Showing posts with label April. Show all posts
Showing posts with label April. Show all posts

2/20/2011

Todai-Ji Nara

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Temple Todai-Ji 東大寺

***** Location: Nara, Japan
***** Season: Various, see below
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

Tōdai-ji (東大寺, Todaiji, Tōdai-ji, Toodaiji, Eastern Great Temple),
is a Buddhist temple complex located in the city of Nara, Japan.

Its Great Buddha Hall (大仏殿 Daibutsuden), the largest wooden building in the world, houses the world's largest bronze statue of the Buddha Vairocana, known in Japanese simply as Daibutsu (大仏).



The temple also serves as the Japanese headquarters of the Kegon school of Buddhism. The temple is a listed UNESCO World Heritage Site as "Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara", together with seven other sites including temples, shrines and places in the city of Nara.
Shika deer, regarded as messengers of the gods in the Shinto religion, roam the grounds freely.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !






- quote - Japan Times 2015 -
Great Buddha of Nara has only half its reported number of hair curls
The Great Buddha of Nara, a 15-meter-high statue listed among Japan’s national treasures, has only 492 spiraling curls of hair on its bronze head, not the 966 locks described in ancient documents, new research indicates.

The discovery was made via a 3-D analysis of the statue’s head using a laser scanning method, conducted by Takeshi Oishi, associate professor at the University of Tokyo’s Institute of Industrial Science, the temple in Nara where the statue is housed said Thursday on its website.

Todaiji temple asked Oishi to undertake the research because it kept receiving inquiries about the number of curls, known as “rahotsu,” on the Buddha’s head, with some visitors saying it seems the statue has many fewer curls than the number described in scrolls dating back nearly 1,000 years.

A question composed by the Mathematics Certification Institute of Japan further motivated the temple in the ancient Japanese capital to shed light on the issue, which “has remained a mystery to this day,” the temple said on its website.

When 966 hair locks are placed inside a circle, the question asks, what is the area of the smallest possible circle?



One hair curl is about 22 centimeters in diameter, 21 cm in height and weighs 1.2 kilograms.

The research required a laser beam because it is physically impossible to get behind the Buddha to count the number of locks there. A huge golden decoration representing a halo is located immediately behind the Buddha’s head, blocking access.

According to Oishi, it is estimated that the Buddha has 483 rahotsu and nine are missing, for a combined number of 492 — or just about half of the 966 mentioned in the earliest scrolls from the 1100s about the temple’s history. That number was repeated in later documents on the temple history compiled in the Edo (1603-1868) and Meiji (1868-1912) periods.

However, it is still possible to assume that the statue did have 966 hair curls when it was originally built more than 1,200 years ago. The Buddha has been rebuilt each time it was damaged in war, making its seat and part of its knees the only surviving portions from the original built in 752 under the orders of Emperor Shomu to wish for peace and the stability of his nation.

- source : japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/12/03 -


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observance kigo for late spring

jukai-e 授戒会 Jukai initiation ceremony
initiation ceremony for novice monks and lay people

Toodaiji jukai 東大寺授戒

It was first performed in the year 6 of the period Tenpyoo Shoohoo 天平勝宝 (754), when priest Ganjin came from China and initiated the emperor Shomu Tenno 聖武上皇, Koken Tenno 孝謙天皇 and others.
In the following year a special hall, Kaidan-In 戒壇院, was constructed for this ceremony, where the Jukai ceremony was performed.

At present initiation rituals for lay people are performed in June 結縁授戒.
The initiation rituals for priests and monks are performed in November 授戒.


Kaidan-In 戒壇院


Todai-ji Kaidan-in Jukai Shiki
ceremony to impart the Buddhist precepts on priests and nuns at Kaidan-in of Todai-ji Temple


授戒会の五色の幡や同小春

西村舟津


source : www.asahi.com/culture

Monks entering the hall for the Jukai ceremony, which had not been held for 26 years before that, due to repairs of the temple.


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Important yearly festivals of Todai-Ji

January 7 - Shushoo-e 修正会

February 3 - Setsubun 節分 万灯明 星祭

Around February 20 - Shuuni-e 修二会 別火坊

March 1 - 15 - Shuuni-e 修二会 本行

April 8 - 仏生会 Buddha's Birthday

May 2 - 最勝十講 聖武天皇御忌 Memorial for Emperor Shomu
May 3 - 山陵祭 - 献茶式(裏千家) Tea Ceremony

June 5 - Shunjoo Ki 俊乗忌(しゅんじょうき)
June 28 - Kejo-e 解除会(けじょえ)
Purification, to drive away evil influence from the first half of the year.

August 7 - 大仏さま お身拭い Daibutsu Festival
August 15 - Mantoo Kuyoo-e 万灯供養会

September 17 - O-Bon 十七夜・十七夜盆踊り

October 5 - 転害会 - showing of secret statues
October 15 - 大仏さま秋の祭り Autumn Festival for the Daibutsu

December 14 - 仏名会

December 16 - 良弁忌 Roben Memorial Day
(kigo for mid-winter)


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amulet for traffic safety 交通安全 

Homepage of the temple
source : www.todaiji.or.jp


. Amulets and Talismans from Japan . 

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- --- -Yokai Database

- Todaiji - 14 legends to explore -

- Daibutsu - 17 legends to explore -

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Rooben Soojoo 良弁僧正 Roben Sojo (689 - 773)

quote
The origin of Todaiji goes back to the Kinshoji, a temple that had existed in the eastern sector of the present Todaiji compound. Here, Roben (689-773), a scholar-monk of the Kegon sect who was to become the first abbot of Todaiji, had been active in 733. Roben is commemorated by a portrait-statue made around 1019 and kept in the Kaisando (founder's hall).

The kondo (main hall) of Kinshoji probably is the extant inner sanctuary of the hokkedo (lotus hall), popularly known as the Sangatsudo (Third Month Hall), where the Lotus Sutra (Hokekyo) is chanted yearly during the third month (sangatsu). The main icon of the hokkedo is the Fukukensaku Kannon, a splendid, dry-lacquer statue, made around 746. In 741 the Kinshoji became the provincial monastery-temple for Yamato Province (now Nara Prefecture). At that time the temple was renovated and renamed Konkomyoji after the Sutra of the Golden Light (J: Konkomyo kyo).

