Showing posts with label - - - SSS - - -. Show all posts
Showing posts with label - - - SSS - - -. Show all posts

04/03/2022

Shomu Tenno Emperor

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Shoomu Tennoo, Shōmu Tennō 聖武天皇 Emperor Shomu Tenno
(707 - 755 )



- quote
Emperor Shōmu (聖武天皇, Shōmu-tennō, 701 – June 4, 756)
was the 45th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.
Shōmu's reign spanned the years 724 through 749, during the Nara period.
743 (Tenpyō 15):
The Emperor issues a rescript to build the Daibutsu (Great Buddha), later to be completed at Tōdai-ji, Nara.
- More in the WIKIPEDIA !

. Temple 極楽寺 Gokuraku-Ji .
Yamaguchi, 岩国市周東町上久原神幡 / Iwakuni, Shuto town, Shimo-Kubara, Kamihata
During the reign of 聖武天皇 Emperor Shomu Tenno this temple was greatly enlarged
and had 24 sub-temples. It was called 二井寺山 Niiderazan.

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. Legends and Tales from Japan 伝説 - Introduction .


. reiki 霊亀 a mysterious turtle, spirit turtle, divine turtle .
In the year 729 of the regency of 聖武天皇 Emperor Shomu Tenno, reiki 霊亀 a divine turtle with the inscription
Tenno Kihei Chi Hyakunen 天王貴平知百年 "The Tenno shall be known for 100 Years" was offered.




................................................................................. Chiba 千葉県
印旛郡 Imba district

Matsumushi Hime 松蟲姫 (マツムシヒメ)) Princess Matsumushi
The third daughter of 聖武天皇 Emperor Shomu Tenno was called 松蟲姫 Matsumushi Hime.
She was hated by her stepmother and became seriously ill.
A Samurai from the North wanted her as a wife and took her ot Kanto, but she died.
To appease her soul, he built 松蟲寺 the Temple Matsumushidera (Matsumushi-Dera)

- reference source : matsumushi.com ... -
matsumushi 松虫 "pine cricket" (Xenogryllus marmoratus) and bell cricket (Meloimorpha japonicus)




................................................................................. Kanagawa 神奈川県
川崎市 Kawasaki city 中原区 Nakahara ward

. yoogooseki 影向石 Yogoseki Stone with image of Yakushi Nyorai .




................................................................................. Nagasaki 長崎県
諫早市 Isahaya city / 飯盛町 Iimori town

. Kannon Bosatsu 観音菩薩 伝説 legends about Kannon .
During the reign of 聖武天皇 the Emperor Shomu Tenno there was a large tsunami,
which covered the village of 田結村 Tayui with mud from the sea.
The statue of Sho Kannon 聖観音 in the village temple felt great compassion
and protected the village, putting a bamboo fence around the rice fields.
Thus the village was saved from the worst damage.




................................................................................. Osaka 大阪府

shinryuu 神龍 Shinryu Dragon Deity
聖武天皇 Emperor Shomu Tenno had a dream about a Kannon statue in the West of 平城京 Heijokyo.
He ordered Saint Gyoki Bosatsu to find the statue.
Gyoki held a ritual and then went to the mountain.
He was let by 16 Temple acolytes and came to the right place.
At that moment the mountain was rivers were trembling and shinryuu 神龍 a Shinryu Dragon Deity appeared.
The Dragon handed the statue to Gyoki and swore to protect the Buddhist Religion.
When the Emperor heard this, he was very moved, built a temple and venerated the Kannon Statue there.
. Gyooki Bosatsu 行基菩薩 Gyoki Bosatsu (668 -749) .
. ryuu, ryū 龍 竜 伝説 Ryu - dragon legends .
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !
Heijō-kyō (平城京, also Heizei-kyō, sometimes Nara no miyako) was the Capital of Japan
during most of the Nara period, from 710–40 and again from 745–84.

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aka ki 閼伽器 a container for holy water
When the disciple of 良弁僧正 Priest Roben, 実忠和尚 Priest Jitchu passed the Osaka area,
a special aka ki 閼伽器 container for holy water was washed on the shore.
When he picked it up, he saw a statue of Juichimen Kannon 十一面観音 Kannon with 11 Heads on it.
The statue was very warm.
When 聖武天皇 the Emperor Shomu Tenno heard about this, the had 東大寺 the Temple Todai-Ji built
to venerate the statue.
. Temple Todai-Ji and Priest Roben .
. Kannon Bosatsu 観音菩薩 伝説 legends about Kannon .

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- reference : nichibun yokai database -

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. Persons, People, Personen and their legends - - ABC list .

. Legends about Kobo Daishi Kukai - 弘法大師 空海 - 伝説 .

. Japanese legends and tales 伝説 民話 昔話 - Introduction .

. Famous Buddhist Priests - ABC-List .

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01/01/2018

Saigo Takamori

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Saigoo Takamori, Saigō Takamori 西郷隆盛 Saigo Takamori
(23 January 1827/28 — 24 September 1877)



- quote
Saigō Takamori (Takanaga) (西郷 隆盛 (隆永)
(January 23, 1828 – September 24, 1877) was one of the most influential samurai in Japanese history, living during the late Edo and early Meiji periods. He has been dubbed the last true samurai. He was born Saigō Kokichi (西郷 小吉), and received the given name Takamori in adulthood.
He wrote poetry under the name Saigō Nanshū (西郷 南洲).
His younger brother was Gensui The Marquis Saigō Tsugumichi.
.....
- Satsuma Rebellion (1877)
- Legends about Saigō
Multiple legends sprang up concerning Saigō, many of which denied his death. Many people in Japan expected him to return from British Raj India or Qing-dynasty China or to sail back with Russian Tsesarevich Nicholas to overthrow injustice. It was even recorded that his image appeared in a comet near the close of the 19th century, an ill omen to his enemies. Unable to overcome the affection that the people had for this paragon of traditional samurai virtues, the Meiji Era government pardoned him posthumously on February 22, 1889.
- Artworks depicting Saigō
A famous bronze statue of Saigō in hunting attire with his dog stands in Ueno Park, Tokyo. ...
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !

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Segodon (西郷どん) (せごどん)
is a Japanese television series starring Ryohei Suzuki.
Segodon follows the life of historical figure Takamori Saigo . He was born the first son of a lower-class samurai. He was exiled two times and went through three marriages. Takamori Saigo became the central figure of the Meiji Restoration, but he fights against the government's army,
Based on the novel "Sego Don" by Mariko Hayashi that published February, 2016 in magazine Hon no Tabibito.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !










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. Kokeshi, こけし / 小芥子 / 子消し wooden doll .




Saigo dolls



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- - - - - H A I K U - - - - -

kigo for mid-autumn
九月二十四日 24 day of the 9th lunar month

Nanshuu Ki 南洲忌
Saigoo Ki 西郷忌
Takamori Ki 隆盛忌





敝衣破帽の青春悔いず西郷忌
heiihabo no seishun kuizu Saigo ki

山下鴻晴 Yamashita Kosei

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西郷窟一塵もなき涼しさよ
堀口星眠


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- Reference - 西郷隆盛 -
- Reference -Saigo Takamori -

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16/06/2017

Sesshu Toyo

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Sesshuu Tooyoo 雪舟等楊 Sesshu Toyo
(1420 - 1506)



. . . CLICK here for Photos !

- quote
Oda Tōyō since 1431, also known as Tōyō, Unkoku, or Bikeisai; 1420 – 26 August 1506) was the most prominent Japanese master of ink and wash painting from the middle Muromachi period. He was born into the samurai Oda family (小田家), then brought up and educated to become a Rinzai Zen Buddhist priest. However, early in life he displayed a talent for visual arts, and eventually became one of the greatest Japanese artists of his time, widely revered throughout Japan and China.

Sesshū studied under Tenshō Shūbun and was influenced by Chinese Song dynasty landscape painting. In 1468–69, he undertook a voyage to Ming China, where too he was quickly recognized as an outstanding painter. Upon returning to Japan, Sesshū built himself a studio and established a large following, painters that are now referred to as the Unkoku-rin school—or "School of Sesshū". Although many paintings survive that bear Sesshū's signature or seal, only a few can be securely attributed to him.
His most well-known work is the so-called "Long Landscape Scroll" (山水長巻, Sansui chōkan).

Sesshū was born in Akahama, a settlement in Bitchū Province, which is now part of western Okayama Prefecture.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !


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- quote -
SESSHU IN CHINA: UNIQUE EXPERIENCES FOR A MONK-PAINTER
By WATADA, Minoru

Sesshu Toyo (1420- ca. 1502 or 06) traveled to Ming dynasty China in 1467 and after two years on the continent, returned to Japan. As has been discussed frequently in recent years, Sesshu was a member of the Japanese mission party sent as tribute to Ming and therefore his actions were extremely limited. His journey in China was not a trip in which an artist set out to freely explore his own way of painting. Further, while today Sesshu stands as one of Japan's most famous artists, when he went to China he was nothing more than a provincial Zen monk-painter. Indeed, he was so unimportant in the mission that not even his name appears in any public records of the day, in China or Japan. Just because Sesshu went to China, it does not immediately mean that he was then able to paint works that faithfully followed Chinese styles, such as his Landscapes of the Four Seasons (Tokyo National Museum), or was allowed to paint the walls of such public spaces as the building of the Libu (Chinese ministry of ritual, religious and educational affairs), or was directly trained by imperial artists. We must think that each of these accomplishments by Sesshu came about because of unique circumstances.

Up until now the story of Sesshu in China has been largely described as the successful tale of some great artist. However, such an explanation is heavily colored by fictions formulated during the Edo period, and often relies on a complete misunderstanding of several historical documents. In other words, there has arisen a complete mix-up of Edo period analogies about Sesshu and what modern art historians expect to Sesshu. Therefore, first of all, this paper will ask just how much or how little can we actually recognize as historical facts about Sesshu in China, and then, will attempt to re-determine how we should evaluate it.

If we examine historical records with careful consideration of the time frames and distances covered by Sesshu in China, we arrive at some conclusions differing from those of preceding scholars. Sesshu's trip to China was not an event deemed a matter of course for a famous artist. Rather we should consider his journey a time when several unprecedented occurrences happened to a mere monk-painter. It is clear from the extant works and historical materials that an extremely unusual set of circumstances occurred. The following is my conclusion regarding this matter. Considering Sesshu in China, the most important fact is that he was able to study under imperial painters in Beijing. The fact that he painted at the Libu building must also not be lightly dismissed, because it is even possible that the painting created on that occasion corresponds to the Landscapes of the Four Seasons (Tokyo National Museum). While Sesshu's interactions with the Chinese literati and sketching from local scenery may have been accepted practice for artists visiting China, he alone seems to have been able to study under imperial painters and have an opportunity to publicly exhibit the results of that study. Indeed, these unique experiences played a decisive role in Sesshu's achievements, as we know them.
- source : tobunken.go.jp/~bijutsu/eng... -


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泣きねずみ

- quote -
..... As a youth he became a Zen monk at a local temple - Hofuku-ji .....
According to the legend
he was not a particularly good novice monk, preferring to spend his time drawing rather than memorizing sutras, and one day as a punishment for some infraction he was tied to a post in one of the temple buildings and left there.
His tears fell to the floor and with his toe he drew a rat on the floor with his tears. When the abbot returned he was taken aback by what he thought was a real rat at the boy's feet but which turned out to be a drawing.
From then on
Sesshu was allowed to continue with his art studies. In the way of legends, the story has been exaggerated and one version now has the drawing being so lifelike that the drawing came to life and chewed through the ropes to free Sesshu. .....
- source : japanvisitor.com..... -



