Usa Shrine is the grandmaster of all Hachiman Shrines. Do you understand that there is a hierarchy in shrines, just like in human society?
It is said that there are eight million gods in Japan, and people believe that there are gods everywhere. Depending on the deity enshrined, shrines can be classified into 30,000 Inari shrines for business, 40,000 Hachiman shrines for military fortune, 12,000 Tenjin shrines for academics, and 25,000 Suwa shrines for agricultural irrigation.
Hachiman was originally an indigenous god worshiped by the local Usa clan, but it seems that he became the god of military luck after being told by the gods that he was the incarnation of Emperor Ojin, a master of archery. At Hachiman Shrine, there is a ritual called Hojo-e where living things are released into nature. Samurai (warrior) are destined to kill life, but Buddhism forbids killing. It is said that these contradictory concepts were fused on the Kunisaki Peninsula, resulting in a syncretization of Shinto and Buddhism.
Usa Jingu is the grandmaster of the Hachiman deity, and is positioned to bring together other shrines such as Iwashimizu Hachiman Shrine in Kyoto and Tsurugaoka Hachiman Shrine in Kamakura. I think it would be interesting to visit the shrines while understanding their connections. The shape of the main building of the shrine is called Hachiman-zukuri(style) and is similar to each other.
usa gingu nanchu romon
iwashimizu hachiman gu
kamakura hachiman gu
Left: Usa /Center: Iwashimizu(Kyoto) /Right: Tsurugaoka(Kamakura)
worship method: 2bows, 4applause and 1bow again
However, when it comes to etiquette when visiting shrines, at most shrines you bow twice, clap twice and lastly bow once again, but at Usa Shrine you bow twice, clap four times and lastly bow once again. Even so, the grounds of Usa Shrine are too vast like U.S.A.
Naturally, travelers planning to visit Suwa will have researched the Onbashira Festival, which is held once every seven years, in advance, so I will omit any details about it.
suwa shrine kamisyahongu8 haiden
Shrines with a long history or, more directly saying, with the enough funds, are rebuilt in different near locations every 20 years. Some people think of this as the rebirth of life, but I think it’s an exquisite way of thinking from the perspective of passing down techniques and connecting people in carrying out festivals. With the same idea of rebirth of life, you can think of Suwa Shrine as having the pillars at the four corners surrounding the shrine replaced every seven years, but without changing the location. Some people think of these pillars as a barrier that marks the boundary between the divine world and the human world. Furthermore, there are four Suwa shrines with the same name in this area, and Lake Suwa is in the middle of these four shrines.
suwa shrine kamisyamaemiya2 onbashira
suwa shrine kamisyahongu6 onbashira
suwa shrine simosyaharumiya5 onbashira
suwa shrine simosyaakimiya4 onbashira
Let me mention here that there are shrines with the same name in various places. Shinto shrines are translated into English as one word ‘shrines’, but in Japanese they are roughly divided into several groups based on their relationship with the imperial family, those with special pedigree such as historical figures, the centers of local beliefs, and etc. The Japanese names of ‘shrines’ also change depending on the relationship, for example, ’Jingu’ like Ise Jingu shrine, ‘Gu’ like Kitano Tenman-gu shrine, ‘Taisha’ like Suwa shrine. They are further divided into several groups depending on the purpose they are enshrined. For example, there are about 30,000 ‘Inari’ shrines for agriculture or business, about 40,000 ‘Hachiman’ shrines for military luck (The head of it is Usa Shrine.), about 12,000 ‘Tenjin’ shrines for academics, and about 25,000 ‘Suwa’ shrines for agricultural irrigation. This is why the same name ‘Suwa Shrine’ is also located in Nagasaki, for example, which is not only Suwa. Four Suwa Shrines in Suwa region are the head of the group.