BIRUSHANA BUDDHA, BIRUSHANA NYORAI
source : - Mark Schumacher





His statue is shown on December 16, on the memorial day of his death.


. Roben and the Oyama Fudo Myo-O .
大山の不動様


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jukai, o-jukai お授戒 initiation ceremonies are also performed by other Buddhist sects.

お授戒や庭広々と花旋風
o-jukai ya niwa hirobiro to hana senpuu

jukai ceremony -
in the large garden
a whirlwind of blossoms


Matsufuji Kazan 松藤夏山


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Things found on the way


Famous priests related to the temple Todai-Ji

. Priest Ganjin 鑑真 .


. Priest Chogen 重源 Choogen .


. Gyoki Bosatsu (Gyooki) 行基菩薩 .

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There used to be seven large temples in Nara, Nanto Shichi Daiji 南都七大寺
Nanto Shichi doo 南都七堂 - shichi daiji 七大寺 :

. Daiji, ootera 大寺 large temple .
and haiku by Masaoka Shiki


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HAIKU


When Matsuo Basho visited Todaiji in the year Genroku 2 in december, the temple was still under repair after the destruction wrought by the civil wars of the sixteenth century. The Great Buddha statue was only finally completed in 1692, after the visit by Basho described above, and the statue sat for years in the open like the Great Buddha in Kamakura.

The new Buddha Hall (which is the present one) was finally finished in 1708, and Basho did not live to see this. He grieved for the Buddha in its sad state, for at that time even the head had not been restored yet. Basho saw only the rump of the statue, slowly being covered by the first snow of the year, and he wrote:

初雪やいつ大仏の柱立
hatsu yuki ya itsu Daibutsu no hashira date

first snow!
when will the temple building start
for the Great Buddha?

Tr. Ad G. Blankestijn

The year's first snowfall!
When are the columns of Daibutsu
Temple to be erected?

Tr. Oseko


Written in December Genroku 2. 元禄2年12月


Daibutsuden, the current Hall for the Great Buddha was built in 1709.


Barnhill translated:

Visiting the Southern Capital, I yearned for the eventual building of the Buddha Hall

first snow--
for the Great Buddha, when
will the columns be raised?



Barnhill also gives an earlier version of this hokku:

雪悲しいつ大仏の瓦葺き
yuki kanashi itsu Daibutsu no kawarabuki

the snow is sad:
when will the Great Buddha
have its tiled roof?



It took about two years after the visit of Basho until the roof was preliminary fixed and the statue out of danger.


how sad to see it snowing!
when will the Gread Buddha Hall
get its roof tiled?

Tr. Gabi Greve




round tiles from the Daibutsu Hall
now a sweet from Nara
天平時代大仏殿の巴瓦 - tomoegawara

. . . CLICK here for Photos of the tiles !



Visiting temples with
. Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 - Archives of the WKD .


. Hotoke, Daibutsu and Hokku .

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source : facebook

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Related words

***** . Drawing Sacred Well Water お水取り
O-Mizutori, Omizutori .

at the Nigatsudo hall of Todai-ji Temple.


***** . OBSERVANCES – SPRING SAIJIKI .

. Amulets and Talismans from Japan . 

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. komainu 狛犬 / 高麗犬 / 胡麻犬 "Korean Dog" .


made by the Chinese sculptor Chinnakei 陳和卿 Chin Nakei, around 1196.
He had come from China on a mission to reconstruct the Todaiji in Nara.

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4/21/2010

Cow nose ring festival

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Nose ring festival (hanaguri matsuri )

***** Location:
***** Season: Mid-spring
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

cow nose ring ceremony はなぐり 供養)

memorial ceremony for the cows 牛魂供養
third saturday in April

hanagurizuka 鼻輪塚 / 鼻ぐり塚 "nose-ring mound"
hanaguri zuka

CLICK for more photos

Farmers send the nose rings of their cows, which come in all sorts of material, from plastic to metal.

Fukudenkai Temple 福田海本部のはなぐり塚
This temple is close to Kibitsu Shrine in Okayama prefecture.

There is now also a statue of a large pig and the memorial service covers all kinds of livestock, bred for human consumption.

Memorial services with fire rituals (goma) are held every month on the third saturday, but the mid-spring and autumn ceremonies are the most popular, because they can be combined with cherry-blossom viewing or red maple leaves.

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quote
"hanagurizuka" is decorated with more than 6.8 million nose rings of cows.



The Fukudenkai cult, established in 1901 by Tsuyu Nakayama, taught that in order to accumulate positive karma one should pray for the souls of cows, as
"the animal spends all its life for the people; it not only works in the fields but, after death, its flesh is then eaten and its skin is used for leather."

Since the early Showa period (1926-1989), the nose rings of cows have been put on the burial mound and twice a year—once in spring, and again in autumn—special ceremonies known as Chikukonsai are held to mourn the spirit of this beast.
source : japanonfoot.blogspot.com


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HAIKU



source : gigazine.net

cow ring ritual -
I thank for the steak
of last night


Nakayama Ishino


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Related words

***** . Cow, Bull, Ox (ushi 牛)  


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4/19/2010

Furukawa Drums

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Furukawa Drum Festival

***** Location: Gifu, Japan
***** Season: Late spring
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

Furukawa no okoshi daiko
古川の起し太鼓 (ふるかわのおこしだいこ)
"wake-up drums from Furukawa"

Furukawa "drum" festival
Rousing Drum
Wakening Drum
okoshidaiko, okoshitaiko, okoshi taiko

April 19th and 20th, Hida Furukawa town
Kita-Wakamiya shrine

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© PHOTO : mineo 20

quote
“Okoshi Daiko (Wakening Drum)” known in Japan as the most eccentric festival. This festival can be described as a combination of naked and fighting festival. Only this day, this quiet little town becomes tumult with the intense fights among naked men.

Then, on the following day, April 20, the atmosphere changes completely and graceful stalls parade around the town of Furukawa. Harmony of “Movement and Quietness”, this is the Furukawa Festival.

All of a sudden, you hear, “Boom! Thud! Boom!” You can feel the succession of pounding sounds of drums vibrating your body. Simultaneously, the large chorus of “Zenzenoko” celebratory song begins.

