Trees In the Town

 

Virtual Arima County 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #23 Kanze-ji Temple

 

     It is unknown when Kanze-ji Temple was founded in Shiota Village, Arima County, Settsu Province.  The Jori system seems to have been introduced in Shiota Manor.

     In the 8th century, rice fields were rezoned by the unit of 11,881 square meters.  Horizontal 6 units were called Jo, and vertical 6 units were called Ri.  Accordingly, the rezoning system was called the Jori system.

     Some suggest the temple had something to do with Shiota Hachiman Shrine, which was originally called Dasai Shrine.

     Dasai Shrine was already in Shiota Manor at the beginning of the 9th century.  The shrine enshrined Toshigami.  Toshigami was the god of abundant harvests, and specifically of grain or rice.  Toshigami is recorded in the Kojiki, or Records of Ancient Matters, which is an early Japanese chronicle of myths, legends, hymns, genealogies, oral traditions, and semi-historical accounts dating as far back as 641, but Toshigami isn't recorded in the Nihon Shoki, or the Chronicles of Japan, whose compilation was finished in 720.  It is unknown why Toshigami was excluded from Shintoism hierarchy.

     Anyway, Dasai Shrine became Shiota-Hachiman Shrine, being a branch of Iwashimizu Hachiman-gu Shrine, by whom Shiota Manor was owned.  In 1158, the shrine had its shrine temple, Jingu-ji Temple.  So, Kanze-ji wasn't the shrine temple.

     As Kanze-ji Temple was located at the foot of Tateishi Fortress, the temple could have had something to do with the lord of the fortress.  Some believe the fortress was built by Yamazaki Tsunemasa in 1564.  In 1565, Tsunemasa is said to have attacked Higashinogami Fortress.  Some say, when Tsunemasa did falconry around Ebisu Shrine in 1601, he had a rest in the shrine and donated some land to it.  Tsunemasa could have been a relative of Yamazaki Kataie (1547-1591), who became the lord of the Sanda Castle in 1582.  In 1601, Kataie's son, Iemori (1567-1614) was demoted to Wakasa, Hatto County, Inaba Province.  Some don't believe in the existence of Tsunemasa.

Address: Shiota-3159-1 Dojocho, Kita Ward, Kobe, Hyogo 651-1502

Phone: 07956-3-3682.

Shiota Hachiman Shrine

Address: Shiota-3238 Dojocho, Kita Ward, Kobe, Hyogo 651-1502

Phone: 078-985-2863

Iwashimizu Hachiman-gu Shrine

Address: Takabo−30, Yawata, Kyoto 614-8005

Phone: 075-981-3001

Tateishi Fortress Site

Address: Teramuracho, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1523

Ebisu Shrine

Address: 57 Nagasaka, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1355

Phone: 079-567-1062

Higashinogami Fortress Site

Address: Higashinogami, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1312

Trees In the Town

 

Virtual Arima County 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #22 Shinmei-ji Temple

 

     It is unknown when, why, and how Shinmei-ji Temple was founded in Tanaka Village, Arima County, Settsu Province.  The village used to be owned by Ise Shrine.

     According to the Association of Shinto Shrines, we have about 5,000 Shinmei Shrines across Japan.  Some even argue there are about 180,000 of them.  They all enshrine Amaterasu as their main deity, and thus each of them is supposed to be a branch of Ise Shrine.  Accordingly, Tanaka Village had its Shinmei Shrine.  Shinmei-ji Temple is said to have been called Shinmei-an, which might have been founded as its shrine temple.  Shinmei-an Temple might have become an independent religion institute after the Meiji Restoration Government issued the Gods and Buddhas Separation Order in 1868.

     As Sanda City merged 2 Tanaka Villages, one is called Higashi-Honjo-Tanaka and the other with Shinmei-ji Temple is called Shimo-Tanaka.

