagata.

Today, Suma-dera Temple, #7 temple of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage, openly claims it was near the temple in Suma that Atsumori was killed, and has a mound for his head. Meanwhile, #3 Kaisen-ji Temple in Nagata modestly hints Atsumori was killed on the beach near the temple. Suma-dera Temple seems to hold hegemony in the issue.

On January 17, 1995, the Great Hanshin Earthquake shook the whole area. Houses collapsed and the Rokkakumichi Shopping Mall was engulfed in flames. The priest, Somekawa Shincho, walked about the area to make sure that the parishioners were safe. In front of a collapsed house, a man was sitting and said, “My wife is caught under it.” A couple days later, her body was carried out. The priest chanted a sutra for her.

3 months after the earthquake, Shincho started visiting the parishioners who were living in temporary houses in separated places around Kobe. They unanimously said, “We want to see others, but don’t have houses or the temple.” In 1996, the priest built a temporary temple building so that the parishioners could gather there, but, after that, he put the reconstruction of the town above that of the temple.

About 15 years later, in 2011, he started rebuilding the temple, hearing a parishioner say, “I‘d like to see a new temple building before I die.” It was finished in 2016, 21 years after the earthquake.

Rokkemmichi Shopping Street

I left Kaisen-ji Temple, #3 temple of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage, to visit #30 Gokuraku-ji Temple, and walked through Rokken-michi Shopping Street, which ran for 3 blocks from 5-chome to 3-chome. The shopping mall has become less prosperous and the 3-Chome Shopping Mall doesn’t have their roofs.

When I was walking along 5-chome, I abruptly found Chu Shi Biao written by Zhuge Liang (181-234). My first assumption was there might be some ultranationalists there, as the text has the phrase ""The Han and the Evil do not stand together.” Several steps later, I found a shrine for Cao Cao (155-220), who was the rival of Zhuge Liang and who was on the Evil side according to Zhuge Liang. I was confused but realized the shopping mall’s policy for peaceful coexistence, which is critical in today’s international community. A couple of minutes later, however, I just noticed the shopping mall was trying to make the History of the Three Kingdoms (or more specifically the Romance of the Three Kingdoms) one of their main attractions.

Half feeling disappointed but half feeling relieved, I had lunch in a Vietnamese cafe along the street, and then continued to walk to #30 Gokuraku-ji Temple.

#30 Gokuraku-ji Temple

Several days ago, after visiting #31 Konko-ji Temple, I looked for #30 Eifuku-ji Temple to go on Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage in a reverse order. Konko-ji Temple was in Nishi-Naka-machi (West Naka-machi) and Eifuku-ji Temple was to be at Minami-Naka-machi (South Naka-machi). Finding a 33-Kannon-pilgrimage temple is sometimes tricky, but it couldn't be so far. I walked into the Minami-Naka-machi area, which has only 2 blocks, rather in high spirits. I walked around the blocks, only to find no temple. I walked around the 2 blocks again in a figure of eight knot this time, checking each and every house or building carefully. In some 33 Kannon pilgrimages in Japan, some member temples have relocated, some have gone out of business with their Kannon statues taken care of by other temples or institutions, some have just withdrew from their pilgrimage, and/or some have been replaced by other new temples. I didn’t know what was the case for #30.

Later back at home, I checked several web pages. That of Shinko-ji Temple, #33 temple of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage, said that the air raids during World War II had caused #30 Eifuku-ji Temple to be burned down in Hyogo Ward. That of the Nagata Ward Association of the Buddhist Temples claimed Gokuraku-ji Temple in the ward to be #30 of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage.

Not knowing which tells the truth, I visited Nagata-Ward-version #30 Gokuraku-ji Temple this time.

After #3 Kaisen-ji Temple, I walked through Rokkenmichi (or Rokkendo) Shopping Street, crossed Minato River, and walked up along Karumo Street. Karumo literally means to harvest seagrass. In Ancient Japan, they used to dry and burn seagrass to get salt. The area might have had something to do with saltworks.

The main and only building of Gokuraku-ji Temple was also used as a karate practice hall. No plate nor statue talked about its membership in Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage. Nobody answered my ding-dong either. I left the temple with the mystery over the #30 position in the pilgrimage unsolved.

