Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage (revised)

 

     It is unknown when and by whom the Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage was organized.  Its member temples are concentrated in the northwestern half of the province.  Did its organizers take into consideration accessibility from Edo?  In the Edo Period, especially around Edo, Kannon Pilgrimages were micro-tourism.

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 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 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 practice 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

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #2 Tofuku-ji Temple

     In 814, when Kukai was 41 years old, he visited the area and encountered a dragon, which said, “I’ve guarded the mountain for Bhaisajyaguru, as surrounding fields are dedicated for Bhaisajyaguru.  I beg you to carve a Bhaisajyaguru statue.”  The dragon gave Kukai some holy wood.  When Kukai carved the wood into a Bhaisajyaguru statue, he made 3 bows as he chiseled once.  Kukai built a hall to enshrine the statue.  It is unknown whether the hall was named Tofuku-ji by Kukai or by someone else later.

     Tawara Tota (891-958) was an official of the Shimotsuke Provincial Government.  He was supposedly from Tawara Village, Kawachi County, Shimotsuke Province.  The county lay in the upper reaches of the Kinu River.

     Taira Yoshimasa left Kyoto for the Kanto Region in 898.  He settled in Toyoda County, Shimousa Province.  The county lay in the east bank of the midstream of the Kinu River, which ran east to the Pacific, and which used to be one of the important inland waterways in the Kanto Region.  He developed private rice fields in Shimousa Province.  Yoshimasa's 4th son, Masakado (?-940), was based in Sashima County in the same province.  The county lay in the estuary of the Kinu River along the Katori Sea.

     Toda and Masakado were potentially in rivalry over the water supply of and transportation in the Kinu River.

     In 939, Taira Masakado tried to establish an independent country in the Kanto Region.  Toda prayed to the Bhaisajyaguru statue and successfully suppressed Masakado’s revolt, and was promoted to be the governor of Shimotsuke and Musashi Provinces.   The Bhaisajyaguru statue, at the age of 126, brilliantly answered Toda's prayer.

Address: 1033 Hiregasaki, Nagareyama, Chiba 270-0161

Phone: 04-7158-0021

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #3 Shunzan-ji Temple

     Shunzan-ji Temple was founded sometime between 1532 and 1555.

     The Kyotoku War lasted for 28 years from 1454 to 1482.  During the war, Ashikaga Shigeuji (1438-1497), the 5th Kanto Deputy Shogun, relinquished Kamakura and moved to Koga Castle in Shimousa Province in 1457.  In 1458, the Muromachi Shogunate in Kyoto sent out another deputy shogun, Ashikaga Masatomo (1435-1491), from Kyoto to Kamakura, but he couldn’t enter Kamakura and stayed in Horikoshi, Izu Province.  From then on, there was a Koga Kanto Deputy Shogun and a Horikoshi Kanto Deputy Shogun in the Kanto Region.

     Shigeuji, the 1st Koga Kanto Deputy Shogun, was succeeded by Masauji (1462-1531) as the 2nd Koga Kanto Deputy Shogun.  Masauji may have been a poor father, and he fought with his 1st son, Takamoto (1485-1535), and was forced to abdicate in 1512 by him.  In 1518, Masauji’s 2nd son, Yoshiaki (?-1538), separated from Masauji and Takamoto, called himself a Kanto Deputy Shogun, and based himself in Oyumi Castle in Shimousa Province.

     The family breakdown was not just caused by the lack of love, but also had its own geopolitical reasons.

     The Kanto Region used to be combined with inland waterways.  The waterways were composed of 2 inland seas, Edo Bay and the Katori Sea, and 2 river systems, the Edo and Kinu River Systems.

     Koga Castle was located at the transport hub between Edo and Kinu River Systems, and Oyumi Castle was located at the end of Edo Bay.

     The 3 were struggling for supremacy in water transportation in the Kanto Region.

     In 1524, the Later Hojo Clan occupied Edo Castle, which was located at the western coast of Edo Bay, and entered the struggle over water transportation supremacy in the region.

     Shunzan-ji Temple was founded along Edo River when the tension was rising.

     In 1538, Yoshiaki was killed in battle against the Later Hojo Clan.  His daughters once flew to Awa Province, but were captured by the Later Hojo Clan, and confined in Kamakura.  18 years later, the eldest made her spectacular getaway from Kamakura to Awa Province to realize her childhood romance with Satomi Yoshihiro (1530-1578), the lord of Awa Province, paying no attention to the struggles for the Kanto Region hegemony.  No wonder Hojo Ujiyasu (1515-1571), the then head of the Later Hojo Clan, regarded her attempt as “incomprehensible.” 

Address: 1 Chome-398 Nonoshita, Nagareyama, Chiba 270-0135

Phone: 04-7158-2810

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #4 Senju-in Temple

     In the first half of the 8th century, Kasuga carved a thousand-armed Sahasrabhuja statue, enshrined it at the foot of a hill in Inba County, Shimousa Province, and founded Rengeo-in Temple.

     Kasuga was a legendary Buddhist sculptor, and was said to have worked in Kawachi Province.  Legend has it that he carved Buddhist images and statues day and night.  One day, the villagers noticed him carving something other than Buddhist images.  It was a big crane statue.  Next morning, the villagers found no one in his house, except a big bird flying to the east in the morning glow, with something or someone on its back.

     Presumably, Kasuga carved the thousand-armed Sahasrabhuja statue after he flew to the Kanto Region on his man-made crane.

     Usui Manor was founded in the 10th century.  The manor included Ishigami Village.  The lords of the manor called themselves the Usui Family.

     When Takaatsu was the head of the family at the end of the 14th century, from 1380 to 1397, Oyama Yoshimasa (?-1382) and his son, Takamasa (?-1397), fought against Ashikaga Ujimitsu (1359-1398), the 2nd Kanto Deputy Shogun.  As the war was fought along the border between Shimotsuke and Shimousa Provinces, Priest Choshu of Rengeo-in Temple was afraid of being engulfed in battle, and asked Takatane to move the temple to the top of the hill, where Inano Castle was located, in 1392.  Choshu renamed the temple Senju-in.

     The 29th head of the Usui Family, Okitane (1958-), is the COO of McDonald's Company (Japan), Ltd.

Address: 152 Ino, Sakura, Chiba 285-0855

Phone: 043-487-2803

    

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #5 Entoku-ji Temple

     It is unknown when Entoku-ji Temple was founded, and it was abolished on November 22nd, 1872.  Its main building is used as the Shibasaki Community Center and its graveyard, which is located next to the center, still seems to be in use.

