Ekoin Kannon Ryogoku

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. Famous Places and Power spots of Edo　江戸の名所 .
. 江戸三十三観音霊場 Pilgrimage to 33 Kannon Temples of Edo
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Ekoin Kannon, Ekō-in 回向院観音 - Ryogoku
諸宗山 Shoshuzan, 無縁寺 Muen-Ji

東京都墨田区両国2-8-10 / Ryōgoku, Sumida, Tokyo

Bato Kanzeon Bosatsu 馬頭観世音菩薩 "Kannon with a horse head"

- quote
Ekō-in (回向院), also known as Honjo Ekō-in,
is a Pure Land Buddhist temple in Ryōgoku, Tokyo. The formal name of the temple is Shoshūzan Muen-ji Ekō-in (諸宗山 無縁寺 回向院), reflecting its founding principle of Pariṇāmanā, or the spreading of Amida Buddha's benevolence to all souls of all living creatures.
- History
On March 2, 1657, the Great Fire of Meireki destroyed 60 to 70% of the city of Edo (Tokyo) and killed about 100,000 people. The shōgun Tokugawa Ietsuna wished to commemorate the victims of the fire, most of whom were not survived by relatives. For this purpose he erected a monument called the Banninzuka (Mound of a Million Souls) and held a great memorial service conducted by Jun'yo Jōjin (遵誉上人, Holy Priest Junyo) of Zōjō-ji. A temple for prayers to Amida Buddha was built at the same time. This was the origin of the Ekō-in, which today continues to offer a resting place for any soul who did not leave relatives behind, including victims of natural disasters, prisoners, and animals.
- Sumo
The temple was known as a sumo wrestling venue during the Edo and Meiji periods. The kanjin-zumō, a charity fund raising event permitted by the Tokugawa shogunate and the origin of the current professional sumo, was first held in the temple in September 1768. The temple was the site of all tournaments from October 1833 to 1909. These 76 years are known as the period of "Ekō-in sumō".
In 1909, the tournaments were moved into the original Ryōgoku Kokugikan, a modern arena in the temple precincts that had a capacity of 13,000 spectators and that was nicknamed as the Great Iron Umbrella. This contributed to the popularity of the sport by making it possible to hold sumo tournaments regardless of the weather.

Also in the precincts is a monument called the Chikarazuka (力塚, Power mound), built in 1937 by the Sumo Association as a memorial to past wrestlers. Today it has become a place where apprentice wrestlers come to pray for power.
After World War II, sumo tournaments moved to various venues in Tokyo and then to the Kuramae Kokugikan arena in Taitō, Tokyo, before returning to the Ryōgoku district in 1985. The current Ryōgoku Kokugikan arena is located only about 400 meters from the temple.
- source : wikipedia

. taika 江戸の大火 Edo no Taika "Great Fires of Edo" .

. Sumo wrestling 相撲 .

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In 1816, a memorial stone for cats was erected at Eko-In.
Tokida Kisaburo 時田喜三郎 from Ryogoku town had kept a cat. The fish vendor who visited his shop every day and gave some fish to the cat became ill. So Kisaburo stole some money and gave it to the fish vendor. The members of the Tokida family, who did not know about this, killed the cat.
The fish vendor wanted the cat to have eko 回向 "a transfer of merit" and go to heaven, so he built the memorial stone.

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shuin 朱印 stamp

omamori お守り amulets


- Homepage of the temple
- source : ekoin.or.jp..


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回向院, Eko-In at Ryōgoku and the Moto-Yanagibashi Bridge
Utagawa Hiroshige

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This temple is Nr. 4 of the
. 江戸三十三観音霊場 Pilgrimage to 33 Kannon Temples of Edo


. Kannon Bosatsu 観音菩薩 Avalokiteshvara .

. Bato Kannon 馬頭観音 with a horse head .


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. Join the Kannon Bosatsu Gallery on Facebook .

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. 江戸三十三観音霊場 Pilgrimage to 33 Kannon Temples of Edo

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