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



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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Worldwide use


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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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Takao San Festivals

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. Tengupedia - 天狗ペディア　- Tengu ABC-List.
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Takao San Festivals
and Izuna Daigongen 飯縄大権現

***** Location: Mount Takao, near Tokyo
***** Season: See below
***** Category: Observance

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Explanation



quote
Mt. Takao-san 高尾山, located west of Tokyo and at the eastern edge of the Kanto Mountains, is a sacred mountain that represents the Tama area. The area is designated as Meiji-no-mori Takao Quasi-National Park. Emperor Shomu ordered Yakuo-in Temple to be built halfway up this mountain in 744, and people have worshiped at the temple for more than 1,200 years.

At the mountain is a statue of a 'tengu,' a long-nosed mythical figure. Tengu is believed to be a deified image of a man who mastered the rigorous ascetic disciplinary customs associated with an ancient Japanese practice of mountain worship to acquire magical and spiritual powers. This statue is now a symbol of Mt. Takao-san. Between April and October, you may at times see ascetic devotees participating in a religious practice that includes standing beneath the cascading waters of the Biwa-daki or Hebi-daki Falls.
source : www.jnto.go.jp

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Temple Yakuo-In 薬王院 (Yakuoo in)

quote
The Buddhist temple on Mount Takao is formally known as Takao-san Yakuo-in Yuki-ji, and most commonly as Yakuo-in. It was established in 744 on the orders of Emperor Shomu as a base for Buddhism in eastern Japan and its founder was Gyoki, a charismatic priest closely associated with the erection of the Great Buddha at Todai-ji Temple in Nara.

Yakuo-in was restored late in the 14th century by Shungen Daitoku 俊源大徳, a priest from Mount Daigo in Kyoto, one of the most sacred sites of Shingon esoteric Buddhism, with close connections also to Shugendo (mountain asceticism). He performed a very demanding goma fire ritual dedicated to the deity Fudo Myo-o (Immovable King), burning 8,000 goma sticks, and he subsequently received a living vision of the deity Izuna Daigongen and enshrined this deity as the principal image. Shungen Daitoku is as a result often described as the second founder. Through his efforts, Yakuo-in became connected to the Shingon esoteric Buddhism and Mount Takao flourished as a Shugendo center.

During the civil war period that lasted from the late 15th to the late 16th century, a number of powerful warrior lords, such as Takeda Shingen and Uesugi Kenshin, looked to Izuna Daigongen as a protector deity. The Hojo family, who held the Kanto region under their sway, were particularly strong devotees and they placed Mount Takao under their special protection.

It was no accident either that the mountain occupied an important strategic position. During the Edo period (1603–1867), Yakuo-in expanded under the patronage of the ruling Tokugawa family. Today Yakuo-in is one of the three head temples of the Shingon-shu Chisan-ha Sect, the others being Narita-san Shinsho-ji and Kawasaki Daishi Heiken-ji.

Iizuna Daigongen 飯縄大権現 Izuna Daigongen




Shungen Daitoku enshrined Izuna Daigongen at Yakuo-in as the principal image. Izuna Daigongen is a form in which Fudo Myo-o appears to bring people to salvation. The angry-faced Fudo Myo-o is in turn an avatar of the Dainichi Nyorai (Buddha of Cosmic Life). The Izuna cult had begun at Mount Izuna in present-day Nagano Prefecture in the Heian period (794–1185), and eventually it spread to shrines throughout the land.

Izuna Daigongen combines the elements of five deities: Fudo Myo-o, Karuraten (Garuda, a divine bird), Dakiniten (a demon that feeds on human hearts), Kangiten (a fertility deity with the head of an elephant) and Benzaiten (the deity of water, music and victory in battle). Izuna Daigongen protects devotees from harm and brings them happiness and security in their daily lives.