Address: 433 Shibasaki, Nagareyama, Chiba 270-0146

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #6 Fukuju-in Temple

     Nothing is known about Fukuju-in Temple.  However, its surrounding area has 114 ancient mounds, which were supposed to have been built between the 6th and 7th centuries.  The largest one, the Iwaya Mound, is located in Kamifukuda, and is the largest in Japan among those built in the 7th century, when mound building had already stopped where the central government was located.  Those mounds around Kamifukuda were supposed to have been built by heads of the powerful families who ruled the area between Lake Inba-numa and the Ancient Katori Sea.  They included Itsukori, Morosumi, Taketatehiko, Oshiiwa, Ukizu, Kaguhi, Kaseo, and Hirosuki.  Their blood relationship was unknown.  At first, they built mounds on the hillside which faces Lake Inba-numa, and then they started building their mounds on the hill side facing the Katori Sea.  They became extroverts.  In the first half of the 7th century, they built Ryukaku-ji Temple .  They followed what the central government did.  The area around Fukuju-in Temple was a holy place since prehistoric times, but the holiness meant for the local ruling people might have not been the same for ordinary people.

     Kaseo's son, Mukohe, was recorded to have become a governor of Inba County.  When Ushikai was the governor of Inba County, he presented military provisions to Emperor Kanmu (737-806) in 781 to support the central government's aggression on the Tohoku Region.  Aided by local supporters, the emperor invaded the Tohoku Region three times.  The first invasion in 789 led by Ki Kosami (733-797) was crushed by the northern peoples.  The second invasion in 794 led by Otomo Otomaro (731-809) was not bad, thanks to his deputy, Sakanoue Tamuramaro (758-811).  The third invasion from 801 to 802 led by Tamuramaro was a victory.  He brought back to Kyoto 500 captives including their 2 leaders, Aterui and More, who were both beheaded on August 13th, 802.

     On the southern coast of the Katori Sea, there stood Katori Shrine.  Katori Shrine used to be the gateway to the Kanto Plain, and governed the water transportation around the Katori Sea.  Hasetsukabe Atahiohohiro of Inba County, Shimousa Province, depicted the Katori Sea in a tanka poem which was included in the Ten Thousand Leaves, the oldest collection of Japanese poetry:

A wave suddenly washed over a bow. The draft unexpectedly fell over me.

     After the poem, he had to go far away to Kyushu as a “sakimori” to defend Japan.

     The Katori Sea has been named as such by today’s historians.  It used to be called “Uchi-umi” (literally: Inland Sea), “Nagare-umi” (Flowing Sea), or “Nasaka-umi” (Reverse-waving Sea).  The Kinu River ran into the sea along with other smaller rivers such as the Kobai and Hitachi Rivers.

     The Katori Sea was largest about 10 thousand years ago.  More than 80 dugout canoes have been excavated in the Kaiso area alone, which bordered the south of Katori County.  The number 80 corresponds to about 40% of all canoes excavated in Japan.  The area around Katori Sea still has more than 100 place names which have either “fune”, “funa” (boat), or “tsu” (port) in their names.

     Katori Shrine ruled 24 ports in Shimousa Province, and 53 ports in Hitachi Province.  Pieces of medieval documents suggest that the shrine governed the sea peoples there such as fishermen and sailors, and even put up some river checkpoints along the rivers which ran in the Kanto Plain. The shrine had even sea checkpoints as far as today's Katsushika in Tokyo Prefecture and Gyotoku in Chiba Prefecture, both at the end of the Edo Bay.  Those checkpoints collected tolls and taxes, which, in Western Japan, pirates along the Seto Inland Sea did.  It is unknown when Katori Shrine was founded but it had built up the network of its branch shrines in the Kanto Region by the beginning of the 8th century.  Building the deprivation system in the Kanto Region, the local powerful families were making eyes at the Tohoku Region.

     On January 11th, 802, the central government ordered 4000 young people from Suruga, Sagami, Kai, Musashi, Kazusa, Shimousa, Hitachi, Shinano, Kozuke, and Shimotsuke Provinces to emigrate to the Tohoku Region as farmer-soldiers.  They might have moved north with their eyes glaring on colonial profit.

Address: 9 Kamifukuda, Narita, Chiba 286-0842

They sent 4000 young men from the Kanto Region to the Tohoku Region.  That could bring about significant imbalances in the proportion of young women and men in the 2 regions.  How did they bring back the equilibrium?

Virtual Kozukue 33 Kannon Pilgrimage in Yokohama #29 Jigan-ji Temple

     It is unknown when Kannon-in Temple was founded.  Its main deity was an 11-faced Ekadasamukha statue.  They built another hall in the precincts as a main hall with the statue of Acalanatha enshrined as the new main deity.  The temple also changed its name to Jigan-ji.  It is unknown when they converted it, let alone why they did.

     Legend has it that the Ekadasamukha statue was carved by Gyoki (668-749) out of the same wood as the thousand-armed Sahasrabhuja statue in Kiyomizu-dera Temple in Kyoto.

     In 778, Priest Kenshin, who was training in Kojima-dera Temple in Nara, got an inspiration in his dream, and visited Mt. Otowa in Kyoto.  He found Priest Gyoei standing under a waterfall and reciting the mantra for Sahasrabhuja.  Gyoei said to Kenshin, “I’ve been waiting for you to come for years.  I’m leaving for the eastern provinces, so please cover for me.”  Kenshin carved a Sahasrabhuja statue out of the divine timber Gyoei left, and put it in an old hermitage Gyoei had lived in.  The hermitage was the start of Kiyomizu-dera Temple.

     Let’s try to make the story more coherent.

Gyoki might have found a divine tree in Mt. Otowa, and could have carved an Ekadasamukha statue out of it, with some timber left.  Gyoei went to Terayama Village, Tsuzuki County, Musashi Province, with the Ekadasamukha statue, put it in a hermitage, which was later called Kannon-in.  Kenshin carved a Sahasrabhuja statue out of the divine timber Gyoki left.  Then, why did Gyoei recite the mantra for Sahasrabhuja?

     Gyoki might have found a divine tree in Mt. Otowa, and could have carved a Sahasrabhuja statue out of it, with some timber left.  Gyoei went to Terayama Village, Tsuzuki County, Musashi Province, with the leftover timber, carved an Ekadasamukha statue out of it there, and put it in a hermitage, which was later called Kannon-in.  And Kenshin carved a Sahasrabhuja statue out of another piece of the divine timber Gyoki left.  Then, there should be 2 Sahasrabhuja statues in Kiyomizu-dera Temple.

     I’m at the limit of my imagination.

     Then, why did they convert the temple?  Some Kozukue-33-Kannon-Pilgrimage member temples used to be hermitages to confine someone.  The villagers around the temples converted the hermitages into temples by inviting new priests.  Jigan-ji Temple might have taken the same course.

     Then who was confined in the hermitage?

