Virtual Yokohama City 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #1 Daisho-in Temple

     Daisho-in Temple was founded by Tobe Minbu in the 1240’s in Tobe Village, Kuraki County, Musashi Province.  It used to be often the case the powerful family and the village they lived in had the same name.  At the beginning of the 19th century, Notsuke Village got independent from Tobe Village.  In the local dialect, tobe meant marsh and notsuke tip.  Originally, the temple was located in Notsuke.

In 1544, the temple burned down in a battle.  It is not recorded who fought against whom in the battle.

      In 1523, Ise Ujitsuna (1487-1541), the son of Shinkuro (1432-1519), changed his surname to Hojo.  In 1532, as Ujitsuna was joining forces with Ashikaga Takamoto (1485-1535), Kanto Deputy Shogun in Koga, his brother, Yoshiaki (?-1538), Kanto Deputy Shogun in Oyumi, chose Satomi Yoshitoyo (?-1534) for his ally.

     On July 27, 1533, Yoshitoyo killed Satomi Sanetada (1484-1533), his rival.  Sanetada’s son, Yoshitaka (1507-1574) killed Yoshitoyo next year, allying with Ujitsuna.

     However, Yoshitaka was always under the pressure of Oyumi Kanto Deputy Shogun, and rather went over to Yoshiaki’s side.  In 1538, Oyumi and Koga Kanto Deputy Shoguns clashed against each other in Konodai.  Yoshiaki was killed in the battle, and Koga’s side won.  The biggest winner in the battle was Ujitsuna.  He made Takamoto his puppet, and grabbed the hegemony over all the southern part of Kanto but Awa Province.  The minor second winner of the battle was, ironically enough, Yoshitaka, who belonged to the loser’s side.  He could secure Awa Province at least, and could get rid of Oyumi Kanto Deputy Shogun, who had been a pain in the neck.  In the aftermath of the battle, the Hojo Clan and the Satomi Clan were to fight against each other head-to-head.

     By that time, the Later Hojo Clan had destroyed the Miura Clan, and organized their own sea forces.  Some of the Miura Sea Forces fled to Awa Province, and got hired by the Satomi Clan’s vassals, such as Masaki Michitsuna (1492?-1533).  Or Michitsuna himself might have been a surviving retainer of Miura’s.  Anyway, from that time on, the Izu Sea Forces of the Hojo Clan and the Awa Sea Forces of the Satomi Clan were to face each other head-to-head across the Edo and Sagami Bays.

      In 1539, Satomi Yoshitaka (1507?-1574) attacked Ariyoshi Castle in Kazusa Province, which was on the Hojo Clan’s side.  In revenge, in 1540, the Hojo Clan started attacking the Satomi Clan’s stronghold domain, Awa Province, with the Izu Sea Forces.  Between 1541 and 1542, Yoshitaka had to move his headquarters from Inamura Castle in Awa Province to Kururi Castle in the inland-most center of Boso Peninsula in Kazusa Province.  Did he advance into another larger province?  Or did he have to retreat his defense line from the seashore?

     The battle which burned Daisho-in Temple down might have been one of the battles between the two.

     Rinko-ji Temple gave out a piece of land at the present place, Yamamoto Daizen supported financially, and Priest Shugan rebuilt it by 1555.  It evacuated from the sea shore to avert the attack or the piracy by the Awa Sea Forces.  With the sea forces, the Satomi Clan was known as a pirate warlord.

     Priest Shusei revived it in the middle of the 17th century, when the danka system was being established by the Tokugawa Shogunate.  Under the system, the Tokugawa Clan made the affiliation with a Buddhist temple compulsory to all citizens.

     It was recorded that the temple used to have a bamboo statue of Avalokitesvar, which burned down in the fire.

     A temple usually has a mountain name, a dwelling name, and a temple name, and is usually mentioned with its temple name.   A branch temple in a big temple is usually called with a dwelling name.  Daisho-in is a dwelling name, and Hosen-ji a temple name.  The history of the temple might have had something to do with the twisted naming.

Address: 5-20 Motokubocho, Nishi Ward, Yokohama, Kanagawa 220-0063
Phone: 045-231-3207