Read also about the Tengu of Mt. Takao:
source : www.takaosan.or.jp

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Priest 俊源大徳 Shugen Daitoku


Izuna Gongen appears to priest Shungen Daitoku


source :　www.zoeji.com - 俊源大徳



source :　www.butudanfujisawa.jp

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scroll with Izuna


shuin　朱印 temple stamp


. Fudo statues and Gongen Manifestations - Akiba Gongen


飯縄不動尊 Izuna Fudo Son
The Izuna Daigongen at Mount Takao used to be called this way.
. Tengu and Fudo Myo-o　天狗と不動明王 .





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kigo for mid-spring

Takao-san no Hiwatari Matsuri
高尾山の火渡り祭 (たかおさんひわたりまつり)
Walking through hot embers at Mt. Takao
fire-walking ritual




On the second Sunday of March
each year a large open-air fire ritual called Saito Goma-ku is held in the open area in front of the Kito-den Hall at the foot of Mount Takao. As though it were by the hands of Izuna Daigongen, worshippers rub their bodies with sticks called nadegi, which are later thrown into the flames.



When the fire dies down, yamabushi and participants walk barefoot over the hot coals, praying for protection against sickness and calamity and for safety within the family. The flames are considered to purify people by burning all defilements away.
source : www.takaosan.or.jp





I visited this ritual when I still lived in Kamakura. It was one of the most powerful events I ever participated. Our hair was standing on end because of the electricity caused by the huge flames.
And to watch all these brave people, after the yamabushi, stepping in a heap of salt before stepping on the hot embers ... running as fast as they could through the dying flames ...


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kigo for mid-spring
(sometimes listed for late spring)


. Takao-san onnna moode 高雄山女詣, 高尾山女詣　（神護寺）
Ladies visiting Jingo-Ji, Takao-san 　

Kooboo Memorial Day, Koobooki (Kobo-ki)　弘法忌
Kuukai Memorial Day, Kuukaiki (Kukai-ki) 空海忌

March 21


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Other rituals at Mt. Takao and temple Yakuo-In
Goma fire ritual at the New Year

Setsubun, February 3


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Tengu waffles, filled with green tea cream
天狗焼き Tengu Yaki

Sold only in the summer season

. WASHOKU
Waffles filled with cream - dorayaki 　

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Takaosan Tengu Curry 高尾山　天狗 カレー







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Things found on the way

. Tengu and Daruma 天狗とだるま

. Japanese Legends - 伝説　民話　昔話 – ABC-List .



Takaosan 高尾山 Legends about Mount Takao-San and its Tengu 天狗

The Tengu from Mount Takaosan is a sub-family member from 天狗飯縄三郎 Tengu Iizuna Saburo from 飯縄山 Mount Iizuna in Nagano.
He rides a 白狐 white fox like 茶吉尼天 Dakini Ten and holds a 宝剣 sword in the right hand, a kensaku 羂索 rope in the left, like Fudo Myo-O.
When the villagers wanted to make a road to the mountain top, there were the large roots of a huge cedar tree, but the Tengu removed the tree over night and the road was clear.


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HAIKU

火渡祭高尾の春のはじまれり
hiwatari sai Takao no haru no hajimareri

fire-walking ritual -
spring at Mount Takao
starts from here

Shimasaki Shufu (Shuufuu) 島崎秀風



Hiwatari rituals are also performed at other temples in Japan.


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Related words

. 関東三十六不動霊場 - Nr. 08
Pilgrimage to 36 Fudo Temples in Kanto (Bando) .


***** . Fire Festivals


***** . Shugendo 修験道 Yamabushi Mountain Ascets 　

***** . 高雄内供奉 - Takao Naigubu - a Tengu from Nara .
柿本僧正 Kakinomoto Sojo

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. Hachiooji 八王子 Hachioji district
and 高尾山 Mount Takaosan .

. Tengupedia - 天狗ペディア　- Tengu ABC-List.

