Trees in the Town

 

Virtual Kako County Chichibu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #3 Shogan-ji Temple

 

Historical Context: Shougan-ji & Joufuku-ji (Kakogawa City)

Overview

     Located in the Naka-Saijo and Kami-Saijo areas of Yahata-cho, Kakogawa, both Shougan-ji (No. 3) and Joufuku-ji (No. 4) Temples belong to the Myoshin-ji branch of the Rinzai Zen sect. Despite being situated in close proximity on low hills surrounded by farmland, detailed historical records for both temples remain scarce.

1. Geometrical & Archaeological Clues

Strategic Elevation: During Japan’s Sengoku (Warring States) period, small raised hills overlooking farmland and the Kako River were ideal sites for local samurai (kokujin or dogo) to build fortified residences or outposts.

Sarcophagus Buddha (Sekkandobutsu): The stone Buddha carved into an ancient tomb slab found in Joufuku-ji’s cemetery points to the site being used for sacred burials or rituals during the 15th to 16th centuries.

2. Why Are Two Identical Zen Temples So Close Together?

     Rather than a modern "split," several historical scenarios explain this proximity:

Village-Based Identity: Both Naka-Saijo and Kami-Saijo Villages were listed on the Keicho Provincial Maps in 1611, Saijo Village might have splitted into Shimo-Saijo, Naka-Saijo, and Kami-Saijo (from west to east) Villages during the Warring States Period. In the Edo period, under the strict Terauke (temple registry) system, neighboring villages (Naka-Saijo vs. Kami-Saijo) were required to maintain their own official temples. Both likely registered under the influential Rinzai Myoshin-ji school.

Post-War Rebuilding: Many temples in the Harima region were destroyed during the 16th-century campaigns (e.g., Hideyoshi’s Siege of Miki). When itinerant Zen monks later restored these abandoned sites in the early Edo period, they re-established them under their own sect.

Functional Division: One site may have originally served primarily as a mortuary temple/cemetery (bodaiji), while the other functioned as a hall for prayer or retreat.

Address: 1096 Yahatacho, Kakogawa, Hyogo 675-1205

Phone: 079-438-0400

Sarcophagus Buddha (Sekkandobutsu) in Jofuku-ji Temple Cemetery

Address: Kamisaijo-546 Yahatacho, Kakogawa, Hyogo 675-1204

Trees in the Town

 

Virtual Kako County Chichibu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #2 Eisho-ji Temple

 

     Eisho-ji Temple is said to have been founded in 1504 by Bessho Norisada, the lord of Miki Castle, and his younger brother Murashige, both sons of Noriharu (?-1513).

     The temple houses the Stone Coffin Buddha Image of the Amida Triad, which was created in 1343 during the Nanboku-cho (Southern and Northern Courts) period (1336–1392). Made of tuff, the image measures 167 centimeters in height and 95 centimeters in width.

     A seated image of Amida Nyorai in the jo-in (meditation) mudra is carved into the underside of a house-shaped stone coffin lid, flanked by standing images of Seishi Bosatsu and Kannon Bosatsu. The entire composition is framed by a carved outline.

     The inscription reads: "This work is dedicated to the memorial rites for the parents and the salvation of all sentient beings. October 18th, Koei 2 (1343); respectfully offered by the patron."

     The Stone Coffin Buddha Image was originally enshrined along a prefectural road, but was relocated south of the Eisho-ji Temple gate due to road widening. The central Buddha figure stands approximately 62 centimeters tall.

     Although its precise original site cannot be pinpointed, the image is thought to have been relocated merely a few dozen meters. This strongly implies that the area was already a sacred ground or burial site long before the establishment of Eisho-ji, or perhaps home to an earlier prototype of the temple.

Address: 828 Kannocho, Kakogawa, Hyogo 675-0009

Phone: 079-438-5354

Miki Castle Ruins

Address: 5 Uenomarucho, Miki, Hyogo 673-0432

Phone: 0794-82-2000

Trees in the Town

 

Virtual Kako County Chichibu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #1 Joko-ji Temple

 

     Joko-ji Temple was founded in 1336 by Ashikaga Takauji (1305-1358), who was forced to retreat to the west in February, 1336. He accepted the counsel of Akamatsu Norimura (1277-1350) and headed down to Kyushu.  He seized Kyoto again in June.  He honored Monk Beppo Daishu (1321-1402) as the temple’s founder. The temple flourished with a full complex of temple buildings and a three-story pagoda. It later fell into decline following a fire. It was revived during the Eisho era (1504–1521) by Akamatsu Yoshimura (?-1521) and renamed Shoko-ji. However, it burned down again in the battles during the Tensho era (1573–1592). Later, during the Eiroku era (1558–1570), a man named Juken, who is supposed to have belonged to the Kako Family, built a hall and renamed it Joko-ji.