CLICK for more photos


“Zenze no ko” song: 古川ぜんぜの子

Medeta Medeta no Wakamatsu Sama yo
(Let’s celebrate the young pine buds coming out)
Eda mo Sakaeru Ha mo Shigeru
(Its branches and leaves will grow)
Sore Tsuita tote Nanto sezu
(If everything is gone, it’s OK.)
Zenzenoko Sorya Manma no ko
(No money, nothing to eat)

They wear white headband, white “tabi (Japanese socks)” and stomach band made from bleached cotton. Hida in mid April is still chilly and blows cold wind at night, but it has no effect to their body heated with sake and high spirits. It is their proudest moment at the year of "Furukawa Yancha (Adventure)."


“Parade of Festival Floats” April 20
nine stalls that Furukawa people are proud of are lined up.

People in Furukawa often say, “Don’t say you saw the Furukawa Festival just by seeing the wakening drum.” Certainly, you cannot say you’ve seen the Furukawa Festival without experiencing the glorious stalls, Honraku Festival 本楽祭 (and “Mikoshi (portable shrine)” parade.

Hiding the remaining pain after the intense battle from previous night, the young men of Furukawa parade around the town pull these “Movable Youmei-Mon (gate)”.

The stall made by “Takumi (the Master)” of Hida from his heart and soul represents the traditional beauty and craft beauty, while magnificence and glorious, and profoundness and melancholy fuse at just right level.

CLICK for more photos

At the night of Honraku Festival, the gloriously stalls decorated with gorgeous lanterns parade within the town showing the fantasy world.

MORE
source : www.city.hida.gifu.jp



There is a museum with the drums on display in Furukawa.

. Reference


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HAIKU



Furukawa drums -
rhythms from the heart
of old Japan


Nakayama Ishino


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Related words

***** . Furukawa Matsuri 古川祭(ふるかわまつり)
Naked Festivals of Japan
 


***** . Big Drums of Japan



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4/18/2010

Kurama Festivals

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Kurama Festivals

***** Location: Mt. Kurama, Japan
***** Season: Various, see below
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

Mount Kurama
(鞍馬山, Kurama-yama)

is a mountain to the north-west of the city of Kyoto. It is the birthplace of the Reiki practice, and is said to be the home of Sōjōbō, King of the Tengu, who taught swordsmanship to Minamoto no Yoshitsune. Kurama is also the location of the annual Kurama Fire Festival (鞍馬の火祭り, Kurama no Hi-matsuri), which takes place every October. Kurama Temple (鞍馬寺, Kuramadera) is now designated as a national treasure of Japan.

Kurama-dera, a Buddhist temple, is located in the wooded slopes above Kurama town. From its main gate in the town's center, the main buildings can be reached in a 30-45minute climb up the mountain. A cablecar leads halfway up.

Along the ascent to Kurama-dera stands Yuki Jinja 由岐神社, a shrine famous for its Fire Festival held annually on October 22. Kurama-dera's main buildings stand on a terrace on the mountain's slope, overlooking the wooded valley.

The philosopher Hayashi Razan lists one of the three greatest of the daitengu as Sōjōbō 僧正坊 of Mount Kurama. The tengu goblins of Kurama and Atago are among the most famous tengu of Japan.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !


- - - - - Tengupedia - - - - -
. 四十八天狗 48 Tengu of Japan .

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Three are three main deities venerated at the temple



sonten 尊天 symbolizing all things

千手観世音菩薩 Senju Kannon
毘沙門天王 Bishamonten (in the center)
護法魔王尊 Gohoo Maoo Son

Bishamonten symbolizes light and the sun
Kannon symabolizes love and the moon
Goho Mao Son symbolizes power and the earth.



Goho Mao Son, the great King of the conquerors of evil and the spirit of the earth, looks almost like a tengu himself.
Legend says he came to earth from Venus more than 6500000 years ago.
He is shown as a male of the age 16 and remains young for ever.
He is a special secret Buddha of Kurama temple.

quote
Mao-son, Bishamon-ten, and Senju-kannon are the symbols of the universal soul, forming a Trinity known as "Sonten" or the "Supreme Deity". Sonten is the "Living Soul", the "Supreme Soul of the universe", the "Glorious Light", and the "Activity of the Soul".
These three are the symbols of power, light, and love. We worship Sonten as the composite of all three.
"We trust in Sonten for all things." Sonten is the creator of the universe, and cultivates the development of everything all over the earth. He rests deeps in our individual minds, and causes the "Great Self" or "Atman" to wake up within our hearts. He gives us new power and glorious light.

More than six million years ago, Mao-son (the great king of the conquerors of evil and the spirit of the earth) descended upon Mt. Kurama from Venus, with the great mission of the salvation of mankind. Since then, Mao-son's powerful spirit governing the development and the evolution not only of mankind but of all living things on Earth has been emanating from Mt. Kurama, and a priest named Gantei received the spiritual transmission.
source : www.ihreiki.com

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kigo for late spring

CLICK for more photos

Kurama no Hana Kuyoo 鞍馬の花供養
Flower Ceremony at Kurama

hana kuyoo 花供養(はなくよう)Flower Ceremony
flower dedication
hana gu senboo 花供懺法(はなぐせんぽう)

It used to be for five days from April 18 till 22, but now it is for seven days till 24.

At the temple Kuramadera flowers are offered and prayers of repentance (senboo) are spoken.
During this period,the main deity, Tamonten (Bishamonten), which is usually hidden (hibutsu), is shown to the public.

Small children in court robes form a procession and throw artificial blossoms for the visitors.
There are performances of dance, kyogen, songs, tea ceremonies and more by the believers of Bishamonten. Every day there is something else to enjoy.



午の鐘響き渡るや花供養
uma no kane hibiki-wataru ya hana kuyoo

the mid-day bell
reverberates far and wide -
flower ceremony

. Takahama Kyoshi 高浜虚子  

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kigo for mid-summer

CLICK for more photos

Kurama no take kiri 鞍馬の竹伐 (くらまのたけきり)
cutting bamboo at Kurama
takekiri 竹筏(たけきり)
Kurama no renge e 鞍馬の蓮華会(くらまのれんげえ)
Kurama Lotus Ceremony

Kurama no take kiri eshiki
鞍馬の竹伐会式(くらまのたけきりえしき)
ceremony of cutting bamboo at Kurama


On June 20 at temple Kuramadera.

