Virtual Old Akita 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #25 Ryusen-ji Temple

 

     It is unknown when Hoo-an Hermitage was built at the mouth of Yoneshiro River.  Tradition says that Gyoki (668-749) stayed in the hermitage in 718.  Gyoki founded more than 40 temples in Izumi, Kawachi, Settsu, Yamato, Yamashiro, and Harima provinces.  Over 600 temples are said to have been founded by him all over Japan excluding Hokkaido, but it's just legend.  It is doubtful that he stayed at the mouth of the river in 718, when he was busy propagating his belief in the above-mentioned provinces, suffering from government oppression.

     Hoo-an Hermitage was at the foot of Mt. Hiyori-yama.  There are at least 81 Mt. Hiyori-yama in Japan.  Hiyori literally means Weather.  They are the closest hills near ports, which commanded the open sea.  The hermitage could have had something to do with Nushiro Prot at the mouth of Yoneshiro River.

     The legend suggests the hermitage was built there at the beginning of the 8th century.

     In 658, Abe Hirafu landed Nushiro with 180 military boats.

     In 709, Ideha County was established at the northern end of Koshi Province.  Ideha Fortress was supposedly built around that time in the estuary of Mogami River.  Ideha County was separated from Koshi Province and was promoted to province in 712.  In 733, Ideha Fortress was relocated north, or advanced, to Akita at the estuary of Omono River about 100 kilometers from its original place.  To the north of Akita, there lay northern foreigners' lands.  About 50 kilometers north of Akita, there was Nushiro Port in the estuary of Yoneshiro River.  About another 100 kilometers north of Nushiro Port, there lay Tosa Port in the estuary of Iwaki River.  The two ports might have been visited by Abe Hirafu in the 7th century on his way to attack the Mishihase people, who were assumed to be sea people.

     In 727, the King of Balhae, Da Muye (?-737), launched a delegation of 24 envoys led by Gao Len-i.  The delegation arrived in Northern Japan by misfortune.  16 envoys, including Gao Len-i, were killed by northern foreigners.  The other 8 escaped under the provisional leadership of Gao Je-deog, and reached Ideha Province.

     It occurred 6 years before the advance of the Imperial Court's power to Akita.  The envoys might have arrived either at the estuary of Omono River, that of Yoneshiro River, or that of Iwaki River.  In those areas, at that time, Imperial Court and northern foreigners were clashing head-on.  The envoys might have been unfortunately mistaken for Imperial Court's sea forces, and were attacked.  The surviving envoys left Japan next year, with the information that the archipelago was divided into the north, which was sparsely populated and less advanced than the south, and the south, which was densely populated and less advanced than Balhae and which were willing to offer many products of fabric as presents.

In 739, Balhae sent another delegation to Japan.  This time again, they got plenty of fabric products  in exchange for hides.   Those pieces of information from the 2 delegations might have interested especially the Tiei tribe.  In 746, over 1,100 Balhae and Tiei people arrived in Ideha Province.  The number implied it was rather a big migration than just envoys.  After getting some clothes and food as they might have expected, they were deported.  They left Ideha Province.  But where?  They might have continued to sail north.  First, they might have invaded the estuary of Yoneshiro River, outnumbered the local northern foreigners, and occupied or built Nushiro Port.  And then some of them might have continued to sail further north, reached the estuary of Iwaki River, outnumbered the local northern foreigners, and occupied or built Tosa Port there.  With the knowledge of navigation, it might have been they who also built 2 ports to wait for better winds.  One was in Onga between Akita and Nushiro, and the other was in Fukaura between Nushiro and Tosa.  Those ports made the navigation across the Sea of Japan safer and more secure.

     In the Muromachi Period (1336-1573), the hermitage became a subsidiary to Mount Yudono, syncretized with Shinto.  After the Meiji Restoration, Mount Yudono became a Shinto shrine and the hermitage became Ryusen-ji Temple.

Address: 7-23 Seisukemachi, Noshiro, Akita 016-0806

Phone: 0185-52-2056