     In 780, Sakanoue Tamuramaro (758-811) was chasing a deer in Mt. Otowa, and met Kenshin, who was training.  In 791, Tamuramaro was dispatched to the eastern provinces to prepare for the war against the natives in the northeastern part of Honshu.  In 794, he invaded the region, with the military successes of beheading 457 men and taking 150 captive.  During the war, he recognized Vaisravana and Ksitigarbha as effective.  It is unknown where he met the two.  In or around the capital?  In the eastern provinces on his way to the northeastern region?  For example, in Musashi Province?  Or in the northeastern region itself?

     In 798, he built Kiyomizu-dera Temple for the Sahasrabhuja statue, put the statues of Vaisravana and Ksitigarbha on sides, and invited Kenshin as the priest.  The two deities on sides of the main deity were supposed to guard the main deity.  In 801, he invaded the northeastern region again.  When Tamuramaro brought back two enemy chiefs, Aterui and More, to the capital in 802, the two were killed against Tamuramaro’s intention to have them keep working as chiefs in the northeastern region of the unified country.  He was given a priest, probably to pray for the war dead on both sides.  The death of the two was very effective.  It satisfied the central government.  And yet it didn’t bring about reprisals.  The two died as if to guard something or somebody else. 

     It might have been Tamuramaro who brought wood from Mt. Otowa, had a statue carved, and left someone confined in Terayama Village.  Or that somebody could have stayed there willingly to pray for the dead.

     The temple name Jigan literally means loving eyes.  What did the eyes actually see with love?

Address: 228 Terayamacho, Midori Ward, Yokohama, Kanagawa 226-0013

Phone: 045-931-1553

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #7 Toko-in Temple

     It is unknown when and by whom Toko-in Temple was founded.  Its main deity is the statue of Arya Avalokitesvara, who is the human-figure prototype of the other 6 metamorphoses.  The temple also has a Ksitigarbha statue, which was carved in 1571 by a Buddhist sculptor from Satsuma, Katsushika County, Shimousa Province.  Satsuma  was located on heights along the Otsu River between the Edo River and the Katori Sea, and was ruled by the Soma Family.  The river ran into Lake Tega-numa.

     When the Ksitigarbha statue was carved, Harutane (1541-1602) was the head of the Soma Family.  He first fought against the Later Hojo Clan, surrendered to the clan, and fought for the clan, which was destroyed by Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536-1598).  He seemed to be poor at maneuvering in the Warring States Period.  His son, Hidetane (?-1597), wasn’t.  He didn’t go to Odawara Castle to fight for the Later Hojo Clan, had secret communication with Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616), and was hired by Ieyasu later.  Harutane wasn’t killed in battle but wasn’t accepted by Hidetane.  Harutane wandered around and died while staying in Edo.

Address: 545 Nauchi, Shiroi, Chiba 270-1407

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #8 Kofuku-in Temple

     In the 800's, Tega Temple was founded under the centralized government on the heights commanding the Tega Bay of the Katori Sea.  In 820, an eleven-faced Ekadasamukha statue which was carved by Kukai (774-835) was brought to the temple, and the temple was renamed Muyaku-in on the occasion.

     On August 10th, 1263, Priest Choson (?-1304) came from Hitachi Province, revived the temple, and renamed it Kofuku-in.  The 2nd priest was Ryokai (?-1395) and the 3rd was Shuden (?-1480), so there might have been priest-less intervals between the 1st, the 2nd, and the 3rd priests.  After the 3rd, the temple was succeeded by priests continuously.

     In 1579, when Hara Tanechika (1539-1588), the lord of Tega Castle, attacked Chiba Kunitane (1557-1585), he prayed to Kofuku-in for a victory and overwhelmed Kunitane.  Tenechika presented the temple with some fields and treasures.  However, in 1590, when Toyotomi Hideyoshi invaded the Kanto Region, Tega Castle fell and Kofuku-in Temple burned down.

     Later, Priest Choun (?-1626) moved the temple to the site of Tega Castle and revived it.

     Today, the temple enshrines an eleven-faced Ekadasamukha statue which was carved by Unkei (1150-1223).  It is unknown when the new one replaced the old one.

Address: 712 Tega, Kashiwa, Chiba 270-1465

    

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #9 Tozen-ji Temple

     Tozen-ji Temple was founded in Negiuchi in 1481 by Priest Gutei.  At the time, Takagi Tanesada (?-1546) was the lord of Negiuchi Castle.

     Gutei was born a samurai's son in Seba Village, Chikuma County, Shinano Province.  5 generations before, his family fought for Minamoto Yoshinaka (1154-1184).  When Yoshinaka was defeated, their family temple, Saiko-ji, was burned down.  Gutei revived the temple and renamed it Tozen-ji, which is still in Seba, Shiojiri City, Nagano Prefecture.

     At the beginning of the 1460's, Gutei suddenly moved to Washinoya in Shimousa Village.  It is unknown why he moved.  Washinoya had a hermitage with a Bhaisajyaguru statue at the foot of Washinoya Castle.  He revived the hermitage and named it Io-ji (Address: 510 Washinoya, Kashiwa, Chiba 270-1443).  The castle commanded the northern half of Lake Tega-numa, and was owned by the Someya Family, who were subject to the Takagi Family.  Presumably, the Someya Family recommended Gutei to the Takagi Family.

Tanesada's son, Taneyoshi (1501-1565), moved his base from Negiuchi Castle to Kogane Castle, which commanded the Edo, Naka, and Ara Rivers.  Taneyoshi controlled the inland waterway between Edo Bay and the northern part of the Kanto Region.

     Taneyoshi also moved Tozen-ji Temple to the new castle town.  When Uesugi Terutora (1530-1578) invaded the Kanto Region, Teneyoshi successfully held Kogane Castle.  He also owned Gyotoku Saltern, the largest saltworks in the Kanto Region.

Address: 359 Kogane, Matsudo, Chiba 270-0014

Phone: 047-345-1517

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #10 Choyo-ji Temple

     Choyo-ji Temple was founded in the latter half of the 14th century, when Ashikaga Ujimitsu (1359-1398) was the 2nd Kanto Deputy Shogun.

     In the 1370’s, the Kanto Deputy Shogun and the Regent of the Kanto Deputy Shogunate were still working together.  Uesugi Noriharu (?-1379), the then regent, worked and fought for Ashikaga Motouji (1340-1367), the first Kanto Deputy Shogun, and for Ujimitsu (1359-1398), the second Kanto Deputy Shogun.

     However, in 1379, infighting within the central shogunate broke out.  Ujimitsu had ambitions to become a central shogun and tried to advance to Kyoto.  Noriharu tried to persuade him not to, and finally killed himself to stop him on March 7th.  Ujimitsu still appointed Noriharu's brother, Norimasa (1335-1394), as the general of the Kanto Deputy Shogunate Army on March 21st.  Norimasa left Kamakura but stopped in Izu Province.  Ujimitsu finally gave up his ambitions for the time being.  Norimasa became the next Regent on April 15th, and returned to Kamakura on the 28th of the same month.  The relationship between the shogun and the regent became delicate.  Choyo-ji Temple was founded in those delicate days.