Four bamboo poles in front of the main temple hall are cut by two groups of people clad in formal robes, the east and west group. They use special woodman's hatchets (山刀) and fight for speed. The group which finishes first will be used to divine the harvest of the coming autumn.

quote
Takekiri-eshiki is a bamboo-cutting ceremony based on a story about the monk Buen (峯延). The legend is that one day while Buen was undertaking austerities in the mountains monstrous male and female serpents attacked him. After the monk cut and killed the male serpent by chanting a powerful mantra the female serpent pleaded for mercy and promised to help people to make a stream from the mountain. The serpent kept her word and since then the villagers could enjoy affluent water and worshiped the serpent by creating a little shrine.

In the annual ceremony eight male parishioners clad in costumes of warrior monks form two teams. Upon a signal the teams rush out to cut 4m long and 10cm thick green bamboo poles with strokes of mountain hatchets (山刀) into eight pieces. The poles symbolise the serpents, which are incarnations of evil. The ceremony is performed to pray for a bountiful harvest. The area represented by the winning team will enjoy rich harvests that year.
The teams of Omi and Tanba represent the eastern and western sides of Mt Kurama. In ancient times the area around Lake Biwa was called Omi and parts of Kyoto and Hyogo prefectures Tanba.

The pieces of cut bamboo are believed to guard homes against misfortune. At the end of the ritual, a female bamboo, roots intact, is returned and replanted in the grove from which the male trees were taken.


Monk Gantei (鑑禎)
Kurama temple has its origin in the monk Gantei who had a dream about being guided to a sacred place on the saddle of a white horse. He followed this spiritual transmission and the horse brought him to the foot of the mountain, where he built a small thatched temple to Bishamonten. Years later, Isendo Fujiwara was also guided on horseback to the mountain with the intent of building a temple to the Thousand-armed Kannon Bodhisattva. Gantei’s temple became known as Kurama-dera (Horse-saddle temple) due to Gantei and Fujiwara both being guided there on saddle-back.


Tagyuraku 打毬楽
Tagyuraku is a kind of polo dance in which the dancers are dressed as courtiers of the Heian period. Polo was an ancient Persian sport known in China of the Tang dynasty and thence introduced into Nara of the Heian period. It is said that 88 or 40 persons played this polo like game on horseback. What is now left from the game is the music accompanying traditional court dance.
source : photojapan.karigrohn.com
Look at the photos of this link !


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kigo for late autumn

. Kurama no hi matsuri 鞍馬の火祭
Kurama Fire Festival
 
October 22


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kigo for the New Year

. Kurama mairi 鞍馬詣(くらままいり)
first visit to temple Kuramadera
 
Kurama hatsu tora mairi 鞍馬初寅詣(くらまはつとらまいり)
visit to Kurama Temple on the first day of the tiger
"Kurama Gold Coin", Kurama koban 鞍馬小判(くらまこばん)
. . . . . and more kigo about this ceremony

The Tiger hour is about 3-5am. Tiger Month is January and the Tiger day comes up every 12 days.


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Kurama stone Daruma

. Kurama Ishi 鞍馬石 Kurama Stone  


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CLICK for original link . kanshin.com
Ushiwakamaru 牛若丸

. Ushiwaka mochi 牛若餅 Ushiwaka rice cakes  
Named after Minamoto no Yoshitsune in his boyhood (Ushiwaka, the one as strong as a bull), when he was trained at the Kurama Mountain Temple by the Forest Goblins (tengu).


. Minamoto no Yoshitsune 源の義経 (1159 - 1189) .
- Introduction -
Shanaoo, Shanaō 遮那王 Shanao (his boyhood name at Kurama)
牛若丸 Ushiwakamaru // Hoogan 判官 Hogan (his court title)


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Goma sen, gomasen 護摩扇 ritual fan from Kurama

. ha-uchiwa 天狗の羽団扇 "feather fan of a Tengu" .

This is the fan of the great tengu from Kurama mountain, used to ward off all evil during the goma fire rituals.

quote
Sōjōbō - Sojobo
Sōjōbō (僧正坊, lit. "high Buddhist priest")
is the mythical king of the tengu, minor deities who inhabit the mountains of forests of Japan. Sōjōbō is an ancient yamabushi (mountain hermit) tengu with long, white hair and an unnaturally long nose. He carries a fan made from seven feathers as a sign of his position at the top of tengu society. He is extremely powerful, and one legend says he has the strength of 1,000 normal tengu. Sōjōbō lives on Mount Kurama (north of Kyoto).

Sōjōbō is perhaps best known for teaching the warrior Minamoto no Yoshitsune (then known by his childhood name Ushiwaka-maru or Shanao) the arts of swordsmanship, tactics, and magic in the 12th century. In fact, the name "Sōjōbō" originates from Sōjōgatani, the valley at Mount Kurama near Kibune Shrine associated with the Shugenja. It is in this valley that Ushiwaka trained with Sōjōbō in legend. This relationship serves as the basis of many Japanese woodblock prints, including one by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi.
Also in some Japanese villages, parents spread the myth that he eats little boys to stop them going into the forests at night.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !



a kind of fly swatter : Tengu no uchiwa
. Swatter of a Forest Goblin
Tengu no uchiwa 天狗のうちわ .


. Fan (oogi 扇 - uchiwa 団扇).


. Amulets and Talismans from Japan . 



source : hayato on facebook

"Tengu Monsters and Ushiwakamaru"

c. 1760, by Shunsho Katsukawa (1726-1792).


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HAIKU





月ぞしるべこなたへ入せ旅の宿
tsuki zo shirube konata e irase tabi no yado

moon! guide
this-way to please-enter
journey's lodging

Matsuo Basho, 1663

Basho alludes to a line from the No play Tengu on Mount Kurama, in which the blossoms are the guides.

Tr. David Landis Barnhill


奥は鞍馬の山道の花ぞしるべなる へ入らせ給へや

oku wa Kurama no yamamichi no
hana zo shirube naru konata e irase tamae ya

CLICK for more photos
Kurama no Tengu 鞍馬天狗 Noh Performance


tsuki zo shirube konata e irase tabi no yado


the moon will guide you . . .
this way, traveler; please come
into the inn here

Tr. Ueda


The moon is your guide;
Come to my house, says the host
Of a wayside inn.