Suwa Shrine Kamisha-Maemiya (Chino city)
suwa shrine kamisyamaemiya1
suwa shrine kamisyamaemiya4 natural water source
suwa shrine kamisyamaemiya5 water source
suwa shrine kamisyamaemiya3 front
suwa shrine kamisyamaemiya7 cosmos
Suwa Shrine Kamisha-Hongu (Chino city)
suwa shrine kamisyahongu1 side entrance
suwa shrine kamisyahongu0
suwa shrine kamisyahongu2
suwa shrine kamisyahongu3 wood carving
suwa shrine kamisyahongu4 dragon
suwa shrine kamisyahongu7 ochozu
suwa shrine kamisyahongu10
suwa shrine kamisyahongu9 sculpture
suwa shrine kamisyahongu11 looking back at approach
Suwa Shrine Shimosha-Harumiya (Shimo-suwa town)
suwa shrine simosyaharumiya1 point of dismounting horse
suwa shrine simosyaharumiya2 gate
suwa shrine simosyaharumiya3
suwa shrine simosyaharumiya4 sculpture
Suwa Shrine Shimosha-Akimiya (Shimo-suwa town)
suwa shrine simosyaakimiya1 wash your hands at hot spring
suwa shrine simosyaakimiya2
suwa shrine simosyaakimiya3
suwa shrine simosyaakimiya5 looking down at suwa lake
suwa shrines locatopn
express kaiji at chino
Although you will not receive any blessings if you do not visit all four Suwa shrines, you can visit them all in one day. You can get off the JR train at Chino Station and rent a bicycle to visit Kamisha-Maemiya and Kamisha-Hongu, then move to Shimo-Suwa Station and rent a bicycle or walk around Shimosha-Harumiya and Shimosha-Akimiya.
miya river1
The two Shimosha shrines are similar in structure, so if you don’t have time, you can lie and say you visited both shrines even if you only visit one. Only God knows! If I was really short on time and had to choose one of the four shrines, I would choose the most rustic Kamisha-Maemiya. There is another reason to chose it, Matsuki Agar Industry is right in front of it. Being an agar-producing area means that there are harsh winds in the winter, but the factory here lets you try plenty of samples, and you can get agar at a cheap price.
suwa shrine kamisyamaemiya6 yatsugatake from shirineagar factory direct sales store at chino
You can make delicious milk agar at home using just canned pineapple, granulated sugar, and milk. First, soak one stick of agar in 300ml of water, heat until it dissolves, add half of the canned syrup and 3 tablespoons of granulated sugar, heat further, turn off the heat, and slowly pour in 500ml of milk. Sprinkle finely chopped canned pineapple in a container, add melted milk agar, and serve.
daiya sake brewery1
daiya sake brewery2
dropping point1 of big tree stem on onbashira festival
dropping point2 looking down
dropping point3 demonstration
dropping point4 at harumiya
The Onbashira Festival is a series of events in which a pillar of a fir tree weighing 10 tons is cut down from the mountain, dragged by hand on the road, descended down a steep slope with many people straddling on the pillar, and finally placed at the four corners of the shrine. Therefore, if you don’t come across it once every seven years, you can find it on a dragged road (Onbashira road, especially the sharp curve in front of the Tamagawa post office), on a steep slope (Kiotoshizaka, near Toda Sake Brewery of Chino, Daiya-Kiku) or on the flat side of the dragged pillar in shrines. You can think about the grandeur of the festival by looking at them. There is also a demonstration at Onbashira-kan near Suwa Shrine Shimosha-Harumiya where you can ride a pillar and feel going down a steep slope, so be sure to try it out.
Onbashira Festival （source: suwataisha.or.jp）
suwa shrine simosyaakimiya1 wash your hands at hot spring
Also, at the entrance of the shrine there is a place to wash your hands to purify yourself, but I was surprised to find out that the water at Suwa Shrine is hot spring water.
Detour 1 (Ghibli World near Shimosha-Harumiya )
Manji’s stone Buddha statue reminds you of the robot soldiers in the world of Ghibli, “Laputa: Castle in the Sky”. There is a legend that when trying to put a chisel into that stone while making the torii gate of Shimosha-Harumiya, blood spilled out. So the stonemason used that stone to carve a stone Buddha.
laputa in the sky1 approach
laputa in the sky3
laputa in the sky2
Detour2 (Real hot spring)
The old road from Shimosha-Harumiya to Shimosha-Akimiya remains. Spring water is everywhere, and most of it is hot spring water. There is a public bath called ‘Tanga no Yu’ with hot water being poured of 52 degrees. The hot springs are colorless and transparent, but once you dip one foot in, you’ll be hesitant about putting the other foot in. It’s more than just a good bath, it’s a test of patience. When I came out, I felt the woman at the reception desk look at me, as if to say, oh, you’re already here, you’re early. Someone please look back. By the way, one person who appeared to be a local was soaked up to his shoulders! Brave !
