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Virtual Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #14 Shurin-ji Temple

 

     It is unknown when Shunrin-ji Temple was founded and when it was abolished.

     The New Edition of Musashi Edo Map was published in Kyoto in 1663 by Kono Michikiyo, who was the publisher of Musashiabumi.

     Arisaema ringens is commonly called cobra lily in English, is native to Japan, and is called Musashi-abumi, namely Musashi (Province) Stirrup, since its cobra-like flower resembles a stirrup made in Musashi Province.  The flower will produce a cluster of red berries in it.  Thus, the plant name was used as a metaphor of one's hidden passion.

     As Asai Ryoi (?-1691) started his narrative in 1661 as follows, the narrative was named Musashi-Abumi:  "If I don't tell, I feel painful.  If I tell, I might sound annoying.  It's like musashiabumi.  I've made up my mind never to tell, but as you ask, I will roughly talk about it as if to scatter flowers in a memorial Buddhist service."  However exaggerated partly it might be, Musashiabumi became a first-rate historical document about the 1657 Meireki Great Fire, which burned 60-70 percent of Edo and killed 30-100 thousand people.

     Musashiabumi writes, "They carried charred bodies to Ushi-jima Island along the border between Musashi and Shimousa Provinces by boat.  They dug a 2-acre hole, and buried countless bodies in it.  They built a mound on it, and founded a temple, Eko-in Temple.  Before 57 days passed, priests gathered from many temples, chanted sutras, and consoled the dead's souls.  Eko-in Temple belonged to Pure Land Buddhism.  People of all ages and both sexes flocked together to the temple, chanting Namo Amitabha in loud voices as a memorial service for the dead.  The scene was noble and sacred.  As countless bodies were buried in a hole, nobody could tell where their family had been buried.  They each chose a place and put up a stupa.  'May their spirits overcome obsession and hesitation immediately.'  They presented flowers and water, recalled the deceased, and chanted Namo Amitabha tearfully.  They looked sorrowful and mournful."

     After all, Michikiyo wanted to let the whole nation know what happened in the 1657 Meireki Great Fire, and how Edo recovered.

     According to the New Edition of Musashi Edo Map, Mita was an urban district, and Shunrin-ji Temple was located at the south corner of Mita 4 Chome.

Address: 4 Chome-1 Mita, Minato City, Tokyo 108-0073

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Virtual Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #13 Hoon-ji Temple

     Hoon-ji Temple was founded as a pilgrims’ lodging of Saio-ji Temple (Address: 2 Chome-25-6 Shiba, Minato City, Tokyo 105-0014) in 1480 by Priest Suzan (?-1483).

     In 1476, Nagao Kageharu (1443-1514) started his rebellion against his master, Uesugi Akisada (1454-1510), who was the head of the Yamanouchi-Uesugi Family and who was the Regent of the Kanto Deputy Shogunate.  Kageharu was a pioneer of overpowering superiors in the Kanto Region.  His allies included Toshima Yasutsune, who was based in Nerima and Shakujii Castles, and Yano Hyogo, who was based in Kozukue Castle.  On the other hand, Ota Sukekiyo (1411-1488), who was based in Edo Castle, fought for the Regent and was surrounded by Yasutsune and Hyogo.  Sukekiyo gave up single-combat tactics, which were fashionable in those days, and picked up footsoldier tactics, which would be trendy in the Warring-States Period.  Sukekiyo gradually turned the tables and secured the route to Kawagoe Castle, where the Regent was based.

     In 1480, Kageharu lost his last foothold, Hino Castle in Chichibu County, Musashi Province, to Sukekiyo, and went into exile in Koga, Shimousa Province, where Ashikaga Shigeuji (1438-1497), the 5th Kanto Deputy Shogun, was based.  Sukekiyo was best credited with the victory of the Uesugi Family.  The most distinguished vassal was the most dangerous vassale.  He was assassinated by Uesugi Sadamasa (1443-1494), who was the head of the Ogigayatsu-Uesugi Family, on July 26th, 1486.  The assassination, however, drove Sadamasa’s vassals to the Yamanouchi-Uesugi Family, and disturbed the ballance of power between the 2 Uesugi Families, who fought the Chokyo War against each other from 1487 to 1505.

     Hoon-ji Temple was no more than a small hermitage when it was founded under the patronage and protection of Sukekiyo.  When the tide was high, the waves almost lapped the gate.  In the Warring-States Period, the temple was utilized to station samurai along with other temples along the Tokaido Highway.

     In 1590, Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616) moved into Edo, and the Pax Tokugawa was realized.  The population of Edo increased, and Shiba became one of the most important suppliers of seafood to Edo.  The number of fishers increased.  Sea people loved Avalokitesvara and filled the temple with Avalokiteshvara statues.  The main deity of Hoon-ji Temple was an Amitabha Triad; an image of Amitabha flanked by Avalokiteshvara and Mahasthamaprapta.  The precincts also had a Kannon-do Hall with a thousand-armed Sahasrabhuja statue as its deity.  The hall had 8 more Avalokiteshvara statues.  In World War II, everything was reduced to ashes.  It was in 1980 that its main hall was rebuilt.