     Anyway, Kitabatake Shigemasa is said to have built Tanaka Residence or Tanaka Fortress to rule and guard the village.  Kitabatake Akiyoshi (1326-1383) became the Governor of Ise Province during the Southern and Northern Courts Period (1337-1392), based in Tage County.  Judging from his first name, Shigemasa could have been a vassal related to Akiyoshi's grandfather, Moroshige (1270-1322), by family.  He could have been an illegitimate son of Morishige, or he could have won Morishige’s confidence and been adopted.  Presumably,  he was sent to Tanaka Village either in the 14th century or in the 15th century by Akiyoshi or by his successor, Akiyasu (1361-1414).

     Tanaka Fortress was first documented when Ikeda Nobumasa (?-1548) occupied the fortress in 1519.  The fortress was recaptured by the Kitabatake Family later, but was destroyed presumably in 1575, when Araki Murashige (1536-1586) invaded Arima County.

     The fortress ruins remained.  However, when Muko River was straightened in 1935, the ruins went under the water.  Anyway, the fortress could have been somewhere around Shimotanaka Hall.

     Thus, the memories of samurai days went away.  If or when the shrine is abolished, will the memories of the area pass away?  How about the temple?  In Hyogo Prefecture alone, about 450 local festivals and religious events have gone.  The number of shrines is said to be halved by 2040.

Address: 156-1 Shimotanaka, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1522

Phone: 079-562-3623

Shinmei Shrine

Address: 117 Shimotanaka, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1522

Ise Grand Shrine

Address: 1 Ujitachicho, Ise, Mie 516-0023

Phone: 0596-24-1111

Address: 279 Toyokawacho, Ise, Mie 516-0042

Phone: 0596-24-1111

Kitabatake Residence Ruins

Address: 1148 Misugicho Kamitage, Tsu, Mie 515-3312

Kitabatake Residence Guardhouse Ruins

Address: Misugicho Shimotage, Tsu, Mie 515-3311

Kiriyama Castle Ruins

Address: G7FQ+7P, Tsu, Mie 515-3421

Shimotanaka Hall

Address: 243 Shimotanaka, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1522

Trees In the Town

 

Virtual Arima County 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #21 Shinko-ji Temple

 

     It is unknown when Shinko-ji Temple was founded in Tera-mura Village, Arima County, Settsu Province, as a temple of Caodong Chan School.  Tera-mura literally means Temple Village, and the village was named so because the area belonged to the Arima 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #19 Kinshin-ji Temple, which belongs to Shingon Sect.

     The village was first documented in Keicho Kuni-ezu, or the Keicho Maps of the Provinces.  Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616), the founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate, conducted a land survey of the distribution and rice yields of the feudal lords' territories and the lands of temples and shrines across Japan in September, 1605.  He appointed Nishio Yoshitsugu (1530-1606) as magistrate in charge of Eastern Provinces and Tsuda Hidemasa (1546-1653) as magistrate in charge of Western Provinces.  The maps are said to have been made based on this survey.

     The village could be quite newly developed at the foot of the Hakkei Hills (Hakkeicho, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1524) and the temple could be as new as the village.  The hills used to have Tateishi Fortress, which is supposed to have been built to attack Sanda Castle.

     For unknown reason, the village had the water irrigation rights of Sanda-Oike Pond (5 Yashikimachi, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1532).  Maybe, the village inherrited the rights from Kinshin-ji Temple.  As the pond lied south to Sanda Castle, the rights were sometimes restricted for the sake of the castle's defence.

Address: 4352 Teramuracho, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1523

Phone: 079-562-2977

Kinshin-ji Temple

Address: 3 Chome-28-45 Tenjin, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1531

Phone: 079-563-3084

Sanda Castle Site

Address: Yashikimachi 2 Chome-2-20, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1532

Tateishi Fortress Site

Address: Teramuracho, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1523

Trees In the Town

Virtual Arima County 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #20 Shogaku-ji Temple

 

     It is said that a holy place was opened by Hodo around the 7th century on Okutoyama in Ono Village.  Later, during the Kamakura period, Priest Sonkei lamented the decline of the holy place and painstakingly restored it, founding Shokaku-san Shofuku-ji Temple.