- quote -
百三代後花園の院の御時、
備中の国赤浜に小田のほとりといふ侍有。子供三人持ち、末の子を丸と申けり。此子二三才の頃より手遊びにも鼠を好みける
父母、鼠を拵へ、愛す。
(母)
「此子は鼠がきつい好きさ」
父ほとり思ふは、丸は末の子也出家にせばや、とて、九才の年井の山宝副寺の弟子となし、等楊法師と申。
しかるに、此等楊手習学問は学ばずして、天性絵を描く事を好み、手習草紙に人形の首を描き、又は唐紙戸障子にいろいろの絵を描く。
師の御坊怒つて折檻し給ふ。
(師)
「余の子共は手習するに、汝一人さもなくして絵ばかり描く事、憎いとち坊主。その上此頃は襖壁などに絵かく事やめおらぬかぬか」
等楊十才の頃、とにかくに描く事をやめぬ故、師の御坊堂の柱に縛りつけ戒む。然れ共哀れみて、日暮に及び縄を解かんとて行給ふに、等楊が膝の下より数十疋の鼠、驚き騒ぎ走り回る。
急に此鼠を追ふ。御坊怪しみて見給ふに、等楊縛られて一日の落つる涙の滴りを足の親指につけて縁板に鼠を描く。その勢ひ恰も生ける鼠のごとし。師の御坊その妙を感じて、これより描く事を戒めづ。
- reference source : detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp -


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. Famous Buddhist Priests - ABC-List .


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. Legends and Tales from Japan 伝説 - Introduction .

................................................................................. Yamaguchi 山口市

Sesshu painted 雪舟の絵馬の馬 a horse on a votive tablet at the temple 龍蔵寺 Ryuzo-Ji. The horse became alive at night and went out to feed and devastate the fields.
So he painted a bridle to keep the horse in his place.



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- reference : nichibun yokai database -

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- - - - - H A I K U - - - - -

墨絵めく霧の山河や雪舟忌
sumi-e meku kiri no sanga ya Sesshuu ki

the landscape painting
flowing in black ink fog . . .
Sesshu memorial day


檜紀代 Hinoki Kiyo


Sesshu 応永27年(1420年) - 永正3年8月8日(1506年)
His death day is given as the 8th day of the 8th lunar month in 1506.
Other dates are also mentioned.




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- kigo for all winter -

. sori 雪橇(そり)/ 雪舟(そり)sled, sledge .
Here the characters 雪舟 mean "snow boat".


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- Reference - 雪舟 -
- Reference - sesshu toyo -


. Introducing Japanese Haiku Poets .

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31/07/2016

Chiyo no Fuji

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Chiyo no Fuji 千代の富士 Chiyonofuji
Kokonoe Oyakata 九重親方

(June 1, 1955 – July 31, 2016)



- quote
Chiyonofuji Mitsugu 千代の富士 貢
Mitsugu Akimoto (秋元 貢 Akimoto Mitsugu), was a Japanese champion sumo wrestler and the 58th yokozuna of the sport. He was the stable master of Kokonoe stable.

Chiyonofuji was one of the greatest yokozuna of recent times, winning 31 yusho or tournament championships, second at the time only to Taihō. He was particularly remarkable for his longevity in sumo's top rank, which he held for a period of ten years from 1981 to 1991. Promoted at the age of twenty-six after winning his second championship, he seemed only to improve with age and won more tournaments in his thirties than any other wrestler, finally retiring in May 1991 just short of his thirty-sixth birthday. This is in contrast to most recent yokozuna who have tended to retire around 30.

During his 21-year professional career Chiyonofuji set records for most career victories (1045) and most wins in the top makuuchi division (807). This caused him to be listed by Guinness World Records Both of these records were later broken by Kaiō Hiroyuki.

He won the Kyushu tournament, one of the six annual honbasho, a record eight consecutive years from 1981 until 1988, and also set the record for the longest postwar run of consecutive wins (53 bouts in 1988). That record stood for 22 years until Hakuhō broke it with his 54th straight win in September 2010.

In a sport where weight is often regarded as vital, Chiyonofuji was quite light at around 120 kg (260 lb). He relied on superior technique and muscle to defeat opponents. He was the lightest yokozuna since Tochinoumi in the 1960s. Upon his retirement he became an elder of the Japan Sumo Association under the name
Kokonoe Oyakata 九重親方.

Kokonoe underwent surgery for pancreatic cancer in July of 2015, and was noticeably weak when speaking to reporters at the Aki basho in September of that year. Having reportedly told associates that the cancer had spread to his heart and lungs, he had been hospitalized since the fourth day of the Nagoya tournament in 2016.
He died in Tokyo on July 31, 2016 at the age of 61.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !




Chiyo no Fuji
the long-time hero of all
Chiyo no Fuji



. Sumo wrestling 相撲 .
sumo wrestler, sumotoori 相撲取(すもうとり)


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His Kanreki dohyō-iri. One of only 10 performed ever.

九重親方(第58代横綱) - 還暦土俵入り!
- source : youtube.com -

- Reference - 千代の富士 -
- Reference - chiyo no fuji-

- - - #chiyonofuji - - -
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26/02/2016

Ii Naosuke Sakuradamon

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. Edopedia - all about Edo 江戸 .
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Ii Naosuke 井伊直弼
(November 29, 1815 – March 24, 1860)



- quote
A daimyo of Hikone (1850–1860) and also Tairō of Tokugawa Shogunate, Japan, a position he held from April 23, 1858 until his death on March 24, 1860. He is most famous for signing the Harris Treaty with the United States, granting access to ports for trade to American merchants and seamen and extraterritoriality to American citizens. He was also an enthusiastic and accomplished practitioner of the Japanese tea ceremony, in the Sekishūryū style, and his writings include at least two works on the tea ceremony.

Under Ii Naosuke’s guidance, the Tokugawa shogunate navigated past a particularly difficult conflict over the succession to the ailing and childless Tokugawa Iesada. Ii Naosuke managed to coerce the Tokugawa Shogunate to its last brief resurgence of its power and position in Japanese society before the start of the Meiji period. Ii was assassinated in the Sakuradamon incident by a group of 17 Mito and 1 Satsuma samurai on March 24, 1860.


