Virtual Sayama 33 Kannon Pilgrimag

       I have walked through the Sayama 33 Kannon Pilgrimage, the 13th oldest Kannon pilgrimage in Edo.  Technically speaking, all the member temples were located in the outskirts of Edo.  Tokyo and Saitama Prefectures both belonged to Musashi Province in their Medieval days and some of the 33 temples are located in Saitama Prefecture.  

     Of course, it is a difficult question what area was called Edo.  After Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616) moved into Edo in 1590, the city was always expanding.  In December 1818, Abe Masakiyo (1775-1826),  the Elder, one of the highest-ranking government posts under the Tokugawa Shogunate, drew a red line on a map to show the boundary of Edo.  The city area was basically inherited by the 15 wards of Tokyo City after the Meiji Restoration.  The area of the Tokyo Special Wards is much larger than that of the 15 wards.  The number has also increased to 23.  The nickname of the Tokyo “city” is 23-ku, namely 23 wards.