Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #22 Junryo-ji Temple

      Priest Mon’yo was given a house at Nishkubo, Edo, in 1635.  In 1648, the lot was alternated with that at Itakuracho, Azabu.  It is unknown when it became a temple and was named Junryo-ji.

     On the maps published in 1876 and in 1887, we can find Junryo-ji Temple.  It, however, was not on the map published in 1941.  It is unknown when and why it was abolished.

     According to another record, it was Meiryo-ji Temple in Nishikubo that was #22 of Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage. It is unknown and unknowable today whether the temple name was wrongly recorded or the two temples were different temples.

Address:1 Higashiazabu, Tokyo

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #21 Zojo-ji Temple

 

     Shuei (809-884) founded Komyo-ji Temple at Kaizuka, Musashi Province.  Priest Shoso (1366-1440), whose father was Chiba Ujitane (1337-1365), the governor of Kazusa Province, changed the temple name to Zojo-ji.  Sogei, one of Shoso’s apprentices, founded Shin-Komyo-ji Temple in Okazaki, Mikawa Province.  The temple was built by Matsudaira Nobumitsu (1404-1488).  After 6 generations, the Matsudaira Clan had Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543-1616), who established the Tokugawa Shogunate.

     In 1590, when Ieyasu entered the Edo Castle, he passed by the temple gate, and met Priest Son’o.  That was the trigger of the temple’s becoming the family temple of the Tokugawa Clan.

     Ieyasu moved the temple to Hibiya.  Later, as the Edo Castle was extended, it was removed to the present place.

Address: 4 Chome-7-35 Shibakoen, Minato City, Tokyo 105-0011

Phone: 03-3432-1431

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #20 Tentoku-ji Temple

      Priest Shonen built Tenchi-an Hermitage in 1533 at the site where Momiji-yama Hill was built in the Edo Castle later.  Shonen was from Shinagawa, Musashi Province, and entered priesthood at the age of 8 in Zojo-ji Temple.  He lived in Jokoku-ji Temple in Iwatsuki Village (1 Chome-25-1 Kakura, Iwatsuki Ward, Saitama City today), founded Tenchi-an Hermitage, lived there for 3 years, Moved to Jukyo-ji Temple in Matsusaka, Ise Province, (874 Shinmachi, Matsusaka, Mie Prefecture), and lived in Isshin-in Temple (Hosen-ji Temple today, 311 Iwamicho, Oharano, Nishikyo Ward, Kyoto), and died on July 19, 1554.

     Tenchi-an Hermitage was moved to Kasumigaseki in 1585, when the Later Hojo Clan was still ruling the area, and removed to the present place in 1611, when the Edo Castle was being extended by the Tokugawa Clan.

     The Kanto Region used to have unique religious monuments: Itabi.

Itabi is a type of a stone monument or a Japanese pagoda.  It has the flattened-shape body with a flat triangular-or-pyramidal-shape top, and is supposed to have been used as a stone grave monument, a pagoda, or a stupa for remembrance.  The pagoda body can include images (tengai decoration, flower vases, censer, candlestick), sanskrit characters in a circle above a lotus decoration, poetic and religious texts, the commemoration date, zodiac signs and information about the builder and the reason for the creation of the itabi.  The itabi is placed directly in the ground or on a platform.

     Itabi were used in medieval Buddhism from the Kamakura Period (1185-1333) to the early Edo Period (1603-1868), or from the early 13th century to the 17th century.  There are many itabi in the Kanto region, and they spread to other parts of Japan as the Kanto samurais were dispatched to those places to strengthen the power of the Kamakura Shogunate.

Address: 3 Chome-13-6 Toranomon, Minato City, Tokyo 105-0001

Phone: 03-3431-1039

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #19 Seigan-ji Temple

      It is unknown when Seigan-ji Temple was founded.  It used to belong to the Pure Land School, used to be a branch temple of Chion-in Temple in Kyoto during the Edo Period, and was located in Hitotsugi Village, which was developed in 1591 by 139 Iga ninjas.  Before the development, the area was called Hitotsugi Field, which was first appeared in a written record in 1524.

     In 1524, Hojo Ujitsuna (1487-1541) beat Uesugi Tomooki (1488-1537), conducted the inspection of the beheaded in the Edo Castle, and put up flags and banners in Hitotsugi Field.  it is unknown whether the temple had something to do with those historical incidents or not.  Neither is it known when it was abolished.

4 Chome Akasaka, Minato Ward, Tokyo

Trees in the town.

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #18 Shinjo-in Temple

      Shinjo-in Temple was founded by Priest Seishin (?-1647) in 1598.  The main deity was the Avalokitesvara statue, which had been the guardian Buddhist image of Murakami Yoshikiyo (1501-1573).  Who was Priest Seishin?  And why did he have Yoshikiyo’s guardian image?

     It was in the Warring States Period.  The Murakami family used to live as samurais in Shinano Province before the Takeda Clan invaded the province.  Murakami Yoshikiyo and his son, Kunikiyo (1546-1592), flew north to Echigo Province with their family members and followers, and came to fight for Nagao Terutora(1530-1578) since 1553.  From 1561 on, Terutora intruded into the Kanto Region to fight against the Later Hojo Clan.  One of the Murakami Family members, Narikiyo, was despatched to the Kururi Castle as a kind of a liaison officer between Terutora and the Satomi Clan.  He seemed to have brought Yoshikiyo’s guardian image with him.

