Virtual New Mutsu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #5 Natori Senju-Kannon-do Hall

 

     Hokyo-in Temple was founded on a natural levee of Masuda River in Natori County, Mutsu Province, sometime between 794 and 864.

     This is the only Avalokitesvara statue of the New Mutsu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage enshrined in a private lot.

     Abe Shigeto, an uncle of Fujiwara Kiyohira (1056-1128), presented a Buddhist tanka poem to the statue:

The shining moon points to the sin

The morning haze covers it

Like Avalokitesvara in the distant past.

     A Thousand-Armed Sahasrabhuja image was made of inlaid wood with a lacquer finish.  It was enshrined in Kannon-do Hall.  Later, Hokyo-in Temple was abolished with the hall left as the Natori Thousand-Armed Kannon Hall.

     The hall used to be located in Masuda 2-chome, but was moved to its present place when the owner moved.  The village name is said to have been derived from the development of new rice fields.  The name was also pronounced Mashida, namely Added Rice Fields, in the old days.

     The sons of Fujiwara Kinmitsu (?-1057) started calling their families Sato.  Kinmitsu fought for Minamoto Yoriyoshi (988-1075) against Abe Yoritoki (?-1057) and was killed in battle.  Some of his offspring lived in Mutsu Province.  It is unknown why one of the Sato Families came to take care of the Sahasrabhuja image to which Abe Shigeto, Yoritoki's 6th son, presented a Buddhist tanka poem.  Anyway, it is their offspring that take care of the image today.

Address: Yanagida-385-4 Masuda, Natori, Miyagi 981-1224

Phone: 022-382-3674