     Today, they have 2 hills called Okuyama: one in Kamihonjo, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1351, and the other in Kogaki, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1401, but they have no hill called Okutoyama in the area.

     At the end of the Warring States Period, the temple was burned down by the forces of Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582) when he invaded the Chugoku Region.  Later, in 1583, Priest Choyo revived it as Daion-zan Shokaku-ji Temple when the Sanda Castle Town was developed, thanks to the support of the then lord, Yamazaki Kataie (1547-1591).  The temple served as the lord's family temple but his son, Iemori (1567-1614) was moved to Inaba Province in 1600.

     At the end of the Edo Period (1603-1868), Priest Ichinen, the 57th head priest of Seijoko-ji Temple, held a Buddhist initiation ceremony for 5 days in the temple during his pilgrimage in 1854.  Seijoko-ji Temple was recognized by the Tokugawa Shogunate's Magistrate of Temples and Shrines as the head temple of the 274 Ji Sect temples in 1631.

     Shokaku-ji Temple's Buddhist tanka poem is:

Just pray to Amidabha

For compassion and a promise to relieve

The suffering of the people of the world.

Address: 27-35 Sandacho, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1533

Phone: 079-562-2826

Seijoko-ji Temple

Address: 1 Chome-8-1 Nishitomi, Fujisawa, Kanagawa 251-0001

Phone: 0466-22-2063

Trees In the Town

 

Virtual Arima County 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #19 Kinshin-ji Temple

 

     Kinshin-ji Temple was founded by Priest Joe (643-666) in today's Yashikimachi, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1532.  Joe studied in Tang China from 653 to 665.

     In May, 653, Joe traveled to Tang China as a monk studying abroad with a Japanese envoy to Tang China.  He resided at the Huiri Daochang Practice Hall of Huaide Temple in Changan and studied under Master Shentai, a disciple of Xuanzang (602-664).

     In September, 665, Joe returned to Japan via Baekje on the Korean Peninsula.  He is said to have returned with a large delegation of over 250 people led by Liu Degao, an envoy from Tang China.  Joe died in December of the same year in Ohara (today's Ohara, Asuka, Takaichi District, Nara 634-0106).

     The temple's main deity is the Seated Maitreya Buddha statue, which is supposedly made in the late Heian Period (794-1185).  The temple burned down in the Warring States Period (1467-1573), but the statue was hidden in the pond nearby.

     Kinshin-ji Temple was revived in its present place later, with the statue enshrined in it.

     The statue had a document in it.  According to the document, the temple's original location used to be called Matsuyama Manor, but was renamed Kinshin-ji Temple's Three Fukuden, literally Three Fortune Fields.  The 3 fields consisted of Keiden, Onden, and Hiden.  Keiden was the fields dedicated for Buddhist monks, and Hiden for wifeless old men, husbandless old women, orphans, and childless old people.  It is unknown what Onden particularly meant, but it is supposed to have been dedicated for some people based on the Buddhist concept of compassion.  Anyway the place name Sanda is said to have come from the three fields.

     For your information, there are some places called Onda in Japan, so there could have been some Onden fields dedicated for some people based on the Buddhist concept of compassion across Japan.

Address: 3 Chome-28-45 Tenjin, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1531

Phone: 079-563-3084

Trees In the Town

 

Virtual Arima County 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #18 Shingetsu-in Temple

 

     It is unknown when Shingetsu-in Temple was founded.  Kuki Hisataka (1617-1649) became the 1st lord of the Mita Domain in 1633.  As Shingetsu is the posthumous name of his late father, Moritaka (1573-1632), the temple might have been founded after 1633.  However, as the temple gate is said to have been moved to the temple from the Arima Hotsprings Residence of Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537-1598) after the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, there could have been an original temple, which could have been renamed Shingetsu-in after 1633.

     First of all, who was the Kuki Family?