     Narikiyo committed suicide when the castle fell to the Later Hojo Clan in 1564.  His 2 young children were going to stabbed to death at the age of 5 and 3.  One of his followers saved the 2 young children, saying, “The lineage of our leader shouldn’t be extinct.”  He flew with the statue, and protected the 2 boys and the statue in s temple.  Later he became a monk with his priest name Seishin.  When Narikiyo's younger boy grew up, he soon served under Satomi Yoshihiro (1530-1578) to fight for the Satomi Clan against the Later Hojo Clan.  The elder brother hesitated over the service for the time being.  He was living as a masterless samurai.  He was called by Yoshihiro several times, and finally became a vassal of his.  Why did he waver?

The statue was being kept in the temple, and so was Seishin.  Why didn’t he return to the secular life and make samurai again?

     In 1577, the Satomi Clan was forced to make peace with the Later Hojo Clan.  In 1590, the Later Hojo Clan surrendered to Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536-1598), and almost whole Japan was ruled by him.  The Satomi Clan survived, and so might have done the 2 sons of Narikiyo.

     Priest Seishin moved with the statue and founded Shinjo-in Temple in 1598.  In 1614, Satomi Tadayoshi (1594-1622), the last head of the clan, was shunted from Awa Province to Kurayoshi, Hoki Province, with his income reduced to less than one thirtieth.  It is unknown if the 2 sons of Narikiyo or their children followed Tadayoshi.  After witnessing those stories, Priest Seishin died in Shinjo-in Temple in 1647, when Tokugawa Iemitsu (1604-1651), the third shogun of the Tokugawa Shogunate, was reigning steadily over Japan.  83 years after his rescue of 2 young children!  How ole had he been when Narikiyo had died?  He himself must have been no more than a boy.  He might have been a son of Narikiyo’s follower, who himself had committed suicide.  It must have been the father who said to his son, “The lineage of our leader shouldn’t be extinct.”  It is now understandable why the elder son of Narikiyo wavered over the service as samurai.  He could have been old enough to witness and understand the tragedies caused by the fall of the castle.  And I think I can understand why Seishin didn’t return to the secular life and make samurai again.  He had had enough.

Address: 2 Chome-7-8 Wakaba, Shinjuku City, Tokyo 160-0011

Phone: 03-3351-7281

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #17 Joun-ji Temple

      Joun-ji Temple was founded by Priest Ryuha (?-1623) in 1619 at Shimizudani, Kojimachi.  When they constructed the outer moat of the Edo Castle, it was moved to the present place.

     The maindeity, the Arya Avalokitesvara statue, was carved by Ennin (794-864).

     Imadegawa Koresue (1660-1709) composed a tanka poem in the temple:

“I happened to visit the temple

"To find mountains and

"Never to get tired of looking at the garden."

Address: 14-3 Aizumicho, Shinjuku City, Tokyo 160-0005

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #16 Toen-ji Temple

     Toen-ji Temple used to be a shrine temple of Ichigaya Kameoka Hachiman-gu Shrine, which was founded in 1479, when Ota Dokan built the Edo Castle.  

     He invited the god of Tsuruoka Hachiman-gu Shrine in Kamakura to enshrine it as the western guardian god of the castle.  Instead of “tsuru” (crane) which is believed to live 1,000 years, he used the phrase “kame” (turtle), which was believed to live 10,000 years.  When he built the shrine, he also built the shrine temple, Toen-ji Temple.

     The shrine used to be located inside the Ichigaya Gate of the castle, but was moved to the present place as the outer moat was constructed in 1636.

     The Gods and Buddhas Separation Order was issued in 1868, and Toen-ji Temple was abolished in 1872.

Address: 15 Ichigayahachimancho, Shinjuku City, Tokyo 162-0844

Phone: 03-3260-1868

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #15 Joju-in Temple

      Edo-stationed royal princes, who were actually held hostage by the Tokugawa Shogunate, were to visit Gangyo-ji Temple.

     Through the Tokugawa Period, one of royal princes entered the Buddhist priesthood under the title Rinnoji-no-miya. He served as abbot of Rin'o-ji Temple in Nikko and Kan'ei-ji Temple in Edo.  The Tokugawa Shogunate counted them as hostages and planned to set one of them up as their own emperor in case the Imperial Court became hostile agains the Tokugawa Shogunate.  The plan worked somehow once.

     During the unrest of the Boshin War (1868-1869) to overthrow the Tokugawa shogunate, Prince Yoshihisa (1847-1895) fled north with the survivors of those who supported the Tokugawa Shogunate, and became Emperor Tobu, whose planned era name was believed to have been either Taisei or Enju.

     Following the Meiji Restoration, in 1873 Emperor Meiji recalled all imperial princes currently serving as Buddhist priests back to secular status. That same year, Prince Yoshihisa became the second head of the new princely house of Kitashirakawa-no-miya.

     During the Tokugawa Period, Rinnoji-no-miya visited Gangyo-ji Temple on February 2 every year.

Prince Yoshihisa became Rinnoji-no-miya in May, 1867.  In January, 1868, the Battle of Toba-Fushimi broke out as the first fight of the Boshin War.  On February 21, he left Edo to Shizuoka to have peace negotiations with Prince Arisugawa Taruhito (1835-1895).  On May 25, he boarded Warship Chogei-maru and fled north.  Did he have a chance to visit Gangyo-ji Temple?

