FUDO - Fudo Legends Miyagi

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. Legends about Fudo - Part 02 .
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Legends about Fudo お不動さま　
Miyagi prefecture　宮城県　　

for Tanishi Fudo, see below
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玉造郡 鳴子町 Narugo / Naruko

鬼首村 Onikobe village (Demon Head Village)　
in the Kurikoma Quasi-National Park, is famous for its two geysers, "Benten" and "Unryu"
Onikoobe onsen　鬼首温泉　Onikobe Hot Spring



oni 鬼 the Demon
Once upon a time
a demon wanted to enter the village of Onikobe, but Fudo killed him and burned the body.
From the ashes arose many many many mosquitoes which to our day suck the blood of the people.



- 鬼の橋 Oni Demon Bridge to the village


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伊具郡　Igu Gun

tatsubu 田ツブ Tanishi mud snail
The 田ツブ tatsubu  is seen as a sacred animal of Fudo Myo-O.
Therefore people in the villages around Igu who believe in Fudo Myo-O do not eat them and also do not eat dogs.
ツブや犬を食べない。

. tanishi 田螺 / たにし mud snails .
Cipango paludina. Teichschnecke


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- More about O-Fudo sama and the Tanishi

Tanishi Fudo タニシ 不動 ・たにし不動 Mud-Snail Fudo
"Wasserschnecken-Fudo"

- - - - - Niigata 新潟県
新発田市 しばたし）Shibata town

Mitarase no Taki waterfall





- source and more photos : 郁丸 fumimaru

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Sugaya, Sugatani 菅谷

菅谷不動尊のお不動さま Sugatani Fudo and the Tanishi
temple 菅谷寺(かんこくじ) Kankoku-Ji

The temple has been founded in the Kamakura period. In 1189 when the uncle of Minamoto no Yoritomo, Minamoto no Mamoru源護念 had to flee from Mount Hieizan in Kyoto, he took the head of a Fudo Statue from temple Mudooji 無動寺 Mudo-Ji and brought it to Niigata. The statue is said to heal eye diseases 眼病. It is shown every seventh year, in the year of the hare / rabbit 卯年 and the rooster 酉年.

The temple is very old and has a lot of beautiful woodcarvings.
Here is the Dragon.



In the pond below the Mitarase waterfall are many tanishi mud snails. People bring them here and pray for eye diseases to be healed.
Some use the water to rinse their eyes to seek healing.



- source : masugatasou.jp


Sugatani Fudo Son on facebook
- source : www.facebook.com/sugatanifudouson

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お不動さまとタニシ O-Fudo sama to tanishi
- source : www.youtube.com

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The mountain priests of temple Shinko-Ji carried a wooden box with the head of a Nyorai Buddha on their mountain wanderings. The hairdo with many whirls is similar to the mud snail.



- quote -
Die Berg-Asketen des Shinko-Ji, Tokyo, trugen in einem hölzernen Schrein nur den Kopf eines Fudo mit auf ihren Bergwanderungen. Dieser Kopf hatte die Frisur eines Nyorai, mit vielen Wirbeln, daher auch "Wasserschnecken-Fudoo" (Tanishi Fudo) genannt.

. Fudo Myo-O - Deutsch .



source :　hamatravel.com/shinakoji

"tanishi hairstyle"


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. Fukushima - Iwashiro province 岩代国.
Nishiniidono, Nihonmatsu, Fukushima

Once upon a time
in the hamlet of Mokusho-uchi 杢少内 (Mukkyoji in local dialect ムッキョジ) in 西新殿 Nishiniidono there was a wooden statue of Fudo Myo-O お不動様 in the Fudo Hall on the hill.
The villagers had great faith in the statue and came to pray and worship here every day with all kinds of wishes.
"Dear Fudo Sama, please let us have a bountiful rice harvest this year!"
"Please let my father get well soon!"
"Please let me become pregnant with a healthy baby!"

In the villge lived a man called Gohei 五兵衛.
He went to his fields every day to work hard.
And then one morning, when he came to his rice field he found a mud snail lying beside the path.
Gohei, who was a gentle man, began to talk to the mud snail:
"A very good morning to you, dear Mister Mudsnail たにしどん !"
The mud snail looked at him and replied
"Good morning to you too, Gohei san!"

On this day Gohei worked as usual till the evening and then went home.
Next morning he found two mud snails lying beside the path.

"Well, what do we have here! You found a friend, dear Mister Mudsnail! Good morning to you both!"
And this day too Gohei worked all day long in the fields.

And from this day on when he came to the field, he saw one more and one more and one more mud snail and greeted them all with a friendly "Good Morning".

Then after a few days he realized that the many mud snails begun to move on toward the hill.
"Oh well, what do we have now? All of you Mudsnails going to move on! What a surprise!"
And as he looked they almost reached the hill and were gone.

Now it was midnight. The village had become quiet and all had gone to sleep.
Suddenly there was a sound: jaan, jaaaan 「ジャーン、ジャーン」

The noisy sound from a temple bell was heard - oh dear - there was a fire!
The farmers woke up and run out of their homes to have a look.
"Over there, on the hill, at the Fudo Hall!"
Great flames lightened the sky above the Fudo Hall.
"Hurry up, get some water . . . hurry hurry!"

They all run up the hill and begun to carry water from the river way below it. They all worked in a frenzy . . . but it could not be helped, the Fudo Hall was almost burned down.
"How terrible, our dear Fudo sama, your hall is all burned down!"
"Our dear Fudo is made of wood . . . he has burned down now, how sad!"
They all stood by the burning remains and wept loudly, folding their hands in prayer.



Then came the next morning and it became light again.
"Look, hey look at that!"
Gohei raised his voice and pointed at the statue of Fudo Myo-O. It was all black now but still it was their beloved Fudo!
Gohei walked closer to have a good look.
All around the statue were the mud snails, protecting him and got burned themselves.
With little plops and plumps the finally fell down from the statue - quite dead.

But the statue had remained in its full splendor, thanks to the mud snails!

The surprised villagers all run up to the statue of Fudo.
"What a miracle! It seems the mud snails knew there would be a fire and had all moved up the hill and protected him! What a miracle indeed! Thanks to our dear Fudo Sama!"
They all wept in gratitude.
Later they had a new Fudo Hall built and by that time - as you might guess -
the statue was called

Tanishi Fudo たにし不動Fudo of the Mud Snails


- source : Iwashiro Tourist Association


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- - - - - reference

yokai database 妖怪データベース
- source : www.nichibun.ac.jp

- source : www.google.co.jp

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. Folktales 昔ばなし mukashibanashi about Fudo . 　
- Part 01 -

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. - Join Fudo Myo-O on facebook - Fudō Myō-ō .