     In the 4th century, Emperor Wakatarashi appointed the Shima Family as kuni-no-miyatsuko in Shimazu, namely Shima Port.  The family hereditarily provided the governor of Toshi County till the medieval days.  When provinces were established in the late 7th century under the Ritsuryo law system, the Shima area was included in Ise Province.  The area became independent at the turn of the 8th century with its largest territory which covered today's Owase City in the west and Shino, Himaka, and Saku Islands in the Mikawa Bay in the east.  In the 15th or 16th century, the Kira Family in Mikawa Province occupied the 3 islands.  In 1582, Horiuchi Ujiyoshi (1549-1615) in Ki Province and Oda Nobukatsu (1558-1630) in Ise Province divided the large western part of the province into their territories.  Even in the Edo Period (1603-1867), Shima Province remained as small as we think it is.

     Ugaya, whose ancestors had come from somewhere else which got called Takamagahara later, was ruling Hyuga Province in the eastern coast of Kyushu Island.  He had been abandoned by his mother in his infancy, and raised by his aunt, his mother’s younger sister.  When he came of age, he married the aunt, and had 4 sons, Itsue, Inahi, Mikenu, and Sano.

     Inahi drowned himself in the sea to see his mother.  Mikenu left eastward, that is, to the sea, for the land of the dead.  Itsuse left northward with his youngest brother, Sano.  The reason for the family breakdown is unknown and unknowable now.

     Itsuse first arrived ash Usa in Buzen Province, and stayed at another place in the province for a year.  He moved eastward along the Seto Inland sea to Aki Province, and stayed there for 7 years.  And then to Kibi Province, and stayed there for 3 to 8 years.  He finally reached the eastern end of the Seto Inland sea only to be faced by Nagasune, who was hostile against him.  Itsuse was shot, flew, got to O Port in Ki Province, and died there.  He was buried in Mt. Kama near the port.

     Itsuse’s younger brother, Sano, continued their eastward quest, and arrived at Kumano in the province.  Tempted by a local tribe, who had the token of a crow with 3 legs, he went upstream along Totsu river, crossed Yoshino River, beat his way through the bush, and reached Uda in Yamato Province.

     The 3-legged-crow tribe helped Sano rival other local tribes there, and successfully split one tribe.  Sano’s men committed an underhanded murder of another local tribe.  Sano also maneuvered pork-barrel politics against other tribes, and established his ruling in Iware.  He was later called Iware, related to his domain name.  Until the end of World War II, the series of events was widely believed in Japan to have taken place more than 2 millennia before.

     Sano’s offspring eventually unified Yamato Province.  They even further continued the brothers’ eastward quest.  After Kumano, they reached Ise.  They built their advanced base, Ise Shrine, at the southern end of the Ise Plains and developed a saltworks in Futami nearby.  In the 13th century, a manor was formed around the saltworks.  The saltworks became a kind of a shrine and kept various documents from the later Heian Period to the beginning of the Edo Period.

     The origin of the Kuki Family is not so clear.  The family used to live in and be based in Kuki Bay in Kii Province.  It means that they used to be one of the Kumano Pirates.  The family advanced to Shima Province with some other Kumano Pirates.  The Kuki Family first appeared in the documents kept in the shrine of the Futami Divine Manor.  They did violence and brutality against manor workers over the octopus fishing grounds off Obama from 1358 to 1360.

     The Kuki Family seemed to become a local administrator of Shoren-ji Temple's manor in Toshi Island.  In 1403, Kuki Gensho complained to the temple that the Toki Family, who was the guardian samurai of Shima Province, occupied half the island illegally.  In the middle of the 15th century, the Kuki Family, supported by Hosokawa Katsumoto (1430-1473), conflicted with Isshiki Yoshinao over the position of the local administrator of Tomari Port, which was owned by Daigo-ji Sanpo-in Temple.

     Kuki Yoshitaka (1542-1600) was born as Sadataka’s third son.  Sadataka died in 1551, and his eldest son, Kiyotaka (?-1560), succeeded the family headship.  After Kiyotaka’s death, his son, Sumitaka (?-1584), succeeded the family headship at the age of 8.  Yoshitaka killed Sumitaka and became the head of the family.