     Why was Gangyo-ji Temple so important as to have been visited by Edo-stationed royal princes?  It’s not clear but there could have been 2 reasons.

     When Minamoto Yoritomo (1147-1199) was defeated in the Battle of Ishibashi-yama in 1180, he fled to Awa Province.  On his way, he stayed at Gyogan-ji Temple and prayed to the statue of Sahasrabhuja, who has 1,000 arms, for victory.  On the night, he dreamt the dream to bring the whole country under his control.  The Tokugawa Clan belonged to the Minamoto Clan in a broad sense.  The temple might have been important for the clan.

     When Ota Dokan built the Edo Castle, Priest Sonkei (?-1632) conducted a religious ceremony to purify the ground.  And he founded Gyogan-ji Temple.  The temple might have been important for the castle.

The temple was believed to have been founded either by Saicho (766-822) or by Ennin (794-864).  The Sahasrabhuja statue was believed to have been carved by Priest Genshin (942-1017).

Address: 9, Shinagawa City, Tokyo 141-0031

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #14 Joju-in Temple

     Tsukudo Shrine is another shrine than Tsukudo Hachiman Shrine.

     Taira Masakado (903-940) was the leader of the largest insurgent troops against the ancient central government.  He intended to build an independent country in the Kanto Region.  He was killed and his head was exposed to public in the central capital.

     Legend has it that his followers stolen the head, brought it back to Tsukudo, Kami-Hirakawa Village, Toshima County, Musashi Province, and buried it there.  Masakado was believed to have made a curse god with the power of thunderbolts, and the site became a shrine, Tsukudo Shrine.

      According to another legend, when Masakado was shot in the middle of his forehead by Fujiwara Hidesato (891-958), his head flew away with his helmet on.  It landed at Tsukudo, Kami-Hirakawa Village, Toshima County, Musashi Province.   Villagers carved an Avalokitesvara statue with a sword on.  Some said that it was Masakado that had believed in the statue while he had been alive.  Others believed that the statue had duplicated Masakado after his death.

     Does an armed Avalokitesvara sound irrational to you?  Not really so.

     According to Lotus Sutra Chapter XXV, Avalokitesvara, to save people, manifest 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.

     The Avalokitesvara statue with a sword on in Tsukudo Shrine could have been interpreted as #8 the form of the great commander of the devas.

     We have more sites where the head (the heads?) of Masakado were buried.  But let’s get back to Tsukudo Shrine and the Kannon-do Hall in Tsukudo.

     The Tokugawa Shogunate, the then central government, established the danka system, under which the affiliation with a Buddhist temple became compulsory to all citizens.  And shinto shrines were supposed to syncretize themselves with Buddhism.  Tsukumo Shrine had to have its shrine temple, and chose the Kannon-do Hall with the head of Masakado to syncretize with.  They turned it Ryogon-ji Temple.

     In 1868, the Meiji Government, the then central government, ordered to separate Shinto from Buddhism and vice versa.  Ryogon-ji Temple was abolished then.

     How have Masakado, with his defiant mind,  felt each time the then central governments trifled with his religious status?

Address: ２ Tsukudohachimancho, Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo 162-0815 

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #13 Muryo-ji Temple

     Muryo-ji Temple used to be the shrine temple of Tsukudo-Hachiman Shrine.

     At the beginning of the 9th century, an old man was living here.  He had had deep faith in Hachiman.  One day, Hachiman appeared in the dream of the old man, and told him that a divine signal would be given to him.  Next morning, a white cloud hung over the pine tree in his yard and a white dove was sitting on the branch.  A dove was widely believed to be a messenger of Hachiman.  The old man decorated the tree with a sacred straw festoon.

     As Hachiman had syncretized with Buddhism, and had become Hachiman Great Bodhisattva by the 9th century, when Saicho (767-822) visited the area  after 816, he was impressed with the pine tree and its story, and carved the Amitabha statue.  The soil of Usa-Hachiman Shrine, the very original first shrine for Hachiman, in Tsukushi Province, was brought to the precincts, and the shrine was came to be called Tsukudo-Hachiman Shrine.  Tsukudo literally means Tsukushi soil.

     Because of the syncretism, the shrine also had its shrine temple, Muryo-ji.

     After the Gods and Buddhas Separation Order in 1868, Muryo-ji Temple was abolished.

Address: ２-1 Tsukudohachimancho, Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo 162-0815

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #12 Denzu-in Temple

     In Autumn, 1415, Priest Shogei (1341-1420) opened a hermitage in Koishikawa, perhaps for retirement.  He named it Jukyo-ji.

     On August 28, 1602, Odai, the mother of Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616) died in Fushimi Castle, Kyoto.  He brought his mother’s body to Edo, cremated the body in Chiko-ji Temple at Otsuka, Edo.  He moved Jukyo-ji Temple to the present place, buried her ashes in the precincts, and named the temple Denzuin, after her posthumous Buddhist name.

     Odai’s Buddhist memorial tablet was, however, enshrined in Anraku-ji Temple in Mikawa Province, where her second husband, Hisamatsu Toshikatsu (1526-1587) had been buried.

