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

2016/09/08

Zenkibo Tengu

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. Tengupedia - 天狗ペディア - Tengu ABC-Index .
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Zenkiboo Zenkibō 前鬼坊 Zenkibo, Zenki-Bo
那智滝本前鬼坊 Nachi no Takimoto Zenkibo
大峰山前鬼坊 Ominesan Zenki-Bo



CLICK for more information

役行者 En no Gyoja is usually flanked by a couple of two demons,
the husband Zenki 前鬼 and his wife Goki 後鬼


These demons promised En no Gyoja, a Shugendo priest at Mount Ominesan in Nara, to protect the pilgrims of the area. They had five children, whose families in the x-th generation up to this day have five mountain huts where the pilgrims can rest during their walk from Oomine to Kumano.
The family business is going on for more than 1300 years now. Gokijo 後鬼助 san, in the 61 generation, lives in Osaka now and comes back every weekend and holidays to take care of the pilgrims.

I have written more about En no Gyoja and Yoshino here:
. Yoshinoyama - 吉野山 Yoshino Mountains - .

Zenki 前鬼 and Goki 後鬼
The following names were given to them by En no Gyoja after he had saved them from their demon ways
and turned them into good souls are:

Zendooki 善童鬼(ぜんどうき) Zendoki / 義覚/ 義学 Gikaku - Gigaku
Myoodooki 妙童鬼(みょうどうき)Myodoki / 義玄 Gigen


Zenki was born in 奈良県吉野郡下北山村 Shimokitayama village in Yoshino. - - 前鬼の里 Zenki no Sato.
Zenki represents the positive 陽 YO aspect and is depicted as a red oni 鬼 demon holding an iron ax 鉄斧. He used to walk in front of En no Gyoja and hacked the path free.
He is also depicted with a kind of straw rucksack 笈.

His wife Goki was born in 奈良県吉野郡天川村 Tengawa villge in Yoshino.
represents the negative 陰 IN aspect and is depicted as a blue/green demon.
She holds a flask with ritual water 理水 and carries a rucksack with seeds.

Together they symbolize 陰陽 the Yin and Yang of things, or the A-Un 阿吽, Alpha and Omega, the beginning and end of all things.

Their five children are - - - 真義、義継、義上、義達 and 義元.

. oni no shison 鬼の子孫 / onisuji 鬼筋 - descendants of Oni .
The five Oni children : (五鬼 goki)
五鬼助(ごきじょ)Gokijo, 五鬼継(ごきつぐ)Gokitsugu, 五鬼上(ごきじょう) Gokijo,、五鬼童(ごきどう)Gokido,
五鬼熊(ごきくま)Gokikuma

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奈良・大峰山の鬼たち The Demons from Omine, Nara

- reference source : toki.moo.jp/gaten -

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- quote -
Mount Ōmine - 大峰山 Ōmine-san
a sacred mountain in Nara, Japan, famous for its three tests of courage.
Officially known as Mount Sanjō (山上ヶ岳 Sanjō-ga-take),
it is more popularly known as Mount Ōmine due to its prominence in the Ōmine mountain range. It is located in Yoshino-Kumano National Park in the Kansai region, Honshū, Japan.
The temple Ōminesanji,
located at the top of the mountain, is the headquarters of the Shugendō sect of Japanese Buddhism and the entire mountain is part of a pilgrimage and training ground for the yamabushi.
The monastery at Mount Ōmine
was founded in the 8th century by En no Gyōja, as a home for his new religion of Shugendō. Shugendo literally means "the path of training and testing," and is based on the self-actualization of spiritual power in experiential form through challenging and rigorous ritualistic tests of courage and devotion known as shugyo.
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !


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Since 1788, a Sake brewery in Nara produces rice wine in their memory.
- reference source : komesou.com/nihonnsyu/syoujou -

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source : blogs.yahoo.co.jp/teravist

- reference : 前鬼坊 -

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. Legends and Tales from Japan 伝説 - Introduction .