Address: 1 Chome-56 Kode, Matsudo, Chiba 270-0001

Phone: 047-344-8050

    

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #11 Seiryu-in Temple

     It is unknown when Seiryu-in Temple was founded.  The precincts have graves of the Watanuki Family, who managed the Kogane Stock Farms for the Tokugawa Shogunate.  The farms raised horses for military use.  They caught half-wild horses, chose good ones, and sent them to Edo.

     The history of the stock farms dates back to the turn of the 8th century.

     Just to the north of Shimousa Province, there used to lie an inlet of a big inland sea, the Katori Sea.  On the peninsula between the Katori Sea and the Pacific Ocean, there stood Kashima Shrine.  On the southern coast of the Katori Sea, there stood Katori Shrine.

  Kashima Shrine was officially considered and actually worked as the gateway to invade the Pacific side of the northeastern part of Japan, which was later called Mutsu Province.  The area was not uninhabited at all and they had to subdue and rule the Emishi, who were not subject to the Imperial central government yet.  Stock farms in Shimousa Province provided military horses for the Imperial Army dispatched to the north.

     The farms were closed in 1869 by the Meiji Restoration Government to develop them as rice fields. 

Address: 1024 Nazukari, Nagareyama, Chiba 270-0145

Phone: 04-7144-7904

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #12 Koju-ji Temple

     Koju-ji Temple was founded in 1562 by Takagi Tanetoki (1537-1583). 

     The Takagi Family was subject to the Hara Family, and the Hara Family was subject to the Chiba Family, who ruled Shimousa Province.

     First of all, who was the Chiba Family?

     Taira Yoshifumi (886-952) was born in Kyoto.  In 923, he was dispatched to Sagami Province by Emperor Daigo (885-930) to suppress bandits. Later, he moved to Muraoka, Kumagaya County, Musashi Province.  He also lived in Muraoka, Kamakura County, Sagami Province and Muraoka, Yuki County, Shimousa Province.  Why do we have so many Muraokas?  Maybe, he named Muraoka where he lived.  Tradition says that Yoshifumi's grandson, Tsunemasa (1010-1076),  married a celestial nymph who gave birth to Tsunenaga (1024-1108), whose grandson, Tsuneshige (1083-1180), started calling his family Chiba.  All in all, the Chiba Family was a distinguished local samurai family.

     Then who was the Hara Family?

     Chiba Tsunenaga’s 4th son, Yoritsune, lived in Hara, Chida Manor, Katori County, Shimousa Province, and called his family Hara.  All in all, the Hara Family was a branch family of a distinguished local samurai family.

     On August 12th, 1455, Hara Tanefusa (?-1471) attacked Chiba Castle and killed Chiba Tanenobu (1445-1455), the 18th head of the family.  On the 15th, Tanefusa killed Chiba Tanenao (1419-1455).  On September 7th, Tanefusa killed Chiba Tanetaka (?-1455), and exterminated most of the Chiba Family.

     What Tenefusa did was commonly known as that of an inferior overpowered superiors.

     The origin of the Takagi Family is unknown.  That means they were ordinary locals.

     Takagi Taneyoshi (1501-1565) moved his base from Negiuchi Castle to Kogane Castle, which commanded the Edo, Naka, and Ara Rivers.  Accordingly, Taneyoshi controlled the inland waterway between Edo Bay and the northern part of the Kanto Region.  When Uesugi Terutora (1530-1578) invaded the Kanto Region, Teneyoshi successfully held Kogane Castle.

     Taneyshi also controlled Gyotoku Saltern, the largest saltworks in the Kanto Region.  

     Teneyoshi didn’t have to overthrow superiors.  Both the Chiba and Hara Families disintegrated and finally collapsed under the Later Hojo Clan.  What Taneyoshi did was to rule, govern, and manage an area as a whole.  Only those who could do so survived the Warring States Period.   

Address: 980 Nazukari, Nagareyama, Chiba 270-0145

Phone: 04-7144-6341

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #13 Nyoi-ji Temple

     Nyoi-ji Temple was founded in Minowa in 1161.

     Minamoto Yoshitomo (1123-1160), the most powerful leader of the samurai in the Kanto Region, was defeated by the Taira Clan in the Heiji Disturbance in 1160.  On his way to flee to the Kanto Region, he was killed in Noma, Chita County, Owari Province.  The founder of Nyoi-ji Temple might have wanted to pray for the comfort of the late Minamoto Yoshitomo in the other world.  In this world, Yoshitomo's 3rd son, Yoritomo (1147-1199), was captured in Omi Province and was exiled to Izu Province.  When Yoritomo raised his army against the Taira Clan in 1180, samurai in Shimousa Province supported him.

     Minowa Castle was built, and was owned by the Takagi Family as one of their branch castles at the end of the Warring States Period .  Their main castle, Kogane Castle, commanded the Edo River, and Minowa Castle commanded Lake Tega-numa.  Minowa Castle seems to have been garrisoned by the Bonoyama Family, who were subject to the Takagi Family.  The Takagi Family had command of the inland water transportation in the southern part of the Kanto Region.

     Nyoi-ji Temple was revived by Priest Ho'nyo in 1620.

     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 restabilize society, he strengthened the danka system.  Every citizen was supposed to belong to a Buddhist temple.  Ho'nyo took full advantage of the business opportunity.

Address: 62 Minowa, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-0912

    

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #14Fukumitsu-ji Temple

     Fukumitsu-ji Temple was believed to be founded by Priest Sonkei sometime in the reign (781-806) of Emperor Giiyateri (737-806).  Its oldest record dates back to November 8th, 844.  The temple is located in the valley in the south of Lake Tega-numa.  The lake used to be a bay of the Katori Sea, and at the eastern entrance of the sea, Katori Shrine was located.

  Just to the north of Shimousa Province, there used to lie an inlet of a big inland sea, the Katori Sea.  On the peninsula between Katori Sea and the Pacific Ocean, there stood Kashima Shrine.  On the southern coast of the Katori Sea, there stood Katori Shrine.

  Kashima Shrine was officially considered and actually worked as the gateway to invade the Tohoku Region, the northeastern part of Honshu, which was later called Mutsu Province, or to subdue and rule Emishi, who were not subject to the imperial central government.

  Katori Shrine used to be the gateway to the Kanto Plain, and governed the water transportation on Katori Sea.  Pieces of medieval documents suggest that the shrine even put up some checkpoints along the rivers and collected tolls and taxes, which, in Western Japan, pirates along the Seto Inland Sea did.  That is, Katori Shrine used to be a semi-governmental pirate.  It has always been difficult to draw the line between state-run navies and private pirates.