Tr. Yuasa

Written in 寛文4年, Basho age 21
During that time the Teimon school was in full swing and it was popular to make an allusion to poems and songs of old.

. Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 - Archives of the WKD .


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道標は蝸牛遊ばせ右鞍馬
doohyoo wa kagyuu asobase migi Kurama

the guidepost
is a resting post for the snail -
turn right for Mount Kurama

Minamisawa Kiriko 南澤霧子


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Related words

***** . Bishamonten 毘沙門天  


***** . Ushiwaka-maru and Benkei  

***** . Kurama gannin 鞍馬願人 Gannin from Kurama .
gannin boozu 願人坊主 mendicant monks



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Kurama karakuri gangu 鞍馬のからくり玩具 mechanical dolls from Kurama
They are about 30 to 40 cm high. The deities of Wind and Thunder 風神雷神. Made from bamboo with a string to pull for moving the fan and arms.

. Kyoto Folk Art - 京都(府) .
Kuramadera no koi ningyoo 鞍馬寺 鯉の人形 Kurama carp dolls
Kurama yama no a-un-tora 鞍馬山のあうん虎 tiger dolls
Kurama kubi ningyoo くらま首人形 head dolls


. karakuri ningyoo からくり人形 mechanical dolls .

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4/14/2010

Mino Drum Festival

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Mino Festival (Mino matsuri)

***** Location: Gifu, Japan
***** Season: Late Spring
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

Mino matsuri 美濃祭 (みのまつり) Mino festival

On April 14 and 15. Mino town, Gifu prefecture
八幡神社 岐阜県美濃. 美濃祭り


CLICK for more photos

Town festival of the 'Hachiman' Shrine of Mino.
On the first day, over 30 portable shrines are decorated as 'Hana-mikoshi 花みこし' (flower-palanquins); more than 200 branches of attached flowers for 'hana-mikoshi' are made of 'washi' (Japanese paper) dyed a cherry colour and carried to the central shrine of the town by a joyful procession of young men gathered from several districts.

A parade of six gorgeous 'Yama 山車' (wheeled floats) with open-air stand of wind-up dolls takes place on the following day. 'Niwaka 流しにわか' (street comedy with teams of amateur comedians) entertains audience the evening of both days.
The floats date back to the Edo period, some have mechanical dolls on them 'karakuri ningyo からくり人形".
source : www.infomapjapan.com


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Things found on the way



. Washi paper from Mino


. WASHOKU - regional dishes from Mino and Gifu  


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HAIKU





朧夜の町かどに聞く美濃仁輪加
oboro ya no machikado ni kiku Mino niwaka

on a hazy spring night
in all corners of Mino you hear
the festival songs

. Inahata Teiko 稲畑汀子



hazy spring night
every corner of Mino
floats the comedy skit

Tr. Makiko


. Discussing NIWAKA .
Translating Haiku Forum


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Related words



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Seimei and Kanshoku Okinawa

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Seimei festival (seimeisai)

***** Location: Okinawa, Japan
***** Season: Mid-Spring
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

seimeisai 清明祭 (せいめいさい) Seimei festival
..... seimei mairi 清明参(せいめいまいり) "visiting graves at Seimei"
ushiimii (ウシーミー), shiimii

CLICK for more photos

This is a celebration in Okainawa, on the beginning of the period

Seimei (清明): Start on April 5 — Clear and bright
It used to be in the third lunar month.

The relatives gather in front of the graves, say prayers and then have a feast, including traditional dishes and the loved "awamori" liquor. After the feast it is time for shamisen music and dance.
The relatives have two weeks to perform the rituals. Sometimes the bones are taken out of the graves and washed.
Washing the bones is a custom of China, see below.

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observance kigo for mid-spring

kanshoku 寒食 (かんしょく) "cold food"
kanshoku setsu 寒食節(かんしょくせつ)
ritual of eating cold food

hyakugo setsu 百五節(ひゃくごせつ)
ritual on day 105 (after the winter solstice)

reien setsu 冷烟節(れいえんせつ)"cold smoke" ritual

anzu no kayu 杏の粥 apricot rice gruel
momobana kayu 桃花粥 peach blossom rice gruel
yookagayu 楊花粥 willow blossom rice gruel

kinka 禁火 no fire

jukushoku setsu 熟食節 ritual of hot food

. . . . .


寒食や饐になれたるひとり住み
kanshoku ya su ni naretaru hitori sumi

cold food -
I live alone and am used
to things tasting sour

Kuroyanagi Shooha 黒柳召波


. . . . .


寒食や竃をめぐるあぶら虫
kanshoku ya kamado o meguru aburamushi

cold food -
cockroaches search
around the hearth

Tan Taigi 炭太祇


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The six seasonal segments of spring
asian lunar calendar

Risshun (立春): February 4—Beginning of spring
Usui (雨水): February 19—Rain water
Keichitsu (啓蟄): March 5—awakening of hibernated (insects)
Shunbun (春分): March 20—Vernal equinox, middle of spring
Seimei (清明): April 5—Clear and bright
Kokuu (穀雨): April 20—Grain rain


. WKD : The 24 solar sections   


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Things found on the way



cold food (hiyashi mono) eaten after a banquet

Matsuo Basho
'At Kyokusui's House' 曲水亭
A party of 5, with Basho, Kyokusui, Kagami Shikoo 各務支考, Hirose Izen Sogyuu 広瀬維然(素牛) and Gakoo 臥高 from Iga.
The cold food was often sooomen そうめん 素麺 thin noodles and fruit.


夏の夜や崩て明し冷し物
natsu no yo ya kuzurete akeshi hiyashi mono

summer night--
at dawn, scattered leftovers
of chilled food

Tr. Barnhill

An excerpt from Barnhill's comment:
"Cool food such as melon and eggplant was served at the conclusion of a banquet."


summer night
broken up at dawn
chilled food

Tr. Reichhold

Reichhold's comment:
"This verse was Basho's greeting and beginning link for a renga done with Kyokusui, Gakoo, Izen, and Shikioo at the home of Kyokusui in Zeze. It is thought to be funny that Basho begins a renga with a verse that describes the end of a party. The word 'broken' ['kuzurete'] refers to the night [because of the dawn], the food [leftovers], and the party."]