#9 Myoho-ji Temple

 I was standing in the middle of modern new houses and housing estate around Myohoji Station. Even from Myohoji Station, finding the right way to Myoho-ji Temple was really tricky. One station attendant shows this way, and the other talks about that way. Finally, I realized I should follow the route to traverse Mt. Rokko west and east. If you are really visiting Myoho-ji Temple, please check the photos I took to surely get out of the modern town and into the area left behind the times.

Myoho-ji Temple was founded in 738. About 4 centuries later, when Taira Kiyomori moved the capital from Heian-kyo to Fukuhara, the temple was given a new name, New Kurama-yama. Mt. Kurama is north to Kyoto. Aha, that’s why such a remote temple as Myoho-ji was included in Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage. Even the Taira Clan, who put importance in water transportation and trading, might have missed places around Kyoto.

The Main deity of Myoho-ji Temple was Bishamonten or Vaisravana, which was supposed to be in the main building. I found a small building beside the main one. But it wasn’t Kannon (Avalokitesvara) statue that was in it. I found a Yakushi-nyorai (Bhaisajyaguru) statue in the reverse side of the hill. I rang a ding-dong to ask the whereabouts of the Kannon statue, a middle-aged woman came out. She was not sure, but the Kannon statue might be in the main building, standing besides Bishamonten, but the building was closed on the day.

Myoho-ji Temple was surrounded with Myohoji Kindergarten, Myohoji Elementary School, Myohoji Post Office, and as such. And the temple was in Myohoji-cho. That, all in all, suggested how powerful and prosperous the temple used to be.

#10 Zensho-ji Temple

Railways and highways have cut up original pilgrimage routes, some of which could have been like an animal trail, and that has made visiting pilgrimage temples in numeric or reverse orders an uneasy task.

Today, I first visited #9 Myoho-ji Temple, and then #10 Zensho-ji Temple, and then # 8 Shofuku-ji Temple. As #9 and #10 were along the same bus route, I took a city bus from Oku-Myohoji Bus Stop to Zenshoji Bus Stop.

Although Zensho-ji Temple was in Zenshoji-cho, it had only Zenshoji Kindergarten and others around it. It might have been less powerful and prosperous than Myoho-ji Temple.

I climbed up the hill to the temple, found the temple gate closed, made a detour around the gate, and stepped into the precincts. By the gate or in the precincts, nothing enlightened me as to whether the temple belongs to Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage.

Itayado Hachiman Shrine

In 901, Sugawara Michizane was demoted to a district officer in Kyushu. When he traveled past here, the villagers built a simple inn with boards, so the place came to be called Itayado, literally “Board Inn.”

Michizane had loved a cherry tree, a plum tree, and a pine tree in Kyoto. By the time he arrived at Itayado, the cherry tree had died, feeling sorry for their parting. The plum tree missed him so much that it kept sending the scent. The pine tree did nothing.

Michizane composed a tanka poem:

“The plum tree forwards its scent

“The cherry tree has died for me

“How dare the pine tree does nothing?”

Hearing this, the pine tree instantly flew to him. The place where the pine tree landed was named Tobimatsu, literally a flying pine tree. Tobimatsu-cho is just at the foot of the shrine hill.

#8 Shofuku-ji Temple

I walked out of #10 Zensho-ji Temple and down the hill along the Myohoji River. It means I was back to the original pilgrimage route between #8 and #9. Soon, there appeared a trail on my left. It was a steep iron ladder running up into woods. My map suggested it to be the shortest route to #8 Shofuku-ji Temple. Since my start from Myohoji Station earlier in the morning, I had already climbed up and down countless steps, but found this one very unreasonable. The ladder was just overwhelming me. I was visiting temples but not necessarily practicing religious austerities. Instead, I took a roundabout way along the bus route.

Fujiwara Eiyumaru was the third son of Fujiwara Koretada (924-972), who made The Regent as well as the head of the Great Council of State. In 988, Eiyumaru entered the priesthood under the Imperial command, and was given a Buddhist name, Shoraku. He built a cabin at the foot of Mt. Takatori. Those days, demons were haunting around Kanoshishimatsu Pass. Shoraku eliminated them by his power of Buddhism.

When Taira Kiyomori (1118-1181) constructed Kyoga-shima Island as a breakwater of Owada Port, the followers of Shofuku-ji Temple provided much help, and were given gold-plated copper Buddhism tools and a flag.

The temple is also said to have kept the armor of Taira Tomoakira (1169-1184), who was killed in the Battle of Ichi-no-Tani on February 3, 1184, saving his father, Tomomori (1152-1185).