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. Pilgrimages to Fudo Temples 不動明王巡礼
Fudo Myo-O Junrei - Fudo Pilgrims .


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Posted By Gabi Greve to Fudo Myo-O - Introducing Japanese Deities at 3/27/2015 06:41:00 PM

FUDO - Senryu-Ji North Kanto 13

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Senryuuji 泉龍寺 Senryu-Ji

Nr. 13 御瀧山 - 明王院 Myo-O In 泉龍寺 - Otome Fudo 乙女不動尊
泉龍寺 Senryu-Ji
Tochigi prefecture 口密の道場 - kumitsu

. 北関東三十六不動尊霊場
36 Fudo Temples in Northern Kanto . 　

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. . . CLICK here for Photos !

栃木県小山市乙女１－２５－８ / 1 Chome-25-8 Otome, Oyama-shi, Tochigi

The temple has been founded by Rooben 良弁 Roben in 765.
The bell tower has been reconstructed in 1844.
There is also a Benzaiten Pond 弁財天池 and Hyotan Pond ひょうたん池 in the precincts.



. 良弁僧正　Roben Sojo .
(689 - 773)



- source and more photos : rsjjr083

Dragon carving above the entry

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mizukake Otome Fudo 水掛け乙女不動尊 in the compound


source :　okuno san - facebook

The main Fudo Statue has been declared a sacred and hidden by Saint Akimoto 淳元上人 in 1714 during a reconstruction of the temple. It is hidden behind the closed doors of its sanctuary and should not been shown again. Later it was shown every 25 years.
The statue is 5尺 high.
Before showing the statue, there are special rituals to be performed
omoirkae, o-morikae 御守替 and kangen omorikae 還元御守替.

When the statue had to be re-located to the main hall due to repair work in its own hall in the beginning of the Showa period, many unmarried men of the village had to perform severe purification rituals before carrying the statue to the main hall - and later back to the repaired Fudo Hall.

The next showing of the statue 本尊大開帳 is scheduled for 2016.

In the summer of 1995 the Fudo Hall was hit by lightning and a fire started. Thanks to the quick action of the head priest, the statue was transported outside and the Fudo had again shown his power of hibuse - surviving a fire.
The following year the burned beams and decorations of the temple were renewed and now the Fudo Statue is in its own space again.


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「御瀧山泉龍寺不動尊縁起絵巻伝」
Scroll about the History of the Fudo Temple



Once upon a time,
an unknown monk came to the lake of Chuzen-Ji in Nikko to make ablutions in the waters and pray. After 100 days his vow was fulfilled. On the surface of the lake he saw a beautiful light coming near him. It was a statue of Fudo Myo-O - says the legend.
The monk was overwhelmed with joy and cried, taking the statue in his arms. Then he followed flow of the river, walking down the waterfall, all the way South. He prayed:
"Please, please let me find the right place where I can be of help to all people past, present and future."

During the daytime he walked down at the riverside, at night he slept in the wilderness, always trusting the bond he had established with Fudo Myo-O.
Then one day, when he had reached the small hamlet of Otome 乙女の里, the statue of Fudo Myo-O suddenly became very heavy and he could not continue walking. He placed the statue by his side to rest for a while.
When he tried to pick it up again, the statue had become so heavy it would not move any more.

Now the monk was convinced this was the region Fudo Myo-O had choose for him. So he asked the local people for their permission to build a hall for Fudo and placed the statue there for worship.
The place is now called 不動塚 Fudo Zuka - Fudo Mound in Otome Kanzawa 乙女寒沢.
The Fudo Hall has changed place a few more times and is now at its present location at Fudo Hara 不動原 in the compound of temple 泉龍寺 Senryu-Ji. According to ancient records, the temple had been constructed in 1333.

During the 南北朝 Nanboku Period around 1333 there was a lot of fighting of the Oyama clan 小山義政 (Oyama Yoshimasa, ? - 1382) and the temple was burned down, but the statue was never damaged. So people began to call it

hibuse no Fudo 火伏せの不動 Fudo preventing fire
Fudo protecting from fire
and believed in his power more and more.
- - - - - By the way
during repair work in the Showa period, they found a small part on his back side scorched by fire.

During the Edo period when Tokugawa Ieyasu passed the region he gave some land to the temple and Fudo, 「不動仏供領」.
Later they built a landing place for boats carrying construction wood for the building of the Toshogu Shrine in Nikko.

In the Mid-Edo period around 1721 the Fudo Hall was in dire need of repair. So the head priest of that time, Saint Akimoto 淳元上人 decided to built it anew. Many people offered money or gold, others came to work for free. Once the hall was finished, the statue was placed behind closed doors as a hidden statue, 秘仏 hibutsu .


- - - - - Homepage of the temple
- source : otome_senryuuji



. Hibuse 火伏不動尊 Fudo preventing fire .

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- - - - - Yearly Festivals 年中行事

１月　　元朝護摩供・初詣
２月　　初不動護摩供
３月　　春彼岸
５月　　蛇祭り
７月　　夏不動護摩供・朝顔市　Summer Fudo Festival
８月　　お盆
９月　　秋彼岸

- - - - - others
御守替斎戒沐浴水行
還元御守替斎戒沐浴水行
入仏式
御開帳（または御開扉）


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source :　gkohun.world.coocan.jp

There is also a kofun mound called
Otome Kanzawa Kofun　乙女寒沢古墳
in Oyama Town.
栃木県小山市乙女947. - 小山市寒沢古墳

It is about 20 meters in diameter and 3.5 m high.
Said to be from the early to mid-Jomon period.
Close to it is a shrine for Inari 稲荷神社.


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- - - reference - - -


. Pilgrimages to Fudo Temples 不動明王巡礼
Fudo Myo-O Junrei - Introduction . 　

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. Narita Fudo 成田不動尊 .
Temple Shinshooji 新勝寺 Shinsho-Ji

. O-Mamori お守り　Amulets and talismans from Japan .　

. Japanese Temples - ABC list - .