Address: 4 Chome-6-17 Shiba, Minato City, Tokyo 108-0014

Phone: 03-3451-0016

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Virtual Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #12 Daiun-ji Temple

     Daiun-ji Temple was founded by Priest Doen in Azabu Village, Toshima County, Musashi Province, in 1630.  After Priest Raen died in 1648, the temple became priest-less for a while.  After 1668, the area was urbanized and its population increased.  Priest Rinsui revived the temple.  

     In 1890, the temple moved to its present place.  In 1979, 5 storied building was built in the lot, and the temple moved into its first floor, with its old stone monuments and statues surrounding the building.

     The precincts used to have a Kannon-do Hall, which enshrined an Avalokitesvara statue, whose nickname was Avalokitesvara Looking Back, with its upper body facing slightly to the left.

     Eikan-ji Temple in Kyoto is known for its statue of Amitabha Looking Back.  It also faces slightly to the left.  Does the left side have a meaning in Buddhism?  Does that have something to do with the “Left-Hand Path relation to Tantra in Buddhism”?  Some argue that the statue was part of an Amitabha Triad; an image of Amitabha flanked by Avalokiteshvara and Mahasthamaprapta.  However, Avalokiteshvara usually stands on the right side of Amitabha, and that means this particular Avalokiteshvara statue was turning its back on Amitabha.  Mysteriously, the Avalokiteshvara statue stands as if she/he was escorting someone else or showing the way to someone else.

Samaria Brown House 1F

Address: 1 Chome-18-1 Ebisu, Shibuya City, Tokyo 150-0013

Phone: 03-3473-0332

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Virtual Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #11 Shinko-ji Temple

 

     Kumagai Naozane (1141-1208) was based in Kumagai County, Musashi Province, and fought for Minamoto Yoritomo (1147-1199) when Yoritomo started his little-prospective rebellion against the Taira Clan in 1180.  Naozane built a fort on a hill in Nishikubo, Toshima County, Musashi Province.

     On February 7, 1184, when the battle in Suma between the Taira and Minamoto Clans was nearing its end, the Taira Clan commanders and soldiers were fleeing on their vessels. Naozane was still scanning the beach to get a valuable head of any enemy commander. He spotted a young samurai swimming towards the fleeing vessels on his horse. The Tale of Heike continues, “Kumagai beckoned to him with his war fan, crying out: ‘Shameful! to show an enemy your back. Return. Return!’ Then the warrior turned his horse and rode it back to the beach, where Kumagai at once engaged him in mortal combat. Quickly hurling him to the ground, he sprang upon him and tore off his helmet to cut off his head, when he beheld the face of a youth of sixteen or seventeen, delicately powdered and with blackened teeth, just about the age of his own son, and with features of great beauty.” Naozane hesitated, but knew the young enemy would be killed by other Minamoto samurai in either case. Crying, he beheaded the boy, Taira Atsumori (1169-1184).  Naozane became a Buddhist monk in the early 1190’s.

     The fort in Nishikubo was utilized till the end of the Warring-States Period.  The users included Ota Dokan (1432-1486), who built Edo Castle in 1457.  After Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616) moved to Edo, in 1594 precisely, the site was used to found Shinko-ji Temple.

     When Sugen’in or Go (1573-1626), a wife of the 2nd Shogun, Tokugawa Hidetada (1579-1632), died, her body was cremated in Imai Village.  To guard the “holy” place, Hidetada moved Shinko-ji Temple to the cremation site along with the other 3 temples in the village; Kosen-ji, Shoshin-ji, and Kyozen-ji Temples.  The precincts of Shinko-ji Temple had the very spot where her body was cremated.

     Later, the hill was used to supply earth to reclaim marshes and swamps.

     After the 1657 Meireki Great Fire, the Tokugawa Shogunate proliferated the Edo urban districts to widen streets and to supply firebreaks.  The peasants in Nishikubo were forced to move to Mure Village (Mure, Mitaka, Tokyo 181-0002), Tama County, in 1662 and they built Nishikubo Village (Nishikubo, Musashino, Tokyo 180-0013) there.  The hill, or the former site of the hill, became the residence of Hojo Ujitoshi (1604-1672), the first lord of the Kawachi-Sayama Domain.

     In 1683, the Fukuhara 33 Kannon Pilgrimage was organized in Settsu Province to commemorate the 499th anniversary of the death of Taira Atsumori. 

Address: 7 Chome-14-6 Roppongi, Minato City, Tokyo 106-0032

Phone: 03-3405-4194

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Virtual Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #10 Kosen-ji Temple

 

     Kosen-ji Temple was founded by Priest Koryu (?-1659) in Imai Village, Toshima County, Musashi Province, in 1614, when the Siege of Osaka Castle was fought and when the Toyotomi Clan was destroyed.  It is unknown whether its foundation had something to do with the paradigm shift or not.  After the paradigm shift, Edo became a de facto capital of Japan, its population increased, and its urban area expanded.  Imai Village was urbanized, and the temple’s neighborhood was named Ichibe-cho on September 15th, 1620.