     Emperor Giiyateri dispatched Sakanoue Tamuramaro (758-811) to the north to subdue the Emishi there, and was very aggressive in managing the northern territories.  The foundation of Fukumitsu-ji Temple might have been a process of expanding military and religious support of his northern colonialism.

     The precincts have many itabi.  The oldest itabi is dated November, 1310.  Almost one year later, on October 26th, 1311, Hojo Sadatoki (1272-1311), the 8th Regent of the Kamakura Shogunate, died.  His son, Takatoki (1304-1333), became the last Regent of the Kamakura Shogunate.  On May 7th, 1333, Ashikaga Takauji (1305-1358) went over to Emperor Go-Daigo and captured the Kyoto Office of the Kamakura Shogunate.  On the 8th in the same month, Nitta Yoshisada (1301-1338) took up arms in Kozuke Province and advanced to Kamakura.  His army reached Kamakura on May 18th, and broke into the samurai capital on the 22nd.  Takatoki retreated to Tosho-ji Temple and killed himself in a cave there.

     There are newer itabi in the precincts, so the descendants of the samurai who was buried under the 1310-dated itabi might have survived the upheaval of the Northern and Southern Courts Period.

     The temple enshrines a statue of Arya Avalokitesvara, who is the human-figure prototype of the other 6 metamorphoses, which was believed to have been carved by Prince Shotoku (574-622), and which was a personal guardian Buddhist image of Sakamaki Wakasanokami, who was one of the Seven Samurai of Taira Masakado (?-940) along with Ishihara, Ishido, Yoshino, Tomise, Kuji, and Zama, and who was said to be Masakado’s double or stand-in.

     Sakamaki used to enshrine the statue in his residence at Okke, Oi, Soma County, Shimousa Province.  After his death, the statue was moved to the eastern height of Fukumitsu-ji Temple, and, in the Edo Period, it was moved to its present place in a hollow along the valley.

Address: 1708 Oi, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-0902

Phone: 04-7191-1469

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #15 Jogyo-in Temple

     Jogyo-in Temple was founded in 1502 by Priest Gutei of Tozen-ji Temple as a retreat.  Since then, the temple has been used on and off as a retreat.  When no retired priest lived in it, neighborhood villagers took care of the building.

     Tozen-ji Temple was founded in Negiuchi in 1481 by Priest Gutei.  At the time, Takagi Tanesada (?-1546) was the lord of Negiuchi Castle.

     Gutei was born a samurai's son in Seba Village, Chikuma County, Shinano Province.  5 generations before, his family fought for Minamoto Yoshinaka (1154-1184).  When Yoshinaka was defeated, their family temple, Saiko-ji, burned down.  Gutei revived the temple and renamed it Tozen-ji, which is still in Seba, Shiojiri City, Nagano Prefecture.

     At the beginning of the 1460's, Gutei suddenly moved to Washinoya in Shimousa Village.  It is unknown why he moved.  Washinoya had a hermitage with a Bhaisajyaguru statue at the foot of Washinoya Castle.  He revived the hermitage and named it Io-ji (Address: 510 Washinoya, Kashiwa, Chiba 270-1443).  The castle commanded the northern half of Lake Tega-numa, and was owned by the Someya Family, who were subject to the Takagi Family.  Presumably, the Someya Family recommended Gutei to the Takagi Family.

Tanesada's son, Taneyoshi (1501-1565), moved his base from Negiuchi Castle to Kogane Castle to control the inland waterway between Edo Bay and the northern part of the Kanto Region.  When he moved his base, he also moved Tozen-ji Temple to the new castle town.  So, it must have been before the relocation that Gutei retired.

     Jogyo-ji Temple merged Mukogami and Shimoyado Kannon-do Halls in 1915, which had been believed in by the fishers in Tega-numa Lake.  As a result, the temple enshrines a statue of Cintamanicakra, who usually has 6 arms and holds chintamani (a wish-fulfilling jewel) in one of the six.

Address: 128 Futatsugi, Matsudo, Chiba 270-0027

Phone: 047-340-2491

     

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #16 Daisho-in Temple

     The Takagi Family built a fortress in Negiuchi in 1462.  In 1480, they put up a prayer spot in the fortress.  In 1506, they made it a temple, Daisho-in, namely Big Win Temple.  Takagi Taneyoshi (1484-1565) made the fortress a castle in 1508.  Taneyoshi moved his base from Negiuchi Castle to Kogane Castle, which commanded the Edo, Naka, and Ara Rivers.  Accordingly, Taneyoshi controlled the inland waterway between Edo Bay and the northern part of the Kanto Region.

     Taneyoshi also moved Daisho-in Temple to its present place, the northeastern part of the new castle, in 1530.  Northeast was believed to be an unlucky direction and Taneyoshi built the temple there to religiously protect the castle.  In 1537, he invited Priest Eishu to the temple.

     On August 18th, 1590, Kogane Castle was set on fire by Asano Nagamasa (1547-1611), and Daisho-in Temple burned down.  It was Nagamasa and his lord, Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536-1598), who won a big victory.  However, the Toyotomi Clan was destroyed by the Tokugawa Clan, and Nagamasa went over to the winning side.

Address: 180 Oyaguchi, Matsudo, Chiba 270-0005

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #17 Joei-ji Temple

     Joei-ji Temple was in Kaizuka Village.  As its name suggests the village had a primitive trash heap filled with sea shells although it is now located 30 kilometers upriver from the mouth of Edo river.  Although it is unknown when Joei-ji Temple was founded, people lived there even in prehistoric times.  It is surprising that by the time local powerful families built ancient mounds, the lifestyle of the Korean Peninsula affected that of the locals.

     The temple has been abolished, and its Kannon-do Hall and graveyard are maintained by Saiei-ji Temple, the #20 temple of the Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage.

Address: Kamikaizuka Nagareyama, Chiba 270-0171

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #18 Chikuon-ji Temple

     Chikuon-ji Temple was founded in Kokubun, Katsushika County, Shimousa Province.  As its place name suggests, there used to be a Kokubun-ji Temple, which was built by Emperor Shomu (701-756) as one of the temples built in all the provinces.  Those temples were called Kokubun-ji.  They were usually built near a provincial government office.  In Shimousa Province, its provincial government office stood to the west of the Kokubun-ji Temple on a height.  The heights were called Kono-dai Heights.  In the Medieval times, Kono-dai Castle was built on the heights.

     In Konodai in 1538, the Oyumi and Koga Kanto Deputy Shoguns clashed against each other. 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).  However, the mastermind of the Koga Deputy Shogun, the Later Hojo Clan, was too powerful for the Satomi Can to shelter them.  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, Sagami Province.  They became under the patronage, or the supervision, of the Later Hojo Clan.

Konodai had 2 other big battles in 1563 and 1564.  That meant Konodai was a strategic point.