     In 1648, the Chan master Nanshitsu (1591–1671), a descendant of the Akamatsu Clan, was invited from Keiun-ji Temple in Himeji to serve as the temple's restorer and second founder. Although the temple soon suffered another fire that destroyed its buildings, Buddhist statues, and treasures, it was rebuilt by Nanshitsu during the Manji era (1658–1661). Subsequently, during the tenure of the eleventh head priest, Kuho, a monks' hall was opened to serve as a training center for itinerant monks.

Address: Kanno-332-1 Kannocho, Kakogawa, Hyogo 675-0003

Phone: 079-438-8022

Keiun-ji Temple

Address: 10-1 Nozatokeiunjimaecho, Himeji, Hyogo 670-0813

Phone: 079-222-3918

Trees in the Town

 

Kako County Chichibu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage

  

The origins of the Kako County Chichibu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage (est. 1922) are shrouded in mystery, with no record of its founders. However, its simultaneous creation alongside the local Saigoku and Bando routes suggests a deliberate, coordinated effort. Given that the Kako Bando route had already organized the more secondary religious institutions in each area, let us see how the organizers managed to gather yet another set of 33 Kannon temples within such a small county.

I will withhold my final conclusion until I complete the entire Kako County Chichibu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage. However, one fascinating observation is already clear: the Chichibu Route has preserved many more active temples than the Bando Route. Interestingly, where the Bando Route was dominated by the Pureland Sect, the Chichibu Route is centered on the Shingon, Caotong, and Linji sects, hinting at a calculated distribution of temples when these spiritual networks were established.

Trees in the Town

 

Virtual Kako County Bando 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #25-33

 

     The stations from #25 to #33 are missing.  They could have extended eastward along the seashore, distributed in port towns and fishers’ villages.  The industrial areas there tell us it's a waste of time to explore the traces and marks of the stations among them.  Obviously, the pilgrimage is endangered.

Trees in the Town

 

Virtual Kako County Bando 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #24 Gyoja-do Hall

 

     It is unknown when Gyoja-do Hall was built in the port town of Takasago.  Between the hall and Kakogawa River, there expands the port town, which still keeps old architecture such as Hanai Family Residence, Osaki Family Residence, Masso-kura Storehouse, and Inari-bashi Bridge, carrying the elegance of the port town’s golden age.

Address: 1451 Takasagocho Shimizumachi, Takasago, Hyogo 676-0035

Former Hanai Family Residence

Address: 1511 Takasagocho Takasemachi, Takasago, Hyogo 676-0036

Site of Hyakkengura Storehouse and Site of Tsudome Kokudome Guardhouse

Address: 1711-32 Takasagocho Aiyamachi, Takasago, Hyogo 676-0037

Osaki Family Residence

Address: 1667 Takasagocho Aiyamachi, Takasago, Hyogo 676-0037

Inari-bashi Bridge

Address: 1510 Takasagocho Takasemachi, Takasago, Hyogo 676-0036

Masso-kura Storehouse

Address: Takasagocho Higashihamamachi, Takasago, Hyogo 676-0032

Trees in the Town

 

Virtual Kako County Bando 33 Kannon Pilgrimage #23 Gokuraku-ji Temple

 

     The exact foundation date of Gokuraku-ji Temple remains unknown. It sits in a unique temple district alongside Jurin-ji Temple—which reportedly dates back to 815 and serves as the 3rd station of the Kako Saigoku 33 Kannon Pilgrimage—and Enmei-ji Temple, the 2nd station of the Kako Bando 33 Kannon Pilgrimage. Geographically, the Kako Bando route seems to complete a large, figure-eight-like loop at Gokuraku-ji (the 23rd station), before leading just 300 meters east to the 24th station, Gyoja-do Hall.

     The history of Gyoja-do Hall is also lost to time. Today, the building resembles a pre-WWII private house and appears virtually abandoned. Confronted with the sudden disappearance of the subsequent stations (#25 through #33), I am left to consider two hypotheses:

The pilgrimage was never fully completed: The Kako Bando 33 Kannon Pilgrimage may have originally launched with only about twenty-four stations or less, with the intention of expanding the network over time. However, their efforts likely stalled at the 24th station, possibly due to the economic devastation of the 1929 Great Depression, which struck shortly after the pilgrimage's establishment in the Taisho era (1912-1926).

The remaining stations were lost to modernization: The pilgrimage did once include stations #25 through #33, which consisted of small, community-maintained local halls. Since Gyoja-do (#24) was situated at the edge of the historic port town, the route would have continued east across the river—precisely where a massive industrial zone and urban sprawl rapidly expanded along the coastline after World War II, swallowing these modest structures in the process.

Address: 1074 Takasagocho Yokomachi, Takasago, Hyogo 676-0051

Phone: 079-442-4556