     When Sugenin or Go (1573-1626), a wife of the 2nd Shogun, Hidetada (1579-1632), died, her body was cremated in Imai Village.  To guard the “holy” place, Hidetada moved Kosen-ji Temple to the cremation site along with the other 3 temples in the village; Shinko-ji, Shoshin-ji, and Kyozen-ji Temples.

     On February 1st, 1668, a big fire broke out in Edo, and it burned over 2,400 samurai residences, over 130 temples, and more than 130 blocks of houses in the town.  On the 4th, another big fire burned many temples including the 4 temples and their temple towns.  After the fire, Kagatsume Naozumi (1610-1685), Tokugawa Shogunate’s commissioner for supervision of shrines and temples, ordered the temples to deliver their land to widen the street to 3.05 meters.  On January 10th, 1678, alternate sites were given to the temples in Minamihigakubocho (today’s 5 and 6 Chome, Roppongi)

     According to Jizoson Junpai Michishirube, namely Ksitigarbha Pilgrimage Signpost, which was published in 1794, the temple had one of 144 popular Ksitigarbha statues in Edo.

Address: 7 Chome−14−12 Roppongi, Minato City, Tokyo 106-0032

Phone: 03-3401-9303

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Virtual Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #9 Sugon-ji

     Sugon-ji Temple belongs to Pure Land Buddhism.  It is unknown when it was founded.  It used to be located in Azabu-Mikawadai-machi.  Its precincts had a Yama hall, whose foundation was said to be much older than the temple itself.

     Sugon-ji Temple and the Yama statue were reduced to ashes in World War II, its site was changed to graveyard, and the temple moved to its present place, relying on Kosen-ji Temple, the #10 member temple of the Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage.  New Sugon-ji Temple was registered with Tokyo Prefecture in September, 1952.

Address: 7 Chome-14-15 Roppongi, Minato City, Tokyo 106-0032

Phone: 03-340-9303

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Virtual Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #8 Daisen-ji Temple

     Priest Kodai, the 9th head priest of Daisen-ji Temple in Kofu, Kai Province, built a branch hermitage in 1626 in Imai Village, Toshima County, Musashi Province.

     Nakagawa Hisamori (1594-1653), the second lord of the Oka Domain in Bungo Province, promoted the hermitage to a temple to pray for the comfort of his late father, Hideshige (1570-1612), in the other world.

     The temple was damaged in fire in 1695, 1746, and 1790.  In 1825, the 16th priest, Shundai, started reviving it, and the revival was finished in 1840.

     In the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake, the temple was partially destroyed.  As the 22nd priest, Sodai, repaired it with the leftover lumber, it eventually collapsed.  In 1934, its living space was built.  On May 25th, 1945, the Bombing of Tokyo reduced its buildings, Buddhist statues, Buddhist altar fittings, and documents into ashes. 

     After World War II, the Japanese Economic Miracle cornered the temple.  In 1972, the 23rd priest, Gendai, made up his mind to move the temple.  He organized the Daisen-ji Reconstruction Committee with Ichise Yasuo its chair.  They purchased the site of Daizen-ji Temple, and moved Daisen-ji Temple and its graveyard to its present place, utilizing Daizen-Ji Temple's main hall, Donryu-do Hall.

     They repaired the old halls in 1983.  As the temple left its supporting families in its former neighborhood, they needed a guest hall.  They organized the Daisen-ji Reconstruction Committee again with Kobayashi Kuniko its chair, and built it in 1998.  The main hall still has old materials from the Edo Period. 

Address: 7 Chome−13−1 Owadamachi, Hachioji, Tokyo 192-0045

Phone: 042-645-9558

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Virtual Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #7 Eisho-ji Temple

 

     Koun-ji Temple was founded by Priest Hokin in 1598 where the Sakurada Gate of Edo Castle was later constructed, supported by Nagai Naomasa (1587-1668).

     When Naomasa was 11 years old, his father, Naokatsu (1563-1626), worked and fought for Tokugawa Nobuyasu (1559-1579).  Then, Nobuyasu's father, Ieyasu (1543-1616), was forced by Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582) to have Nobuyasu commit harakiri suicide.  Naokatsu and his family became masterless and jobless.  2 years before the death of Nobunaga, the family was employed by Ieyasu. 

     Even when Naomasa’s father became masterless and jobless, Naomasa’s grandfather, Osada Shigemoto (1504-1593), kept working and fighting for Ieyasu in Ohama, Mikawa Province.  Ohama Port used to be a strategically important point to command the Mikawa Bay.  In 1582, Nobunaga was killed by Akechi Mitsuhide(1528-1582), and Ieyasu had to escape back to Mikawa Province.  It was Shigemoto who offered a ship to pick him up.

     At first, Koun-ji Temple was located where the Sakurada Gate of the Edo Castle was later built.  As the castle was expanded, the temple was moved to Hijiri-zaka Hill, Mita.

     The 4th priest of Koun-ji Temple, Juetsu (?-1635), founded Eisho-ji Temple at the foot of Hijiri-zaka Hill.  He also founded Myoen-ji Temple along the hill.  He must have been an aggressive missionary or businessman.  Priest Shoten (?-1757) moved the temple to its present place.