     Far before the 3 battles, in the Northern and Southern Courts Period (1337-1392), there might have been another battle.  Tradition says that the loser sacrificed many casualties.  Their survivors became farmers, built a temple, and invited Priest Kishu from Kamakura.  After the posthumous Buddhist name of the loser, Sekishitsu Sojin, the temple was named Sekijin-san Chikuon-ji.  It is unknown what his secular name was.

Address: 5 Chome-15-2 Kokubun, Ichikawa, Chiba 272-0834

Phone: 047-371-7131

    

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #19 Zensho-ji Temple

     It is unknown when Zensho-ji Temple was founded.  It was first built on a hill but was moved to its present place, along the Edo River, in 1611, after the establishment of the Tokugawa Shogunate.  

     Matsudo used to be a staging post along a highway between Edo and Mito and also along the Edo River, an important inland waterway.  Presumably, commanding the highway and the river from the top of the hill, Zensho-ji Temple might have worked as a checkpoint and a fort.  In the Pax Tokugawa, it was moved near the stage town.  On the top of the hill in 1884, the Tojo Residence was built by Tokugawa Akitake (1853-1910), the last lord of the Mito Domain.

https://www.city.matsudo.chiba.jp/tojo/index.html

     The temple has a fair on the 28th day of every month.

Address: 1857 Matsudo, Chiba 271-0092

Phone: 047-362-4823

     

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #20 Saien-ji Temple

     Saien-ji Temple was founded in 1515, and merged with Saifuku-ji Temple in 1953, when the temple was renamed Saiei-ji.

     A statue of Arya Avalokitesvara, who is the human-figure prototype of the other 6 metamorphoses, was carved in 1539, presumably when Hanawa Fort was built by Hiramoto Sadatora, a vassal of Takagi Tanetada (?-1546) and his son, Taneyoshi (1501-1565).  The statue was enshrined in the fort and was maintained by Saifuku-ji Temple in Shimo-Hanawa.

The Arya Avalokitesvara statue is locally known as the Late Riser Avalokitesvara.  One day, Amitabha summoned a meeting but the Avalokitesvara was late because she/he overslept.

     Watanuki Emon presented the picture of the 16 Guardians of the Mahaprajnaparamita Sutra.  The Watanuki Family managed the Kogane Stock Farms for the Tokugawa Shogunate.  The farms raised horses for military use.  They caught half-wild horses, chose good ones, and sent them to Edo.  The fact also demonstrates how diversified the Takagi Family's management was.

Saiei-ji Temple

Address: 230 Kirigaya, Nagareyama, Chiba 270-0172

Phone: 04-7158-0846

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #21 Komyo-in Temple

     Komyo-in Temple was a shrine temple of Akagi Shrine, and was authorized as a temple at the beginning of the Tokugawa Shogunate.

     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 restabilize society, he strengthened the danka system.  Every citizen was supposed to belong to a Buddhist temple.  That was a business opportunity for Buddhist priests.  Akagi Shrine took full advantage of the opportunity and founded a certified public temple.

     The precincts have a grave of Akimoto Sanzaemon (1757-1812), who was said to have developed sweet sake for seasoning.  He was also known as a haiku poet, Akimoto Soju.

https://nagareyama-td.com/issasouju/

     After their defeat in the Battle of Toba-Fushimi in January 1868, the Shinsengumi or the New Select Brigade retreated to Edo.  They were treated roughly there, and finally arrived at Nagareyama.  Some of them stayed at Komyo-in Temple.

     Mt. Akagi erupted on May 11th, 1251.  About the same time, according to tradition, a flood broke out and a part of the mountain flowed down and arrived at Nagareyama to form a hill which has an altitude of 15 meters and is 350 meters in circumference.  On top of the hill, locals built Akagi Shrine, and the area came to be called Nagareyama, namely Flow Mountain.

Address: 6 Chome-651 Nagareyama, Chiba 270-0164

Phone: 04-7158-0176

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #22 Chofuku-ji Temple

     Chofuku-ji Temple was priest-less at the end of the Tokugawa Period, and was abolished at the beginning of the Meiji Era.

     Its precincts have been a holy place since far before the foundation of the temple, and, surprisingly enough, are still preserved well enough by the community members.  The precincts have its Bhaisajyaguru and Kukai Halls, and also have Inari and Sakaki-Yawata Shrines as well.

     The oldest itabi the precincts have is dated 1488.  In 1558, Priest Eiraku of Ryusen-ji Temple (Address: 1423 Nakabyo, Abiko, Chiba 270-1121  Phone: 04-7188-1059) lived in retirement in the precincts.

     The temple has a brass Buddhist altar dated 1666.  The precincts have a five-part gravestone with each part representing earth, water, fire, wind and heaven, which is dated 1671, and which is the grave of Priest Chogon of Chofuku-ji Temple.  All in all, the temple seems to have become a temple at the beginning of the Tokugawa Shogunate.

     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 restabilize society, he strengthened the danka system.  Every citizen was supposed to belong to a Buddhist temple.  That was a business opportunity for Buddhist priests, and also a chance for villagers to gain tax exemption for the precincts.  The villagers took full advantage of the opportunity, hired a priest, and made their holy place a temple.

     The head of a Sakakibara was buried in the precincts.  He was considered to be a visitor.  As Mito Domain had a Sakakibara Family as a vassal, he might have been a member of the family.  Was he a member of the Tenguto Rebellion from May 1864 to January 1865?  Was the incident too modern to be a legend?  The head was concealed in a concrete box in Sakaki-Yawata Shrine, whose small building itself is made of concrete.

Address: 1984 Araki, Abiko, Chiba 270-1112

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #23 Kannon-ji Temple

       Sakasai Village, which was in Katsushika County, Shimousa Province, used to have at least 7 mounds.  One of them was in Nakajima Hamlet in the village and was a holy place.  A statue of 11-faced Ekadasamukha was enshrined near the mound.  The hermitage burned down and was rebuilt in 1595.  

     Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536-1598) invaded Korea in 1592 and in 1597.  In 1593, he had a son, and cornered his nephew, Hidetsugu (1568-1595), who was regarded to be Hideyoshi's heir, to commit suicide. Hidetsugu had 34 wives.  Hideyoshi killed them with their children  on August 2nd, 1595.  It was in those days that the hermitage burned down and was rebuilt.

     In 1690, the main hall burned down, and was newly built in its present place in 1742.  The Kannon-do hall was moved to its present place in 1782.

     Although the temple name is Kannon-ji, its main deity isn’t Ekadasamukha but Acalanatha.  The repeated fires and step-by-step relocation might have caused the confusion.

