Virtual Settsu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #30 Joko-Enmanji Temple

 

     According to the temple's tradition, Gyoki had a dream in which Gozu Tenno appeared to him and told him that there was a sacred fragrant wood in Suita.  When he came to Suita, he found a single fragrant wood washed up on the white sand and green pine beach, just as he had been told.  Gyoki carved a statue of the Bodhisattva Kannon out of the wood, and built a hall on this sacred site, enshrining the statue as the main deity in 735.  As the hall was built on the beach, people eventually came to call it Hama-no-do, namely Beache's Hall.  The hall became a training center for Gyoki's missionary work.  As the temple was illuminated day and night with light, it was later renamed Jokou-ji, namely Always Illuminated Temple.  In 1178, the Buddhist statue from Enman-ji Temple in the neighboring village, Kishibe Village, was moved to Joko-ji Temple, with the temple renamed Joko-Enman-ji.

     The tradition implies that the Suita area used to be a seashore.  In ancient times, Kishi Clan lived in the Kishibe area (today's Kishibeminami, Suita, Osaka 564-0011).  The clan is not supposed to have been a kin group but the group of the immigrants from Silla, an ancient country in Korea Peninsula.  The clan's base was in Namba, and the clan functioned as diplomats in those days.

     The Suita Royal Manor was developed at the end of the ancient times.  The manor was first documented on April 13th, 1260.  The Suita area had 2 more manors: one was owned by Kofuku-ji Temple and the other by the Saionji Family.  Fujiwara Kintsune (1171-1244) was the hegemon in the Imperial Court under the Kamakura Shogunate.  He was the great-grandfather of the Shogun and the Emperor and increased the numbers of the manors he owned.  He founded Saion-ji Temple and called his family Saionji.

     In the Medieval times, the area had Suita Port, which was a river port along Yodo River, which might have run almost along today's Kanzaki River.  Even in the Warring States Period, the port was an important water transportation center, and was protected by Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536-1598) against other warlords in October, 1582, 4 months after Hideyoshi defeated Akechi Mitsuhide (1528-1582) to gain national hegemony.

     In Ancient Japan, the capital was in today's Nara Prefecture, and Namba and Sumiyoshi were the seaports of the capital.  The central government organized the Settsu Office somewhere near the ports.  Settsu literally meant to Control Ports.  The capital moved to Kyoto, and the water transportation center moved to the northern bank of the Yodo River.  The diplomacy office was organized in Kyoto, and, instead of the local bureau of port and harbor, they organized Settsu Province with the ancient harbor areas which looked like, in medieval days,  an exclave bordering on Kawachi and Izumi provinces in the south, surrounded with Yamato River in the east, Yodo River in the north, and the sea in the west.

Whatever geopolitical reasons Settsu Province had, the Settsu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage jumps almost 20 kilometers south to its last 3 member temples.

     Hoju-ji Temple is said to have been the #30 member temple of the Settsu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage when the pilgrimage was organized, but it was replaced by Joko-Enman-ji Temple on June 30th, 2024.

     Hoju-ji Temple was founded at the end of the 10th century by Butsugen.  When Emperor Kazan (968-1008) was visiting the Saigoku 33 Kannon Pilgrimage under Butsugen, he found the landscape of the area resembled that in Kumano, Ki Province.  He enshrined Kumano Gongen and built a shrine for the gods and Buddhas in imitation of Kumano.  This is the origin of the sango of Hoju-ji Temple, Kumano-Dai-zan, the place name Kumano-cho, and Yasaka Shrine at the foot of the temple.

     In 718, Priest Tokudo, the founder of Hase-dera Temple, died.  At the entrance of the netherworld, he met the great king of the Buddhist Hall.  The king had a kind of triage crisis and complained that he had to sort too many people into hell.  “Japan has 33 Avalokitesvara precincts.  People there can reduce their penalty points by going on a pilgrimage to the precincts.”  Thus he gave Tokudo a written pledge and 33 precious seals, and sent him back to the world.  Tokudo chose 33 precincts and advised people to visit them.  People, however, didn’t believe it (as a matter of course), and the pilgrimage didn’t become popular.  He stored the seals in a stone case in Nakayama-dera Temple.  He died at the age of 80, and the pilgrimage was forgotten.  It wasn't recorded what conversation he had with the king this time as a matter of course.

     One day, Emperor Kazan was shutting himself up in Mt. Nachi, Kishu Province, after his abdication in 986.  The god of Kumano appeared in his dream, and advised him to revive the pilgrimage Priest Tokudo had organized.  The emperor found the 33 seals in Nakayama-dera Temple, and asked Priest Shoku (910-1007) in Enkyo-ji Temple to cooperate.  The priest recommended Butsugen in Eifuku-ji Temple instead.  With Butsugen’s guide, the retired emperor went on the pilgrimage to the 33 precincts, and even composed a tanka poem for each temple.  That was the start of go-eika, Japanese tanka poem chants for pilgrims.  The 33 precincts were called the Saigoku 33 Kannon Pilgrimage.

     It is unknown why Hoju-ji Temple was replaced by Joko-Enman-ji Temple.

Address: 28-13 Motomachi, Suita, Osaka 564-0031

Phone: 06-6381-0182

Kofuku-ji Temple

Address: 48 Noboriojicho, Nara, 630-8213

Phone: 0742-22-7755

Saion-ji Temple

Address: 358 Kotokujicho, Kamigyo Ward, Kyoto, 602-0801

Phone: 075-231-1952

Hoju-ji Temple

Address: 3 Chome-10-1 Kumanocho, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0014

Phone: 06-6849-9228

Engyo-ji Temple

Address: 2968 Shosha, Himeji, Hyogo 671-2201

Phone: 079-266-3327

Eifuku-ji Temple

Address: 2146 Taishi, Minamikawachi District, Osaka 583-0995

Phone: 0721-98-0019

Butsugen-ji Temple

Address: 1084 Hamuro, Taishi, Minamikawachi District, Osaka 583-0994

Yasaka Shrine

Address: 3 Chome-10-1 Kumanocho, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0014

Phone: 06-6852-1061