     The precincts have a Ksitigarbha stone statue, which was dug out from the bottom of the sea in 1837, when the Hama Villa of Tokugawa Shoguns was repaired.  The statue had been buried there with countless human bones.  Where did the bones come from?  It's a mystery.

     Favorably, they had thrown casualties of a great disaster in a marsh along the sea and buried them with the statue to pray for their comfort in the other world.  Maliciously speaking, there could have been a massacre, and they buried the statue, being afraid of the curse.

Address: 2 Chome−1−20 Roppongi, Minato City, Tokyo 106-0032

Phone: 03-3583-3300

Hijirizaka Hill

Address: Mita, Minato City, Tokyo 108-0073

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Virtual Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #6 Yosen-ji Temple

 

     Yosen-ji Temple was founded by Ban Shigemori (?-1622) in 1657, inviting Shudon (?-1655) as its honorary priest.  Who was Ban Shigemori?

     Gorobe tried to become a samurai, dreaming of success in life.  He became a foot soldier of the Imagawa Clan, the strongest clan in the Tokai Region.  After Imagawa Yoshimoto (1519-1560) was killed by Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582), he became a footsoldier of Nobunaga.  Nobody cared about the career of a footsoldier.  After Nobunaga was killed by Akechi Mitsuhide (1529-1582), Gorobe became a footsoldier of Tanba Ujitsugu (1550-1601), the lord of Iwasaki Castle in Aichi County, Mikawa Province.  Again, nobody cared about the career of a footsoldier.  Gorobe was unluckily killed in the Battle of Komaki and Nagakute on April 9th, 1584.

     When the Battle of Komaki Nagakune broke out, Ujitsugu was fighting for Tokugawa Ieyasu  (1542-1616) against Toyotomi Hideyosi (1536-1598).  As Ujitsugu was fighting with Ieyasu in Komaki, his younger brother, Ujishige (1569-1584), was guarding the castle at the age of 15.  The army of Hideyoshi’s was moving to Mikawa Province to make a surprise attack on Ieyasu’s homeland, ignoring Iwasaki Castle, which was no more than a fortress.

     “To overlook them will bring eternal disgrace to us.  Those in Komaki don’t know the advance of the enemy.  If we fight and stop them, even if we are all to be killed in the battle, the news will reach to a liaison fortress nearby.”  After letting women and children to Myoshin-ji Temple nearby, 239 men launched a pre-emptive strike against the enemy at 4 in the morning.  At 5, a 2000-strong enemy force started attacking the main gate, and another 2000-strong besieged the back gate.  Ujishige made 3 sorties, only to be killed.  The fortress fell by 7.  The enemy left there at 8, and when the 20-strong rescue corps arrived, they found 238 heads, including those of Ujishige’s younger brothers, Denshichiro and Shiroemon, placed side by side.   Presumably, that of Gorobe was one of the 238, and his success story ended there.

     However, the success story of his son, Gohe, didn’t end.  When Nobunaga was killed, Ieyasu was in Sakai, Izumi Province, and was at a loss.  He could flee back to his homeland, Mikawa Province, by sea, but he was afraid of Kumano Pirates.  Instead, he chose the overland route through Iga Province with 34 samurai and a few attendants including Gohe.  If Ieyasu had been killed on his way back as Anayama Nobutada (1541-1582) was, Gohe’s story might have ended there.  Ieyasu’s luck helped Gohe, and moreover sharing the hardship with Ieyasu helped Gohe become a samurai.  Later, he named himself Ban Shigemori (?-1622) and renamed his father Morikane (?-1584).  After the establishment of the Tokugawa Shogunate, Shigemori became a member of the standing army.  The childhood name of Gohe’s son was also Gohe, but he was renamed Morimasa (?-1681).  Shigemori’s grandson’s childhood name sounded more like that of samurai, Sukenojo, and his adulthood name was Masatsugu (?-1718), who ruled 5 villages and got 550 koku of rice, about 99 thousand liters of rice, annually.  In 1690, he was promoted to the head of the standing army and received another 200 koku of rice, about 36 thousand liters of rice, annually in addition.

Address: 1 Chome-11-11-6 Akasaka, Minato City, Tokyo 107-0052

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Virtual Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #5 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), lived in Isshin-in Temple (Hosen-ji Temple today, 311 Iwamicho, Oharano, Nishikyo Ward, Kyoto), and died on July 19, 1554.

     Tenchi-an Hermitage moved to Kasumigaseki in 1585, when the Later Hojo Clan was still ruling the area, and Priest Koyo moved it 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 on 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.

     Tentoku-ji Temple was used as the accommodations for the Siberia Governor of Russia.  The temple is also the #20 member temple of the Old Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage.

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

Phone: 03-3431-1039

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Virtual Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #4 Chokyu-ji Temple

 

     Chokyu-in Temple was next door to Shinpuku-ji Temple.  Tradition says Shinpuku-ji Temple was revived by Priest Shokai in1605, given 45300 square meters of land by the Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543-1616).  An old map shows 9 temples including Chokyu-in and Shinpuku-ji next to each other at the foot of Atago Hill.  Presumably they were moved from somewhere else due to the city planning of Ieyasu.