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- #fudosenryuji #senryuji -
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Posted By Gabi Greve to Fudo Myo-O - Introducing Japanese Deities at 3/26/2015 06:18:00 PM

DARUMA - Taue Jizo

[http://darumasan.blogspot.jp/]
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- Jizo Bosatsu 地蔵菩薩 - ABC-List -
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Taue Jizoo, Ta-ue Jizoo 田植え地蔵 Jizo planting rice

. WKD : taue 田植 planting rice in the paddies .
- Introduction -



There are some legends about Jizo like this in Japan.

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from Izumo no Kuni 出雲の国 Tottori

- quote -
田植え地蔵【The Ta Ue Jizo】
In the old days,
it was the custom to share labor, and to perform labor as a form of tax. This was not voluntary, but compulsory. The story is this:
Once upon a time, near the Grand Shrine of Izumo Taisha, an old couple lived who worshipped a wooden statue of Jizo. Sadly, the wife died. Thereafter, the old man lived alone and he also became ill.

At that same time, the village chief told everyone to come and help plant rice in his fields. The old man, too sick to go, worried about his punishment, and prayed to his family Jizo for mercy. On the day for planting the rice, the village chief called the name of each householder. When the old man's name was called, a 17-year-old youth stepped forward.

He was accepted in place of the old man and worked so hard and well that the chief gave him a sake cup as a reward when the work was done. The boy put the cup on his head and went home. The next day, the chief came to tell the old man of the boy's good work. The old man was quite surprised at this, because he knew nothing about such a boy. He felt that the boy had come because of the Jizo, and he went to him to pray. When he confronted his statue and started to pray, he noticed with amazement that there was a cup on the Jizo's head, and that its feet were covered with mud!

Then he realized that his little god had done the work himself. All over Japan, there are many stories of the Ta Ue Jizo. The two that I have told you concern our own Izumo no Kuni, and I thought you might be interested in them.
It is such customs and stories that have continued to hold my interest in the Izumo no Kuni of legend.
- source : japanese-culture.info


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- quote -
This is a story told by the priest of the temple 伊馥寺 Ifuku-Ji
253 Izawacho, Matsusaka, Mie.

The photo does not show the rice-planting Jizo.
The Taue-Jizo is in a small hall in the back of the compound. It is made of metal, maybe during the Edo period. The head priest at that time had a visitor from Kawasaki and was handed this statue with the name of Taue Jizo.

At the temple are other statues of Jizo with special names.
清水地蔵 Kiyomizu Jizo is one of them.
- source : minsominwa.tsutaetai.jp


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- Jizo Bosatsu 地蔵菩薩 - Introduction -




. Join the Jizo Bosatsu Gallery - Facebook .



. O-Mamori お守り　Amulets and Talismans .

. Japan - Shrines and Temples - ABC List .


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Posted By Gabi Greve to Gokuraku - Jigoku on 4/08/2015 10:07:00 am

MINGEI - Kidomaru

http://fudosama.blogspot.jp/2005/02/oni-japanese-demons.html
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Kidomaru learning magic from the tengu
Kidoomaru - Kidōmaru 鬼童丸


Utagawa Kuniyoshi 歌川国芳『鬼童丸』

- quote -
Physical description:
Kidōmaru seated cross-legged on the head of a giant python, his hands clasped and two wrapped pine-sprigs in his mouth, a dirk has been driven into the head of the python, around which small snakes are writhing while four tengu watch.

"Kidōmaru is known as both a robber and a magician... The instruction that he receives here from the tengu can only be described as a sort of mystical experience involving self-purgation - he accesses a side of himself that he hitherto was not fully aware of. This Kidōmaru is not derived from the usual source, the Zen Taiheiki, rather he seems to be inspired by Takizawa Bakin's yomihon, Shitennō shōtō iroku (Strange Story of the Eradication of the Wicked Four Retainers,1806). In this yomihon, Kidōmaru competes in practicing magic with Hakamadare Yasuuke. Kidōmaru conjures up a poisonous serpent, whereas Yasuuke produces an eagle.

In this print the head of the giant python is almost as arresting as the countenance of Kidōmaru and provides a second strong focal point. The aomatsuba (wrapped pine sprigs) likewise command the viewer's attention, as do other elements such as the flames and the small writhing snakes. The colours in this print are riveting in their bold juxtaposition of blue and red.

There are two types of tengu, one is winged but has a human face with a very long nose (yamabushi or 'mountain priest' tenfu), the other has a bird's head and a strong, curved beak (karasu or 'crow' tengu). Four of the latter type inhabit the bottom section of this image."
Quoted from: Japanese Warrior Prints 1646-1905
by James King and Yuriko Iwakiri, p. 269.
- source : woodblockprints.org


. Tengu 天狗 - Introduction - .

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DARUMA - Grind Pencil - mori motofumi lantern

[http://darumasan.blogspot.jp/]
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Grind Pencil




森基書 - mori motofumi - 書く描く核

- - - - - 掲載メディア
TRANSWORD JAPAN / NYLON JAPAN / Ollie / MEETS / フジテレビ /
大阪日日新聞 / eo光TV / 山梨日々新聞 / 読売新聞 /

- source :　www.grindpencil.com


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. Lanterns with Daruma, Daruma Choochin
だるま提灯 　

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. Regional Folk Toys from Japan .

. - - - Welcome to Edo　江戸 ! - - -


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- #darumagrindpencil #grindpencil -
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Posted By Gabi Greve to Daruma San in Japan, Japanese Art and Culture (01) at 4/06/2015 06:58:00 PM

SHRINES - Kamado Jinja

LINK
http://omamorifromjapan.blogspot.jp/2011/06/kamagami-hearth-deity.html

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- quote -
Kamado-jinja 竈門神社 Kamado Shrine
is a Shinto shrine located in Dazaifu, Fukuoka prefecture, Japan. Located at the top of Mount Hōman, which has been venerated from ancient times as a sacred mountain, the shrine is dedicated to Tamayori-bime, Emperor Ōjin, and Empress Jingū. The peripheral zone of Mount Hōman, including the shrine, is a National historic site.



