Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #1 Chofuku-ji Temple

     Chofuku-ji Temple was founded by Priest Tokuren in the latter half of the 10th century.  It belonged to the Tiantai School.

     In the Kamakura Period (1186−1333), the Natsumi Manor was developed and its territory steward samurai was appointed by the Kamakura Shogunate.  The steward samurai family called themselves Natsumi.

     Chofuku-ji Temple declined and Natsumi Masayoshi built Natsumi Castle in its precincts in the middle of the 16th century.  He also revived the temple by inviting Priest Kuzan.

     However, Matsumi Castle fell in 1568.  It was not recorded in the temple history who seized the castle.

In 1538, the Oyumi and Koga Kanto Deputy Shoguns clashed against each other in Konodai, Shimousa Province. The Oyumi Kanto Deputy Shogun, Ashikaga Yoshiaki (?-1538), was killed in battle, and Koga’s side won.

     Yoshiaki's first son, Yoshizumi (?-1538), was also killed in battle, and Yoshiaki's younger children fled to Awa Province, counting on the protection of Satomi Yoshitaka (1507-1574).  It was during those days that Yoshiaki’s first daughter and Yoshitaka’s first son, Yoshihiro (1530-1578), met.  Later, however, Yoshiaki's second and third sons were sent to Sekido-ji Temple in Kazusa Province and his 3 daughters were sent to Taihei-ji Temple in Kamakura.  They became under the patronage, or the supervision, of the Later Hojo Clan, who proved their superiority in the Battle of Konodai.

     At the age of 8 or 9, Satomi Yoshihiro was determined.

     After coming of age, Yoshihiro kept fighting fiercely and aggressively against the Later Hojo Clan.  He continued fighting for some 18 years. Finally, in 1556, he succeeded in intruding into Kamakura temporarily.

     Ashikaga Yoshiaki’s first daughter, who was Nun Shogaku (?-1576?) at the time, had been determined too.  With her noble bloodline as a young lady of the Ashikaga Shogunate Clan, she could have been married to a son of a powerful family as her younger sister did.  The younger sister got married to Uesugi Norihiro (?-1551), the Butler or Regent of the Kanto Deputy Shogun.  Instead, Shogaku became a nun at Taihei-ji Temple. 

     When they saw each other after nearly 2 decades, Yoshihiro was 26 years old, and Shogaku might have been older than him.  Yoshihiro asked Shogaku to come back to Awa Province, and she accepted his proposal.  Hojo Ujiyasu (1515-1571), the then head of the Later Hojo Clan, criticized their attempt as “incomprehensible” but all he could do was destroy Taihei-ji Temple to let off his steam.

     Yoshihiro married her as his lawful wife and continued fighting against the Later Hojo Clan.  In 1567, Yoshihiro defeated the Later Hojo Clan in Mt. Mifune, Kazusa Province.  The Awa Naval Forces also drove out the naval forces of the Later Hojo Clan back to Sagami Province.  After the battle, Yoshihiro continued to invade Shimousa Province.  Natsumi Castle might have been seized by some of Yoshihiro’s vassals at the time.

     At the beginning of the Edo Period, Priest Yogei converted the temple to the Soto Chan School.  The temple was officially approved by the Tokugawa Shogunate in 1649.

     Tokugawa Iemitsu (1604-1651), the third shogun of the Tokugawa Shogunate, dissolved many clans to strengthen the power of the shogunate.  This increased the number of masterless and jobless samurai and destabilized society.  To re-stabilize the society, he strengthened the danka system.  Every citizen was supposed to belong to a Buddhist temple.  It was an opportunity for Buddhist sects and schools to expand their networks.  Yogei and the Soto Chan School might have taken full advantage of the opportunity.

     The Tokugawa Shoguns visited Natsumi Village to perform falconry for generations. Their vassals and foot soldiers put up with villagers, who used to have platters to serve meals. Even today, some villagers still keep those platters.

     The temple buildings burned down in battle at the end of the Tokugawa Shogunate and its priest could only evacuate its statue of Arya Avalokitesvara, who is the human-figure prototype of the other 6 metamorphoses, and its death register.

Address: 6 Chome-23-3 Natsumi, Funabashi, Chiba 273-0865

Phone: 047-423-5361