Tomomori was not only loved by his son, but also by his horse. When Tomomori fled on board, the ship was so full of men that he had to release his horse back to the beach. The Tale of Heike depict the parting, “The horse was very loath to leave its master, and kept close to the ship for a while, swimming right out into the offing, and it was not until it was at some distance from the shore that it reluctantly turned round and swam back to the beach, and even then, as soon as its feet touched the ground, it turned again and looked after the ship, neighing loudly three times.”

Suffered from a guilty conscious, Tomomori later mourned with tears running down his face, “How sad am I to be alive when my son Musashi-no-kami is gone, and my retainer Kenmotsu is slain also. What is to be thought of a father like me, who cannot help his son when he turns the attack of the enemy on to himself to rescue his father, but leaves him to his fate and saves himself thus? In the case of another I should think that he grudged his life, and now in my own what shame must I feel to merit a like reproach?"

About a year later, on March 24, 1185, Tomomori committed suicide by throwing himself into the sea of Dan-no-Ura, where the Taira Clan collapsed and died out.

The main deity of Shofuku-ji Temple is Arya Avalokitesvara, who is the human-figure prototype of other 6 Avalokitesvara metamorphoses. Without other Avalokitesvara metamorphoses, Arya Avalokitesvara can’t be Arya Avalokitesvara. Without a son, a father couldn’t be a father.

#11 Jofuku-ji Temple

I left #8 Shofuku-ji Temple, stepped down the hill, turned eastward, and walked along the almost horizontal bus street, which was a relief when walking about Kobe. After several blocks, I found a narrow street branching off the bus street and ascending another hill. The street used to be an ancient road called Taiheiji-michi, and was only a-car wide. As we have many Taihei-ji Temples in Japan, it's unknown which Taihei-ji the street led to. #11, #12 and #13 temples were all on the hill side off Taiheiji-michi.

#11 Jofuku-ji Temple was the only temple today that clearly indicated the membership of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage. The temple commanded a wide view of Kobe.

When I was leaving the temple, I noticed another wooden plate on the temple gate.

Legend has it that Gyoki (668-749) built several Renge-ji Temples all around Japan. The amateurish wooden plate on the gate of Jofuku-ji Temple asserted that it used to be one of legendary Renge-ji Temples.

 

 

#12 Myoraku-ji Temple

I walked down the hill in front of #11 Jofuku-ji Temple to get back to Taiheiji-michi. I turned right, eastward. The road was mildly descending. After several blocks, I turned left, and climbed the hill. As Teiheiji-michi had descended, the hill before #12 Myoraku-ji Temple was longer than that in front of #11 Jofuku-ji Temple. While #11 Jofuku-ji Temple faced the Myohoji River, #12 Myoraku-ji Temple commanded the view of the Karumo River and its alluvial fan. In Japan, each river used to have its own people and its own culture, with its own god in the people's minds. In Kobe, each alluvial fan used to have its own people and its own culture. I was wondering what god Buddhism had syncretized with in the area with #12 Myoraku-ji and #13 Fukushu-ji Temples in it. 

The Grave of Taira Moritoshi

Taira Moritoshi (?-1184) and Inomata Noritsuna (?-1192), who both had gained fame with their muscularity, clashed in the Battle of Ichi-no-Tani on February 7, 1184. After long fighting, Moritoshi finally pinned Noritsuna down, and was about beheading him. Noritsuna begged for his life, and Moritoshi accepted it. After a few minutes, when Moritoshi was distracted by other fighting, he was killed in a sneak attack by Noritsuna. After Noritsuna’s death, the descendants of Noritsuna built 108 mounds in Kodama County, Musashi Province. Annually on August 15, young people there make 108 bonfires on the 108 mounds to console the soul of Noritsuna. His sneak attack might have put him under great and grave stresses in the samurai community.

Ikeda Gion Shrine

When I was walking from #12 Myoraku-ji Temple to #13 Fukushu-ji Temple, both of which belong to Fukuhara 33 Pilgrimage, I happened to find a small shrine on a small but tall hill. It was Ikeda 

Gion Shrine.

Ikeda Gion Shrine was founded in 1906. Its main building was built in 1933, and the tiled roof was re-roofed with copperplates in 1984. The hill where the shrine is built is supposed to be the site of an ancient tomb called Nonouchi.