suwa town1 hotspring water
suwa town2 turtle shell pattern
suwa town3 dedicate rice to a shrine
suwa town4 too hot spring public bath tanga
suwa town5
suwa town6
suwa town7 hotspring public bath in the town
Detour3
There are various places to view Lake Suwa in its entirety, but if you are driving, the best option is to go up the narrow road that leads to the back door of Suwa Lake Service Area building (used mainly by employees) without entering the expressway. You can take fine photos with the sun behind you.
suwa lake1 suwa service area
suwa lake2 yatsugatake
Takashima Castle is located on the eastern shore of Lake Suwa, and the cherry blossoms surrounding the moat are spectacular in spring. There is a record that it once faced Lake Suwa, but the special feature is that the roof tiles were broken due to the cold climate, so at that time the roof was changed to shingled roof. The famous historical building with shingled roof is Ginkakuji Temple in Kyoto.
Konpira-san has a strong character of the god of sea routes, but in the feudal era when people were prohibited from moving from distant regions, they were allowed to visit Konpira. It is said that Konpira pilgrimage became very popular in the Edo period because no one could reach the main shrine unless they climbed 785 steps on their own, and because rumors were exaggerated after the people who visited the shrine returned home.
konpira10 a dog worships on behalf of its master
It is said that those who could not go by themselves wrapped money, goods, and addresses around their dogs, and entrusted those who went to the shrine to visit with their dogs. If the entrusted person gave up on the way, it is said that he entrusted the dog to another person who was visiting. This is a surprising system because it is close to the idea of modern Internet protocols.
Before starting the climb, first fill yourself up with “Sanuki Udon”. Shrines are often decorated with wooden sacred horses, but here there are two real horses that are not ornaments. In addition, perhaps to pray for safe navigation, even a large screw is decorated.
sanuki udon dinning
sanuki udon cool
sanuki udon side menu chicken
konpira11 real divine horse 72 years old in human terms
konpira11 real horse exercise
konpira11 screw
konpira16 one step down
If you count the stone steps up to the main shrine, there are 786 steps. However, when the number is read in Japanese, it becomes “worry”(Na-Ya-Mu in Japanese), and it is bad luck even though you came to the shrine. Therefore, inserting a stone stair that goes down one step to make a total of 785 steps is a very Japanese solution. It’s a people who likes puns. I don’t know where to go down one step when I’m dazed, but if I know in advance that I’m going to go down one step somewhere on the long stone steps, I feel nervous and have a little fun.
Click above to refer to stone steps to Mt.Haguro Shrine
A similar story can be found at the 2446 stone steps on Mt. Haguro Shrine in Yamagata Prefecture. Here, masons engraved something on the stone steps and mixed and matched stylishly designed stones to make you look forward to discovering them. It makes me happy that Japanese people have had that kind of sense for a long time.
konpira1 first step
konpira2 steps
konpira3 steps
konpira4 step slope
konpira5 looking back
konpira6 daimon gate
konpira7 sculpture on gate
konpira8 over gate
konpira9 horse road with cherry blossom
konpira12 still steps
konpira14 asahisha
konpira15 sculpture of wind cloud under the roof
konpira17 last steps
konpira18 donors
When you climb up to the main shrine, you will be so impressed by the view of the Sanuki Plain from there that you won’t even care about visiting the shrine (it’s a lie). Beautiful cone-shaped small mountains are scattered in the flat plain, and this looks like small Mt.Fuji. I believe that people who visited the shrine in the Edo period must have spread playful rumors that they could have seen “real” Mt.Fuji from Konpira.
konpira23 sanuki Fujikonpira19 goal
konpira21
konpira20
konpira13 special presentation to the public of Jakuchu
The Shoin in the middle of the stone steps was the residence of Shinto priests. This was where the high-ranking people visited, and in the room for visitors, you can always see the fusuma paintings of Maruyama Ohkyo and others. The purpose of this travel is Jakuchu’s fusuma painting, which is extravagant because it is in the private room of the priest. It is said that Jakuchu sent this to celebrate his inauguration as a Shinto priest, partly because the Shinto priest at the time had learned painting from Jakuchu. How cool is that? In addition to Jakuchu, there are wall paintings of countless butterflies by Gantai, and their detailed expressions make me stare at them. I hope it will be published again someday.
