Oshu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage α

     Ennin (794-864), who is known to have sailed to Tang China as a member of the last Japanese mission in 838, and to have kept staying in there more than 9 years under the patronage and protection of Jang Bogo (787-846), a Silla trader or pirate, was said to have organized Oshu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage in Mutsu Province.  The oldest written record of the pilgrimage was dated as 1123.  In 1761, the pilgrimage was revitalized by the Buddhist monks who were working for the 7 out of the 33 temples.