     In the same period, Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582) gained momentum after his victory over the Imagawa Clan in the Battle of Okehazama in 1560.  In 1568, Nobunaga started invading Ise Province, fighting against its ruler, Kitabatake Tomonori (1528-1576).  During the invasion, Yoshitaka headed his naval forces, attacked Oyodo Fortress in Taki County along Ise Bay, and occupied it.  In 1569, the peace talk between Nobunaga and Tomonori were concluded.  Tomonari adopted Nobunaga’s second son, Nobukatsu (1558-1630), who married Tomonari’s daughter, Yukihime.

     In the 1570’s, Yoshitaka wrote a defense letter to Nobukatsu, saying that he was embarrassed because he was accused of treating Kiyotaka inconsiderately.  Yoshitaka also tried contacting Nobunaga through Takigawa Kazumasu (1525-1586).

     After Kitabatake’s practical surrender to Nobunaga, Yoshitaka kept fighting against the local samurai families in Shima Province, defeating them one by one, while he also fought for Nobunaga in the Third Siege of Nagashima in 1574, in the First Battle of Kizu River Estuary in 1576, and the Second Battle of Kizu River Estuary in 1578.  After the Second Battle of Kizu River Estuary, Yoshitaka was given a letter of appreciation by Nobukatsu, so Yoshikatsu presumably fought under the command of Nobukatsu.  That made his position delicate after Nobunaga’s death.

     Anyway, let’s see how Yoshitaka unified Shima Province.

     Shima Province was dividedly ruled by 7 to 13 powerful sea samurai families.  The Kuki Family was one of them, and those families formed a kind of a commonwealth.  In 1482, for example, when Tomari Harutaka in Tomari Bay and Wada Takazane in O Bay conflicted with each other over collecting tolls in Tomari Bay, Kuki Kagetaka, Osa Takakage, Arashima Sanemori, Wagu Hisamune, and Koga Munenori jointly asked Shinto Head Priests of Ise Shrine to mediate the two sides.  They also persuaded the two to stop fighting.

     However, after Oda Nobukatsu started ruling Ise Province, Yoshitaka approached Nobukatsu while the other powerful families liked to keep independent.  Nobukatsu disliked those families disturbing his ambition.  Yoshitaka respected Nobukatsu’s wishes, and attacked the other families to realize his own wishes.

     The Ura Family lost to Yoshitaka and killed themselves.  The Arashima Family made peace.  The Obama Family escaped to Mikawa Province.  The other 5 families gave in.  Nobunaga admitted Yoshitaka’s supremacy over those 7 families.  Yoshitaka expressed his gratitude through Kazumasu.

     Now, let’s see how the First and the Second Battles of Kizu River Estuary were fought.

     Nobunaga lost heavily to the naval forces of the Mori and Kono Clans in the First Battle of Kizu River Estuary in July, 1576.  In June and November, 1578, however, he fought against the sea forces of the Mori Clan and the Soga people again, which ended as his overwhelming victory.  Let’s see how the Kuki Naval Forces contributed to Nobunaga’s victory, comparing two entries about the two naval battles from the Biography of Lord Nobunaga.

     “They stopped our ships, and shot many earthenware explosives to burn the ships down.  We were heavily outnumbered, and lost veteran samurai such as Manabe Sadatomo, Numa Iga, Numa Den’nai.  Western forces won a victory in the battle, shipped military provisions into Osaka Hongan-ji Temple, and sailed their forces back to the western provinces.”

     The first quotation describes how the naval battle in July, 1576, was fought.  In the battle, the naval forces of the Mori and Kono Clans, whose de facto main force was the Murakami Pirates, surrounded Oda Naval Forces, threw in many earthenware explosives, and burnt down Oda’s ships and boats.  The tactics to cut off each enemy ship from others by surrounding them with small fast boats and to attack with earthenware explosives used to be common in battles in the Seto Inland Sea.  An earthenware explosive was a round fire bomb which had black powder and iron pieces or lead balls in it with earthenware cover.  The earthenware explosives were popularly used in the Warring States Period.  Later, even small rockets with 3 plumes which were fired with guns, cannons, or wooden cylinders came to be employed.  The explosive powder in their tips exploded when they struck ships.