MORE - hokku about food by
. Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 - Archives of the WKD .


. hiya soomen 冷索麺 cold Somen noodles .

. Hiyashi Chuuka 冷やし中華 cold Chinese noodles .

cold tofu
. hiyayakko, hiya yakko 冷奴 "cold guy" .


. WASHOKU - Japanese Food Culture .


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HAIKU



what was my face
before my forefathers were born?
Seimei Festival


Note:
Ls 1&2 allude to the Zen Buddhist concept of the original face.

. WKD : Koan and Haiku  




Seimei Festival
rain on the grave site I visit
for the first time


faintly alluding to Ching-ming (or Qing-Ming, 清明 Seimei), a poem by the famous Late Tang poet, Du Mu 杜牧.
The festival originated from the Day with Cold Food, a memorial day for Jie Zhitui (介子推 Kai Shisui), who died in 636 BC in the Spring and Autumn Period.

Chen-Ou Liu
Canada

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quote
The 1st day of the 5th solar term is the Qingming.
Qingming Festival is the 15th day after the Spring Equinox occurring around April 5 of the Gregorian calendar.

The Qingming Festival is commonly translated as the Clear Bright Festival or the Tomb Sweeping Day.

During the Spring and Autumn Period (Chinese: 春秋战国时期), the Duke Wen of Jin (Chinese: 晋文公) created the Hanshi Cold Food Festival (Chinese: 寒食节) to commemorate the loyalty of his friend and servant Jie Zhitui (Chinese: 介之推).

On Hanshi Festival, the day before the solar term Qingming (Chinese: 清明), people were not allowed to use fires to cook or heat up food (eat cold food only), and hang willow branches on doors to show respect to Jie Zhitui, because he was killed with his mother by a fire next to a willow tree. The fire was actually set up by Duke Wen hoping to force Jie Zhitui to come out of his hiding place in the mountains.

The Qingming Festival itself was created by the Tang Emperor Xuanzong in 732. It is said that because the wealthy held too many expensive, elaborate ancestor-worshipping ceremonies, in a needed effort to lower this expense, Emperor Xuanzong declared that respects could be formally paid at ancestor's graves only on Qingming.

Gradually, people combined traditions of the Hanshi Festival into the Qingming Festival and kept as a one-day festival.



Qingming Poem by Du Mu



A drizzling rain falls like tears on the Mourning Day;
The mourner's heart is breaking on his way.
Where can a hostel be found to drown his sadness?
A cowherd points to Xing Hua village in the distance.

source : chinese/festivals



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Related words

***** . WKD : The Season of Spring  


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3/15/2010

Saga in Kyoto

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Saga 嵯峨 Spring Festivals

***** Location: Kyoto, Japan
***** Season: Various, see below
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

Saga is an area in Kyoto, Arashiyama Saikyo-ku district.
京都市右京区の嵐山.


There are many large temples in the area, which was used by the courtiers as a retreat after leaving politics.

Daikakuji 大覚寺 Temple Daikaku-Ji
see below


Seiryooji 清涼寺 Temple Seiryo-Ji, Shakado 釈迦堂
see below


. Tenryuuji 天竜寺 - 天龍寺 Temple Tenryu-Ji .
Rinzai Zen Temple


Daruma painted by Seki Bokuoo (1903 - 1991)
関牧翁の筆

- Shared by Charlie Smith at Kyoto.
Joys of Japan, March 2012



Many festivals of these temples are kigo.

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Emperor Saga

Emperor Saga (嵯峨天皇, Saga-tennō) (786–842)
was the 52nd emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 809 through 823.

Saga was a scholar of the Chinese classics. He was also a renowned as a skillful calligrapher.

According to legend,
he was the first Japanese emperor to drink tea.

Emperor Saga Tenno played an important role as a stalwart supporter of the Buddhist monk Kūkai Kobo Daishi. The emperor helped Kūkai to establish the Shingon School of Buddhism by granting him the Toji temple in the capital Heian-kyō (present day Kyoto).

Saga's grandson, Minamoto no Tōru, is thought to be an inspiration for the protagonist of the novel The Tale of Genji.
In ancient Japan, there were four noble clans, the Gempeitōkitsu (源平藤橘). One of these clans, the Minamoto clan are also known as Genji (源氏), and of these, the Saga Genji (嵯峨源氏) are descended from 52nd emperor Saga.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !

. Saga Tenno 嵯峨天皇 and 弘法大師空海 Kukai Legends .

- 9 more legends to explore -

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kigo for mid-spring

CLICK for more photos

Saga no hashira taimatsu
嵯峨の柱炬 (さがのはしらたいまつ)
Saga torch ceremony


..... Saga o-taimatsu 嵯峨御松明(さがおたいまつ)
..... hashira taimatsu 柱松明(はしらたいまつ)
..... o-taimatsu 御松明(おたいまつ)

In memory of the anniversary of Shakyamuni Buddha on March 15 at the temple Seiryo-Ji. (originally it was held on February 15.)

嵯峨御松明式
At about seven thirty at night, three torches of about seven meters length and 1.5 meters diameter are lit. From the power of the flames the good fortune and harvest of the coming year is divined.

One of the three famous fire festivals of Kyoto.

. . WKD : Fire Festivals of Japan  


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kigo for late spring



Saga Dainenbutsu Kyoogen
嵯峨大念仏狂言(さがだいねんぶつきょうげん)
Amida Buddha Prayer Kyogen

..... Saga dainenbutsu 嵯峨大念仏 (さがのだいねんぶつ)
..... Saga nenbutsu 嵯峨念仏(さがねんぶつ)Saga nembutsu


One of the three most important prayer kyogen performances at the Shakado hall of temple Seiryo-Ji. This prayer ceremony is held in spring and autumn, but the spring one is the kigo.
It used to be on march 15, but now it is held for two days on a saturday and sunday in mid-april.
It was started by saint Engaku at temple Mibudera (Mibu Nenbutsu) in the year 1279., who prayed to see his deceased mother again.
It is now an intangible cultural folk property.
Like in the Mibu Nenbutsu, there are no words, but only the sound of the gong "kanden kanden" and the big drum. It is really quite a rural dance performance of Old Saga.