Edo Castle's Sakurada Gate – photographed by Felix Beato, 1863–1870.

- snip -
- - - - - Tairō
In 1858 after Hotta Masayoshi’s disastrous attempt to obtain the emperor’s approval for the Harris treaty the Tokugawa Shogun, Tokugawa Iesada (徳川家定), chose Ii Naosuke to be the Tairō (Great Elder); a decision influenced by the Kii Party. The position of Tairō, a post traditionally held by members of the Ii family, was rarely filled; in fact there had only been three Tairō between 1700 and Ii Naosuke’s rise to power 158 years later. Ii’s promotion to the post of Tairō annoyed many of the shinpan daimyo (daimyo related to the Shogun, they were unable to be members of the bakufu, but in the event of the Shogun dying heirless the next Shogun would be chosen from one of the shinpan families) including Tokugawa Nariaki. As the Tairō Ii Naosuke had both prestige and power second only to the Shogun; Ii also enjoyed the full backing of the Fudai daimyo. An intelligent and capable politician Ii Naosuke was determined to restore the power of the bakufu in Japanese policy making, both in a domestic and a foreign role.
- snip -
- - - - - Kōbu gattai and the Kazunomiya marriage 公武合体
Kōbu Gattai is the policy of binding Kyoto and Edo closer together to shore up the failing shogunate with the prestige of the imperial court. This policy was to be carried out by means of a marriage between the Shogun and the Emperor’s younger sister, Princess Kazunomiya.
- snip -
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !

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The daimyo of Hikone Ii Naosuke 井伊直弼 had meat from Omi cows  近江牛 prepared as misozuke, pickled in miso paste, and send it to Edo to the Tokugawa Shogun, especially also to Nariaki of Mito 水戸斉昭.
Nariaki even wrote a letter to thank for the meat.

Original from ...  slia.on.arena.ne.jp/rekishi/index.html
徳川斉昭書状別紙, 嘉永元年(1848年)12月
(彦根城博物館蔵)

The beef from Hikone was also dried in the cold 「寒」の干牛肉 during the coldest month of January and then eaten as "medicine".
When Ii Naosuke was killed in the Sakuradamon incident on March 24, 1860, by a group of samurai from Mito, the shipments to Mito Tokugawa Nariaki stopped and Nariaki was quite unhappy about this turn of events.

. Eating Meat in Edo .

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Sakurada Mon 桜田門 lit. Gate of the Field of Cherry Trees


source : 桜田門外の変」を歩く

Sakurada mon is Nr. 10

The district used to be called
Sakurada goo 桜田郷 Sakurada Go hometown area
It was a wide area of rice fields and many cherry trees were planted along the azemichi 畦道 small paths between the fields.
Near Kasumigaseki there was also
Sakurada mura 桜田村 Sakurada village.
After Ieyasu moved into Edo castle, this part of Edo begun to flourish. Soon there were seven villaged, the
Sakurada Nanagemachi 桜田七ヵ町 / 桜田七ヶ町:
伏見町 Fushimi,善右衛門町 Zen-Saemon,久保町 Kubo,太左衛門町 Tazaemon,
備前町 Bizen,鍛冶町 Kaji and 和泉町 Izumi.

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. Kawase Hasui 川瀬巴水 (1883 - 1957) .


Sakurada Gate



Sakurada Gate in Spring Rain


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The Sakuradamon Incident 桜田門外の変 Sakuradamon-gai no Hen
桜田門の変 Sakuradamon no Hen


- quote -
the assassination of Japanese Chief Minister (Tairō) Ii Naosuke (1815–1860) on 24 March 1860 by rōnin samurai of the Mito Domain, outside the Sakurada Gate of Edo Castle.

The assassination took place outside the Shogun's Edo Castle in Edo (modern Tokyo), just as Ii Naosuke was reaching the premises. Ii Naosuke had been warned about his safety, and many encouraged him to retire from office, but he refused, replying that "My own safety is nothing when I see the danger threatening the future of the country".



A total of 17 Mito rōnin ambushed Ii Naosuke together with Arimura Jisaemon (有村次左衛門), a samurai from Satsuma Domain. While an attack at the front drew the attention of the guards, a lone assassin fired one shot into the palanquin containing Ii Naosuke, with a Japanese-made Colt 1851 Navy Revolver, which had been copied from the firearms that Perry had given the Shogunate as gifts. Drawing the injured and likely paralyzed Ii Naosuke out, Arimura decapitated Ii Naosuke and then committed seppuku.
Arimura Jisaemon, on the point of committing the assassination.

The conspirators carried a manifesto on themselves, outlining the reason for their act:
- snip -
- - - - - Consequences
The popular upheaval against foreign encroachment and assassination of Ii Naosuke forced the Bakufu to soften its stance, and to adopt a compromise policy of Kōbu Gattai ("Union of the Emperor and the Shogun") suggested by Satsuma Domain and Mito Domain, in which both parties vied for political supremacy in the years to follow. This soon amplified into the violent Sonnō Jōi ("Revere the Emperor, Expel the Barbarians") movement.

For the following years until the fall of Bakufu in 1868, Edo, and more generally the streets of Japan, would remain notably hazardous for Bakufu officials (see attack on Andō Nobumasa) and foreigners alike (Richardson murder), as the Sonno Joi movement continued to expand. According to Sir Ernest Satow: "A bloody revenge was taken on the individual [Ii Naosuke], but the hostility to the system only increased with time, and in the end brought about its complete ruin".

The conflict reached its resolution with the military defeat of the Shogunate in the Boshin war, and the installation of the Meiji restoration in 1868.
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !




source : d4.dion.ne.jp/~ponskp/bakumatsu

On the famous painting of the incident, you can see some normal Samurai without shoes.
It was winter and a rare snowfall of about 20 cm kept the rather unprotected palanquin bearers and accompanying samurai cold. So many of the 60 people in the procession, who were only hired for the job, did not protect Naosuke but just run away when they heard the shots.
(Some sources quote one shot, others quote two or more.)