     A list of the Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage says that its name isn’t Chkyu-in but Chokyu-ji.  Any way, it is located in the precincts of Shinpuku-ji Temple today.

Shinpuku-ji Temple

Address: 1 Chome-3-8 Atago, Minato City, Tokyo 105-0002

Phone: 03-3431-1081

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Virtual Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #3 Jukei-in Hermitage

 

     Jukei-in Hermitage used to be located in the precincts of Enpuku-ji Temple.  It is unknown when it was abolished.  In one of the samurai novels by Ikenami Shotaro (1923-1990), a nun walked to Enpuku-ji Temple.  It is unknown whether the temple was fiction or not.

Enpuku-ji Temple

Address: 3 Chome-14-22 Takanawa, Minato City, Tokyo 108-0074

Phone: 03-3441-5641

 

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Virtual Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #2 Koju-in Temple

     Koju-in Temple was founded in the precincts of Seisho-ji Temple in 1649 by Priest Kundo (?-1656), who was the 12th head priest of Seisho-ji Temple.  Seisho-ji Temple had been founded in Kaizuka, Kojimachi, in 1476 by Priest Unko by the order of Ota Sukekiyo's son, Dokan (1432-1486).

     In those days in the Kanto Region, the Kyotoku Incident was fought from 1454 to 1482.  Thus, the region plunged into the Warring-States Period.

In 1476 alone, Imagawa Yoshitada (1436-1476), the gurdian samurai of Suruga Province, was killed in a battle in Totomi Province.  His son, Ujichika (1473-1526), was still too small.  The vassals were divided into pro-Ujichika and anti-Ujichika, who supported Oshika Norimitsu (?-1487), a cousin of Yoshitada.  Dokan took advantage of their misfortune and advanced to Suruga Province.  Meanwhile, Ise Shinkuro (?-1519) came to the province to become a Warring-States-Period hero.  History enthusiasts might anticipate their showdown, but their duel was settled through negotiations.  Ujichika became the heir while Norimitsu supported him until he came of age.  You might be disappointed and wonder why.

     When Dokan was in Suruga Province, Nagao Kageharu (1443-1514) rose up in treason against his lord, Yamanouchi-Uesugi Akisada (1454-1510) in July with Hachigata Castle as his base, with Ashikaga Shigeuji (1438-1497), a Koga Kanto Deputy Shogun, as a wirepuller.  Dokan moved to Ikakko Fortress in hurry.  It is unknown whether Shinkuro and Shigeuji had a secret communication or not, but, less than 2 dacades later, Shinkuro eradicated a Horikoshi Kanto Deputy Shogunate in Izu Province, the rival of a Koga Kanto Deputy Shogunate, in 1493.

     In January, 1477, Kageharu attacked Ikakko Fortress.  More battles needed more temples.  Seisho-ji Temple met the demand.

     As Seisho-ji Temple was moved to Atago in 1600, when Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616) built the outer moat of Edo Castle, Koju-in Temple moved together.

Address: 2 Chome-8-7 Atago, Minato City, Tokyo 105-0002

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Virtual Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #1 Junryo-ji Temple

 

     It is unknown when Junryo-ji Temple was founded but it was founded in Iikura according to tradition.  If it was in ancient times that the temple was founded, it was founded in the Iikura Sacred Manor, which was dedicated to Ise Shrine.  The manor was mentioned in Jinpo-sho, namely God Phoenix Extract, which was compiled from 1193 to 1360.  The extract was about the manors owned by Ise Shrine.  As the 6th son of Edo Shigenaga called his family Iikura, his offspring lived in or around the manor.  The last written document that mentioned IIkura Sacred Manor was the letter of complaint that the manor was embezzled by local samurai along with Oba Sacred Manor in Sagami Province.  The letter was dated January 26th, 1469.  In those days in the Kanto Region, the Kyotoku Incident was fought from 1454 to 1482.  Thus, the region plunged into the Warring-States Period.  The letter was addressed to Ota Sukekiyo (1411-1488), the top vassal of the Ogigayatsu-Uesugi Family.  It wasn't written clearly whether Sukekiyo was a wirepuller of those samurai or the shrine just asked for his help.  If the foundation of the temple was in the Warring-States Period, it was founded in Iikura Village, which was under the rule of the Later Hojo Clan in a broad sense.  After Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616) moved to Edo in 1590, the city expanded and the village became residential areas.  The triangular area between Azabu East Street, Route 1, and Loop Road No.7 used to be called Morimoto-machi, in which some temples, samurai residences, and lower-ranking samurai's houses were located.  Junryo-ji Temple was one of the temples.

     Due to an old map of Edo, Junryo-ji Temple used to be located on the north side of the residence of Aoki Kazuyoshi (1728-1781), the lord of Asada Domain in Settsu Province.  The residence seems to have been located where Iikura Park is located.

     At the end of the Tokugawa Shogunate, the residence became accommodations for foreigners one year after the Treaty of Amity and Commerce between Japan and the United States was signed in 1858.