Address: 3 Chome-14-6 Koishikawa, Bunkyo City, Tokyo 112-0002

Phone: 03-3814-3701

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #11 Enjo-ji Temple

      In 1581, Priest En'ei founded Mitsuzo-in Temple in Hongo, Edo, when Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582) was fighting to unite the whole of Japan.  In 1620, 4 years after the death of Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616), who actually united the whole of Japan, Priest Hosen renamed it Enjo-ji, and moved it to the present place in 1631.  Next year, Tokugawa Hidetada (1579-1632), the second shogun, died.

Address: 1 Chome-34-6 Hakusan, Bunkyo City, Tokyo 113-0001

Phone: 03-3812-7865

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #10 Shonen-ji Temple

     Shonen-ji Temple was founded by Priest Sanyo in 1598.  It used to have the statue of Ekadasamukha, who has 11 faces, but was burned down during World War II.  After the war, it was merged with Joshin-ji Temple.

Joshinji Temple

Address: 2 Chome-17-4 Mukogaoka, Bunkyo City, Tokyo 113-0023

Phone: 03-3821-0951

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #9 Josen-ji Temple

      Joshin-ji Temple was founded by Hachiya Yoshito (?-1633).  Who was he?

     Hachiya Yoshinari (?-1616) first worked and fought for Hojo Ujinao (1562-1591).  In 1592, he was hired by Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616).  His son, Yoshito, worked for Tokugawa Hidetada (1579-1632).

     Ota Dokan (1432-1486) built an archery training center in Hongo.  The Tokugawa Shogunate had samurais of archery platoons reside in the site.  Yoshito built Josen-ji Temple there, and invited Priest Zuiha (1563-1635) in 1621.  After his death, he was buried in Josen-ji Temple.

     The Avalokitesvara statue was burned down in World War II.

When Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage was revived as New Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage in 1976, Josen-ji Temple invited another statue from Goshin-ji Temple at Shirako, Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture.

     Why from Mie, or Ise Province at the time?

     After the Honno-ji Incident on June 21, 1582, Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543-1616) escaped from Sakai, Izumi Province, through Iga Province, to Shirako in Ise Province.  From Shirako he sailed back to his home province, Mikawa.  Goshin-ji Temple is believed to have done something in providing Ieyasu with boats.

Address: 1 Chome-7-12 Honkomagome, Bunkyo City, Tokyo 113-0021

Phone: 03-3941-7063

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #8 Seirin-ji Temple

      Priest Yuso (1426-1509) was born in Kazusa Province.  At the age of 13, he entered priesthood in Komyo-ji Temple, Kamakura.  In 1482, he became the 9th head priest in the temple.  He worked hard not only in teaching but also in propagation.  Seirin-ji Temple was one of those founded by Yuso at the beginning of the 16th century.

     First, it was located at Kanda-Shikencho.  Shiken literally meant 4 houses.  The area was called so because 4 servant priests for the Edo Castle were given their houses there.  That might have been why the temple had to move.  At the turn of the 17th century, Priest Tenreki moved it to Kanda-Yanagihara.  Kanda River was a kind of an artificial canal built in 1620.  It was removed to the present place, Komagome-Shikenji-cho, in 1652.  The area was named so because there were 4 temples there.

     All in all, Seirin-ji Temple has moved according to the city planning of Edo.

Address: 2 Chome-35-3 Mukogaoka, Bunkyo City, Tokyo 113-0023

Phone: 03-3821-2581

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #7 Shinjo-in Temple

     Shinjo-in Temple is also known as Yushimashoden.

     Yushima Shrine was established in 458 to enshrine Amanotajikarao, who pulled open the cave where the sun goddess hid herself.

     The inhabitants around the shrine might have preferred intellectual powers rather than physical strength.  They invited the late Sugawara Michizane (845-903) as their god in 1355.  As Michizane’s deified name was Tenmantenjin, the shrine has been known as Yushima Tenjin since then.

Kiken-in started as the shrine temple of Yushima Tenjin Shrine.  The precincts also had the Sarasvati Hall.  In 1694, Priest Yukai invited the Sarasvati statue from Enryaku-ji Temple, Mt. Hiei.  Ennin (794-864) was said to have carved the statue.  Vinayaka, whose Japanese name is Shoden), was also invited to the hall in 1694, and the shrine also came to be known as Yushimashoden.

Address: 3 Chome-32-4 Yushima, Bunkyo City, Tokyo 113-0034

Phone: 03-3831-1350

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #6 Kiyomizu-Kannon-do Temple

      Kiyomizu-Kannon-do Temple was founded by Priest Tenkai (1536-1643) in 1631, and was moved to the present place in 1694.

     After Hatakeyama Yoshitsugu (1552-1585) was killed by Date Masamune (1567-1636), Funaki Kagemitsu, Yoshitugu’s vassal, became the vassal of Ashina Moriuji (1521-1580), and married a woman of the Ashina Clan, who gave birth to Tenkai in 1536.  He later became one of the brains of Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616).  He was especially influential in shaping the religion policies of the Tokugawa Shogunate.

     Tenkai built some copy temples in Edo of those in Kyoto.  Kiyomizu-Kannon-do Temple was a copy of Kiyomizu-dera Temple in Kyoto.  Its main deity, the statue of Sahasrabhuja, who has 1,000 arms, is said to have been carved by Genshin (942-1017), and also said to have been moved from Kiyomizu-dera Temple.