............................................................................... Nara 奈良県

En no Gyoja met a couple of Oni who were eating humans. He asked them not to do that any more but they did not listen to him. He hid in a cave but they wanted to give him human flesh to eat even there.
Now 不動明王 Fudo Myo-O comes along and pressured the couple not to eat humans any more. Now they promised to change their ways.
Zenki went to 洞川 Dorogawa (now a famous hot spring), and Goki went to 十津川 Totsukawa .

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御所市 Gose
Zenki and Goki once lived on 葛城山 Mount Katsuragisan and together with the Deity 一言主神 Hitokotonushi they were strong leaders of the region.
. the Deity Hitokotonushi 一言主 .

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大峯山 Ominesan
In some parts of the Omine region, the forest people are called 笈 oi : 前笈 and 後笈.
oi is a kind of rucksack, made of wood or bamboo in former times.
They villagers are very strong and robust and carry the luggage of visitors. They look almost like Oni and some say they are the descendants of Zenki and Goki.

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鬼取町 Onitori / 生駒郡 Ikoma
At 生駒山 Mount Ikomasan、En no Gyoja had a dream given to him by 孔雀明 Kujaku Myo-O.
He should capture the two Oni from the foot of Ikomasan and turn them into decent beings. He stayed in prayer for 21 days and on the last day, with 不動緊縛の法 a special ritual of Fudo Myo-O he could capture them.
So the Oni cut off their hair and became the pious disciples of En no Gyoja.

The mountain is now called Onitorisan 鬼取山 "Mountain of capturing the Demons",
and the village is still called that way, 鬼取 Onitori.



At the temple 髪切山慈光寺 Kamikiriyama, Jiko-Ji, masks of the Red and Green Oni are kept in honor and rituals are held.
During the annual festival, these two masks are worn by specially elected men and lead a parade through the region.
Kamikiriyama means "the mountain where they cut off their hair".

鬼取山(又は鬼取獄)
- reference source : geocities.jp/iko_kan2/ikoma-oni -


CLICK for more photos !

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信貴山 Shigisan
When En no Gyoja practised austerities at Mount Shigisan in 673, there was a couple of huge demons of more than three meters high with long fangs. But En no Gyoja subdued them and took away their supernatural powers.
They begun to take care of him and help him in his life as Zenki and Goki.

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天川村 Tenkawa
At the home of the 柿阪秀元氏 Kakisaka Hidemoto family, on the eve of the Setsubun ritual in spring, they place ritual water at the entrance and prepare a special seat for the Oni to take a rest.
They do not pierce the head of a sardine (a custom to drive away the Oni), and they call
"Fuku wa Uchi, Oni wa Uchi" May good luck come in, may the Demon come in!
The family is said to have Zenki and Goki as their ancestors.

. setsubun 節分 "the seasonal divide" .
Usually people call:
fuku wa uchi 福は内(ふくはうち)"Good luck, come in!"
oni wa soto 鬼は外(おにはそと)"Demons, get out! "


. Setsubun - 「鬼は内」Oni wa Uchi ! .

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吉野 Yoshino 
En no Gyôja journeyed to the Mino'o Waterfall in Osaka, where he met the Bodhisattva Ryûju. He erected a temple to Ryûju called Mino'o Temple
Then he tried to convince the local Shinto deity, Hitokotonushi, to help him build a 石橋 stone bridge extending from Mt. Katsuragi to Mt. Yoshino.
Hitokotonushi only worked during the night and hid his face during the daytime. Thus En no Gyoja became angry at the slow pace of the god's work, and threw him into a valley. The angry god then petitioned the emperor to send armies after En no Gyôja, to arrest him, claiming that the monk sought to rebel against the throne. Gyôja escaped the armies easily, flying away on his clouds, but, after they captured his mother instead, he was forced to surrender himself.
He was exiled to Izu Ôshima, but escaped his exile, flying to Mt. Fuji. .....
- reference : wiki.samurai-archives.com -


大和葛城山久米の岩橋伝説 - The Legend of the Stone Bridge at Kume, Katsuragisan
- reference source : toki.moo.jp/gaten -


There is also a river called 前鬼川 Zenkigawa and the Fudo Nanae waterfall 不動七重滝.
- reference and photos : riko.naturum.ne.jp -