     After the Meiji Restoration, the Gods and Buddhas Separation Order was issued in 1868.  In 1869, the temple town of Junryo-ji was included in Iikura 5 Chome, and the temple itself was included in Iikura 5 Chome in 1872.  Presumably, the temple was abolished in those days.

IIkura Park

Address: 1 Chome-21-8 Higashiazabu, Minato City, Tokyo 106-0044

Phone: 03-5114-8803

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Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage

     Western Edo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage was originally organized with 21 temples in Minato Ward and 2 temples in Shibuya Ward.  It is the 7th oldest 33 Kannon Pilgrimage in Edo, and the second oldest that was organized in the west of Edo Castle.  Compared to the Yamanote 33 Kannon Pilgrimage, it is located rather south-west of the castle, on the side of the Edo Bay.

     The oldest signpost of the pilgrimage dates back to 1740, so it must have been organized in the 1730's at the latest.  Among the 33 original member temples, 7 have been abolished, and 3 have been moved out.  12 temples still have signposts to show their membership.

Virtual Yamanote 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #100 Sosei-ji Temple

 

     The precincts of the Yamanote 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #12 Sosei-ji Temple enshrines a stone Avalokitesvara statue as a memorial of visiting 100 Avalokitesvara holy places.  As you visit the pilgrimage 3 times plus the statue, you will make it 100.  The goeika tanka poem for the 100th deity is as follows:

I've visited the Yamanote for three times

Now that I pray to this monument

I made it a hundred.

Sosei-ji Temple

Address: 75 Wasedamachi, Shinjuku City, Tokyo 162-0042

Phone: 03-3202-5608

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Virtual Yamanote 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #33 Toen-ji Temple

 

     Tradition says that Chanoki-Inari Shrine was founded by Kukai (774-835) in where Ichigaya Kameoka Hachiman-gu Shrine is located.  If he had visited Eastern provinces, it must have been before he studied in China that he visited there.  That's quite improbable.  As he sent his pupils to eastern provinces to organize copying the sutras of esoteric Buddhism, what they did were dressed up to be what Kukai did.

     Ota Dokan (1432-1486) built Edo Castle in 1457, invited Tsurugaoka Hachiman as the western guardian god of the castle and founded Kameoka Hachiman-gu Shrine in 1479 in where the Ichigaya Gate was built later.  Toen-ji Temple was founded as its shrine temple.

     When Tokugawa Ieyasu built the outer moat of the castle, the shrine and temple were moved to the precincts of Chanoki-Inari Shrine.  Due to the Gods and Buddhas Separation Order issued in 1868 by the Meiji Restoration Government, the temple was abolished.

     Today, for some reason, Chanoki-Inari Shrine is considered to be a branch shrine of Kameoka Hachiman-gu Shrine.

     For your information, Tsurugaoka literally means Crane Hill and Kameoka namely means Turtle Hill.  In Japan, both cranes and turtles are the symbol of longevity.

Ichigaya Kameoka Hachiman-gu Shrine

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

Phone: 03-3260-1868

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Humanitarian Corridors in East Asia

     In the case of emergencies in Taiwan Island or across the Taiwan Straits, Japan should accept millions of evacuees on humanitarian grounds.  Securing humanitarian corridors by sea between Taiwan Island and the Japanese Archipelago will be far more difficult than by land in Ukraine.  The same will be true in the case of emergencies in the Korean Peninsula.

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Virtual Yamanote 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #32 Shinpo-ji Temple

 

     Shinpo-ji Temple was founded in Mikawa Province sometime between 593 and 628, when Empress Nukatabe (554-628) reigned.  When Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616) moved to Edo in 1590, Priest Shozan followed him.

     One day, Shozan thought of returning to Mikawa Province, but Ieyasu persuaded him to stay on.  Ieyasu tried to give him large land, but he turned down the offer, saying, “If a monk got enough clothes and food, he would be too lazy to serve Buddha.”  Instead, he founded another Shinpo-ji Temple in Kojimachi because he would like it to be a temple with a relaxed atmosphere for the townspeople who had moved to Edo.  He declined samurai to become the temple’s supporting member.

     In 1838, a fire broke out of Shinpo-ji Temple and spread around Kojimachi.  The temple received a building of the residence of the Owari Domain sold off in 1840, and was revived in 1847.  The building was burned down in the Bombing of Tokyo in 1944 and 1945.

     The wooden Amitabha sitting statue of the temple is 109 centimeters tall and is supposed to have been made sometime between the end of the 12th century and the first quarter of the 13th century.  That big and that old wooden Buddhist images are very rare in Tokyo.

Address: 6 Chome-4-2 Kojimachi, Chiyoda City, Tokyo 102-0083

Phone: 03-3261-2104

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Virtual Yamanote 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #31 Jodo-ji Temple

      Jodo-ji Temple was founded by Priest Shoko (?-1503) in Hirakawa, Toshima County, Musashi Province.  As the temple was the family temple of the Itabashi family in the Edo Period, the foundation of the temple might have been supported by the family in the 15th century, or even Shoko might have been a member of the family.