     Oda Naval Forces were severely beaten by the naval forces of the Mori and Kono Clans, and could not stop the enemy’s shipping military provisions into Osaka Hongan-ji Temple.

     After the first battle, Nobunaga ordered the Kuki Family to build armored ships.  The armored ships were to be armored with iron plates to shield the enemy attacks with earthenware explosives and guns.

     Another quotation about the Second Battle of Kizu River Estuary in June and November, 1578, tells us that, in June, the armored ships which had sailed to Osaka Bay via the Sea of Kumano-nada encountered the besieging enemy naval forces from Soga and Tan’nowa which were shooting arrows and guns, but defeated the enemy with big guns this time.

     “On June 26th, in the 6th year of Tensho, our ships sailed out to the Sea of Kumano-ura, sailed to Osaka.  They rowed numerous boats out of Soga, Tan’nowa and as such against our big ships off Tan’nowa.  They shot arrows and guns, and pressed attacks on us from all sides.  Kuki Yoshitaka, who had decorated the 7 ships like mountains, fought restrictively first, waited for the enemy boats to come closer, then fired big guns all at once, and destroyed many of the enemy boats.  Afterward, the enemy boats could hardly find ways to approach our ships, and we could easily sail to Sakai on July 17th.”

     Those big guns showed their power in November as well to defeat the naval forces of the Mori and Kono Clans, whose de facto main force was the Murakami Pirates again.

     “On November 6th, more than 600 ships and boats from western provinces advanced to Kizu areas.  Kuki Yoshitaka intercepted the enemy ships and boats.  They besieged our ships, sailing southward, and fought a sea battle from 8 in the morning till around noon.  Kuki seemed to be having a hard battle at first, but, having many big guns in their 6 ships, waited for the enemy ships and boats to come closer, and fired the guns to the enemy flagship to strike it down.  They panicked and couldn’t approach us any more.  Kuki finally drove hundreds of the enemy ships and boats into Kizu Estuary, and all the audience praised Kuki Yoshitaka for his military exploits.”

     Just 2 years witnessed a big change in navy battles; from throwing in earthenware explosives to shooting big guns.  The armored ships were not only armored with iron plates to shield the enemy’s attacks of shooting arrows and guns.  The Correspondences of the Society of Jesus in Japan also reported that the ships were also equipped with 3 cannons.  We may well call them battleships with heavy guns.

     Kano Mitsunobu (1565-1608), a painter of the Kano school, one of the most famous schools of Japanese painting, painted Nagoya Castle in Hizen on a byobu with 6 panels in detail years later.  The castle was a base to sally forth to the Korean Peninsula at the time.  The byobu represents armored ships as well with two-storied or three-storied donjons on top of them.  Those donjons might have been spaces for a commander, and symbols of authority and power.  The ships had sails, but were usually driven with oars.  Small-sized armored ships were said to have 50 oars, while big-sizes to have more than 150 oars.  They were equivalent to ships with 75-300 of net tonnage, and were equipped with heavy guns, and were crenelated.

     The structure of the armored ships suggests that they could not sail so fast.  They went to battles with small fast boats guarding them.  In terms of modern navy battles, an armored ship fought as a battleship, a medium-sized boat as a cruiser, and a small boat as a destroyer.  Navy battles were definitely changing, and surpassing in firepower was coming to play more decisive roles than maneuverability, which the Murakami Pirates were good at.  Big ships with a high-rise building on top of them and with a lot of guns to shoot from there at enemy ships and boats were opening a new era on the sea as well.  I just wonder how much iron they should have imported to meet the need.

     In 1582, Nobunaga was cornered by Akechi Mitsuhide (1528-1582) to commit suicide in the Honno-ji Incident.  In the confusion after Nobunaga’s death, Yoshitaka was said to be admitted as the ruler of Shima Province sometime between 1582 and 1584.  It is, however, not clear by whom he was appointed.  Yoshitaka’s nomination could have been planned and carried out by himself.