NHK Kagawa is filming the video, so you may be able to watch it on NHK’s favorite rebroadcast (archive). There are many rebroadcast programs in recent years. Even though I pay the same amount of NHK subscription fees, the number of broadcasting channels seems to be decreasing.
I wrote that Hiroshima is not only about the World Heritage Itsukushima Shrine, but, still, I can’t help but stop by Itsukushima Shrine.
Just the other day, the G7 leaders visited Itsukushima Shrine. A shrine floating on the surface of the sea is beautiful, but a shrine at ebb tide isn’t bad either. Oh, don’t be disappointed if the time doesn’t match, feel like you’ve come to dig clams and touch the red big torii that you usually can’t get close to.
itsukushima shrine5
itsukushima shrine3
itsukushima senjokaku2
itsukushima senjokaku1
itsukushima shrine2
itsukushima shrine4
Kasuga Taisha Shrine in Nara had many wild deer, messengers of the gods, and there are also many wild deer here. However, since they are not treated as messengers of the gods, feeding them is prohibited. Even with the same deer, the difference in treatment is considerable. But there was a person who gave them momiji manju with the shape of maple. Momiji manju is certainly delicious for humans to eat, but I definitely recommend eating the plump conger eel before crossing over to Itsukushima. No high-end restaurant can match the taste.
itsukushima shrine6 deer
itsukushima ferry
itsukushima anago1 special2000yen
itsukushima anago2 without sauce
Morning walk in Hiroshima and …
Western Japan has many feudal lord’s gardens right in town. At that time, feudal lords competed to have a garden with large ponds built. Shukkeien in Hiroshima is one of famous gardens. There are trees that survived the atomic bomb. Okonomiyaki when you are hungry. People in Hiroshima seem to eat okonomiyaki from lunch, but I’m impressed that they can eat it without beer.
Western Pure Land, namely paradise after death in the direction where the sun sets, is where the Agano River flows out west from the Aizu Basin.
As I mentioned three types of Buddha statues, the latest type was ‘Amida’ who promises the happiness of the next life in an uneasy era when the plague spread and war began to break out here and there at Heian period end. “The next life begins from next day” was connected to sun set and people has believed in paradise after death in the west.
That is Western Pure Land.
niouzou in kamiunai yakushi
On the other hand, it seems that the people of the Middle Ages had traveled quite far. The Aizu Lord regretted that money would drop in other areas, and set up 33 Kannon tours in his territory by connecting 33 Buddhist temples with the same history as Nara, accomplishment of it would promise happiness for the next life.
There are many places of faith in Western Pure Land in Aizu, but choose below.
gingyo 800 years old
Shingu-Kumano Shrine
800 years old Ginkgo and huge worship hall without walls
kamiunai yakushi temple
Kamiunai-Yakushi Temple
(prior reservation)
The same style of Buddha statue as in Shoujiji Temple.
eryuji temple
Eryuji Temple
7m height Kannon(Buddha statue) carved in a standing tree with 30 statues including statues with wings like a christian angel statue.
Sake difficult to obtain
hiroki sake brewery
Faith and sake have always been linked. Great sake exists in Western Pure Land. ‘Hiroki’ is my favorite sake. Side dish is not needed and I enjoy it alone.
sake hiroki out of stock
“Even I can’t get it.”, said the worker in that brewery in Aizu Bange downtown. I failed to get fantastic sake directly.
Kameoka Monjyu-dou is one of Japan’s three major Monjyu Bodhisattva with wisdom.
Two heads are better than one.
There are similar expressions in each country, but in Japan, the three heads are said to be comparable to the Monjyu Bodhisattva. Is Monjyu Bodhisattva respected with three heads or is it lightly seen?
Abe Monjyu-in in Nara prefecture is the most famous and worth seeing as National treasure, but Kameoka’s is simple and friendly in the countryside. The sculptures of the monks studying along the approach of the tree lined with cedars welcomed us.
Kameoka sculpture2
Kameoka Monjyu in
Kameoka sub hall
Kameoka sculpture
I was surprised that there is a hierarchy in the world of Buddha. An enlightened person is called Nyorai as highest rank, and is usually accompanied by several Bodhisattva. Furthermore, there are many layers under the Bodhisattva. The world of Buddha is also tough.