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- #takaosan #takaotengu #tengutakao-
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Mie-Ji Temple Festival

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Mie-Ji Temple Festival

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

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Explanation

Mie-Ji Matsuri 美江寺祭り Festival at Temple Mie-Ji March 1 (or March 6) (Mie-Dera, Miedera)



The temple belongs to the Tendai sect.

It used to be held on the last day of the first lunar month. It was celebrating that all rituals are finished (kechigan gyooji 結願行事.

Farmers prayed for a good harvest and for the health of the silk worms, which were a speciality in this region.

So another name for this festival is

o-ko matsuri 美江寺御蚕祭 みえでら‐おこまつり
silk worm festival

Since people got into a fight over the Shojo doll, it was also one of the
kenka matsuri 喧嘩祭り "fighting festivals" .


The festival starts in the morning with a fire ceremony, burning goma sticks 大護摩祈祷.
After the lunch break, there are concerts and making mochi ricecakes.

At three in the afternoon, a kagura dance performance and then
carrying the mikoshi palanquin and the Shojo float to a "travel rest place" (o tabisho togyo 御旅所渡行 / 渡御行列).

At four in the afternoon, the second highlight:




One large float with a shoojoo tripster, standing high with a white fan with a red sun, the Japanese symbol (shoojoo dashi 猩々山車) is the center of attention.
The Shojo trickster doll is taken from the float and "thrown around" 猩々投げ in the lucky direction of the year. Everyone fights to get a chip of the doll to carry home for good luck.

For a grand finale, mochi are thrown into the crowd 餅投げ and lucky lots are drawn.

By the way,
in our days, the silk worm business does not exist in this area any more.

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Mie-Ji is famous for its statue of a Kannon bosatsu with eleven heads, made of dry laquer technique (kanshitsu).
Mie-ji Kannon 美江寺観音





This temple is number 18 on the pilgrimage to 33 Kannon temples in Mino.
美濃三十三観音霊場

It is one of the oldest temples in Japan, founded in 723


HP of the temple, with more photos
http://www.mieji.jp/index.php?maturi



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Things found on the way


. Onishi Clay Daruma 尾西のだるま
sold at the local temple festivals, especially at temple Mie-Ji 美江寺.





蚕鈴 bell to protect the silk worms

If this clay bell was hung in the room where the silk worms were kept, the mice would not come to eat the worms.


. WKD : Silk and Silkworms 　



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source PHOTO :　tsuyo

Statue of Fudo Myo-O
in the temple compound.
Tsuyo san visited there in winter, have a look at the link!



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HAIKU

in the midst
of a crowd fighting ...
my mochi!

mie-ji festival
a clay bell sings
to the silk worm

Don Baird


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Related words

***** . Shoojoo Midare 猩々乱 Shojo Midare Dance

. Folk Toys from Gifu .


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Temple Kokawa-Dera

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Temple Kokawa-Dera

***** Location: Wakayama, Japan
***** Season: Various Temple Festivals
***** Category: Observance

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Explanation

Kokawa-Dera 粉河寺 Kokawa Temple

The name is Kokawa, not Kogawa.
〒649-6531　和歌山県紀の川市粉河2787

Mount Kazaragi san 風猛山
"Strong wind mountain"

This temple is Nr. 3 on the Pilgrimage to 33 Kannon temples in the Kansai area.
It was founded in 770 by Otomo no Kujiko, the son of a hunter in Kishu. His descendants are still in charge of the temple to this day.
One day on his usual hunt in the mountains he passed this area, saw a strong shine in the dark valley and decided to become a monk ... right on the spot. He prayed for seven days and seven nights and carved a statue of Kannon with 1000 arms.

Kokawadera, together with the temple Negoro-ji, was almost as powerful as Koyasan in the area.

There is also a stone memorial of a haiku by Matsuo Basho:


© PHOTO :　kannonyama.com With more photos of the temple !