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- quote -
Tale of Okabe Sanjuro
近世明義伝 岡部三十郎 Kinsei Meigiden Okabe Sanjyūro

Painted by Utagawa Yoshitsuya II
This is a color print of Sanjuro Okabe, one of the Mito clansman who attacked the Chief Councillor of the Shogun at the time Naosuke Ii. This attack, which took place just outside Sakuradamon, Edo in 1860 (seventh year of Ansei) was later referred to as 'The Sakuradamon Incident'.
In 'The Sakuradamon Incident', seceded warriors from the Mito and Satsuma clans attacked the Hikone clan's procession and assassinated the Chief Councillor Naosuke Ii. The assassination of this authority figure of the time sent a signal that the Bakufu's authority had weakened and it is said to have led the Bakufu Administration to fall. Many of the ringleaders committed suicide or were captured and executed by the Bakufu.
- source : Tokyo Metropolitan Library -

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- - - - - H A I K U - - - - -

春寒料峭井伊直弼に手を合はす
shunkan ryooshoo Ii Naosuke ni te o awasu

very cold spring day -
I fold my hands
for Ii Naosuke


Kawasaki Tenkoo 川崎展宏 Kawasaki Tenko (1927 - 2009)

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鳥帰る桜田門を掃き終り
斉藤夏風

浮寝鳥桜田門の日向かな
瀧井孝作




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. Yosa Buson 与謝蕪村 in Edo .

鮒ずしや 彦根の城に 雲かゝる
funazushi ya hikone no shiro ni kumo kakaru

Cruician sushi!
Hikone Castle
Covered with floating clouds.

Tr. hokuoto77

'A crucian sushi' was a favorite with Buson.
The crucian sushi is a specialty of Otsu district in Shiga Prefecture. Today Otsu City is nine minutes train ride from Kyoto City and Hikone City about forty minutes train ride from Otsu City.
The crucian sushi in the Haiku must have been one of products of Otsu region. Crucian's scales gills, visceral parts are taken away and the rest are salted. After this process, slices are sandwiched between rice, one by one, and pressed for some time to be fermented naturally. The seasoning and maturing of crucian sushi is a very delicate operation. The whole process calls for skill and experience. Of course, it must be a well-kept trade secret.

*The Poet wrote to Tairo(大魯), one of his disciples:
「此句、解スべく解すべからざるものに候。とかく聞得る人まれニて、只几董のみ微笑いたし候」
(Kono ku kaisu bekara zaru mono ni soro. tokaku kiki uru hito mare nite, tada, kito nomi misho itashi soro.)
It translates:
"The Haiku is not appreciated as it should be and people are apt to miss its depth. It is only Kito (几董) who smiled to me with its understanding."
(Translated by hokuto77). In the same letter Buson asked Tairo (大魯) for comments on the Haiku. I can’t possibly get Tairo’s comments at all.
- snip -
Impression:
The Poet had a rest at a tea house on Lake Biwa, enjoying his favorite crucian sushi. A cloud formed from the lake and was drifting up towards the Castle Tower of Hikone. He happened to notice the scene. I believe the cloud was not a figment of his imagination but really existed. The cloud plays a prominent role in the Haiku. It's very clear the cloud will cause no shower of rain at all.
Academic critics say the taste of well matured 'crucian sushi' and the large-scaled landscape, together with the early summer breeze, gave a lot of refreshment to the Poet.
The scenery in the Haiku is magnificent. Even to those who haven’t ever tasted a crucian sushi, nor seen Hikone Castle in the distance, the Haiku will give a breathtaking impression. The rest of sushi haiku by the Poet may well be thought to be discolored by this eminent one.
Here, I think we must carefully consider at what point Kito (几董) nodded smiling to Buson.

The floating cloud can’t be regarded as an omen, good or bad, for the future of the Poet or the castle. It’s just a moving piece of the workings of Nature in the still vast scenery which the Poet is viewing quite by chance. The key is how to interpret the sailing cloud.

I know my guess is wide of the mark. Kito's impression goes:
"Well matured crucian sushi gives him a deeply satisfying feeling and he admires the scenery around him with a real sense of fulfilled existence. Right now, a cloud rising from on Lake Biwa has come up obscuring the Castle. As sushi has thoroughly melted into my body, so he himself merged into this vast landscape filled with splendor and he feel as if riding on the floating cloud and he’ve begun to wonder if it keeps sailing for Eternity."
I know Kito (几董) is acutely aware that Eternity is the very thing that Buson seeks.
- source : hokuoto77.com/buson-su -


crucian carp sushi -
the castle of Hikone
is wrapped in clouds

Tr. Gabi Greve

. funazushi, funa sushi, bunazushi ふな寿司 .
- kigo for summer -

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- Reference - Japanese 桜田門の変 -
- Reference - English sakuradamon -


. Introducing Japanese Haiku Poets .

- KAPPA 河童 water goblin - ABC-Index -
- - - #sakuradamon #iinaosuke #naosukeiihikone #hikone - - -


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Sakurada Jinja 櫻田神社 / 桜田神社 Sakurada Shrine
3 Chome-2-17 Nishiazabu, Minato ward, Tokyo // 東京都港区西麻布3-2-17

This shrine dates back to 1180, the Heian period.
It has been built on orders of 源頼朝 Minamoto no Yoritomo to house the deity
霞山桜田明神 Kazan Sakurada Myojin.
The fields belonging to the shrine, 御神田, were later re-named 桜田.
Around 1470, 大田道灌 Ota Dokan revived the shrine.
In 1624 it was relocated to Azabu.

Deity in residence;
豊宇迦能売神 Toyoukanome 豊宇賀能売命
(トヨウケビメ Toyoukehime)



- quote -
This is a small shrine in the middle of urban area. And, the entrance is inconspicuous although it's along an avenue.
This shrine enshrine the Jurojin deity.
He brings good luck of longevity and recovery from illness.
He is one of the Seven Deities of Good Luck in Japan.