Address: 523 Sakasai, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-0042

Phone: 04-7173-5256

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #24 Zenryu-ji Temple

     Washinoya Fort used to be located around the heights which have an altitude of 15 meters in the south of Lake Tega-numa.  The fort, which was owned and managed by the Someya Family, might have worked as a checkpoint of the inland waterway along the lake.  The family was a vassal of the Takagi Family, but after the downfall of the Takagi Family in 1590, the Someya Family became farmers, and many Someyas still live in the area.

     Zenryu-ji Temple was founded in the fort in 1493, when the Takagi Family was emerging as a new ruler of the inland waterway between Edo Bay and Koga, where the Koga Kanto Deputy Shogun was based.

     Zenryu-ji Temple was moved to its present place in 1611 after the establishment of the Tokugawa Shogunate and the arrival of the Pax Tokugawa.

Address: 568 Washinoya, Kashiwa, Chiba 270-1443

Phone: 0471-82-2239

    

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #25 Fukuju-in Temple

     It is unknown when Fukuju-in Temple was founded.  It burned down in a fire caused by lightning, and was rebuilt in 1855.

Address: 1366 Takayanagi, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-0941

Phone: 0471-91-0503

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #26 Horin-ji Temple

     It is unknown when Horin-ji Temple was founded.  Tradition says that a nun visited the temple in 1389.  The temple provided her a room for a night.  The next morning, when she left the temple, she paid back the temple’s favor with a ginkgo seed.  The seed grew into a 30-meter tall tree with a circumference of 14 meters at the root.  Even when famines hit Nadogaya Village, people survived eating its ginkgo nuts.  Now, the tree is the tallest in Kashiwa City.

Address: 1046 Nadogaya, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-0032

Phone: 04-7166-6367

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #27 Nyoirin-ji Temple

     Chiba Tsunetane (1118-1201) dreamed a holy dream one night, dug out an old holy plum wood, had Unkei (?-1223) carve a statue of Cintamanicakra, who usually has 6 arms and holds chintamani (a wish-fulfilling jewel) in one of the six, and enshrined it in Kamakura.  Tsunetane’s 2nd son, Morotsune (1139-1205), ruled Soma Manor in Soma County, Shimousa Province, and called his family Soma.

      Morotsune’s son, Yoshitane, fought  in the Jokyu War for the Kamakura Shogunate against the Retired Emperor Go-Toba (1180-1239), who rebelled against the shogunate.  For some reason or another, Yoshitane had Unkei’s apprentice, Tokei, move the statue to Banba Village, Soma County, Shimousa Province, build a thatch-roofed hermitage, and enshrine the statue in it.  In 1223, Yoshitane built a temple to enshrine the statue and named the temple Nyoirin-ji.

     Scientifically speaking, the statue is supposed to have been carved not so early but in the 16th or 17th century.

     By the way, Soma Manor had a typical history of an ancient manor transformed to a medieval manor.  In other words, it is the typical case in high school history textbooks.

In Ancient Japan, farm land was owned by the central government.  The central government dispatched a provincial governor to each province.  To increase farm land, a provincial governor allowed county governors to develop new farm land.  This was the start of privately owned farm land.  Farm land privately owned by big temples and shrines was exempted from taxes.  Developers weighed donations against taxes.

     Taira Yoshifumi (886-952) was born in Kyoto.  In 923, he was dispatched to Sagami Province by Emperor Daigo (885-930) to suppress bandits. Later, he moved to Muraoka, Kumagaya County, Musashi Province.  He also lived in Muraoka, Kamakura County, Sagami Province and Muraoka, Yuki County, Shimousa Province.  So many Muraokas?  Maybe, he named where he lived Muraoka.  His grandson, Tsunemasa (1010-1076), called himself Chiba.  According to tradition, he married a celestial nymph who gave birth to Tsunenaga (1024-1108), whose grandson, Tsuneshige (1083-1180), started calling his family Chiba.

     In October, 1124, Tsuneshige became the county governor of Soma County.  On June 11, 1130, he donated Soma Manor to Ise Shrine.  According to its contract, he contributed 27 liters of rice per acre of paddy field and 9 liters of rice per acre of dry field.  Tsuneshige was also allowed, as a matter of course, to raise back taxes.  The reality was that Tsuneshige actually owned the manor, and he evaded paying taxes by accepting the name lending of Ise Shrine and paying commissions to its Shinto priests.  The donation was approved by the provincial governor, Fujiwara Chikamitsu, in August of the same year.

     This world was filled with greedy and acquisitive people, of course including Tsuneshige himself.  Tsuneshige didn’t pay taxes from central-government-owned farm land, and was arrested by Chikamitsu on July 15th, 1136.  Chikamitsu seized Soma and Tachibana Manors, and, quite unexpectedly (or expectedly?), appropriated the manors.  In 1143, Minamoto Yoshitomo (1123-1160), who was behaving like a gangster in the Kanto Region at the time and who happened to stay in Kazusa Province to know the trouble, had a hand in the case.

     Tsuneshige’s son, Tsunetane (1118-1201), fought back.  By paying arrears, he got back Soma Manor in April, 1146.  On August 10th, he successfully "donated the manor to Ise Shrine”.  All of a sudden, in January, 1161, Satake Yoshimune donated Soma Manor to Ise Shrine too.  He had robbed Chikamatsu’s son, Chikamori, of the deed which Chikamatsu had drawn.  On June 14th, 1167, reconciliation was offered in Yoshimune’s favor.

  Tsunetane reached a deadlock, but heaven helped him.  In 1180, Minamoto Yoritomo (1147-1199) raised an army to overthrow the central ancient aristocratic government and to become the ruler of Japan as a samurai.  Tsunetane jumped on the bandwagon successfully.  Tsunetane’s 2nd son, Morotsune (1139-1205),  as I told you, ruled Soma Manor, called his family Soma, and lived happily ever after, fighting through the Warring States Period.

     By the way, all through the troubles, Soma Manor expanded, presumably swallowing central-government-owned farm land and developing new farm land as if human greed was its food.

Address: 193 Fujigaya, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-0931

Phone: 04-7192-2344

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #28 Kannon-ji Temple

     Kannon-ji Temple was founded by Priest Shuncho at the turn of the 17th century.

Address: 1421 Ki, Nagareyama, Chiba 270-0162

Phone: 04-7158-1776

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #29 Chokaku-ji Temple

     Tradition says that Gyoki (668-749) visited Wakashiba and Avalokitesvara appeared in front of him in golden bright lights.  Gyoki found some holy wood and carved an Avalokitesvara statue out of it.  He built a small shrine and enshrined the statue in it.

     It is unknown when Chokaku-ji Temple was founded.  The temple used to be a shrine temple of Shorenji-Katori Shrine, which was founded in 1514.  So, the temple might have been founded in 1514 or later.