The various performances are called

Hana nusubito 花盗人
. . . CLICK here for Photos !

Daibutsu kuyoo 大仏供養

Yo-uchi Soga 夜討曽我
. . . CLICK here for Photos !

and others.

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Saga men 嵯峨面 masks from Saga


Fudo Myo-O in red 不動明王面(赤)

Look here for more from the Fujiwara family masks:
source : fujiwara/


Originally the masks from the Shakado Kyogen were produced from papermachee and sold at the temple as amulets for the visitors. This custom was abolished during the Meiji period.
Now it has been picked up again by Fujiwara Fuseki 藤原孚石.
His son and grandson are now producing these simple, but charming masks.

They are made by plastering washi paper into the mold, then taking the mask out and coloring it. This is now the job of the second generation Fuseki. His son still has to learn how to plaster the masks.
The paper is taken from old books, since this is the strongest washi. He uses pages with Hiragana for female masks and pages with Kanji for male masks.
There are now about 30 different kinds made by the Fujiware family.


CLICK for more photos !



. Masks from Japan .


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. . WKD : Namu Amida Butsu, the Amida Prayer  


. . WKD : Kyogen, kyoogen 狂言 and Haiku  


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External LINKS

The Living Buddha – Seiryoji Temple, Kyoto
http://www.japannavigator.com/2007/04/13/the-living-buddha-seiryoji-temple-kyoto/


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Things found on the way



. WASHOKU
厄落としの大根焚き(お会式)Daikotaki
Cooking Radishes for Nichiren
 
at Temple Sanpo-Ji 三寳寺 (さんぽうじ)

with tofu from Saga 嵯峨豆腐.
Sagadoofu is the starting point of Kyoto Tofu, with its beans from the Saga plain and fresh water from the nearby forests.


mukashidoofu むかし豆腐 old-fashioned tofu (touhu)
Made by the shop Morika 森嘉(もりか)near Shakado Hall (Seiryo-ji Temple).
It is made with sumashi-ko すまし粉), sekko, a kind of calcium sulfate instead of nigari. This dates back to a time after the war when they could not get any real nigari and had to find a substitute.
The store uses only the old equipment and all is made by hand. Only a small amount of this tofu is made every day for sale.

Kawabata Yasunari was fond of this hard tofu.
. . . CLICK here for Photos !

Morika no karashidoofu からし豆腐 tofu with mustard flavor


. WASHOKU
Famous Dishes from Kyoto
 





松明の火の粉映して嵯峨豆腐
taimatsu no hi no ko terashite Sagadoofu

light up by the sparks
from the huge torch ...
tofu from Saga


Shimaoka Kaihyoo 島岡海豹
http://web.kyoto-inet.or.jp/people/morig191/haiku.html



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浅春の井水溢らせ嵯峨豆腐
senshun no seisui afurase Sagadoofu

overflowing with
well water from early spring ...
tofu from Saga


Hiko ヒコ
http://nashi.shashin-haiku.jp/node/71915





Daruma on a lantern at a shop in Saga



. WASHOKU
aburimochi, aburi mochi あぶりもち. のあぶり餅
slightly roasted dumplings
 
from Saga, Kyoto



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HAIKU


いざのぼれ嵯峨の鮎食ひに都鳥 
iza nobore Saga no ayu kui ni miyakodori

Let's go up to Saga,
You seagulls,
And eat trout!


Yasuhara Teishitsu 安原貞室 (1610-73)
Tr. Blyth


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Seiryooji 清涼寺 Temple Seiryo-Ji
Shakado 釈迦堂 The Shaka Hall



行秋やすでに御釈迦は京の空
yuku aki ya sude ni o-shaka wa kyoo no sora

autumn ends--
already the Buddha
fills Kyoto's sky

Tr. David Lanoue

or

autumn ends--
already the statue of Buddha Shakyamuni
is under the sky of Kyoto

Tr. Gabi Greve


In a prescript to this haiku, Kobayashi Issa alludes to a statue of Gautama Buddha being returned to its temple in Kyoto.

Seiryooji 清涼寺 Temple Seiryo-Ji in Saga, Kyoto, is quite famous for the sandalwood statue of Gautama Shakyamuni which is about 160 cm high and rather simple in a robe of Indian style of Gandhara Buddhas. It was made in China and had the intestines made of silk inside.



The statue had been shown at the temple Eko-In 回向院 (Ekooin) in Edo in 1810.

By using the expression sude ni Issa shows us that the Buddha statue is already back home, while he is still in Edo, trying to get his inheritage, to get back under his own sky in Shinano.


In 538 the very first Buddha image to arrive in Japan was a statue of Shakyamuni presented as a gift by a Korean king.
... in 1249 the priest Eison ordered a copy of the Seiryoji Shaka and installed it as the principal object of worship at the large Saidaiji temple in Nara.
... The Seiryoji Shaka is still shown on the 8th of each month.
source : www.taleofgenji.org


Seiryōjishiki Shaka 清凉寺式釈迦
LEGEND ABOUT SEIRYOUJI STATUE.
LEGEND ABOUT “UDAYANA” STATUE.
source : - Mark Schumacher -



. Tainai Butsu 胎内佛, 胎内仏 statue within the statue .


quote
Shaka Nyorai (Shakyamuni, Gautama Siddharta)
Die Verkörperung des Prinzen Shakyamuni Gautama (um 550 - 480), geboren in Kapila, Indien, der als Mensch tatsächlich gelebt, die Erleuchtung erlangt und diese Lehre dann verbreitet hat. Als Figuren des Religionsgründers waren Shaka-Statuen in der Asuka-Zeit in Japan zunächst besonders beliebt. Älteste Statuen in Indien aus Gandhara und Madura, um 100 v.Chr., in Japan aus der Asuka-Zeit, z.B. Shaka-Statue des Udenoo des Tempels Seiryooji in Kyooto mit fast noch indischem Faltenwurf.