- quote -
Fudo Nanae Fall
was chosen as one of the 100 most beautiful waterfalls of Japan. Fed by the Zenkigawa River, water cascades down in seven stages, falling 100m from the top to the bottom and providing a majestic natural view.
Early summer and fall are especially good seasons to see the picturesque beauty of the scenery.
- source : pref.nara.jp/nara_e -


............................................................................... Osaka 大阪府
箕面市 Mino

On 摂津の箕面山 mount Minosan in Settsu (Hyogo) there lived a couple of Oni.
The husband had red eyes and the wife a yellow mouth. They had five children. They grabbed human children and ate them. To change their ways, En no Gyoja banned the youngest of their children in a cave. The parents came to En no Gyoja and asked him where their child was. They would never eat human children again if he would let them have the kid back.
Finally he told them were it was and all of them left the region.

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- reference : nichibun yokai database 妖怪データベース -
ゼンキ,ゴキ

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

下草を薙ぎ行く前鬼後鬼の裔
shitakusa o nagi-yuku zenki goki no ei

cutting the thicket
as they go along - descendants
of Zenki and Goki


右城暮石 Ushiro Boseki (1899 - 1995)

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前鬼にも呑せて行や香需散
炭太祇

卓にたつ前鬼が肩に雪霏々たり
横山白虹

夏の霧噴き捲く前鬼後鬼像
猿橋統流子

夢に出し前鬼と後鬼春の山
角川春樹

屠蘇酌めり前鬼後鬼の山長者
青畝

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. - - - Join my Tengupedia friends on facebook ! - - - .

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. 四十八天狗 - 48 famous Tengu of Japan .

. Tengu 天狗と伝説 Tengu legends "Long-nosed Goblin" .

. - yookai, yōkai 妖怪 Yokai monsters - .

. Legends and Tales from Japan 伝説 - Introduction .

. Mingei 民芸 Regional Folk Art from Japan .

- #zenkibo #zenkigoki -
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2016/04/13

senshin cleansing the heart

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senshin 洗心 cleansing the heart / mind



source : rakuten.co.jp/ikata47/diary

Many visitors of our GokuRakuAn hermitage and the Daruma-Do stand in the garden overlooking the Mandala Valley, saying

Kokoro ga arawareru naaa 心が洗われるなーーー
The heart / mind gets purified just looking at the scene here !



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洗心 -“washing” (or "inquiring into”) the “heart”
Senshin "cleansing the mind"


一掬洗心(一掬いの水は心を清める)

at the Rikyu Hachimangu (formerly Iwashimizu Hachimangu) from 1634
by 林羅山 Hayashi Razan
- reference : rikyuhachiman.org/temizuhachi -

- - - - - Thanks for the inspiration to the PMJS group
and more discussion about the subject
- source : groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/pmjs -



source : mickeyclub.seesaa.net

不忍池 Shinobazu Pond in Ueno, Bentenjima

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Kokoro Ga Arawareru Budda No Kotoba
- reference : Liberal Sha / Henshu -


- reference : 心が洗われる -
- reference : kokoro arawareru -


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

達磨寺の洗心池の擬宝珠かな
Darumaji no senshin-ike no giboshi kana

the Giboshi flowers
at the Senshin Pond
of this Daruma Temple . . .


手島南天 Tejima Nanten


source : fmbo.blog84.fc2.com/blog-entry-1310

. gibooshi ギボウシ(擬宝珠) Hosta fortunei .
A mountain vegetable (sansai)
- kigo for spring -


There is also a rest place called 洗心亭 at some Daruma temples.

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繰り返すのみの洗心薫風過ぐ
香西照雉

日曜は洗心のとき梅もどき
井沢正江

洗心の一刻を措く初硯
西岡伸実



source : mayumiの一言メモメモ

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- 洗心 - To cleanse the heart / mind with some Sake !




「洗心」とは初心に戻り、人を尊びきらめき生きる様を言います。
- source : asahi-shuzo.co.jp -

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. Japan - Shrines and Temples - ABC .