The shrine also has an old tensuioke 天水桶, a basin for collecting rain water.
. Sakurada Shrine - Ten-sui-oke 天水桶 .



The Sakurada Shrine is run by a family, almost like a family business.
- reference -

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Ii Naotora and Tokugawa Ieyasu
on a manhole in Shizuoka



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18/09/2015

Shibukawa Shunkai Harumi

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. koyomi 暦 Japanese calendars .
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Shibukawa Shunkai 渋川春海 Shibukawa Harumi
(1639 - 1715)



- quote
also known as Shibukawa Harumi, Yasui Santetsu II 二世保井算哲, and
Motoi Santetsu 保井 算晢, was a Japanese scholar, go player and the first official astronomer appointed of the Edo period.
He revised the Chinese lunisolar calendar at the imperial request, drawing up the Jōkyō calendar which was issued in 1684 during the Jōkyō era. In 1702, he changed his name to Shibukawa Sukezaemon Shunkai and retired by 1711. As a go player, he was affiliated with the Yasui house, calling himself initially (after his father) Yasui Santetsu II. He is mentioned as a Tengen player in Yamashita Keigo 's book: Challenging Tenge.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !

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The Jōkyō calendar (貞享暦 Jōkyō-reki) was a Japanese lunisolar calendar, in use from 1684 to 1753. It was officially adopted in 1685.
The Jōkyō-reki system was developed and explained by Shibukawa Shunkai. He recognized that the length of the solar year is 365.2417 days.
Shibukawa discovered errors in the traditional Chinese calendar, the Semmyō calendar, which had been in use for 800 years.


Japan has been using the Gregorian calendar since 1874,
but still refers to its KYUREKI 旧暦, the old calendar, on many occasions.
. Calendar Systems of Japan - Introduction .
Calendar History / Local calendars / E-goyomi (Picture calendar) / Daisho-reki calendars / Various forms of calendars

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- quote -
Shibukawa Harumi
Title:Tenmon gata
Japanese:澁川春海(Shibukawa Harumi or Shibukawa Shunkai)
Other names Yasui Santetsu II 二世保井算哲 Motoi Santetsu 保井 算晢

Harumi was born into a family of go-players to the shogunate, but was also interested in mathematics and astronomy. At that time Japan was still calculating the calendar using the Tang calendar the Senmyô calendar 宣明暦, which it had adopted in 8612, and inaccuracies in the calendar were obvious, especially that the winter solstice was calculated almost two days late. Also, it was not very accurate with eclipses, in particular predicted far too many. Harumi like some other scholars of the time believed that the Mongol-period Juji calendar 授時暦, which was the apex of the Chinese calendar tradition,should be adopted in Japan.

Through his professional connections as a go-player he was able to interest several officials in the project, especially Hoshina Masanori 保科正之 of Aizu, the shogun's guardian, and Mito Mitsukuni. He made a table of eclipses as predicted by the Senmyô and Juji calendars to prove the superiority of the later.

However, on 1675/5/1 an eclipse that was predicted by the Senmyô calendar but not by the Juji calendar did occur, and so the idea of changing calendars was rejected. Harumi managed to get hold of a (forbidden) Chinese work on western astronomy, and "localized" the 13th-century Chinese calendar for 17th century Japan, and in 1683 petitioned the imperial court to adopt the "Yamato" calendar. However, the next year the court decided to adopt the Ming-period Daitô calendar 大統暦, a very slight revision of the Juji calendar. Harumi again petitioned, saying the Daitou calendar was not suitable for Japan, and finally on 1684/10/29 the Yamato calendar was accepted, and it went into effect the next year as the Jôkyô calendar 貞享暦.

After that, the shogunate established the office of the Tenmon gata 天文方, and Harumi became the first holder of that post. He had an observatory on his property and built some astronomical instruments.
- source : wiki.samurai-archives.com -


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tenmongata, tenmonkata 天文方 - Astronomical Bureau with officer in charge of astronomy
Members of Yoshida family inherited the position of Tenmonkata until the end of Edo period.


- quote -
tenmondai 天文台 Edo observatory
In the late Edo Period, the Tokugawa shogunate’s astronomical observatory was built in the location that is now known as Asakusabashi 3-chome. The facility was responsible for conducting astronomical observation, creating calendar-construction rules, surveying lands, compiling geographical descriptions and translating Western books.,
The observatory was an astronomical office where calendars were compiled, originally, the facility was called "Hanreki-sho Goyo Yashiki," it was also known as "Shitendai" and "Asakusa Tenmondai."
The astronomical observatory was essential in order to create accurate calendars..



Hokusai Katsushika
was a well-known ukiyoe artist who was active in the late Edo Period. The Asakusa Observatory, equipped with an armillary sphere, is depicted against a backdrop of Mt. Fuji in "Torigoe no Fuji," which is a print contained in "One Hundred Views of Mt. Fuji" by Hokusai.
At the observatory, Yoshitoki Takahashi, an official astronomer, and others observed celestial bodies in order to conduct the Kansei calendar reform. Tadataka Inoh was a disciple of Yoshitoki.
(Reference: Taito Meisho Zue)
. Edo Torigoe 鳥越 Torigoe Ward (Torikoe) .

Heitengi Zukai (1802)
"Heitengi Zukai," a handbook of astronomy, was written by Zenbe Iwasaki, who was also a maker of telescopes. The book includes illustrations of the sun, the moon and stars, which were observed by him using a refracting telescope.

The Astronomical Herald (1910)
"The Astronomical Herald" is a journal of the Astronomical Society of Japan, which was established in 1908. Observations of Halley's Comet, which passed the Earth in 1910, are written in the journal.
- source : taito-culture.jp -

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Asakusa Tenmondai 浅草天文台 Asakusa Observatory

- quote -
Asakusa Observatory
. . . until about 170 years ago, Asakusabashi was scientifically and technologically one of the most important places in Japan thanks to the astronomical observatory that used to be here, and which included offices for the study of the latest scientific literature from overseas.
Not far from where the observatory was is a signboard, on the south-west corner of Kuramae 1-chome intersection. The following is a full translation of the Japanese information on the signboard (which is only partially translated into English on the signboard).
- - - Site of Astronomical Observatory
In the late Edo era, a little west of this spot, was an astronomical observatory on a road running through an area comprising the whole of Asakusabashi 3-chome 21-24 banchi, and part of 19-, 25- and 26-banchi. Besides astronomical observation, it also hosted other pursuits such as calendar-rule research, surveying, compilation of topographical data, and the translation of Western books.