No graffiti
By the way, Bonjyu Bodhisattva is a Buddha of wisdom who is an attendant of Shaka Nyorai. That’s why many examinees are visiting and the examination season is at the time of earning money at Kameoka Bonjyu-dou. Although I wasn’t in the examination season when I visited there, many children were worshiping in the hall with parents and I was impressed that it was a temple that blended into the area. On the other hand, the attention not to doodle on the Monjyu-dou was indicated, but “Your graffiti halves your wisdom”, or something that it should be written down on its attention with a little more wisdom ! When you go to the back of the hall, you will find water that gives you wisdom when you drink it. Drinking too much water halves your wisdom !
Akutsu Hachimangu1
In Takahata Town, there is another old shrine that should not be overlooked. From Akutsu Hachiman, I think it is a historical shrine of Genji.
There was a magnificent thatched main shrine at the back, but for some reason there was a triple-storied pagoda of Buddhist architecture at the shrine.
When I travel to Tohoku, I often stop at a gas station, so I often see Kamei’s mark (red flag on the sea). When I visited Shiogama Shrine and walked along the long back path, Kamei’s villa suddenly appeared and I was surprised why it was in such a place. So I learned that Kamei was a company that originated from Shiogama City and lasted over 100 years.
There are many companies in the world that have been in business for more than 100 years, but according to a survey by Nikkei BP, Japan was twice as many as the United States, which was second in the number of companies in the world. In Japan, the ratio of these companies was high in the manufacturing, retail, wholesale, and lodging/restaurant industry, but low in the service industry. Prolonged life is proud, but I think it’s because of the conservative constitution of business practices and it leads to conservative job hunting for students who are only looking at large companies. Amazon is taking over the Japanese market in the retail industry with ICT as a weapon. I hope that a new venture that will bring innovation will be created. I think Japan must learn more about the reincarnation of Buddhism.
kamei villa11 bat
Returning to Kamei, many companies that have continued for over 100 years are transforming themselves. General Electric(GE) was also a company that manufactured and sold Edison’s inventions, but it is now a major player in the energy and aviation industries while changing industries. Kamei also focused on new energy oil at that time and established a sales route in Tohoku based at Shiogama Port. It was explained that the contractor at that time was the current ENEOS, energy supplier, and the design of the bat of the company emblem was incorporated into this villa. Perhaps it could be the story when the president of Kamei received the contract customer at this villa. Nowadays it is surrounded by commercial areas, but it is imagined that the view of Shiogama Port and Matsushima Bay would have been good because it was located on a hill. It’s a great place to take a break on a hot day. It’s free.
Generally speaking of cows in a shrine is associated with Tenmangu, which enshrines Michizane Sugawara, senior official in Heian period, as the god of learning. So, It is a major source of income for the shrine during the examination season. However, at Shiogama Shrine, cows are worshiped in the hope that the business will continue for a long time like cow drool. The drool is not smart, but it is strongly associated with the development of Shiogama as a port town.
shiogama shrine garden
Shiogama Shrine is the No. 1 shrine in Tohoku, and sits in a position to protect the demon gate of Tagajo, which is the agency of the Yamato Imperial Court. It is located on a ridiculous hill in expectation of a tsunami caused by an earthquake. If you climb from the main approach, you will find 202 stone steps. At the time of the festival, 16 people carry one ton of mikoshi on the stone steps, so each person carries the same weight as their own weight.
shiogama shrine main approach bottomshiogama shrine main approach top
I could see many small islands floating in Matsushima Bay from the precincts, and I felt that the hard work of climbing was rewarded.
shiogama shrine view matsushima
There is Shiogama Sakura, a large-flowered double-flowered cherry tree designated as a natural monument in the precincts, but when it was about to disappear due to aging, it revived thanks to Kyoto gardener Sano Toemon. If you have the opportunity, definitely enjoy the wonderful Shiogama Sakura.
Haiku Basho wrote about this lantern in his travel journal.
Detour
The Tagajo, which was the agency for the Yamato Imperial Court and guarded by shrine, is explained at the Tohoku History Museum near Kokufu-Tagajo station. Excavations are still ongoing at Tagajo and there is a good walking course.
tohoku history museum1 emishitohoku history museum2