The Japanese word Gion comes from Jetavana, which was one of the 5 most famous Buddhist monasteries or viharas in India. The five is believed to have already existed while Buddha was still living. Gion Shrine enshrines the guardian god of Jetavana, who was called Gozu in Japan or in Japanese. The root or the sauce of the guardian god of Jetavana was Bhaisajyaguru, who one day chose to be born as a son of Mudang as a part of the syncretism of Buddhism. The son had a bull head, and grew up to find no bride to get married with. One day, he set out for a journey to find a bride. In brief, at last, he got married with a daughter of Naga, who lived in the ocean. Gozu might have got the power to control water as a natural process.

Gozu was first enshrined at Hiromine Shrine in today’s Himeji. Later, he was invited to today’s Kyoto when the Kamo River flooded and plague spread, they wished for the healing and anti-flood power of Gozu. He made the main deity of Gion Shrine, or Yasaka Shrine today, in Kyoto. On the way from Himeji to Kyoto, Gozu stayed at today’s Hyogo Ward, Kobe, and became the main deity of Gion Shrine there. He might also have been invited to Ikeda Gion Shrine. Why did they invite the guardian god of Jetavana to Ikeda? Stand on the top of the hill with the shrine in front of you. Look up to the sky, and imagine you are in ancient times now. Look down toward the sea. You will find an alluvial fan below covered with no modern buildings nor high rises. You may probably find a raised bed river running over the alluvial fan. Now, you badly need the power to control water, or floods.

#13 Fukushu-ji Temple

I left #12 Myoraku-ji Temple, and climbed down the hill into a residential area, which used to be a part of the alluvial fan of the Karumo River. Before getting to #13 Fukushu-ji Temple, I found Ikeda Gion Shrine, which stood on the site of an ancient tomb.

Fukushu-ji Temple has the memorial tower for a sumo wrestler, Sendagawa the 7th, or Onaruto Nadaemon the 1st , (?-1882). He first belonged to Osaka Sumo Wrestling, but moved to Edo Sumo Wrestling in 1853. There he won 43 consecutive matches. He retired in 1862.

After visiting 6 consecutive temples of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage on the day, I called it a day.

#14 Chofuku-ji Temple

I walked out of Nagata Station for the last stretch of my Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage. I knew I had to walk down to the bus street. I looked forward along Kobe Dentetsu Line. The alley went down. I looked backward along the line to find another lane run downward. Another alley branches out at right angles to the line. I was at a loss which way to go.

In one way or another, I was standing by the bus street, when it started raining. I thought taking a bus from Boojichogochome Bus Stop would be a good idea in the rain. I got off the bus at Hiyodorigoe Bus Stop to find #14 Chofuku-ji Temple very near.

The Tale of the Heike (= the Taira Clan) writes: "At dawn on the sixth day Kuro Onzoshi Yoshitsune, dividing his ten thousand men into two companies, ordered Doi-no-Jiro Sanehira to make an attack on the western outlet of Ichi-no-tani with seven thousand, while he himself with the remaining three thousand horsemen went round by the Tango road to descend the pass of Hiyodori-goe to take them in the rear."

But Yoshitsune’s men were feeling dubious of his plan, and the tale continued, "As they were thus halted, Musashi-bo Benkei suddenly appeared with an old man he had intercepted. In answer to the questions of Yoshitsune, he declared that he was a hunter who lived in these mountains, and that he knew all that country very well. 'Then ', said Yoshitsune, 'what do you think of my plan of riding down into Ichi-no-tani, the stronghold of the Heike?’ ‘Ah', replied the old man, 'that can hardly be done. The valley is a hundred yards deep, and of that about half is steep cliff where no one can go. Besides, the Heike will have dug pitfalls and spread caltrops inside the stronghold to make it impossible for your horses.’ ‘Indeed?' returned Yoshitsune, 'but is it possible for a stag to pass there?’ 'That stags pass there is certain', replied the hunter, 'for in the warm days of spring they come from Harima to seek the thick pasture of Tamba, and when the winter grows cold they go back towards Inamino in Harima where the snow lies lighter.’ ‘ Forsooth!' ejaculated Yoshitsune, 'then a horse can do it, for where a stag may pass, there a horse can go also.’”

Thus their half-suicide attack started here around Hiyodorigoe Bus Stop and Chofuku-ji Temple.