The shrine was said to have been founded by Emperor Tenji when he built a castle surrounded by water and moved the authority in Dazaifu to the present-day Tofurō Ruins for defensive purposes in 664, due to his defeat in the Battle of Baekgang in August of the previous year. He dedicated the shrine to thousands of gods at Mount Hōman, which faces an unlucky direction. It has two sanctuaries, one at the foot of the mountain and one at its peak. There used to be a third sanctuary midway up the hillside, but only its ruins remains today.
The upper sanctuary was founded in honor of Tamayori-bime appearing while the monk Shinren was performing his ascetic training in 683. The shrine is also known for being a great place for cherry blossom viewing in the spring, and many people visit in the autumn to see the fall foliage.
883 Uchiyama, Dazaifu, Fukuoka Prefecture
- source : wikipedia

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Kamado Jinja 竈門神社 in Hiroshima
広島市南区仁保1丁目16-14 / 1 Chome-16-14 Niho, Minami Ward, Hiroshima



The origin of this shrine is not clear.
On August 6, 1945, it was about 4.5 km away from the center of the atomic bomb.
Now it is related to
Nihohime Jinja 邇保姫神社
12-17 Nishihonuracho, Minami Ward, Hiroshima

- source : www.hiroshima-navi.or.jp

- source : Nihohime Shrine Homepage


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. Fire (kaji 火事)

. The God of Fire (katen　火天, kajin 火神 )

. Gozu Tennō (牛頭天王) .
and the Gion Festival


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MINGEI -

LINK
http://omamorifromjapan.blogspot.jp/2011/07/fukuoka-folk-toys.html
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Yame 八女市 Yame town

Yamegoma 八女独楽 spinning top from Yame

Yame is a town best known for its green tea - Yamecha　 八女茶 .
Woodcraft workers have been making these tops since the beginning of the Meiji period until just before WWII. Now there is just one workshop to make them.

- quote -
. . . a somewhat flat spinning top called the Yamegoma. One of the characteristics of the Yamegoma is the belly button top!
According to Mr. Kazunobu Kumamoto, a 6th generation maker of koma, "I want to continue to grow my ability to make new tops". Mr.Kumamoto throws himself at his work by using the skill and techniques of making koma and wooden toys passed down to him. There are many young fans who appreciate Mr.Kumamoto's immense skill and refined designs. "I don't concern myself with superficial designs. I make these tops for children. I choose the best materials, and spend an incredible amount of time polishing the tops until I think they are of the highest quality.
- source : www.crossroadfukuoka.jp/chikugo



- source : www.yamegoma.jp/SHOP

The Yamegoma has a pin of metal and the side is bent outside just a bit, with the middle curved inside. They have the form almost of a bead for a soroban ソロバン玉 abacus calculator.
Many spinning tops of Kyushu have the form of a rakkyo 辣韮 scallop, but in Yame they are called
boozugoma　坊主独楽　spinning top in the form of the shaven head of a monk


Photos of spinning tops from Sasebo 佐世保九十九（くじゅうく）こま (Nagasaki)
with boozugoma.　
- source : park15.wakwak.com/~eohashi


. Spinning Top 独楽（コマ） koma .


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YAKUSHI - Yakushi Kokeshi

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. Yakushipedia - ABC-Index 薬師如来 .
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kokeshi and Yakushi こけしと薬師如来

. Kokeshi こけし / 小芥子 / 子消し wooden dolls .
- Introduction -


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Yakushi Kokeshi Doo 薬師こけし堂 Yakushi Kokeshi-Do
Tsuchiyu onsen hot spring in Fukushima

Yakushi as the Buddha of Medicine has a long relationship with hot springs.
In Tohoku he is 薬師瑠璃子如来 Yakushi Ruriko Nyorai and also related to the making of kokeshi wooden dolls.

The beginning dates back to the son of Emperor Montoku (827 - 858),
called 惟喬親王 Koretaka Shinno (844 - 897).
惟喬親王（文徳天皇の第一皇子）



The first Yakushi Hall had been built in 湯元下ノ町, but was swept away in 1913 during a flooding. The statue of Yakushi Nyorai had survived at the temple 興徳寺 Kotoku-Ji.
Later in 1974 the Yakushi Kokeshi Do hall was constructed.

Every year on the 8th day of April
there is the main festival of this Kokeshi Hall, where water from the Hot Spring is offered.
Every year on the third Sunday in April
there is a special memorial service for kokeshi dolls こけし供養祭 (kokeshi kuyo) and also for used writing brushes 筆供養.



- source : kitemite.me/tsuchiyu


kokeshi kuyoo こけし供養 memorial service for used kokeshi
and
Tsuchiyu Kokeshi Matsuri　土湯こけし祭り

This is a service for old dolls, including kokeshi, to say "Thank you for your long service!"



First the Kokeshi are consecrated in front of the temple hall.
They are burned in a huge fire while the priest chants sutras.



- source : and more photos 福島県福島市 土湯温泉


. . . CLICK here for Photos for Kokeshi Kuyo !

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- quote -
Bustle of Tsuchiyu-Onsen Hot Spring
Kokeshi-Do Shrine
Kokeshi-Do Shrine is further up the stone steps from Taishi-Do Shrine. Tsuchiyu is one of three major production sites of Kokeshi-Dolls in Japan. This shrine is dedicated to Koretaka Shinno who is said to be the father of woodcraft, Yakushi Nyorai, a Buddhist deity who is able to cure all illnesses, and Tsuchiyu Kokeshi Dolls.

Taishi-Do Shrine
Taishi-Do Shrine, which is dedicated to Prince Shotoku, stands on a hill looking down the tourist section of Tsuchiyu-Onsen. Follow the gentle sloping stone steps and feel your spirit soothed in a unique Japanese environment with venerable buildings, moss-covered stone pavements, and stone lanterns surrounded by trees.

Eight Views of Tsuchiyu-Onsen Hot Spring
In the age of Bunka-Bunsei in Edo era, Tsuchiyu was known as a place for Haikai (amusing and playful Japanese poems) and produced many haiku poets. The group of haiku poets was called "Tsuchiyu-ren" and they composed many poems.
"Eight Views of Hot Spring" is a collection of poems composed by "Hatomaro", a member of the "Tsuchiyu-ren" group. Visit and enjoy the unchanged beauty of Tsuchiyu-Onsen that has appeared in the "Eight Views of Tsuchiyu-Onsen Hot Spring" poems.
- source : www.tcy.jp/english

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Join the friends on facebook !

. Yakushipedia - ABC-Index 薬師如来 .

. Yakushi Nyorai Legends 薬師如来 .

. Yakushi Pilgrims INFO - INTRODUCTION .


. Japan - Shrines and Temples - ABC .