Address: 1-29 Uenokoen, Taito Ward, Tokyo 110-0007

Phone: 03-3821-4749 

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #5 Anraku-ji Temple

      Anraku-ji Temple was founded by Priest Iteki at Shitaya-Sakamoto in 1627, and moved to Shitaya-Kanasugi in 1693.

     The Arya Avalokitesvara statue is enshrined in Kannon-do Hall in the precincts.  It was carved by Genshin (942-1017).  As he chiseled once, he made 3 prayers.  It used to be enshrined at Shimo-Gamo, Kyoto.  During the Warring States Period, temples in Kyoto were burned down, and some images of Buddhas were kept in the houses of ordinary citizens.  

     One day, Prince Sonko (1645-1680) was impressed with one of them, and he brought it to Edo and gave it to Anraku-ji Temple.  The prince was the 12th son of Emperor Go-Mizuo (1596-1680), the first emperor under the Tokugawa Shogunate.  In February, 1651, the prince became an adopted son of Tokugawa Iemitsu (1604-1651), the third shogun.  Iemitsu died in April.  The prince visited Edo in 1662.  Was that a political coordination between the shogunate and the Imperial Court? Or a hostage?

Address: 4 Chome-1-3 Negishi, Taito City, Tokyo 110-0003

Phone: 03-3872-3863 

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #4 Seisui-ji Temple

     In the 8th century Japan, plagues spread most often in the Tokai-do Region.  They might have been endemic diseases.  In 829, Emperor Junna (786-840) ordered Priest Ennin (794-864) to make prayers to stop the endemic.

     Ennin carved the statue of Sahasrabhuja, who has 1,000 arms.  As he chiseled once, he made 3 prayers.  He put it at Hirakawa, Edo, Musashi Province, where the Hirakawa Gate of the Imperial Palace is located today.  The endemic ended.  Believe it or not.

     The endemic diseases in the Tokai-do Region were more likely to break out when the yearly average temperature was higher than usual.  Aha.  We can make a good guess what type of diseases they were.  Besides religious activities, Ennin might have given local people a couple of lessons: “Even when it is hot and you want to eat something cold, grill or boil your food well.”  “Wash your hands before you eat.”  Or something like that.

     Ennin was born into the Mibu Family in Shimotsuke Province, which was located just north of Musashi Province.  As many of displaced Silla people had been moved to the Kanto Region, he might have some connection not only with them but also with those in the home land through them.  When Ennin (794-864) made his study trip to Tang China from 838 to 847, supports from Silla people, including those who were related with Jang Bogo (787-846), were enormous. For example, Ennin was helped by Silla people living in Chishan to keep staying in Tang, half-illegally though. He stayed in Chishan Fahua Temple, which had been founded by Jang Bogo. Ennin had trouble coming back to Japan too, but, somehow or other, got into Silla trader’s ship. His tribulations and adventures might have given some knowledge on public hygiene.

     Emperor Junna was really concerned over the livelihoods of people.  When he died, he refused to build his tomb, and his ashes were scattered in Sai, Kyoto.

     It isn’t recorded what happened to the Sahasrabhuja statue, but, scientifically speaking, the present statue is supposed to have been carved in the latter half of the 14th century.

     No sooner Priest Keien (?-1604) had revived the temple at the turn of the 17th century, Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616) moved to the Edo Castle.  As he enlarged the castle, the temple had to move to Bakurocho.  After the Great Fire of Meireki in March, 1657, the temple removed to the present place.

Address: 2 Chome-25-10 Matsugaya, Taito City, Tokyo 111-0036

Phone: 03-3844-7672

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #3 Sanjusangen-do Temple

     You know Sanjusangen-do Temple in Kyoto, Don’t you?  The Toshiya archery exhibition contest in front of the temple building dates back to the 16th century.  At the beginning of the Tokugawa Shogunate, the archery exhibition contest there became so popular that the copy temple was built in Edo in 1643 to organize the contest.

     The temple was, however, torn down in 1872, when the Tokyo Castle, which used to be called the Edo Castle before 1868, became the Imperial Palace.  The first railway service was started in the year, and Edo was rapidly metamorphosing itself into Tokyo.  Today, we can only find the stone statue left to show the site.

Address: 2 Chome-4 Tomioka, Koto Ward, Tokyo 135-0047

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #2 Komagata-do Temple

     Haji Matsuchi, Hinokuma Yamanari, and Hinokuma Tekenari were netting fishes in Miyato River (nearly Sumida River today) in 589.  They caught an Arya Avalokitesvara statue out of the river.  They wove a small shed with wild spinach canes, and put the statue in it. Komagata-do Temple stands at the very place where the wild-spinach-cane shed was built, or woven.

     But the deity here today is another metamorphosis of Avalokitesvara, Hayagriva, who has the head of a horse.  The temple name, Komagata, literally means horse shape.  Does it something to do with Hayagriva?  I don’t know.  Why did Avalokitesvara metamorphose into Hayagriva here? I don’t know.

Address: 2 Chome-2-3 Kaminarimon, Taito City, Tokyo 111-0034

Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #1 Senso-ji Temple

     Haji Matsuchi, Hinokuma Yamanari, and Hinokuma Tekenari were netting fishes in the estuary of Miyato River (nearly Sumida River today) in 589.  They caught an Arya Avalokitesvara statue out of the river.  Matsuchi persuaded Yamanari and Takenari, and they wove a small shed with wild spinach canes, and put the statue in it.