[ . BACK to DARUMA MUSEUM . TOP . ]
[ . BACK to WORLDKIGO . TOP . ]
- - #senshin #darumawashingheart #kokoroarawareru #zenshin
-

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2016/03/30

Ishi Yakushi Stone

[ . BACK to DARUMA MUSEUM TOP . ]
. Yakushipedia - ABC-Index 薬師如来 .
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Ishi Yakushi 石薬師 "Stone Yakushi" and Yakushi Ishi 薬師石 "Yakushi Stone
Kasagidera 笠置寺 Kasagi-Dera Kyoto


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Ishiyakushiji 石薬師寺 Temple Ishiyakushi-Ji
1 Ishiyakushicho, Suzuka, Mie



Founded by priest Taichoo 泰澄 Taicho (681 - 767) in the Nara period. When Taicho walked here in 726, there was a groaning in the ground and a huge stone appeared. He realized that this was The Buddha of Healing trying to have a temple here to help the people.
In 796 Kobo Daishi Kukai came here and carved a statue of Yakushi.
In 1575 the buildings burned down, but was built anew in 1601 by priest 円賢法印 Enken with the support of the Lord of Kobe, 一柳監物直盛 Hitotsuyanagi Kenmotsu Naomori (1564 - 1636).

People come here to pray for good health, and also for the well-being of the family and protection from disasters.

- - - - - Pilgrim Temple at :
西国薬師第三十三番霊場 - 33 Yakushi Temples in Saikoku
三重四国番外霊場 - Mie-Shikoku Bangai Pilgrims Temples
鈴鹿七福神恵比寿霊場 - Seven Deities of Good Luck in Suzuka



- - - - - HP of the temple
- source : geocities.jp/ishiyakushiji -

- quote -
Officially, this temple is called Takatomiyama Ruriko-in Ishiyakushi-ji.
Legend has it that the temple got its name from the presence there of an image of Yakushi, the Healing Buddha, carved into a rock by Kukai (774-835), a celebrated Buddhist priest also known as Kobo Daishi.
A farming village nestles in the bosom of mountains depicted in gradations of three different tints ? indigo blue, black and green. In this landscape, the temple stands quietly among the trees. Two men carrying bundles hurry along the road leading to the temple gateway while farmers work in a dry rice field dotted with stacks of straw. These human figures, meticulously depicted, eloquently portray the idyllic aspect of rural life.
- source : tokaido53tsugi.omd-net.com -


- - - Hiroshige 広重

. The 53 stations of the Tokaido Road 東海道五十三次 .
44. Ishiyakushi-juku 石薬師宿 (Suzuka)

It is located in former Ise Province in what is now part of the city of Suzuka, Mie Prefecture, Japan.
It received its name from the nearby Buddhist temple, Ishiyakushi-ji.
Ishiyakushi-juku was established in 1616, as part of the Edo period's Tōkaidō. Originally, there had been no post stations between Yokkaichi-juku and Kameyama-juku, so Ishiyakushi-juku was formed with about 180 buildings at its inception. The Ozawa family managed the honjin in the town and kept many records, which are still available today in a local archives museum.
The classic ukiyoe print by Ando Hiroshige (Hoeido edition) from 1831-1834 depicts the temple in a grove of trees on the left and a village on the right, with a range of hills in the background.
- source : wikipedia -


. Taichō 泰澄上人 Saint Taicho Shonin / Taicho-Daishi 泰澄大師 .
Etsu no Daitoku 越の大徳 - Great Man of Virtue from Etsu
Unpen Shoonin 雲遍上人 Saint Unpen Shonin
Shiramine Daisoojo 天狗 白峰大僧正 Tengu Shiramine Daisojo


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Yakushi-Ishi, Yakushiishi 薬師石 Yakushi Stone

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Kasagidera 笠置寺 Kasagi-Dera and Pagoda
京都府相楽郡笠置町大字笠置小字笠置山29 Kyoto, Kasagiyama / Kasagizan


A stone relief of 弥勒磨崖仏 Miroku Magaibutsu






source : 8mada.at.webry.info/201504
薬師石 Yakushi Ishi

There are two big rocks involved in the naming of Kasagiyama and the temple.
When the son of Emperor Tenji Tenno 天智天皇 (626 - 671) passed here while hunting for shika 鹿 deer, he got stuck on top of the rock 薬師石 Yakushi-Ishi.
He prayed to Yama no Kami 山の神, the Deity of the Mountain :
"If you save my life, I will have the figure of 弥勒菩薩 Mikoku Bosatsu carved in this stone."
With the help of the deity he made his way back to safety.
And not ever to forget this place again, he oki 置 placed his kasa 笠 hat on a stone in the middle.