     Just to the north of Shimousa Province, there used to lie an inlet of a big inland sea, the Katori Sea.  On the peninsula between the Katori Sea and the Pacific Ocean, there stood Kashima Shrine.  On the southern coast of the Katori Sea, there stood Katori Shrine.

https://www.maff.go.jp/kanto/nouson/sekkei/tamen/03_1.html

  Katori Shrine was officially considered and actually worked as the gateway for the Imperial army to invade the Kanto Plain in Ancient Japan.  As they invaded the plain, they built many Katori Shrines in the Kanto Region.

     However, why in 1514?

     Chiba Katsutane (1471-1532) became the head of the Chiba Family in 1492, and was based in Moto-Sakura Castle.  From 1502 to 1504, he was attacked by Ashikaga Masauji (1462-1531), the 2nd Koga Kanto Deputy Shogun, who pitched camp in Koshinozuka Fortress, where Masauji’s father, Shigeuji (1438-1497), the 1st Koga Kanto Deputy Shogun, was once sheltered by Katsutane’s father, Noritane (1459-1521).  After the Kyotoku War (1455-1483), the Kanto Region was in the Warring State Period, when yesterday's foe was today's friend and the reverse was also true.  Yet, Katsutane was also a person of culture.  He loved tanka poems, and organized the so-called Sakura World of Tanka Poetry.  When Noso Junso compiled the Ungyoku Collection of Tanka Poems in 1514, some poems of Katsutane’s vassals and relatives were picked up.  Katsutane also built many temples and shrines in his territory.  Chokaku-ji Temple might have been one of them.

     Chokaku-ji Temple was surrounded by stock farms.  Although the main deities of the temple are Acalanatha and Arya Avalokiteshvara statues, someone built a stone statue with the name of the horse-headed Hayagriva carved on it.  On the 28th of every month, on the day of the temple fair, many horse breeders visit the temple with their favorite horse dressed up.

Address: 354 Wakashiba, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-0871

Phone: 04-7131-5139

    

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #30 Hoju-in Temple

     Hoju-in Temple was supposed to have been founded in 1528.

     Chiba Katsutane (1471-1532) became the head of the Chiba Family in 1492, and was based in Moto-Sakura Castle. He made his son, Masatane (1495-1546), the head of the family in 1509.  In 1520, Ashikaga Yoshiaki (?-1538) defeated Hara Tanetaka (?-1536), a vassal of the Chiba Family, occupied his castle, Oyumi Castle, and became the Oyumi Kanto Deputy Shogun.  Masatane was caught between the Koga Kanto Deputy Shogun in the north and the Oyumi Kanto Deputy Shogun in the south.  Hoju-in Temple was founded in those days.  The temple was located on a hill which commanded a river between Lake Tega-numa and the Kinu River, one of the most important inland waterways in the Kanto Region.

     It is unknown who built the temple for what purpose, whether the builder was for Koga Deputy shogun in the north, for the Oyumi Kanto Deputy Shogun in the south, for the Chiba Family in the east, or for someone trying to be independent of them.

Address: 1637-1 Fuze, Kashiwa, Chiba 270-1464

Phone: 04-7191-9981

    

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #31 Empuku-ji Temple

     The history of Oaota-Myoken Shrine was written by Priest Ungen in 1357, and was added by Priest Genkyo of Empuku-ji Temple in 1556.  The temple must have been founded by 1556.  As the temple used to be a shrine temple of Oaota-Myoken Shrine, it could have been founded as early as in 1357.  The temple was converted to the Shingon Sect in 1573.

     All in all, the temple was founded in the upheaval of the Southern and Northern Courts, and was revived in the upheaval of the Warring States Period.

Address: 1101 Oaota, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-0805

    

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #32 Funatoyama-goya-Kannon-do Hall

     It is unknown when Funatoyamagoya-Yakushi-do Temple was founded.  The precincts have Kannon-do Hall, which enshrines the statue of Arya Avalokitesvara, who is the human-figure prototype of the other 6 metamorphoses.  Rather, the precincts have been a holy place and have halls for Bhaisajyaguru, Arya Avalokitesvara, and Acalanatha.  The precincts also have Tenjin, Yawata, and Mitsumine Shrines.  There are also 700-years old itabi and a washbasin dated 1830.  The precincts have been a holy place in which anything holy goes.  Why?

     The precincts are along a cutting between the Tone and Edo Rivers.  In 1890, the Tone Canal was opened nearby between Tone and Edo Rivers, and it was a toll canal.  In 1891 alone, 37600 boats passed.  In 1895, a streamer from Tokyo sailed through the canal to Choshi in 18 hours.  All in all, we can guess that a variety of people passed by even in the Edo Period, and that they left some religious footsteps in Funatoyamagoya.

     Even in modern times, the Tone Canal Corporation organized the Tone 88 Pilgrimage, a copy pilgrimage of the Shikoku 88 Pilgrimage, to promote tourism along the canal.

Address: 292 Funatoyamagoya, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-0801

Virtual Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #33 Guzei-in Temple

    Guzei-in Temple’s tradition says that it was founded by Gyoki (668-749) in the 800’s.  Gyoki respectfully made 3 bows as he chiseled once to carve a statue of Arya Avalokitesvara, who is the human-figure prototype of the other 6 metamorphoses, and enshrined it in the temple.  As you may clearly see, the first half of the information was impossible.  Interpreted favorably, Gyoki carved the statue when he was still alive, and someone else founded the temple more than half a century after his death, and enshrined the statue there.

    As the precincts have itabi dated 1328, 1339, 1472, and 1485, they must have been a holy place since early times.  It is unknown whose itabi they were, but they were built when the Chiba Family was declining and the Takagi and Soma Families were emerging in the northern part of Shimousa Province.

    Today’s Arya Avalokitesvara is supposed to have been carved in the latter half of the 13th century.  As the temple burned down sometime between 1573 and 1592, the original one might have been reduced to ashes in the fire.

    In 1963, when they rebuilt the main hall, they found 30 pieces of printing woodblocks of the Lotus Sutra, which were supposed to be 500 years old.  It was recorded that Takagi Tanenori (1571-1603), Hara Tanesada (1507-1569), and Soma Tanemitsu contributed to the temple a lot in those days, the woodblocks and, accordingly, the printed sutra might have been presented by one of them.

    In 1970, when an elevated highway was built in Tokyo, they excavated a temple bell whose inscription included the phrase “Fukuman-ji Temple at Yanagi Ferry Port, Izumi Village, Minami-Soma County, Shimousa Province” and was dated “1467."  Fukuman-ji is a jigo of Guzzi-in Temple.

Address: 612 Yanado, Kashiwa, Chiba 270-1454

Phone: 04-7191-2268

     Visiting the Shimousa 33 Kannon Pilgrimage gave me a chance to see the Kanto Region from the perspective of the inland waterway there.  Can I someday visit the lower Tone River, which runs along the border between Shimousa and Hitachi Provinces, and the lakes along the river? What were Kashima and Katori Shrines like?