     What persuasion was it like?  In Ancient Japan, things drifted ashore were understood to belong to the sea shore residents.  The statue must have been found in a wrecked boat.  Yamanari and Takenari might have insisted on reselling the statue.  Matsuchi might have persuaded them to keep it from his religious mind.

     By the way, where was the original destination of the Arya Avalokitesvara statue?  In  587, Emperor Hatsusebe ascended to the Chrysanthemum Throne.  That means in the political and military dispute between the pro-Shinto Mononobe Clan and the pro-Buddhist Soga Clan, the latter emerged victorious.  Local powerful families such as Kamitsuke Okuma, who drank a bitter cup in the Musashi Disturbance in 534, could have been competing to purchase Buddhist images.

     Then, Yamanari and Takenari might have suggested forwarding the statue to the original destination.  And it was Matsuchi who was blinded by selfish desires.  It is always hard to tell good from evil.

     Anyway, Matsuchi’s persuasion worked.  Senso-ji Temple has been the most popular spot in Edo, and later in Tokyo.  Their descendants have enjoyed the benefits of the statue.  Until the pandemic of the novel coronavirus, though.  

     In 645, Priest Shokai built a small hermitage for the Arya Avalokitesvara statue, and Taira Kinmasa, the then governor of Musashi Province, made it a real temple.

     Taira Kinmasa was one of the 8 samurais who defeated Taira Masakado in 940.  Soon, he was appointed as the governor of Awa Province, and later as that of Musashi Province in 942.

     The Azuma Kagami, which was compiled after 1266 under the directive of the Hojo Clan, and which was a record in diary form of events occurring in Japan at the beginning of the Kamakura Shogunate, recorded that 50 monks were living and training in the temple in 1251.

     However, Fujiwara Seika (1561-1619), a famous Confucian at the beginning of the Tokugawa Shogunate, reputed that, due to the battles and disorders during the Warring States Period, many of the temple buildings were half collapsing and the fences were partially broken, when Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616) moved to Edo.

     Even the Arya Avalokitesvara statue has experienced ups and downs.

Address: 2 Chome-3-1 Asakusa, Taito City, Tokyo 111-0032Phone: 03-3842-0181

Virtual Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage

Under the reign of the Tokugawa Clan, the capital city, Edo, flourished, and so did various pilgrimages. In Edo alone, there used to be 20 copies of Saigoku 33 Kannon Pilgrimage.  Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage was organized in 1668. Based on it, New Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage was reorganized in 1976, as many member temples had been abolished after the Meiji Restoration.  New Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage even includes #3 Dai-Kannon-ji and #5 Dai-Anraku-ji Temples, which were both established after the Meiji Restoration.

All things must pass; all worldly things are impermanent. (Kamo Chomei)

Yokohama City 33 Kannon Pilgrimage and Next

I went on Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage in Kobe.  In the midst of the actual pilgrimage, novel corona virus caused the pandemic, and forced me to visit other 33 Kannon pilgrimages virtually.  I have just virtually walked up Yokohama City 33 Kannon Pilgrimage, the 4th virtual Kannon pilgrimage in my life.  As the 33 temples spread around the Yokohama Port, the pilgrimage let me see medieval pirates and as such.  Next?  Presumably Edo.  I mean not Tokyo but Edo.  The virtuality will enable me to visit even abolished temples.

Virtual Yokohama City 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #33 Gumyo-ji Temple

     Gumyo-ji Temple was founded in 1044, but the precincts had had its prehistory. 

     Emperor Hirokunioshitakekanahi (466-536) established Inukahi Be (dog breeder families) and added 41 Imperial manors during his reign.  How?

     In 534, Kasahara Omi and his cousin, Kasahara Oki, competing for the hegemony in Musashi Province.  Omi was afraid that Oki would kill him, with help from Oguma in Kozuke Province.  Omi flew to the central capital, and asked the central government for help.  The government destroyed Oki.  Omi offered 4 manors including the one in Kuraki County, Musashi Province.  The emperor must have been good at maneuvering local powerful families into conflicts.  And it was far before the days when Imperial armies were equipped with horses which were raised by those who came from the Korean Peninsula and by those who were transferred from the northern part of Japan.

     In 720, Subhakarasimha (637-735) visited Kuraki Imperial Manor in Kuraki County, Musashi Province.  Who is he?

He was born in India as the oldest son of Buddhakara.  He ascended to the throne as king when he was thirteen years old.  He, however, turned over his position to his brother and entered the monastic life.  He  settled in Nalanda, where he met the master Dharmagupta.  After several years, Subhakarasimha was told by Dharmagupta to go further east to China to teach Buddhism.

     When Subhakarasimha arrived in China, he was already eighty years old.  Upon his arrival, he became favored by Emperor Xuanzong (685-762) of the Tang Dynasty.  In China, he translated several works of Esoteric Buddhism.  He is believed, in Japan, to have come further east to the country.  He first arrived at Hakata Port in Kyushu.  There he hitchhiked onto a big turtle, which later turned into a big stone.  In 717, he visited Tango Province and put up the statue of Sahasrabhuja, who has 1,000 arms.  In 718, he visited Ecchu and Yamato Provinces.  In 720, he visited Kuraki Imperial Manor and found a holy place.  He set 7 boundary stones to designate the sacred area.  Today, you can find them all together within the precincts of Gumyo-ji Temple, although they used to be distributed in and around the precincts.  One of the 7 was named Biryo, the hole which lies at the bottom of the ocean to supply sea water all the time.