ひとつぬいで うしろにおいぬ ころもがえ
hitotsu nuide ushiro ni oinu koromogae
ひとつぬぎてうしろにおひぬころもがえ
hitotsu nugite ushiro ni oinu koromogae
ひとつぬきて うしろにおひぬ ころもがえ
hitotsu nukite ushiro ni ohinu koromogae

taking off one garment
I sling it over my shoulder
clothes changing day

source : 　haikustones.blogspot.com, Ad Blankestijn


. . . . . Koromogae, kigo



At the temple there are also memorial stones of haiku by
Matsuo Kaitei 松尾塊亭 槐亭
(1732 - 1815)

He was the official haiku master of the Kishu domain, serving the lords from the 8th to the 10th generation. He died in 1815 at the age of 84.



風猛（かざらぎ）の　名に似ぬ里の　小春かな
Kazaragi no na ni ninu sato no koharu kana

Kazaragi san (Kazaraki san) 風猛山 is the name of Kokawa temple.



and a memorial stone by his disciple Yoshida
吉田五橘亭


水も嘸(さぞ)や白き粉河の山桜
mizu mo sazo ya shiroki Kokawa no yamazakura


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observance kigo for late spring

Kokawabina, Kokawa bina 粉河雛（こかわびな）
hina dolls fro Kokawa

They are made from paper and placed on a bamboo basket to float down the river and take away the impurities of people. This is one of the biggest festivals in the Kishu region of Wakayama.


source and more photos : mama115mama

流し雛大行列 - parade to the river
粉河雛流し - the dolls are floated in the river.



. Hina Doll Festival (hina matsuri 雛祭り) .

. Kishuu bina 紀州雛 hina dolls from Kishu .


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observance kigo for late summer

Kokawa Festival, Kokawa Sai 粉河祭 (こかわまつり)
July 26 / 27

This is one of the three big festivals of the Kishu area.
The head priest of the temple is carried around in a palanquin (togyo shiki 渡御式（とぎょしき）. This parade is in memory of the child of Ootomo no Kujiko 大伴孔子古（おおとものくじこ） in the year 770. Funanushi 船主（ふなぬし） went all the way up to Northern Japan to fight the enemy.
Small children on horseback join the parade.




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observance kigo for early autumn

Offering food and drink to the hungry ghosts
Segaki-E 施餓鬼会（せがきえ）
August 9
People who lost a relative in the past year come here to pray during the O-Bon celebrations.


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Showing the Secret Kannon Statue
西国三十三所　結縁御開帳 gokaichoo

one of the famous Owari Kannon 尾張観音

This is a secret statue and it will be shown to the public in 2008 all throughout October.
It has not been shown for 217 years !



source : 　www.kokawadera.org

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The Legendary Origins of Kokawa-dera Temple
(Kokawadera engi 粉河寺縁起絵巻)


source : 　Nara National Museum

The scroll is about 20 meters long and 30 cm wide and shows the story of the hunter turning monk and then carving the Kannon statue. The story continues to tell how this Kannon statue had the power to heal the sick daughter of a rich merchant in Kawachi. After the daughter was healed, the family became strong supporters of the temple to our day.


Resource : Fisher Fine Arts Library Image Collection
Start with Illustration 224.


The sacred song of this temple

父母の恵みも深き粉河寺ほとけの誓い たのもしの身や


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HAIKU




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Related words

***** Segaki 施餓鬼 Offering food and drink to the hungry ghosts also
Hungry Ghosts, gaki　餓鬼

***** Bon Festival (o-bon) (05) Japan.

***** Secret Buddha Statues (hibutsu) Japan


. OBSERVANCES – SUMMER SAIJIKI .