The observatory was known as Shitendai or Asakusa-tenmondai, and was transferred here in 1782 from Ushigome-waradana (current day Fukuromachi in Shinjuku ward) and rebuilt. It was officially named Hanrekidokoro-goyoyashiki ("The Imperial Office of Calendar Making") which, as the name suggests, was part of the government office, the Tenmongata, for working out the calendar. Astronomical observations were required to ensure calendar accuracy.


Signboard for site of old Asakusa Observatory, Taito ward, Tokyo.

According to a historical document known as Shitendai-no-ki ("Shitendai Records"), the Shitendai observatory was built on top of an artificial hill about 93.6 meters in circumference and about 9.3 meters high. The observatory was a square building, with each wall about 5.5 meters long, access being provided by 43 stone steps. Another historical record, the Kansei-rekisho ("Chronicles of the Kansei Era") states that there were two separate flights of stone stairs, each of 50 steps, and that the artificial hill was 9 meters high.
- snip -
It was here at the Asakusa Observatory that the astronomer Takahashi Yoshitoki (1764-1804) revised the calendar for the Kansei era (1789-1801). One of his understudies was Ino Tadakata (1745-1818), a surveyor and cartographer known for completing the first map of Japan. Before starting his survey of the whole of Japan, Ino first set out to establish the length of one degree of latitude by working out the direction of the observatory from his house in Fukugawa and the distance between them. After Takahashi’s death, upon the advice of his son and heir, Kakeyasu, in 1811 an office for translating foreign books, the Bansho-wage-goyo (蕃所和解御用), was established on the premises.
This office underwent many transformations: from Yogakusho ("Center for Western Learning"), to Bansho-shirabesho ("Western Learning Research and Educational Institute"), to Yosho-shirabesho ("Western Writings Institute"), to Kaiseisho/Kaiseijo (“Office for Opening and Developing”), to Kaisei Gakko (“School for Opening and Developing”), to Daigaku-nanko (“University Southern School”), and was a precursor institution of the current University of Tokyo.

Another observatory was built at Kudanzakaue (present day Kudankita, Chiyoda ward) in 1842, but both were abolished in 1869, in the second year of the modernizing Meiji era.
- source : japanvisitor.blogspot.jp - 1999 -


- reference - edo tenmongata -

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. Sakuma Tenmondai 佐久間天文台 Sakuma observatory .
Sakuma no Sokuryoosho 佐久間町の測量所 Sokuryosho surveying office
神田佐久間町2丁目 Kanda Sakumacho district

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Edo no Tenmongaku 江戸の天文学 Astronomy in Edo



. koyomi uri 暦売 seller of new calendars .


. Welcome to Edo 江戸 ! .

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- Reference - Japanese -

- Reference - English -


. Introducing Japanese Haiku Poets .

- - - #shibukawa #tenmongaku #tenmon #astronomy #edoastronomy - - -
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18/08/2015

Sendai Shiro

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Sendai Shiroo 仙台四郎 / 仙臺四郎 Sendai Shiro
Haga Shiroo 芳賀四郎 Haga Shiro


(1855 - 1902) - , Shirou Sendai



- quote
Sendai Shiro (仙臺四郎 or sometimes 仙台四郎), born Haga Shiro,
was a real person who was said to have lived during the late Edo period through the early Meiji period from 1860-1902. He was born a man but is remembered as a god of fortune. Like most legends and their back stories, there are several slightly different versions of how Sendai Shiro came to be. I will be sharing a mix of what I have read, heard, and seen.​

One hot summer August evening, the young boy Haga set out to see the fireworks marking the beginning of the city famous Tanabata Festival. Just like today, the best spot to see the fireworks is along the Hirose River. Fighting the crowds and struggling to get a better view, the innocent boy leaned too far over the ledge of a bridge and fell head first straight into the shallow river. Possibly hitting his head and nearly drowning, Haga was never the same. Likely suffering from brain damage, he lost the ability to use or remember most speech and his mental ability deteriorated. Most origin stories fail to mention the boys' parents or guardians. Maybe the young boy was abandoned after the accident. In either case, Haga soon became a common sight wandering aimlessly downtown around the shopping arcades, rarely talking but always smiling. As time went on, something strange began to happen.

Stores Haga frequented did well, even prospering in business. At the same time, establishments ignored by the iconic shaved-head and now growing larger man soon went bankrupt. Locals started calling Haga Shiro a good luck charm. Shop owners tried to coerce Haga into their stores and restaurants were known to treat him to free food. He was a popular sight and everyone wanted to be his friend. It must have been a leisurely life for someone who would have struggled to survive without the care he received from others.

Time went on and eventually Haga, now in his late forties, disappeared from the busy marketplace. Some say he wandered off to die or wandered off then died. To where? No one knows for certain. Several years after Shiro's mysterious death, a shrewd businessman had the idea to sell good luck charms with Haga Shiro's picture and face. The goods became wildly popular and Haga Shiro was soon immortalized as a city legend; the god of good luck, wealth, and prosperity would forever be known as Sendai Shiro.

More critical observers discredit the Sendai Shiro myth. They argue businesses which care little about their customers or reputation and only about money, probably had poor business practices. It was natural for them to be uninviting and eventually close down. Conversely, stores with excellent people skills would serve and welcome someone like Haga. Having the supposed good luck of Sendai Shiro played little importance to these stores as it was their customer service which really brought in customers and secured continuing and future success.