     The 735–737 Japanese Smallpox Epidemic caused Gyoki to tour around Japan.  In 737, he built a hermitage in the sacred place set up by Sahasrabhuja, and carved the statue of Ekadasamukha, who has 11 faces.  As he chiseled once, he made 3 prayers.

     In 814, Kukai (774-835) visited the sacred place.

     On March 10, 1044, Priest Koe built a temple in the sacred place, and named it Gumyo-ji.  Scientifically, the main deity, the Ekadasamukha statue, was carved at the time, although it has been largely believed to be the one carved by Gyoki.

Address: 267 Gumyojicho, Minami Ward, Yokohama, Kanagawa 232-0067Phone: 045-711-1231

Virtual Yokohama City 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #32 Muryo-ji Temple

     Muryo-ji Temple was founded in 1209 by Priest Jogyo (1186-1231), the 3rd of the 4 sons of Minamoto Yoritomo (1147-1199), the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura Shogunate.  Why in 1209?  What happened in 1209 or before?

     The second shogun, Yoriie (1182-1204) was assassinated by the Hojo Clan.  Yoriie’s younger brother, Sanetomo (1192-1219), the 4th son of Yoritomo and the third shogun, got smallpox.  At the time, the case fatality risk was very high.  Hojo Tokimasa (1138-1215), a kind of a co-founder of the Kamakura Shogunate and the first regent of the shogunate government, was worried about or ready for Sanetomo’s death.  Sanetomo survived the disease, but, a decade later, was killed by Priest Kugyo (1200-1219), Yoriie’s son, who might have been trapped into the assassination by Tokimasa. 

     Jogyo survived as a priest.

     Jogyo was an illegitimate son of Yoritomo.  His mother was working as a maid in the shogunate residence, and won Yoritomo’s favor.  Yoritomo’s lawful wife, Hojo Masako (1157-1225), got furious.  Jogyo's mother escaped and gave birth to him in the house of Nagato Kageto, who was forced to retire later.  Jogyo left for Kyoto to become a priest in Ninna-ji Temple on May 19, 1192, 3 months before Masako gave birth to Sanetomo.  Yoritomo secretly visited Jogyo on the previous night and gave a sword to him.

     Legend has it that Hojo Tokimasa (1138-1215), the first regent of the Kamakura Shogunate, invited Jogyo to Kamakura to appoint him the 4th shogun.  Jogyo stayed at Makita, and Acalanatha appeared in his dream and said to him, “You are getting into Kamakura, but the Hojo Clan holds all the power there.  You will suffer a misfortune within ten days.  You had better avert the misfortune and walk toward bodhi.”  Jogyo clearly see the situation, gave up getting into Kamakura, and told Tokimasa his determination.  Tokimasa praised his devotion, built a temple, and put Acalanatha its main deity.

     Jogyo died in Mt. Koya at the age of 46 on February 22, 1231.  Rumor says that Jogyo committed suicide.  Why?

In 1230 and 1231, the Great Kanki Famine hit Japan.  On June 7, 1230, it snowed in Musashi Province.  On July 16, there was frost.  By the spring, 1231, people had eaten up food, and one third of people had died.  It was on one of those days that Jogyo died.  Did he kill himself, despairing of life?  In 1232, Hojo Yasutoki (1183-1242), the third regent of the Kamakura Shogunate, promulgated the Formulary of Adjudications, the legal code of the Kamakura shogunate, to stabilize the samurai society.  Did Yasutoki assassinated Jogyo, the only living heir of Yoritomo, on the process of stabilizing the samurai society?

     Acalanatha had given Jogyo blessings anyway.  Thanks to Acalanatha’s advice, he could live over a decade longer.

Address: 174 Maitacho, Minami Ward, Yokohama, Kanagawa 232-0043Phone: 045-731-1910

Virtual Yokohama City 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #31 Hosho-ji Temple

     Hosho-ji Temple accumulated its estates for nearly 3 centuries.

     On August 3, in the first year of Koo, or in 1389, Tairago Yukiari, the lord of the Tairago Manor, presented a piece of field in Ishikawa Village.  The usage of Koo as the imperial name of the year suggests that the The Tairago Family was supporting the Northern Imperial Court.  The family owned and ruled the manor from the Kamakura Period, through the period of the Northern and Southern Courts and the First half of the Muromachi Period, till sometime in the Warring States Period.

The records of the temple exceptionally survived the Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923 and the Bombing of Yokohama in 1945.

     On December 6, 1407, the Imperial Court gave Hosho-ji Temple another temple name Ho-Kongo-in.

     On September 3, 1416, the lord (who?) certified that the temple should own the field of Hikoshiro in Makita-cho as it had.

     On September 15, 1439, Priest Enchin transferred his fields to Acharya Tanshin.  On July 2, 1450, he presented 9 pieces of rice fields, some fields, and another piece of rice field in Negishi Village to Hoko-an Temple.

     On April, 26, 1442, some fields were presented to Yakushi-do Temple, which was managed by Hosho-ji Temple, by the lord of the manor.

     On September 2, 1456, Ninna-ji Temple offered a letter to promise Hosho-ji Temple to help as a branch temple. 

     On May 9, 1463, the field tax of Fujita Goro and Tairago Jiro was donated to Hosho-ji Temple permanently.  