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Posted By Gabi Greve to Gokuraku - Jigoku on 4/04/2015 01:00:00 pm

YAKUSHI - Yakushi Miyagi Legends

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Yakushi Nyorai Legends from Miyagi 宮城県

. Yakushi Nyorai 薬師如来 the Buddha of Medicine - Bhaisajyaguru .
- Legends about Yakushi Nyorai -


Kinoshita no Yakushi 木ノ下の薬師 Yakushi from Kinoshita village
nabe Yakushi 鍋薬師 Yakushi and the cooking pot
nure Yakushi 濡れ薬師 Yakushi who got wet
Shiga no Yakushi 志賀の薬師 Yakushi from Shiga village
shio no Yakushi 塩の薬師 Yakushi and Salt
sugi Yakushi 杉薬師 Yakushi and the cedar tree

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nabe Yakushi 鍋薬師 Yakushi and the cooking pot

黒川郡 Kurokawa 大和町 Yamato village

In the year 1592 Lord Date Masamune led his troups from 岩出山城 Iwadeyama Castle toward the capital of Kyoto. To honor the God of War 軍神 with a blood offering 血祭 at the forest 七ツ森 he begun a hunt for a sacrifice animal, but they did not catch anything. Masamune got angry and begun to climb up Mount 大森山 Omoriyama. From there he saw something black in the distance.
When he asked his retainer 片倉小十郎 Katakura Kojuro, he said it was Yakushi Nyorai.
The angry Masamune ordered a shot at it and broke the breast of the Nabe Yakushi, but at the same time blood was running out of his own nose and did not stop.
Kojuro bowed many times 三拝九拝 and then used the leaf of the bamboo grass (sasa 笹) to stop the nose bleeding.
The anger of Masamune was also calmed down now and he climbed down the mountain. He then ordered the mountain to become his special hunting ground.
- - - One version of the legend says:
The arrow came flying back at Masamune and hit his eye, causing him to loose his eyesight.


Ōmori-yama 大森山薬師如来 Omoiryama Yakushi Nyorai is now a famous camping spot in Miyagi.
The mountain is 226 meters high. A festival in honor of "The Buddha of Healing" is held.
The mountain is also called 笹倉山　Sasakura-yama at 七つ森 Nanatsumori .

The grave of Masamune is at the temple 大義山 覚照寺 Kakusho-Ji
宮城県黒川郡大和町宮床字大椚６９ / Okunugi-69 Miyatoko, Taiwa, Kurokawa District, Miyagi


. Date Masamune 伊達政宗 (1567 - 1636) .


宮城県仙台市若林区木ノ下2丁目8-28

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nure Yakushi 濡れ薬師 Yakushi who got wet

Miyagi - 柴田郡 柴田町 Shibata

At the village Tsukinoki 槻木 there had been a long period of sunshine and drought.
The villagers gathered at the swamp 鰌沼 Dojo-Numa and decided to make an offering of a village girl to the Dragon king 竜神 as a rain ritual 雨乞い (amagoi).
The beautiful O-Yoshi およし agreed to be the victim, because she was upset with her first love, Kensaku 勘作 and felt very unhappy with her life.
On her way to the swamp, O-Yoshi she met an itinerant priest. When he heard her story he suggested that the Dragon God would not be content with her unhappy sacrifice and they would better give him a statue of Yakushi Nyorai.
When they threw the statue in the water, Yakushi got wet and then - - suddenly a strong rain began to fall and the village was saved.
They build a Yakushi Hall 薬師堂 and a small retreat for O-Yoshi who would now serve Yakushi Nyorai at the temple.


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Gunma 高崎市南八幡 - Takasaki Town Minami Hachiman

Near the fence of the assembly hall and the graveyard of the Uehara family 上原家墓地 there is a cherry tree. Below it there is a stone with the inscription of 濡れ薬師.



Since olden times, this Yakushi san has been known to heal diseases of the eyes and many people, who got healed by his power, come here to pray again in gratitude. They also made other small stone statues as offerings, now there are more than 30 beside the Yakushi stone.

But why is it called "Yakushi who gets wet" ?
Well, once there was a good man who built a roof over the stone to keep it dry and protect it from the rain. But then . . . the home of this good man burned down.
So people thought the stone and Yakushi with it were ment to get wet.

- source and more photos : 南八幡 History

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shio no Yakushi 塩の薬師 Yakushi and Salt

Miyagi 名取市 Natori 塩手 Shiote

Once upon a time
some say it was in the year 647, at the bottom of Mount Shiodeyama 塩出山 there was a spring with salty water. An old priest 老僧 and 12 acolytes boiled the water to make salt and distributed it to the villagers.
Because of this beneficent salt, all villagers were healed from their illnesses and became healthy.
The old priest was seen as an incarnation of Yakushi Nyorai and thus the name given to him.
The place where the salt water welled up was called Shiogawara 塩河原 and the place where they boiled it down was called Shiode 塩出 - "where the salt comes from".

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Shio Yakushi Doo 塩薬師堂 Hall for the Shio Yakushi 塩薬師
This Hall is beside the pond Shio no Ike 塩ノ池.

Once upon a time
during a wildfire most of the hamlet was burned down, but the statue of Yakushi flew high in the sky and was saved. It landed safely in a pine tree nearby. So the greatful villagers build a hall for him there and called him the "Salt Yakushi" 塩薬師.

The seated statue we see now is from the Muromachi period, covered with lacquer and then gold foil. It is seated on a lotus throne.



at the temple 塩福山永禅寺 Eizen-Ji 　
宮城県名取市愛島塩手字仮宿４６　

The main statue is Shaka Nyorai.

There is also a statue of Fudo Myo-O 大聖不動明王　　



The statue is carved with one knife 一刀彫 and one among the three famous standing statues of Fudo Myo-O 不動三尊立像 in Tohoku.
- source : sekishin.info


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Kinoshita no Yakushi 木ノ下の薬師 Yakushi from Kinoshita

陸奥国分寺 Mutsu Kokubun-Ji 　薬師堂 Yakushi-Do Hall
宮城県仙台市若林区木ノ下2丁目8-28 / 2 Chome-8-28 Kinoshita, Wakabayashi-ku, Sendai



This is the provincial temple of former Mutsu Province. The Hall for Yakushi 薬師堂 Yakushidō is an Important Cultural Property.
After its first construction around 740, the temple was destroyed in 1189. Lord Date Masamune rebuilt the complex in 1607, including the Yakushi Hall.
In 1903 it was designated an Important Cultural Property.