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Enma, King of Hell

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. Heaven 極楽 gokuraku and Hell 地獄 jigoku .
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Enma, Emma, the King of Hell

***** Location: Japan
***** Season: See below.
***** Category: Observation

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Explanation

Emma (Enma ten, Enma Oo) 閻魔天、閻魔王

Sanskrit : Yama or Yama-raja.
King of the Underworld; chief judge in the afterlife; when a person dies, s/he must appear before Enma (and also before other judges), who decides whether the person is good or bad; the person is then sent to the most appropriate afterworld; among the judges of hell, Enma is the most important.
Read Mark Schumacher


- reference source : Bando Kannon 20 第二十番　獨鈷山西明寺 -

. Laughing Enma at 西明寺 Saimyo-Ji, Mashiko .

Click HERE for more photos !

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Proverbs with Enma !

嘘をつくと閻魔さまに舌を抜かれる
"If you lie, Lord Enma will pull out your tongue."
A superstition often told to scare children into telling the truth.


借りる時の地蔵顔、返す時の閻魔顔
"When borrowing, the face of a Jizo;
when repaying (a loan), the face of Enma.
This alludes to changes in people's behaviour for selfish reasons depending on their circumstances.


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His regular memorial day is the 16th of each month.



In January and July, Emma (Enma, Ema) is out on a holiday (Emma saijitsu 閻魔賽日（えんま さいじつ） and the lid to the chauldron of hell was closed 地獄の釜の蓋が開く日, so these two days are best to visit a temple where Emma is enshrined (Emmadoo　閻魔堂).

During the Edo period, this day was also called yabu-iri 籔入り, a day when the servants and wifes of workers at shops and stores had a day off to visit their families and the local Ema temples.

I used to practise Japanese Archery at the small Enma-Doo Hall in the compounds of Temple Engaku-Ji in Kita Kamakura. We had to greet King Enma before starting the pracsise and were sure he would supervise everything we did. This gave the daily practise an extra bit of severity.

Gabi Greve







More about the Enma Do Hall　閻魔堂 and Temple in Kamakura
Enno-Ji 円応寺
Ennoji temple: The King of Hell


Click HERE for photos of Enma Halls (Enma doo 閻魔堂) !

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Kigo for Early Summer

. Enmadoo dainenbutsu 閻魔堂大念仏 (えんまどうだいねんぶつ)
Amida prayer nenbutsu at the temple hall Enmado
Enmadoo kyoogen 閻魔堂狂言（えんまどうきょうげん）
senbon dainenbutsu 千本大念仏（せんぼんだいねんぶつ）　




Kigo for Late Summer

Visiting an Enma Temple, July 16
..... Enma mairi 閻魔参 えんままいり

..... Enma Moode 閻魔詣（えんまもうで）
Visiting the 10 Kings of Hell, juuoo moode 十王詣（じゅうおうもうで）

Great day off, dai sainichi 大斎日（だいさいにち, だいさいじつ）、
..... Enma no saijitsu 閻魔の斎日（えんまのさいじつ）

King of Hell, En oo 閻王（えんおう）

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Kigo for the New Year

First visit to an Enma Temple, January 16
..... Hatsu Enma 初閻魔 はつえんま



Enma mairi 閻魔詣（えんままいり）
Day off, sainichi 斎日（さいにち）
..... yabu iri

First visit to the 10 kings of hell,
juuoo mairi 十王詣（じゅうおうまいり）



. Juu Oo 十王, Juo, Ju-O - 10 Ten Kings of Hell .


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Things found on the way


A scene of the Japanese Hell
Weeping Fudo . Naki Fudo 泣き不動

. Datsueba 奪衣婆 or 脱衣婆
the Old Hag of Hell 　



External LINK
閻魔参り
with many photos to look at
http://kkubota.cool.ne.jp/enmamairi.html


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HAIKU

Kobayashi Issa wrote some haiku about Hell

斎日もさばの地獄は鳴りにけり
sainichi mo saba no jigoku wa nari ni keri

even a fast day
becomes
a hell of worldliness



閻魔王も目をむき出して桜哉
emma-oo mo me o mukidashite sakura kana

even Emma
hell's king, gawks...
cherry blossoms!