Chofuku-ji Temple had nothing talking about Yoshitsune's attack. When I was leaving the temple, I looked down upon the area where the Taira and Minomoto Clans had clashed against each other. #15 Ganjo-ji Temple was below at the foot of the hill or cliff. Can I do what a horse could do? Theirs were the descent with no return, while I should climb the hill again to get to #16 Ryozen-ji Temple. 

I walked eastward along the bus street. I took another bus from Yumenochosanchome Bus Stop to Ishiibashi Bus Stop to go to the next destination instead of making a downfall like a stag.   

#15 Ganjo-ji Temple

Taira Michimori (1153-1184) was killed in the Battle of Ichi-no-Tani on March 20, 1184. On the previous night, he invited his wife from the ship, reluctant to part from her. The Tale of the Heike depicts the situations this way: "

Then Noritsune, taking with him his elder brother Echizentir-no-sammi Michimori, set out for the hills. And these were the hills that lay at the foot of the pass called Hiyodori-goe, behind Ichi-no-tani. Michimori, however, called his wife to the camp of Noritsune in order that he might take a tender farewell of tier before the expedition."

As Hiyodori-goe was over the hills behind Ganjo-ji Temple, it might have been around the temple that Michinori might have called his wife.

After the defeat in the battle, the ships with the survivors of the Taira Clan aboard fled west. When the ships were crossing the Seto Inland Sea to Shikoku Island, the wife threw herself into the sea, mourning over the husband's death. The tale puts it, "So she followed him even to the wind- tossed waves of the Western Sea, and in death their path was not divided." Although their bodies were split away, their memorial tower is still standing peacefully here in #15 Ganjo-ji Temple.

#16 Ryozen-ji Temple

Ishiibashi Bus Stop was near Ishii-bashi Bridge across the Ishii River. The river has a raised bed, and #16 Ryozen-ji Temple was at the bottom of the tall dike. It didn't command a good view as #14 Chofuku-ji Temple did.

Along the bus street, I found Minatoyama Elementary School, or more precisely the site of Minatoyama Elementary Schoo, which had been closed on March 31, 2015.

The school was temporarily set up in Ryozen-ji Temple on June 5, 1873 with 15 pupils. There used to be as few as 175 households around the temple. In 1875, they purchased the used building of Kobe Naval Training Center, which had been established by Katsu Kaishu, the then Military Commissioner of the Tokugawa Shogunate, in May 1864, and removed and reconstructed at Okuhirano. In 1899, they removed and reconstructed the school building again at Yukinogosho. On April 7, 2014, they had 124 pupils.

There used to be a villa built in the Yukinogosho area by Taira Kiyomori (1118-1181), who became a Buddhist priest, and who came to live a "retired and secluded" life in 1168 in the area. He used the villa as a base to grow the trade between Japan and Song China.

More than 8 centuries and a half have passed. The area around Ryozen-ji Temple may be declining and decaying. The bus street looked more like a deserted shopping street, where many stores were shut down, or, at least half shut down, not doing very good business. The area around Minatoyama Hot Spring also appeared to be a deserted spa, with the approach to Gion Shrine slashed with a modern highway.

After Ryozen-ji, I walked back to the bridge, crossed the river, walked for a couple of blocks, turned left into the lane along the Tennodani River. Before #17 and #18, I was visiting Gion Shrine in Kobe, which is less famous than Gion Shrine (or Yasaka Shrine today) in Kyoto. The two have the same background history.

#17 Tofuku-ji Temple

I walked down the hill at the foot of #18 Shofuku-ji Temple. After a couple of blocks, #17 Tofuku-ji Temple was on my right. Very easy to find. Leaving #17, I soon got back to the bus street, to find a stone monument of Shofuku-ji at the corner. If I had come by the normal route, my pilgrimage of #17 and #18 should have been easier.

#18 Shofuku-ji Temple

After #16 Ryozen-ji Temple, I visited Gion Shrine before continuing going on Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage. After the shrine, I tried visiting #18 Shofuku-ji Temple before #17 Tofuku-ji Temple, just because #18 was nearer than #17. That costed me getting lost. Should I have kept the numeric order?