- - - - - Sendai Shiro Today
The spirit of Sendai Shiro is enshrined in Mitakisan Fudo-In Temple (三瀧山不動院). It is a temple located right inside the middle of Clis Road, the heart of the same shopping arcades Sendai Shiro became a legend. The Shingon sect temple is impressive in its own right with several artistic Buddhist statues inside its main hall. The lane leading to the prayer hall has Buddhist items sold on the right side and Sendai Shiro goods sold on the left. Climb the few stairs and look left before going inside the main hall to see a statue of Sendai Shiro. Why not pray for riches here? Next to the statue you can see images of him in picture form. These same pictures of the real Sendai Shiro can be found in many businesses across the city, usually near the cash register watching over the money. Take a look and you are sure to spot them during your travels.
Also keep an eye out for the Sendai Shiro look-alike known as "Heisei Shiro." This cheerful man appears in some local promotional internet videos and can be seen at some local events.
- source : Justin Velgus


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. Sendai no hariko men 仙台の張子面 papermachee masks . 
mask of 仙台四郎 Sendai Shiro

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CLICK for more dolls of Sendai Shiro!


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不思議な福の神「仙台四郎」の解明
―その実在と世界の分析 なぜ御利益は必ず訪れるのか!?

大沢忍 (著)



- Reference - Japanese -

- further reference -

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29/11/2014

Shinnen and the Henro Trail

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Saint Shinnen Hoshi 真念法師
宥弁坊真念 Yuben-bo Shinnen


active around 1680.

His life work was to bring back life to the Henro pilgrimage in Shikoku by erecting more than 200 stone markers
四国遍路道指南(みちしるべ) Shikoku Henro Michi Shirube
and writing a travel guide, published in 1687.
He was also the first to add the numbers from 01 to 88 to the temples on the road
and erecting stone markers.

They are all about 77 cm high and rounded at the top.
The stone comes from Hyogo prefecture, go-eiseki 御影石, kakoogan 花崗岩 granite. They have been transported by ship to Shikoku and put in place with great diligence and effort by Shinnen.
Since the stone markers are mentioned in his book, he must have been putting them up before that, around 1680.
Before this, the Henro pilgrims have mostly been monks on their quest for Buddhism.
But after Shinnen published his book, more lay people began making this long pilgrimage.



stone marker in Sakaide town 坂出市青海町

39 (or 37) of his stone markers have not yet been found.
Now there is a group to study his lifework
四国遍路道学術調査研究会
click on any of the 24 entries to see a stone marker in detail with a map:
- source : www.shikoku-np.co.jp/feature


玉垣に隠れて建つ真念の道標
観音寺市八幡町 at Kannonji tonw, Hachiman village
琴弾八幡神社 near Kotohira Hachiman Jinja



inscription
「左遍ん路みち 願主(ねがいぬし)

真念はその中で八十八カ所とそのルートを示し「四国遍路」の原型を示した。「八十八」という言葉は、真念以前の巡拝記にも見られるが、札所ごとに一番から八十八番までの番号を付けたのは真念であり、四国八十八カ所を創った人物と言える。
- source : www.shikoku-np.co.jp



真念の標石発見/江戸前期遍路解明史料に
a stone marker from Kagawa prefecture, Marugame town
- source : www.shikoku-np.co.jp/kagawa_news


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真念法師の旧お墓跡(高松市牟礼町塩屋)昭和55年2月 洲崎寺に移された
His grave in Takamatsu



真念庵(高知県土佐清水市下ノ加江市野瀬)
Shinnen-An 真念庵 a kind of shelter he erected for the lay pilgrims.



- at Takamatsu 香川県高松市亀水町

List of 37 stone markers
真念法師の道標(37基)詳細へ
- source : kukai1944.web.fc2.com/douhyou_sinnenhousi

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真念庵(しんねんあん) Shinnen-An - Bangai 番外札所 01
located at the Ashizuri Henro Trail あしずりへんろ道.
There is nobody in charge there, so the villagers of the nearby village at the foot of the mountain offer a stamp for the pilgrim's stamp book (and often some o-settai refreshments).
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !

erected aroung 天和年間(1681 - 83)by 宥弁坊真念



- take a virtual walk along the Ashizuri Henro Trail toward Shinnen-An
- source : d.hatena.ne.jp/boianuf



The pilgrim's stamp of Shinnen-An 納経印
Since it is given by a lay person of the village, there is no brush inscription, only some stamps in black and red.






納経印は墨印部分のみ二種類ある。通常は左のものであろう。墨印の文字は「奉納経 〔地蔵菩薩の種字「カ」〕本尊地蔵薩 〔梵字の「カン」?〕弘法大師 土佐幡多足摺打戻 市ノ瀬山 眞念庵」。
朱印は右が「日本第一霊場」、中央上が弘法大師の絵像に「大正三年土佐眞念菴千百年紀念印」(弘法大師による四国霊場開創千百年のことであろう)、中央下は宝珠に地蔵菩薩の種字「カ」、左下は「土佐ハタ一ノセ山眞念菴」。
右のものの墨印部分は「奉納経 本尊地蔵大士 土州幡多郡市瀬山 眞念菴」。
- source : goshuin.ko-kon.net/shikoku88


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「四国遍路道指南」 Shikoku Henro Michishirube
という江戸時代のガイド本を元に、俳優・西岡徳馬と娘・優妃が四国遍路を旅する。

Father and daughter Nishioka are walking along the Shikoku Henro path.
According to the diary of Shinnen.



- source : www.nhk.or.jp/matsuyama/henro1200


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Making Pilgrimages: Meaning And Practice in Shikoku
By Ian Reader
- google here for the parts about Shinnen :
- source : books.google.co.jp


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荒井とみ二 / 「遍路図絵」

四国遍路関連古書 List of old books about the Henro trail
from 承応2年 - 1653
澄禅 - 「四国遍路日記」 - 宮崎忍勝
to 平成18年 - 2006
- source : www5a.biglobe.ne.jp/~outfocus/eurail


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. General Henro Information - My Introduction .
四国お遍路さん Henro Pilgrims in Shikoku

to 88 temples in honor of Kobo Daishi Kukai




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