When Date Masamune was involved in a severe fight with 大崎義隆 Osaki Yoshitaka (1548 - 1603) it seemed difficult for his forces to win. Then suddenly 48 brave monk-soldiers 法師武者 appeared from nowhere and fought with the enemy, so in the end Masamune was victorious.
When he asked where these soldiers had come from, he was told
"From Kinoshita in Miyagino 宮城野" and the soldiers vanished as fast as they had appeared.

At Miyagino there was only a group of stone markers in a small stone sanctuary, dedicated to Yakushi Nyorai.
That night Masamune had a dream telling him that the soldiers had come on orders of Yakushi Nyorai to help him.

-
朝鮮の役に政宗の軍勢が肥前の名護屋を出航したとき、薬師如来が支那に学問修行しにいく僧に化身して便乗して玄界灘を無事乗り切るよう保護し、帰還のときも同乗して守ってくれた。往復ともに僧は「陸奥木ノ下の僧」とのみ答えて名を言わなかった。





Daruma ko ame 達磨コ飴 / 達磨子飴 Daruma lollipop
A kind of candy in red color and the form of Daruma san.
On the seventh day of the first month and the third day of the third month of the old lunar year during the festival of Yakushi お薬師さん this sweet was sold. People who eat it will be healthy all year long.
After buying it you have to roll it up the stairs to the Daruma statue in the Yakushi Hall 薬師堂 and then offer it to the 神棚 Shelf of the Gods in your own home with the wish for the child or children to grow up healthy and well.
This custom was very popular until about 1910. Another type was a small horse sweet.

. 仙台のだるま飴　Daruma sweets from Sendai .


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Shiga no Yakushi 志賀の薬師 Yakushi from Shiga village

岩沼市 Iwanuma 志賀 Shiga

Temple Ganzooji, Ganzōji 岩蔵寺 Ganzo-Ji
Iwanuma-shi, Shiga, Yakushi−9




慈覚大師 Jigaku Daishi founded the temple in 861, bringing a statue of Yakushi Nyorai to be venerated here. During the construction there came a group of skilled carpenters from Hida and promised to build the hall in one night.
But the villagers imitated the crow of a rooster long before daybreak, when the carpenters had just added one ceiling beam 天井板. They were quite angry and left the village.
In front of the hall were the other beams waiting to be fixed and between them was a stone looking like a snake 蛇石. It was formed when an oxen pulling the wooden beams for the building stumbled.

The temple is also famous for its ema 絵馬 votive tablets.
In the hall is a special ema painted by 狩野法眼元信 Kano Motonobu (1476 - 1559).
The oxen on this painting did not have any reins, so he escaped from the painting and damaged the fields in front of the temple. Therefore Motonobu came back and painted some reins to keep the oxen in place on the wooden tablet.

The statue of Yakushi in the Yakushi Hall 薬師堂 is said to be carved by Jigaku Daishi himself. It is a secret statue preserved in a small sanctuary 厨子 and never shown.


. Ennin -　Jigaku Daishi 慈覚大師 . - (794 – 864)


. Hida no Takumi 飛騨工匠 Hida's Master Builders .

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sugi Yakushi 杉薬師 Yakushi and the cedar tree

栗原郡 Kurihara 築館町 Tsukidate

Long ago in the Tenpyo period (729 - 749), when the Emperor 孝謙天皇 Koken Tenno (718 - 770) was very ill and asked his diviners for advise, they told him:
"In Mutsu 陸奥 there is a very very high cedar tree 大杉 and its long branches produced a shadow until your living quarters, causing your illness."
So he ordered one of his ministers, 某（なにがし） the Dainagon Nanigashi, to have the tree cut down.
The minister found a huge cedar tree at the village of Tsukidate and had it cut down. From the cutting surface blood spilled on the ground. But on the next morning all was healed and the tree was standing there as before.
However many times they cut it down, the same thing happened. Then a diviner told them to prepare a rope of the reeds in a field North-East to the cedar tree and cover the cutting wound with it.
The splinters from cutting flew in all directions and were soon gone.
Finally the illness of the Emperor was healed.
So he ordered to have a temple build over the stump of the cedar tree. Later Jigaku Daishi 慈覚大師 passed here and had a statue of Yakushi Nyorai placed on the altar.


The temple, built in 760, was called Soorinji 双林寺 Sorin-Ji.


宮城県栗原市築館薬師台双林寺
1-1 Tsukidateyakushidai, Kurihara, Miyagi

The temple became quite famous and had more than 48 sub-temples  in its compound.
But during the Middle Ages it declined through fire and fighting.
In 1591 it was re-built on orders of Date Masamune.
In the compound is the new hall 薬師瑠璃殿, / 薬師堂 - Ruridono 瑠璃殿
where the statue is now called
「お薬師様」O-Yakushi sama, 「杉薬師様」Sugi Yakushi Sama.

Every year on November 3 there is a special festival at the Yakushi Hall.
Tsukidate Yakushi Matsuri つきだて薬師まつり, also called
Fujiwara Ichizoku Yakushi Matsuri 藤原一族薬師まいり Yakushi Festival of the Fujiwara clan.

The festival is based on another legend of Kurihara town, the
しづはた姫物語 Shizuhata Hime Monogatari.
When the princess of the Fujiwara clan (Shizuhata, later 北の方 Kita no Kata) was on her way to Hiraizumi, she became ill on the way and prayed at the Cedar Tree Yakushi temple. She got healed on the spot and later, when she was with the Fujiwara clan, she had her retainers come to pray at this temple in a long parade.

The region of present-day Kurihara was part of the ancient Mutsu Province　陸奥の国, and has been settled since the Jomon period by the Emishi.
During the later portion of the Heian period, the area was ruled by the Northern Fujiwara. During the Sengoku period, the area was contested by various samurai clans before it came under the control of the Date clan of Sendai.



source :　www.pref.miyagi.jp

The seated statue from the Heian period is 121.2 cm high and made of keyaki ケヤキ zelkova wood.
It is an important cultural property of the town 重要文化財.


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- reference -

Monsters, legends and Yakushi 妖怪データベース
- source : nichibun yokai database

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. O-Mamori お守り　Amulets and Talismans .

. Fudō Myō-ō, Fudoo Myoo-Oo 不動明王 Fudo Myo-O
Acala Vidyârâja - Vidyaraja - Fudo Myoo .