I stepped down from Gion Shrine, and turned left. I walked through Gion-cho, and easily and happily got into Gonomiya-cho, where I had been to visit Gonomiya Shrine as part of Hachimiya-meguri in Kobe (the pilgrimage of Ichinomiya, Ninomiya, Sannomiya, Yonomiya, Gonomiya, Rokunomiya, Shichinomiya, and Hachimiya Shrines). I should have come through the regular and standard pilgrimage route. I walked thorough this alley and that lane, climbed up those stone steps and down these concrete ones. After a long and exhausting footage, I arrived at the back of the temple. 2 young monks were busy doing farmwork in one of the patches of the temple. I begged my way into the temple, and was warned that the temple shouldn’t be taken to be for tourists.

I found a Kannon Statue in the precincts. 33 Kannnon pilgrimage have 33 temples, but have only 6 to 7 types of Avalokitesvara statues: Arya Avalokitesvara, who is the human-figure prototype of other 6 metamorphoses, Ekadasamukha, who has 11 faces, Sahasrabhuja, who has 1,000 arms, Cintamanicakra, who usually has 6 arms and holds chintamani (a wish-fulfilling jewel) in one of the six, Hayagriva , who has the head of a horse, Cundi, who has 16 arms and appears to be female, and Amoghapasa, who usually has 3 eyes and 8 arms. The plate at the foot of the Kannon statue in the temple claimed the statue to be Arya Avalokitesvara. But it had a flask in her/his/its left hand upside down. That meant she/he/it was pouring or spraying something liquid.

Tosa Hidenobu (?-?) published Butsuzo-zui (Illustrated Compendium of Buddhist Images) in 1783. In the compendium, he listed 33 popular subjects of Buddhism Avalokitesvara drawings and paintings. Among them, #2 Naga Avalokitesvar usually sits/stands on/by a dragon, and sometimes holds a flask in his left hand. #33 Sprinkling-Purified-Water Avalokitesvar usually has a small bowl in her/his/its left palm and a willow twig in her/his/its right hand to spray medicine water. But this one had a flask in her/his/its left hand pouring medicine water.

What design was the statue following?

Although the Kannon statue was confusing, Shofuku-ji Temple itself seemed a very serious religious institution. The 2 young monks and others were seriously and honestly working for the temple. As in a monastery, performing daily work is an important part of their religious activities in Zen Sect temples.

#20 Hochi-in Temple

#20 Hochi-in Temple was filled with high-pitched voices. I rang a ding-dong at the gate of Hochiin Nursery School. The school should have been affiliated or attached to the temple at least at the start, but today we should cross the school yard to approach the temple building to offer a prayer.

Emperor Antoku (1178-1185) was a grandson of Taira Kiyomori (1118-1181). The emperor mounted the throne at the age of 2 in 1180. When Kiyomori moved the capital from Kyoto to Kobe in 1180, the emperor stayed in the temple temporarily and tentatively at the age of 2. History repeats itself. The temple which accommodated the young emperor is now accommodating infants.

#21 Kogon-ji Temple

What is a Buddhist temple? Supporting and conserving the spiritual and mental backbones of usual Japanese people may be an important job. Visiting authentic traditional temples eases our minds.

After #20 Hochi-in Temple, which was part of Hochiin Nursery School today, I was looking for #21 Kogon-ji Temple. I was walking around Okurayama Park past Kobe University Hospital. The area is really supporting the health of Kobe citizens in mind and body. I bumped into a large street, and there stood Kobe Chuo Boy Support Center. Kobe Cultural Hall, and a high school. It seemed to have no temple. I found a culture-school-like building on my left. The brilliantly shining wide glass windows. A young lady with jeans on came out of the building and talked with sanitation worker brightly. A usual scene even in a business area. But a careful look at the posters and plates on the building revealed the compound of super-modern buildings to be a Buddhist temple, #21 Kogon-ji Temple. 

 

The Fragrance Plum Monument -----The Monument Inscribed with the Tanka Poem by Sugawara Michizane (845-903)-----

The stone monument was inscribed with the tanka poem which Michizane composed:

“Winds blow cold

“Snow? No, plum blossoms!

“I hope the scent perfumes my sleeves.”

There lay even a stone, on which Michizane was believed to have sat, at the side of the stone monument. Behind them moreover, even plum trees stood. They were too young to be believed to have stood on Michizane’s days. Yet, they were probably perfuming the same scent Michizane might have smelled.

