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.

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