. Yakushi Nyorai 薬師如来 the Buddha of Medicine - Bhaisajyaguru .
- Legends about Yakushi Nyorai -

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- - - Postscript - - -

Just when I had finished this article, with the words Miyagino and Wakabayashi still fresh in my mind, there was an article in the Japan Times
about the reconstruction efforts after the earthquake of March 11, 2011 -

- quote -
Innovation helps Tohoku's tsunami-hit farmers bounce back
by Megan Rowling - Japan Times -
SENDAI –
Even before a tsunami swamped fields east of Sendai in March 2011, Chikako Sasaki and her husband, a rice farmer, had dreamed of starting a business selling food made from their own produce. . . .
. . . The company in Wakabayashi Ward also has a processing facility nearby, and is planning to expand its other activity of making boxed lunches for convenience stores and public events.
. . . The company, which began operating almost two years ago in Miyagino Ward with capital from five young local farmers and disaster relief grants and loans, employs around 40 people and is branching out into organic vegetables too.
. . . Drainage pumping stations were quickly restored after the disaster with new ones now being built to double capacity needed to cope with the 50 cm of ground subsidence caused by the quake.
To cover the extra cost of the new pumping stations, the Sendai's city government has installed solar panels near its agriculture and horticulture center in Wakabayashi.
With a capacity to generate power for 150 households, the solar plant has recently begun producing electricity, which is sold to the grid.
- source : Japan Times April 01, 2015

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. Ennin -　Jigaku Daishi 慈覚大師 . - (794 – 864)

. Japan - Shrines and Temples - ABC .


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- - #gokurakuyakushimiyagi #yakushimiyagelegends -
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Posted By Gabi Greve to Gokuraku - Jigoku on 3/31/2015 09:43:00 am

YAKUSHI - Inaba Yakushi Kyoto

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Inaba Yakushi 因幡薬師

. Legends about Yakushi Nyorai 薬師如来 / 薬師様 / 薬師さん .
- Introduction -


other 薬師縁起　Yakushi Engi - below
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因幡堂 平等寺 Inaba-Do Byodo-Ji - Kyoto

The origin of temple Byoodooji 平等寺 Byodo-Ji is referred to in "Inabado Engi" (Legends of the Inaba-Do)
included in 山城名勝志 Yamashiro Meisho Shi "Annals of Yamashiro's picturesque sites" and 因幡堂縁起絵巻 Inabado engi-emaki "picture scroll of legends of the Inabado" .



五条高倉薬師堂 Gojo Takakura Yakushi Do
at Byodo-ji Temple (Shimogyo Ward, Kyoto City), which is known for kyogen "Inabado".

京都府京都市下京区烏丸通松原上る因幡堂町728
728 Inabado-cho, Shimogyo-ku, Kyoto

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In the Kamakura period at 997, 橘行平 Tachibana no Yukihira became governor of 因幡国 Inaba provice (now in Tottori). While he was there he became ill and had a dream.
At the beach of 因幡賀留津 Karunotsu in Inaba there is a sacred tree that would save him. When he went there, it was not a tree but a statue of Yakushi Nyorai hauled out of the waters. So he had a preliminary Hall build for the statue.

When Yukihira had gone back to Kyoto, he had another dream. A monk from the "Heaven in the West" 西の天 came to visit him and told him to save all the people in the east.
When he woke up he was told about a visitor at his gate. He thought it was the monk from his dream and went to the West Gate to greet him. By the time they opened the gate, the statue of Yakushi was standing there. It had come flying after him and landed in his estate. This is the beginning of the 因幡堂 Inaba Hall.
This was in the year 1003.

The temple soon grew in fame and even the Emperor came to worship here. Soon the Yakushi Moode 薬師もうで Mode, prayer visit to Yakushi became popular in Kyoto. In its prime time it had more than 8 sub-temples and a special entrance for official visitors.

Yakushi Nyorai at this temple is said to keep people free from cancer - in our modern times.
The statue was probably carved by the sculptor Kooshoo 康尚 Kosho in the mid or late Heian period.



Road to the "Gate that does not open".

Around 1170 during the fighting of the Genji and Heike 源平争乱 Emperor Takakura 高倉天皇 (1161 - 1181) lived just South of the Inaba Hall at the 東五条院 Higashi Gojo-In and the gate straight up the road at the temple was called akezu no mon　不明門　"Gate that does not open".
In 1171 Emperor Takakura gave it the name of temle Byodo-Ji.




本尊薬師如来立像 Yakushi Nyorai - The main statue of the temple
The statue is 165 cm high.
The name of the temple in Tottori is Zakooji 座光寺 Zako-Ji.







Statue of Tachibana no Yukihira 橘行平





The temple is famous for the Kyogen performances - 因幡堂狂言 Inaba Kyogen.





omamori　お守り　amulet from Byodo-Ji




shuin 朱印 stamp from Byodo-Ji


-- - - - HP of the temple 平等寺 Byodo-Ji
- source : www.inabado.jp

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Kooshoo, Kōshō 康尚 Buddhist sculptor Kosho
Called 「仏師職の祖」, "the Ancestor of professional Buddhist Sculptors".
He did not work for any special temple but established his own workshop in Kyoto. He had many disciples who promoted his style.
His father was 源康行, his son Joochoo, Jōchō 定朝 Jocho (? - 1057).

He also made statues of Byakudan Yakushi 白檀薬師像 and Fudo Myo-o 東福寺同聚院不動明王坐.
- reference -


. Buddhist sculptors 仏師 Edo Period to the Present Day .


. kyoogen, kyōgen　狂言 Kyogen performance .
- Introduction -

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因幡堂薬師縁起絵巻 Inabado Yakushi Engi Emaki

This scroll
depicts the construction of the Inaba-Do hall at the temple Byodo-Ji in Kyoto.
The story is told in the record of 御堂関白記 Mido Kanpaku Ki and others.
The famous scroll has been damaged by fire and is not complete.
東京国立博物館 Tokyo National Museum
- source : www.emuseum.jp/detail


A much older legend from Inaba / Tottori - about Okuninushi no Mikoto (Daikoku in Buddhism) :
. The White Rabbit of Inaba 因幡の白兎 .