    After Nobunaga’s death, Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536-1598) and Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616) fought against each other to become the actual successor.  Hideyoshi installed Nobunaga’s grandson as a nominal leader, while Ieyasu supported Nobukatsu.  Yoshitaka seems to have changed sides from Nobukatsu to Hiheyoshi for unknown or unrecorded reasons.

     When Hideyoshi and Ieyasu fought the Battle of Komaki and Nagakute in 1584, Yoshitaka attacked Matsugashima Castle in Ise Province.  He also crossed Ise Bay and burned down the ports of Yoshigo and Waji in the Atsumi Peninsula on April 17th.  In May, the Obama and Mamiya Naval Forces under Ieyasu attacked Yoshitaka from behind.  They fought in Oizu and Matsumura along the south-western shore of Ise Bay.  On June the 16th, Takigawa Kazumasu attacked Kanie Castle at the mouth of the Nikko River.  Yoshitaka supported Kazumasu with his naval forces including an armored ship.  Kazumasu failed and Yoshitaka retreated to Shimoichiba Castle, which fell on the 18th.  On the 19th, Yoshitaka failed in breaking the naval blockade by Ieyasu's naval forces.  On November 12th, peace was reached, and Yoshitaka became Hideyoshi’s vassal.

     After the battle, Hideyoshi invaded Shikoku and Kyushu with the Kuki Naval Forces as his main naval unit.  However, those naval forces only functioned as means of transportation.  Under the Tokugawa Shogunate, they were moved inland.  They became something like a fish out of water.  What did Hisataka have in his mind when he founded Shingetsu-in Temple for his late father, who had been a pirate warlord?

Address: 2 Chome-4-31 Nishiyama, Sanda, Hyogo 669-1537

Phone: 079-562-4310

Trees In the Town

 

Virtual Arima County 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #17 Tamon-ji Temple

 

     Tamon-ji Temple is said to have been founded when Emperor Karu (683-707) reigned from 645 to 654 by the Indian monk Hodo.  It subsequently fell into disrepair and was restored in 858 by Priest Chozen.  The temple complex was originally located on Furuderayama, or Mount Furudera, or Mount Old Temple, southeast of its current location.  When Taira Kiyomori (1118-1181) moved the capital to Fukuhara in Kobe in 1180, the temple was modeled after Kyoto's Mount Kurama and designated as a temple to protect the capital's Kimon.  Kimon is north-east and ura-iimon is, accordingly, south-west.

     In China, where the lunar old calendar is used, the year-end and New Year days mark not only the turning point of the year but also the transition from winter to spring.  It was a time of great change, and people tended to be sick.  They thought demons came to make them sick.

     On the other hand, in the Chinese zodiac system that have been used since ancient times, seasons and directions used the same phrases: Rat, Cow, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Chicken, Dog, and Wild Boar.

     New Year's Eve, the boundary of the year, falls between Cow and Tiger.  The direction north-east also falls between Cow and Tiger.  At the time between Cow and Tiger, there come demons.  Then, they should come from the direction between Cow and Tiger, from north-east.  North-east is the gate for demons.  It's a very plain syllogism.

     The Kimon idea is supposed to have been imported to Japan by the end of the 9th century.

     During the Genpei War (1180-1185), when Minamoto Yoshitsune (1159-1189) attacked Ichinotani in Suma, Tamonji Temple was burned down for refusing to guide him.  After falling into ruin, it was relocated and rebuilt from Furuderayama to its current location in 1462. The current main hall was rebuilt by Priest Ryoen in 1690.

     The phrase Tamon in Japanese usually refers to Vaisravana, but it is unknown whether the temple has something to do with the belief in Vaisravana or not.

Address: Eibara-417 Nagaocho, Kita Ward, Kobe, Hyogo 651-1511

Phone: 078-986-2701

Furuderayama

Address: Karato Arinocho, Kita Ward, Kobe, Hyogo 651-1331