 

#2 Homan-ji Temple

My last visit to the member temples among Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage was that to #2 Homan-ji Temple, which was slightly removed from any station in Kobe, and which was not on any route between other member temples. I decided to take a subway line to Subway Nagata Station. I walked out of the station, past Kosoku Nagata Station, and finally stepped out of the underground walkway at the Nagata Ward Office. I took a rather winding narrow street, guessing it to be an Ancient or Medieval path from my experience of visiting Ancient or Medieval 33 Kannon pilgrimage temples.

On my way to Homan-ji Temple, I found a historic spot. Sugawara Michizane (845-903) visited here on his demotion from the central government in Kyoto to the regional office in Kyushu, allured by the scent of plum trees here. He composed a tanka poem:

"Winds blow cold

"Snow? No, plum blossoms!

"I hope the scent perfumes my sleeves."

There was even a stone on which Michizane rested. Believe it or not. Anyway, I was right. I was following the Ancient or Medieval path in the area.

I found a Kannon statue between the temple gate and the main building of #2 Homan-ji Temple. Tosa Hidenobu (?-?) published Butsuzo-zui (Illustrated Compendium of Buddhist Images) in 1783. In the compendium, he listed 33 popular subjects of Buddhism Avalokitesvara drawings and paintings: #1 Holding-Willow-Spray Avalokitesvar, #2 Naga Avalokitesvar, #3 Holding-Buddhism-ScriptureAvalokitesvar, #4 Halo Avalokitesvar, #5 Sitting-on-Cloud Avalokitesvar, #6 Pandara Vasini Avalokitesvar, #7 Sitting-on-Lotus-leaf Avalokitesvar, #8 Looking-at-Cascade Avalokitesvar, #9 Listening-to-Stream Avalokitesvar, #10 Holding-Fish-Cage Avalokitesvar, #11 Virtuous-Lord Avalokitesvar, #12 Looking-at-Reflected-Moon Avalokitesvar, #13 Sitting-on-Leaf Avalokitesvar, #14 Blue-Head Avalokitesvar, #15 Great-Commander Avalokitesvar, #16 Life-Prolonging Avalokitesvar, #17 Relief-from-Ruination Avalokitesvar, #18 In-Cave-with-Venom Avalokitesvar, #19 Wave-Reduction Avalokitesvar, #20 Anavatapta Avalokitesvar, #21 One-Knee-Drawn-Up Avalokitesvar, #22 Leaf-Robe Avalokitesvar, #23 Holding-Lapis-Lazuli-Censer Avalokitesvar, #24 Tara Avalokitesvar, #25 Sit-in-in-Clam Avalokitesvar, #26 Twenty-Four-Hour Avalokitesvar, #27 Universal-Benevolence Avalokitesvar, #28 Celestial Beauty Avalokitesvar, #29 Putting-Palms-together Avalokitesvar, #30 Controlling-Thunderbolt Avalokitesvar, #31 Peaceful-Vajrapani Avalokitesvar, #32 Holding-Lotus-Flower Avalokitesvar, and #33 Sprinkling-Purified-Water Avalokitesvar. The statue appeared to be #6 Pandara Vasini Avalokitesvar.

My Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage ended. It took me 4.1 days. And 3 Chinese lunch set meals, one Vietnamese Banh Mi, and one piece of Lacte Citron.

I went out of Homan-ji Temple.  That meant I’d finished my first ever 33 Kannon pilgrimage in my life. I had to go home. Subway Nagata and Kosoku Nagata Stations were back in the north on the hill side. Subway Karumo Station was in the south on the sea side. JR Hyogo Station was a little farther in the east on my way back to the city center of Kobe. I was totally at a loss which way to go, wondering whether the loss came from the location of the temple or caused by the end of my endeavor on Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage.

If you really want to go on Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage in a numeric order, you should buy a one-day ticket of city busses and city subways for ¥1,040.  Or maybe two tickets if it takes 2 days for you. If you take a bus more than 5 times a day, the ticket will cost less.

First, you should get off either at Chuoichibamae Station or at Wadamisaki Station along Subway Kaigan Line, and walk to #1 Shinko-ji Temple.

After #1, you should either walk or take a No. 95 city bus between Matsubaradorinichome and Higashishiriikegochome Bus Stops to #2 Homan-ji Temple.

After #2, you should either walk or take Subway Kaigan Line between Karumo and Komagabayashi Stations to #3 Kaisen-ji Temple.

After #3, you should either walk or take Subway Kaigan Line between Komagabayashi and Chuoichibamae Stations + a No. 3 city bus between Chuoichibamae and Shichimiyacho Bus Stops to #4 Fujino-dera Temple.