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- - - - - Edo　江戸　Tokyo 　東京 - - - - -

Kinegawa Yakushi 木下川薬師（きねがわやくし）Yakushi from Kinegawa

Jokooji 浄光寺　Joko-Ji 　- 木下川薬師浄光寺
Tokyo - Katsushika 葛飾区東四つ木1-5-9
and
伝教大師　Dengyo Daishi


嘉祥2年（849）僧広智の草庵にはじまり、貞観2年（860）3月その弟子慶寛によって一寺となり、浄光寺と名づけられた。古くから<木下川薬師>として知られ、一千有余年の法灯を伝える関東屈指の古刹である。草創の由来については、嘉歴2年（1327）の青竜山薬師仏像縁記」に明らかである。大正8年荒川放水路開削工事による移転以前は、現在地の西北0.6キロ、江戸川水道橋の少し上流にあった。
草創以来、赫々として郷民の崇敬を集めたが、乱世にいたりいくたびか兵火のため焼失、寺領を没収せられ、応永年間（1394-1428）再び戦禍にかかり、荒廃状態となった。時の別当証円は法脈の絶えるのをうれい、領主奥津家定に願い出て、その斡旋によって関東管領上杉憲実から、当寺の別当職および寺領等の補佐を得て中興した。その後も幾多の消長を経、天正19年（1590）住僧良寛は徳川家に愁訴し、薬師供養料として5石の朱印地を得、堂舎を改築し、将軍家の祈願所となり、また江戸時代を通じて、毎年、将軍家の代参があり、江戸城紅葉山の歴代将軍霊屋の別当職を勤め、浅草浅草寺の筆頭格を占め、享保5年（1720）3月、将軍吉宗の放鷹以来、御膳所に指定されて慣例となり、幕末まで継続した。天保11年（1840）火災により本堂以下ことごとく灰燼に帰したが、幸に本尊をはじめ寺宝の大部分はその難を免れか、今なお保存されている。
（葛飾区教育委員会　葛飾区寺院調査報告より）
- source : katsushika/temple_eyotsugi_joko.shtml




- - - - - HP of the temple
- source : kinegawa-yakushi.jp


Kigegawa Yakushi Engi misspelling of Kinegawa
The Dragon in China and Japan
By M. W. De Visser

§1. Dengyo Daishi's image of Yakushi Nyorai.
The Kigegawa Yakushi engi says the following:
"The image of Yakushi Nyorai in Jokwoji (also called Shoryuzan, "Blue Dragon monastery"), in Katsushika district, Shimosa province, is made by Dengyo Daishi.
When Jikaku Daishi stayed in Asakusa-dera (the famous Kwannon temple in Asakusa, the well-known district of Yedo), an old man with grey hair appeared to him and said: 'In the North-east there is a holy place, where I have dedicated a miraculous image made by Dengyo Daishi'. Thereupon the man disappeared, and Jikaku went outside and looked towards the North-east. Suddenly a lucky cloud (zui-un, a cloud of a lucky colour) arose, and in it a blue dragon was visible.
Then the Daishi secretly left the temple and went in search of this blue dragon, till he arrived at the cottage (where the above-mentioned old man had lived as a hermit and had obtained the image). There he worshipped the image and saw the blue dragon, which was still there. Jikaku turned himself to the lucky cloud and addressed the dragon as follows:

'I wish to say a few words to you, you sacred dragon, listen to me. I want to built a temple here, which you must guard and protect from calamity. From this moment I appoint you guardian-god of the shrine'.

When the Daishi had finished speaking, the dragon, which had listened motionless, with his head bent down in reverence, disappeared. The priest considered this to be a good sign, and called the sanctuary 'Blue Dragon temple'.
Up till this day from time to time a dragon- lantern appears there as a wonderful, lucky omen,- probably in consequence of the above facts (i. e. because the blue dragon is the temple's guardian-god)".

The Udo meisho ki tells us that from olden times many pilgrims went to this temple, which is also called Jokwoji ("Temple of the Pure Light"), to worship the dragon-lantern, which was sure to arise before the image of Yakushi Nyorai on the eighth day of every month, and on New- Year's morning.

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Before the Buddhist chapel of Kasai Yakushi situated on a mountain north of Okayama, in Bizen province, there stood a "Dragon-lantern pine tree". Every night, especially in summer time, will-o'-the-wisps were seen there.
- source : books.google.co.jp


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. ryuutoo 龍燈 "dragon lantern" .
shiranui, shiranu-i 不知火 (しらぬい) "unknown light"
A phenomenon at the Ariakekai sea in Kagoshima, Kyushu, in the evening hours.
It is also seen in other parts of Japan as a light that the Dragon God sends out to honor the deities of Shinto and Buddhism in Japan.

kigo for mid-autumn
With a haiku by Matsuo Basho.



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Medicine Master Buddha:
The Iconic Worship of Yakushi in Heian Japan




This profusely illustrated volume illuminates the primacy of icons in disseminating the worship of the Medicine Master Buddha (J: Yakushi Nyorai) in Japan. Suzuki's meticulous study explicates how the devotional cult of Yakushi, one of the earliest Buddhist cults imported to Japan from the continent, interacted and blended with local beliefs, religious dispositions, and ritual practices over the centuries, developing its own distinctive imprint on Japanese soil. Worship of the Medicine Master Buddha became most influential during the Heian period (794–1185), when Yakushi's popularity spread to different levels of society and locales outside the capital. The large number of Heian-period Yakushi statues found all across Japan demonstrates that Yakushi worship was an integral component of Heian religious practice.

Medicine Master Buddha focuses on the ninth-century Tendai master Saichō (767–822) and his personal reverence for a standing Yakushi icon. The author proposes that, after Saichō's death, the Tendai school played a critical role in popularizing the cult of this particular icon as a way of memorializing its founding master and strengthening its position as a major school of Japanese Buddhism. This publication offers a fresh perspective on sculptural representations of the Medicine Master Buddha (including the famous Jingoji Yakushi), and in so doing, reconsiders Yakushi worship as foundational to Heian religious and artistic culture.
source :　www.brill.com/medicine-master-buddha


Yakushi Engi, Yakushiengi 薬師縁起　The Omen of Yakushi Temple
Medicine Master Buddha: The Iconic Worship of Yakushi in Heian Japan
By Yui Suzuki
- source : books.google.co.jp


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. Legends about Yakushi Nyorai 薬師如来 / 薬師様 / 薬師さん .

. Japan - Shrines and Temples - ABC .


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Posted By Gabi Greve to Gokuraku - Jigoku on 4/02/2015 06:11:00 am