     On August 30, 1466, the butler of the lord, Hori Masaie, presented some fields to the temple.

     On May 9, 1473, 1 hectare of field was transferred to Hosho-ji Temple.

On September 15, 1476, the local administrator of the lord, Kawachi Kaneyoshi, presented Hikokuro Hill to the temple.  In February, 1478, Ota Dokan authorized a kind of asylum to the temple.

   On June 3, 1545, Hojo Ujiyasu (1515-1571) exempted the temple from taxes.

     On May 3, 1556, the local administrator of the lord, Okazaki Masanaga, presented some fields to the temple.

     In April,1590, Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536-1598) authorized a kind of asylum to the temple.  In November, 1591, Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616) confirmed the ownership of the fields the temple had been presented for generations.

      On February 15, 1624, the Tokugawa Shogunate qualified the temple to supervise 51 branch temples.

     As Hosho-ji Temple accumulated its estates, the Tairago Family disappeared from history.  Were they swindled by the temple?  Or did they choose to live with the temple, giving up living and fighting as samurais?  Or was it just sheer coincidence?

Address: 1 Chome-68 Horinouchicho, Minami Ward, Yokohama, Kanagawa 232-0042Phone: 045-731-2548

Virtual Yokohama City 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #30 Guzei-in Temple

     Guzei-in Temple was founded by Ishikawa Tokuemon in 1536.  We have another Ishikawa Tokuemon (1804-1889), who was the 11th head of the Ishikawa Family in Yokohama.  300 years had passed.  The first Tokuemon could have been the first head of the family.

     The Convention of Kanagawa or Kanagawa Treaty was the first treaty between the United States and the Tokugawa shogunate.  The treaty was signed on March 31, 1854 in Yokohama.  Matthew Perry (1794–1858) signed as American plenipotentiary, and Hayashi Akira (1800–1859) signed for the Japanese side.

     On April 6, 1854, Perry dropped in on Tokuemon.  Tokuemon first showed his beloved pine tree and then led Perry and others to the drawing room.  First, Tokuemon’s wife, Katsu, and his sister, Nobu, served tea and sweets.  And then sake and grilled rice cakes were treated.

     The temple buildings collapsed on September 1, 1923, in the Great Kanto Earthquake.  On March 15, 1926, the main hall, which was designed by Ito Chuta (1867-1954), was rebuilt.  Chuta was a Japanese architect, whose doctoral thesis was on the architecture of Horyu-ji Temple.

Address: 2 Chome-221 Mutsumicho, Minami Ward, Yokohama, Kanagawa 232-0041Phone: 045-731-2825

Virtual Yokohama City 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #29 Gyokusen-ji Temple

     Gyokusen-ji Temple was founded by Priest Kuken (?-1582) in May, 1577, when the Later Hojo Clan was winning hegemony in the Kanto Region.  The clan was pressing an attack on the Satomi Clan in the Chiba Peninsula, who were forced to make peace in July, 1577.

     The temple buildings were burned down on September 1, 1923, in the Great Kanto Earthquake.  They were rebuilt, only to be burned down on May 29, 1945, in the Bombing of Yokohama during World War II.

     There used to be a Kannon-do Hall outside the precincts, but it was closed in 1868 and the statue of Ekadasamukha, who has 11 faces, was moved to the main hall of Gyokusen-ji Temple.  The statue was said to have been carve by Gyoki (668-749), but was reduced to ashes in the Great Kanto Earthquake.

Address: 1 Chome-6-1 Nakamuracho, Minami Ward, Yokohama, Kanagawa 232-0033Phone: 045-251-7298

Trees in the town.

Virtual Yokohama City 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #28 Saiyu-ji Temple

     Ota Jihei (1847-?) purchased acre of land to build a retreat for his mother.  He, instead, built a temple there as a branch temple of Mantoku-ji Temple.  In 1901, the temple was named Seiyu-ji.

     Hioki Mokusen (1847-1920) brought a glut bronze statue of the Gautama Buddha from Thailand to Saiyu-ji Temple on March 26, 1902.

     On December 28, 1903, Prince Vajiravudh of Thailand visited the temple, planted a pair of ginkgo trees, and presented a silver cigarette case to the temple.

     The priest of the temple was granted audiences with other members of the Thai Royal Family on May 5, 1906, and on September 20, 1908.  When King Rama VI performed his coronation ceremony on November 11, 1911, the priest visited Thailand.

     There used to be Dainichi-do Temple in Daimachi, Yokohama, which enshrined Avalokitesvara, which was brought to the temple in July, 1914.

Address: 96 Ohiracho, Naka Ward, Yokohama, Kanagawa 231-0859Phone: 045-661-0166 

Virtual Yokohama City 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #27 Tozen-ji Temple

     Tozen-ji Temple was founded by Priest Kengaku in 1187.  The Matsuno Family, the lord of the manor in Amanuma, Kuraki County, Musashi Province, presented the temple building.

     Ama means the heaven and numa means a pond, and Amanuma had a good spring water.  In 1870, William Copeland (1834–1902), a Norwegian-American brewer, established the Spring Valley Brewery here.  The brewery was one of Japan's first beer breweries, and it became the Kirin Brewery Company in 1907.

Address: 101 Ohiracho, Naka Ward, Yokohama, Kanagawa 231-0859Phone: 045-641-4973