笠置 reads kasaoki "to place a hat", now shortened to Kasagi-dera.

- quote -
Short history of Kasagi Dera ( Kasagi Temple )
Kasagi Dera has a long history. About 2000 years ago, the big rocks of Kasagi Yama (Mt. Kasagi, 288 m)) were regarded as religious symbols by the people. Years ago, a part of a Yuhi-style stone sword was found in front of one of the big rocks. This particular kind of stone sword presumed to have been used in the Yayoi Period.

About 1300 years ago, people gradually settled in the Kasagi Yama area. In the years that followed, Jiichu Wajou ( Priest Jiichu ) of Toudaiji Temple and his master Ryouben Soujou ( Great Priest Ryouben ) carved the images of Buddha on the face of the big rocks. Kasagi Yama became very famous as the heart of learning Buddhism.

During the Heian Period, after Eisho 7 ( the 7th year of Eisho, in 1052), Mappo Shisou (the concept of Mappo 末法思想) spread all over Japan. Mappo Shisou is one of the Buddhist theories:2000 years after the death of Buddha, everything in the world will become worse and worse. The people of that time thought that the Mappo Period would begin in 1052. And the images of Buddha on the big rock in Kasagi Yama ( these images of Buddha are called Magaibutsu ) became the symbol of Buddhism among the people. At that time, these images were thoght to have been carved by God. Kasagi Yama became the place for spiritual training.
- snip -
On August 27th in Genkou 1 ( the 1st year of Genkou, in 1331 ), Emperor Go Daigo 後醍醐天皇, who attempted to usurp power from the Kamakura shougunate but failed, escaped into Kasagi Dera. For about a month, these was a battle between Emperor Go Daigo and the Kamakura shougunate (Kasagiyama no Tatakai 笠置山の戦い Siege of Mount Kasagiyama). At the end, Emperor Go Daigo lost and retreated to Yoshino Yama. Only the burnt ruins of Kasagi Dera remained.
- snip -
In Meiji 9 ( the 9th year of Meiji, in 1876 ), Jouei Wajou (Prist Wajou ) began to live in Kasagi Dera. He tried to rebuild the temple. After 20 years, his efforts fulfilled, Kasagi Dera was restored at last.
- continued here :

- - - - - HP of the temple 鹿鷺山 笠置寺 Shikasagizan Kasagidera
- source : kir.jp/kasagidera.html -



source : nichibun.ac.jp/meisyozue


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Kasagi Kaido 笠置街道 Kasagi Highway
From 伊賀上野 Iga Ueno to 笠置山 Kasagiyama.

Part of the
伊賀越奈良道 Igagoe Naramichi Road crossing Iga to Nara
From Ise to 伊賀国上野 Iga Ueno, including access to the
大和街道 Yamato Kaido, 伊賀街道 Iga Kaido, 奈良街道 Nara Kaido.



Legends from 誓多林町 Setarin cho town

shiroshika, hakuroku 白鹿 white deer
On the Northern clif along 新笠置街道 the new Kasagi Kaido there are two large foot imprints in the rock.
They say they are the hooves from the white deer which the deity 春日明神 Kasugai Myojin rode on his way to 鹿島 Kashima.
Another legend relates these imprints to a huge 天狗 Tengu.
Once a wicked Tengu stole 太鼓 the big drum from the temple hall 誓多林堂 Setarin Do. He had hung the drum on a branch of 松の木 a pine tree and banged on it.
The blood of the Tengu still sticks to the drum, they say.