     The Chokyo War was fought in the Kanto Region from 1487 to 1505 between the Yamanouchi-Uesugi and Ogigayatsu-Uesugi Families.  The foundation of the temple might have had something to do with the war.  The Battle of Tachikawanohara broke out on November 13th, 1504, which was the final showdown between Uesugi Akisada (1454-1510), who was the head of the Yamanouchi-Uesugi Family, and Uesugi Tomoyoshi (1473-1518), who was the head of the Ogigayatsu-Uesugi Family.  It didn't matter which side won.  The Chokyo War caused the Uesugi Clan to decline, left the Kanto Region further in confusion, and attracted Ise Shinkuro (1432-1519), who wanted to become a warring-states-period hero, and Nagao Yoshikage (1464-1506), who was the Guardian Samurai of Echigo Province and whose grandson, Terutora (1530-1578), became another warring-states-period hero, to the region.  The early days of the temple witnessed many battles, but, maybe thanks to its grace, the Itabashi Family survived.  Who were the Itabashi Family?

     The most part of Musashi Province was plateaus deeply covered with volcanic-ash soil, which was suitable for stock farming, not for rice growing.  In ancient times, many of the naturalized Silla people then were sent to Musashi Province, and engaged in the stock farming.  That stimulated people there, and many stock farms were set up, including 6 imperial stock farms.  The custodians of those farms later formed small-scale samurai families.  By marriage, those samurai families composed 7 corps on the plateaus in the province: the Musashi Seven Corps.    The Kodama Corps was one of the 7.  The Toshima Family branched out of the corps, and then the Itabashi Family branched out of the Toshima Family.

     At the end of the Warring States Period, Itabashi Tadayasu (?-1593) was subject to Hojo Ujinao (1562-1591), a descendant of Shinkuro.  After the collapse of the Later Hojo Clan, Tadayasu’s eldest son, Masashige (?-1627) became subject to Tokugawa Ieyasu(1542-1616), the founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate, and Tadayasu’s second son, Rikaku, became the head priest of the temple and revived it.

     After the establishment of the Tokugawa Shogunate in 1603, according to the city planning of Edo, large samurai residences were built in Hirakawa, and Jodo-ji Temple was first moved to Shiroganecho and then to Kojimachi.  Due to the fire of the residence  which was built by Naruse Masanari (1567-1625), the lord of the Inuyama Domain, it was finally moved to its present place in 1665.  Although it was supported by low-ranking samurai and experienced the sorrows of them, it survived.

     Masashige’s son, Masakuni (?-1666), accompanied Tokugawa Masako (1607-1678), the 5th daughter of Hidatada (1579-1632), the second Shogun, when she was married to Emperor Go-Mizuo (1596-1680) in Kyoto.  She made a paper-mache image of Arya Avalokitesvara, who is the human-figure prototype of the other 6 metamorphoses, and gave it to Masakuni, who put it into a 90 centimeters tall Arya Avalokitesvara statue in 1663.  His son, Suemori (?-1722), presented it to Jodo-ji Temple.  Both the statues were reduced to ashes in fire in February, 1825.

Address: 4 Chome-3-5 Akasaka, Minato City, Tokyo 107-0052

Phone: 03-3583-3630

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Virtual Yamanote 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #30 Seigan-ji Temple

 

     Seigen-ji Temple was abolished in 1877, and we can hardly trace back its history.  We can only find a patchwork of information.  The temple belonged to Pure Land Buddhism and was a branch temple of Chion-in Temple in Kyoto.

     Utagawa Hiroshige the second (1826-1869) was buried in the temple.  He was a ukiyoe artist who married a daughter of Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858), and who succeeded the style and name of Hiroshige I.

     The Kawamura Family was a supporting member of the temple.

     Kawamura Nagataka (1795-1878) was the head of a group of government-employed undercover ninja agents.  The group was established by Tokugawa Yoshimune (1684–1751), the 8th Shogun. They were under the direct command of the Shoguns and were in charge of undercover intelligence operations.  Nagataka was appointed to be a commissioner of Niigata, Sakai, Osaka, and Nagasaki.  As Niigata and Nagasaki were newly opened to foreign countries at the end of the Tokugawa Shogunate, he might have gathered the information on foreign countries as well.

     Kawamura Kiyoo (1852-1934) was a grandchild of Nagataka, and became a professional Western painter after the Meiji Restoration.  At the age of 7, he learned Japanese painting from Sumiyoshi Hirokata (1835-1883).  The Sumiyoshi School of Japanese painting branched out from the Tosa School and moved to Edo at the beginning of the Tokugawa Shogunate.  At the age of 9, Kiyoo stayed in Osaka with his grandfather and learned from Tanomura Choku’nyu (1814-1907), who was one of the last literati painters in Japan.  Kiyoo returned to Edo and learned from Haruki Nanmei (1795-1878), who was good at bird-and-flower painting.

Address: 4 Chome-2 Akasaka, Minato City, Tokyo 107-0052

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Virtual Yamanote 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #29 Ryusen-ji Temple

 

     Ryusen-ji Temple was founded in Hitotsugicho, Akasaka, where lower-ranking samurai's houses were built close together, and was moved to its present place after the fire in 1887.