地獄画の垣にかかりて鳴雲雀
jigoku e no kaki ni kakarite naku hibari

in the hell painting
perched on a fence...
a lark sings


Hell Haiku by Issa
Tr. David Lanoue


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閻王の口や牡丹を吐かんとす
En-Oo no kuchi ya botan o hakan to su
Enma-Ô no kuchi ya botan o hakan to su

the mouth of
the king of hell - a peony
ready to be spat out

This haiku has the cut marker YA in the middle of line 2.


. Yosa Buson 与謝蕪村 in Edo .



yama's mouth!
it's about to spit out
a peony

King Emma, or Yama, is a terrifying Deity in charge of Hades. Unlike "our" Devil, he is not evil. Rather than tempting men to do bad, he judges them for their sins and leads the demon brigades applying the punishment deserved. The inside of his mouth is always painted bright vermilion and his tongue curled up like it is ready to lash-out (or simply to reveal that his demonic muscularity extends even within) in fury. That was my naïve impression, but, actually, pain might be a be a better word for it, as he must himself endure a mouthful of molten copper three times a day because torturing people is bad even though he does it for the best of reasons: to discourage us from sinning and for justice.
(Think about it, Christ only got crucified once.

This Emma endures worse every day for our sake. Now that, Mel Gibson, is passion!) There is debate whether this famous ku is about the statue, found at many Buddhist temples, or the flower. Grammar favors the former, but I would argue that Buson suddenly imagined Emma's mouth while gazing at a red peony.

That is to say, the flower is the subject though the poem does not make it so. Because Buson prefaces it with a phrase about Buddha's writhing tongue like a red lotus being spit out (Japanese religious folk-lore is full of sutra-related tongue-sightings I may relate when this is expanded into a book), I suspect symbolic significance, too, but none of the Japanese annotations I have seen ever mention any!
source : Robin D. Gill



The King of Hell’s mouth:
peony petals ready
to be spat out.
Tr. Dave Bonta



Emma O's mouth! See!
From which he is about to spit
a peony!
Tr. H. G. Henderson


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閻王の目にづかづかと入りこむ
En oo no me ni zukazuka to hairikomu

carefully, carefully
walking within sight of
the eyes of Emma
(Tr. Gabi Greve)

Matsuzawa Akira 松澤昭
http://www.haiku-data.jp/kigo_work_list.php?kigo_cd=2588


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practising archery -
the watchfull eyes of
King Enma again

Gabi Greve, 1980, Kamakura

***** Target (mato) Including Bow, Arrow, Japanese Archery.


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© Saitama City Kyoiku Iin Kai

Enma at Temple Chooden-Ji. Made in 1698.
長伝寺「木造閻魔王坐像」
http://www.city.saitama.jp/

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Related words


***** . YOMI　黄泉　"the yellow springs"
die Gelben Quellen der Totenwelt
meido 冥途 the Netherworld



***** First Ceremonies of the Year

***** Servant's holiday (yabu iri) fasting day (sainichi)


*********** NEW YEAR FOOD SAIJIKI




Great King Enma 閻魔大王
Utagawa Kuniyoshi 歌川国芳

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- quote
Genkaku-ji 源覚寺
Genkaku-ji was built in 1624. Soon afterwards a wooden statue of the god of hell, Enma-ō (閻魔王), was found in a nearby pond. It was placed in the temple and largely ignored, but then people started noticing an old woman who visited every day with an offering of konnyaku.

"Why are you giving konnyaku to Enma?" was the perfectly reasonable question everybody asked.

She told them that her eyes had become weak and all medicines had failed, so she asked Enma for help. One day, as she was praying before the statue, he said to her, "I will gouge out one eye and give it to you." She looked up and saw that one of his eyes was gone, and blood was running from the empty socket. When she glanced around her, she realized that she could see everything clearly.

She wanted to thank Enma, but she was so poor that she had nothing to give him. She decided to stop eating her favourite food, konnyaku, and offer that to him instead. To this day you can buy konnyaku at the temple and ask the god of hell for protection against eye disease.