After #4, you should either walk or take a No. 3 city bus between Shichimiyacho and Chuoichibamae Bus Stops + Subway Kaigan Line between Chuoichibamae and Shin-Nagata Stations + a No. 110 city bus between Shin-Nagataekimae and Honjocho Bus Stops to #5 Manpuku-ji Temple.

After #5, you should either walk or take a No. 10 city bus between JR Takatorieki and Sumakitamachi Bus Stops to #6 Jotoku-ji Temple.

After #6, you should either walk or take a No. 10 city bus between Sumakitamachi and Inabacho Bus Stops + a No. 72 city bus between Inabacho and Uenoyama Bus Stops to #7 Suma-dera Temple.

After #7, you should either walk or take a No. 72 city bus between Uenoyama and Rikyukoenmae Bus Stops + a No. 75 city bus between Rikyukoenmae and Otechoshofukujishita Bus Stops to #8 Shofuku-ji Temple.

After #8, you should either walk or take a No. 75 city bus between Otechoshofukujishita and Itayado Bus Stops + Subway Seishin-Yamate Line between Itayado and Myohoji Stations to #9 Myoho-ji Temple.

After #9, you should either walk or take a No. 5 city bus between Okumyohoji and Zenshoji Bus Stops to #10 Zensho-ji Temple.

After #10, you should either walk or take a No. 5 city bus between Zenshoji and Itayado Bus Stops + a No.10 city bus between Itayado and Yamashitachoyonchome Bus Stops to #11 Jofuku-ji Temple.

After #11, you should either walk or take a No. 17, 95, or 96 city bus between Yamashitachoicchome and Omichidorisanchome Bus Stops to #12 Myoraku-ji Temple.

After #12, you should walk to #13 Fukushu-ji Temple.

After #13, you should either walk or take a No. 11, 110, or 112 city bus between Nagatashogakkomae and Hiyodorigoe Bus Stops to #14 Chofuku-ji Temple.

After #14, you should walk or climb down to #15 Ganjo-ji Temple.

After #15, you should either walk or take a No. 7 or 9 city bus between Higashiyama and Ishiibashi Bus Stops to #16 Ryozen-ji Temple.

After #16, you should either walk or take a No. 7, 9, 110, or 112 city bus between Ishiibashi and Hirano Bus Stops to #17 Tofuku-ji Temple.

After #17, you should climb up the hill to #18 Shofuku-ji Temple.

After #18, you should walk or take a No. 7 city bus between Gomiyacho and Futatabisuji Bus Stops to #19 Fukutoku-ji Temple.

After #19, you should either walk or take a Yamate city bus between Shimoyamatenanachome and Kusunokichorokuchome Bus Stops to #20 Hochi-in Temple.

After #20, you should walk to #21 Kogon-ji Temple.

After #21, you should either walk or take Subway Nishijin-Yamate Line between Okurayama and Minatogawakoen Stations + a No. 6 city bus between Minatogawanishiguchi and Yanagiwara Bus Stops to #22 Fukusho-ji Temple.

After #22, you should tour around #23 Fukukai-ji, #24 Fukugon-ji, and #25 Manpuku-ji Temples on foot.

After #25, you should either walk or take Subway Kaigan Line between Chuoichibamae and Shin-Nagata Stations + a No. 10 city bus between Shin-Nagata-ekimae and Tenjogawa Bus Stops to #26 Hokai-ji Temple.

After #26, you should either walk or take a No. 10 city bus between Tenjogawa and Shin-Nagata-ekimae Bus Stops + Subway Kaigan Line between Shin-Nagata and Chuoichibamae Stations back to #27 Gokuraku-ji, #28 Erin-ji, #29 Raiko-ji, #30 Eifuku-ji (which is out of business today), #31 Konko-ji, #32 Nofuku-ji, and #33 Shinko-ji Temples, all of which you can visit on foot.

If you think #30 temple of Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage is #30 Gokuraku-ji Temple, you should either walk or take Subway Kaigan Line between Chuoichibamae and Karumo Stations to get there after #29, and then make a round trip back to #31.

If you don’t mind making Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage roughly in a numeric order, you can put #30 Gokuraku-ji Temple before or after #2. You may talk with the priest of #26 before, between, or after #6 and #7, and/or visit #4 before, between, or after #27 and #28.