     Tokugawa Nobuyasu (1559-1579) was given birth by Sena (?-1579), a niece of Imagawa Yoshimoto (1519-1560), in Sunpu, the capital of the Imagawa Clan, as the first son of Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616).  Nobuyasu spent his childhood in Sunpu as a hostage.  After Yoshimoto was killed by Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582) in the Battle of Okehazama, Ieyasu got independent from the Imagawa Clan.  In 1562, Ieyasu seized Kaminogo Castle in Mikawa Province, killed the lord of the castle, Udono Nagateru (?-1562), and captured Nagateru’s sons, Ujinaga (1549-1624) and Ujitsugu (?-1600).  As the Udono Family belonged to the Imagawa Clan in a large sense, Ieyasu successfully exchanged hostages.  Nobuyasu married Tokuhime (1559-1636), the first daughter of Nobunaga, in May 1567.  Both at the age of 9, the couple started living in Okazaki Castle together.  Later, they had 2 daughters.

     Later, Nobuyasu became the lord of Okazaki Castle, the birthplace of his father, in Mikawa Province in 1570.  As a teenager, he took part in many battles and fought fearlessly and dauntlessly, especially in the Battle of Nagashino in 1575.

     Nobuyasu was a daring warrior, but, as a teenager, he wasn't good at handling their child-and-father relationship.  Neither was Ieyasu. Ieyasu looked timid to Nobuyasu, and Nobuyasu seemed to lack prudence and to be arrogant to Ieyasu.  As often the case in the Warring States Period, the poor father-and-child relation led to the inter-factional strife between the samurai based in Okazaki Castle and those in Hamamatsu Castle, where Ieyasu was based.

     To make the matter worse, Nobuyasu and Tokuhime didn’t have a son.  Nobuyasu’s mother, Sena, was worried, and had Nobuyasu make her maids his concubines.  That, as a matter of course, made the couple's relationship sour.  It is unknown when a conflict between a wife and her mother-in-law started, but the situation made it fiercer.  In July, 1579, not only Ieyasu but also Nobunaga was worried and visited Okazaki.  The alliance between the Oda and Tokugawa Families was shaken.

     Finally, Tokuhime accused Nobuyasu and Sena of their secret communication with Takeda Katsuyori (1546-1582), the common enemy of the Oda and Tokugawa Families in the east, at least officially.  The situation went far beyond a marital quarrel or a conflict between a wife and her mother-in-law.  Potentially, the Tokugawa Family could ally with the Takeda Clan to attack the Oda Family in the west.  Ieyasu had to do something to settle the matter.  Ieyasu was, as Nobuyasu found him out to be, too timid to change his alliance to Katsuyori.  He prudently chose Nobunaga.

     On August 3rd, 1579, Ieyasu visited Okazaki Castle and made Nobuyasu leave the castle for Ohama Fortress the next day.  Nobuyasu was moved to Horie Fortress in Fuchi County, Totomi Province, and then to Futamata Fortress in Toyoda County.  He was ordered to kill himself on September 15th.  His head was sent to Nobunaga and was buried in Wakamiya-Hachiman-gu Shrine in Okazaki.  Previously on August 29th, Sena was killed on Lake Sanaru in Fuchi County.

     After Nobuyasu’s death, Tokuhime was sent back to Nobunaga on February 20th, 1580, with her 2 daughters left with Ieyasu.

     Tokuhime's second daughter, Kumahime (1577-1626), was married to Honda Tadamasa (1575-1631).  Their first son, Tadatoki (1596-1626), married the first daughter of Tokugawa Hidetada (1579-1632), Senhime (1597-1666).  Their 8th generation descendants had Tokugawa Yoshinobu (1837-1913), the 15th and last Shogun.  It is an irony of history that Nobuyasu's 10th descendant brought an end to the Tokugawa Shogunate

     Nobuyasu’s body was cremated and his ashes were buried by a hermitage in Takinoue, Nukata County, Mikawa Province, where his wet nurse lived her secluded life in the mountains.  Tokugawa Yoshinao (1610-1650), the 9th son of Ieyasu, changed the hermitage into a temple and moved it to Edo.  Priest Kyozan, a brother of Goto Saburoemon, who was subject to Yoshinao, took care of the temple.  The Avalokitesvara statue became known as a guardian Avalokitesvara of children.  Nobuyasu's Buddhist memorial tablet kept in the temple was dated February, 1579, 6 months before his accusation and 7 months before his death.  Why?  It wasn't sorare in medieval days to build a while-alive grave to wish for longevity.  Did the wet nurse pray for the safety of her "son" for half a year desperately and frantically?

One possibility is that she made up her mind in February to gIve up her real son, the milk brother of Nobuyasu, and substitute him for Nobuyasu in case of emergency, and made the tablet for her real son with Nobuyasu's name as a proxy.  That was a kind of a popular plot in popular stories in the Edo Period.  If that had been the case anyway, could it be Kyozan who was Nobuyasu?

Address: 2 Chome-8-25 Minamiaoyama, Minato City, Tokyo 107-0062

Phone: 03-3401-2535

Hitotsugi-dori Avenue Shopping District

Address: 4 Chome-2 Akasaka, Minato City, Tokyo 107-0052

Phone: 03-3585-1679