Enma's statue was probably carved in the Kamakura period (1185–1333).
- snip -
The temple is also known as Konnyaku Enma　蒟蒻閻魔,
and the street crossing in front of the temple is Konnyaku Enma Mae ("mae" means in front of).
- source : rurousha.blogspot.jpx

- Homepage of the temple - Tokyo 東京都文京区
- source : www.genkakuji.or.jp

. WKD : Devil's-tongue (konnyaku 蒟蒻) .
Amorphophallus rivieri


. me　眼 /　目　- Amulets for Eye Disease .

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Emmaten (Yama-deva)
Enmaten

Aus der indoiranischen Gottheit eines Höllenkönigs (Dharmaraaja, Emmaoo) wird er über die chinesische Variante einer taoistischen Gottheit zur esoterischen Gottheit eines Höllenfürsten bzw. Schützers der Religion (Dharmapaala, Emmaten).
Auch König der Gleichheit (Byoodoooo Byodo-O) genannt.
Höllenfürst Emmaten (Enma, Enra). Nummer 5 der 10 Höllenkönige.

Einziger der 10 Höllenkönige, der eigenständig verehrt wird. Bei 10 Figuren ist seine die größte.
Richtet am 35. Todestag über die Menschen, siehe 13 Buddhas der Totenrituale. Er ist eine Gottheit voller Mitleid und vergibt oft den bereuenden Sündern, aber am 35. Tag nach dem Tode ist meist kein intakter Körper mehr vorhanden, in den die erlöste Seele eingehen könnte.

Häufig in einer eigenen Halle (Emmadoo　閻魔堂) untergebracht. Im 4. Höllenbezirk gibt es eine große Waage zum Wiegen der Sünden des Verstorbenen (goo no hakari). Eine Darstellung davon findet sich oft in der Emmadoo-Halle. Im Mandala der beiden Welten sitzt er im Süden der äußeren Abteilung.
Er ist eine Inkarnation des Fudo Myo-O bzw. des Jizoo Bosatsu.

Wenn man zu Lebzeiten den Jizoo Bosatsu regelmäßig verehrt hat, wird die Seele in der Hölle von Emmaten sicher wiedererkannt und man ist einer schnelleren Beförderung ins Paradies sicher.

Im Tempel Taisooji　太宗寺 in Shinjuku in Tookyoo steht vor der Emmadoo-Halle die Figur eines kinderfressenden Emma, der ein ungehorsames Kind einfach auffraß und der Gürtel seines Kimonos hängt noch aus dem Mund des Emma. Auch "Emma mit dem Gürtel aus dem Mund" (Tsukehimo Emma　つけひも閻魔)　genannt. Bis zum Beginn der Edo-Zeit wurden böse Kinder gewarnt: "Wenn Du noch einmal lügst, wird Emma Deine Zunge herausreißen!".


This Enma would eat childred who did not listen to their parents and have a string of their kimono belt hang out of his mouth. His name was "Enma with a belt hanging out of his mouth".


Ikonografie:
Menschliche Gestalt mit zwei Armen und furchterregendem Gesichtsausdruck. Auf der Brust einen Mond und eine Sonne bzw. das Rad der Lehre. Kleidung eines chinesischen Richters. In der rechten Hand ein Holzszepter (Zeremonialszepter) (shaku), oft mit einem oder zwei Menschenschädeln. Dabei handelt es sich um die Köpfe der Gottheiten Taizan Fukunoo und Kokuan Tennyo.

Reitet manchmal auf einem Wasserbüffel.

Ihm zur Seite steht oft die Schreiber-Gottheit "Gushooshin", der alle Taten der Menschen aufschreibt und registriert sowie "Datsueba" , eine furchterregende Alte, die am Grenzfluss Sanzu (sanzu no kawa) die Kleidung der Verstorbenen in Empfang nimmt.

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