Shaka-Statue des Udenoo
(Udenoo (Utenoo) Shaka, Zuizoo Shaka)
König Udayana (Udenoo, Utenoo) von Kausambii in Indien war ein Gläubiger, dessen Leben im Sutra Zooitsu Agonkyoo beschrieben wird. Nachdem Shakyamuni in den Tushita-Himmel einging, wurde der König sehr krank. Seine Minister waren sehr besorgt und fertigten einen Buddhastatue aus Sandelholz; daraufhin wurde der König wieder gesund. Diese Statue, angeblich die erste Buddhastatue überhaupt, heißt auch "Glückverheißender Shaka" (Zuizoo Shaka).

Der japanische Priester Choonen ließ eine Kopie dieser Statue anfertigen und brachte diese "durch drei Länder" (Indien, China, Japan) gewanderte Figur mit nach Japan (sangoku denrai). Diese Kopie existiert heute noch im Tempel Seiryooji in Saga, Kyoto. Figuren in diesem fremdartig anmutenden Stil werden Seiryoo-Figuren (Seiryooshiki) oder Saga-Figuren (Sagashiki) genannt.
Die Haare des Shaka sind dabei wie ein dicker Zopf um den Kopf gerollt. Diese Statuen waren in der Kamakura-Zeit sehr beliebt; es soll insgesamt in den großen Tempeln des Landes über 100 Stück davon gegeben haben.
Udenoo ist auch bekannt als einer der Gefährten des Monju in der Monju-Fünfergruppe.

- Buddhastatuen ... Who is Who
Ein Wegweiser zur Ikonografie
von japanischen Buddhastatuen
Gabi Greve, 1994

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Temple Seiryo-Ji is famous for the plum blossoms and early red momiji leaves.
source : niwa/seiryoji.htm



source : www.taleofgenji.org
Shakado in Autumn splendor





. Yuugiri Ki 夕霧忌 Yugiri Memorial Day .
A memorial service for Yugiri Tayu is held every November at Seiryoji Temple.
She was a high-ranking courtesan at the Shimabara quarters in Kyoto.
kigo for early spring


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O-Mi-Nugui 御身拭
ritual cleansing of the Amida Buddha statue

on April 19

A statue of Amida Nyorai is shown and special prayer chantings (insei nenbutsu 引声念仏) performed.
The statue is then clensed with a white cloth dipped in fragrant water. This white cloth, when used to cover a dead body, makes sure the soul will go straight to Buddha's paradise in the West.
This ritual is in memory of the Mother of Anki Monin 安喜門院 (1207 - 1286), wife of Emperor Gohorikawa Tenno 後堀河天皇.

observance kigo for late spring




御僧のその手嗅(かぎ)たや御身拭
gosoo no sono te kagita ya ominugui

the smell of the hands
of the honorable priests -
cleaning the statue

Tr. Gabi Greve

or

go-soo no so no te kagita ya omi-nugui

I want to smell the hands
of the honorable priest--
cleaning the Buddha statue.
Tr. Naotaka Uematsu


. Tan Taigi 炭太祇 .


. OBSERVANCES – SPRING SAIJIKI .


Ritual cleaning (Ominugui) of statues is also done at other tempels at other times.
- Reference -



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Daikakuji Dainichi E 大覚寺大日会
Ceremony for Dainichi Nyorai
at Temple Daikaku-Ji


At the Dainichi Hall of the Octagonal Hall
八角堂の大日堂の祭り
28 of October
observance kigo for late autumn


. Dainichi Nyorai 大日如来 .


quote
Daikaku-ji is a Shingon temple dating from the Heian period. It is famous for moon-viewing boat cruises on Lake Ōsawa. Shakyō (sutra transcription) lessons are held daily at the temple.
Daikaku-ji was founded in 876 by Empress Masako (810-879) on the site of the Saga-rikyū, a country villa built for her father, Emperor Saga Tenno (786-842). The temple kept a close relation with the Imperial family, and was actually a monzeki (門跡), i.e. a temple whose appointed abbot was an Imperial prince.

In the early 14th century, retired Emperor Go-Uda (1267-1324) conducted his cloistered rule from Daikaku-ji. A school of ikebana named after the emepror, the Saga Goryū, is still based in the temple.



The Shin-den Hall (宸殿) was transported from its original location in the Imperial Palace in the 16th century. It contains some valuable fusuma screens attributed to the Sengoku-period Kanō school, the most famous schools of Japanese painting.
source : japan-guide



- quote
Daikaku-ji (大覚寺 Daikaku-ji is a Shingon Buddhist temple in Ukyō-ku, a western ward in the city of Kyoto, Japan. The main images are of the Five Wisdom Kings, centered on Fudō. It was a villa of Emperor Saga (785-842), and later, retired Emperor Go-Uda conducted his cloistered rule from here. A school of ikebana, the Saga Goryū, maintains its headquarters in the temple. The artificial lake of the temple, Osawa pond, is one of the oldest Japanese garden ponds to survive from the Heian Period
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !

There are moonviewing parties on boat on the Osawa pond.




Fudo Myo-O as venerated in the Hall of the 5 Great Fudo
五大堂, now in the Museum of the temple.

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








- Homepage of the temple - Daikaku-Ji Monseki 大覚寺門跡
- source : www.daikakuji.or.jp


The temple is also famous for its Chrysanthemums


Saga-giku 嵯峨菊
- source : ichinen-fourseasonsinjapan.

People learn how to grow them to have flowers in the numbers of shichi-go-san
three on top, five in the middle and 7 near the bottom.
Also some withered leaves near the ground - and all this at the same time.
It is a secret to study how to grow them - only at this temple.


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涼しさを絵にうつしけり嵯峨の竹
suzushisa o e ni utsushi keri Saga no take

coolness
portrayed in painting:
bamboos of Saga

Tr. Barnhill


Coolness.
Painted into a picture;
Bamboos of Saga.

Tr. Blyth


la fraîcheur peinte
dans une peinture ;
les bambous de Saga

Tr. Daniel Py

Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉
元禄7年 - 1694

Basho was staying at the home of Yamei 野明亭, a friend of Kyorai.

. Sakai Yamei (1662-1713) .

. Mukai Kyorai 向井去来 .


. Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 - Archives of the WKD .

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Related words

***** Mibu Nenbutsu 壬生念仏
Invoction of Amida at Mibu Temple

Mibu Kyoogen 壬生狂言(みぶきょうげん)


***** Kyoto
. "capital of blossoms", hana no miyako 花の都 .


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. Arashiyama 嵐山 Storm Mountain .


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