. Kaido 街道 the highways of Japan .
. hakuroku 白鹿 white deer, white stag .
. matsu 松と伝説 Legends about the pine tree / 松の木 .
. Tengu 天狗と伝説 Tengu legends "Long-nosed Goblin" .


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Daisoojoo 笠置山大僧正 - Daisojo, Kasagizan

One of the
. 四十八天狗 48 Tengu of Japan .

According to then temple legends, during the Kamakura Period there lived an oni 鬼 Monster at this mountain, called
笠置大僧正 Kasagizan Daisojo.



There lived also a saint called Gedatsu Shoonin, Shōnin 解脱上人 Gedatsu Shonin on this mountain.

. Gedatsu Shoonin, Shōnin 解脱上人 Saint Gedatsu Shonin .
Jōkei 貞慶 Jokei (1155 - 1212)

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- further reference -


. Godaigo, Go-Daigo-tennō 後醍醐天皇 - Emperor Go-Daigo .

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笠置路に俤描く桃青忌
Kasagi ji ni omokage egaku Toosei ki

along the Kasagi road
there are traces of the past -
Green Peach Day


. 高浜虚子 Takahama Kyoshi (1874 - 1959).


. Toosei ki 桃青忌 "Green Peach Memorial Day" for Matsuo Basho .
- kigo for early winter -


葛の崖笠置の山は上に在りと
高浜年尾 Takahama Toshio


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薬師石 Yakushi Ishi

Standing before this stone memorial, silently just praying intensely to get better - will heal a person.


- source : dora-moon/entry

at 達磨寺 Daruma-Ji, Ooji, Nara
奈良県北葛城郡王寺町

. Darumaji 達磨寺 Daruma-Ji temples of Japan .

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Hyogo, 神戸市 Kobe 東灘区 Higashinada ward

. Yakushi Ishi 薬師石 A Yakushi Stone Legend .
and 石薬師 an Ishi Yakushi Legend from Shiga, Shigaraki 信楽町

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From Murakami Onsen Hot Spring, Niigata
Radium-Stones
新潟県五頭温泉郷「村杉温泉」産ラジウム鉱石 / 薬師石
日本薬石研究所 Yakuseki Kenkyujo
- reference : yakuseki-shop.jp/SHOP -


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. Yakushipedia - ABC-Index 薬師如来 .

. Yakushi Nyorai - Legends from the provinces .

. Yakushi Nyorai Pilgrimages 薬師霊場巡り - Introduction .


. O-Mamori お守り Amulets and Talismans .

. Japan - Shrines and Temples - ABC List .


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2015/12/12

Yamanaka Yakushi Gifu

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. Yakushipedia - ABC-Index 薬師如来 .
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Yamanaka Yakushi 山中薬師, Gifu
瑠璃山医王寺 Rurisan Io-Ji

岐阜県中津川市落合山中 1423-2 / Gifu, Nakatsu, Ochiai, Yamanaka



It is also known as
mushifuuji no Yakushi 虫封じの薬師 "Yakushi warding off the three worms".

The old buildings were lost in fire and it was reconstructed by the Jodo sect in 1544.

Visitors and pilgrims come from all parts of Japan.
The main statue of Yakushi was carved by 行基 Gyoki.

It is also known for its medicine to heal wounds, the 狐膏薬 Fox Medicine.

The main lodging of Ochiai village is run by the 本陣井口家 Iguchi family.
It is said a traveller was told the secret of the medicine by the deity 秋葉大明神 Akiba Daimyojin.



. mushifuuji 虫封じ amulets to ward off the "Three Worms" .

. Akiba Gongen 秋葉権現 the Akiba Deity .


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There is also a memorial stone with a haiku by Matsuo Basho in the back garden:

ume ga ka ni notto hi no deru yamaji kana
. 梅が香にのっと日の出る山路かな .

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- reference -

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One of the three great Yakushi temples of Japan 日本三薬師:

. Hooraiji 鳳来寺 Horai-Ji Yakushi, Mikawa, Aichi .

. Kani Yakushi 蟹薬師 "Crab Yakushi" at 願興寺 Ganko-Ji . - Gifu

. Yamanaka Yakushi 山中薬師 - 瑠璃山医王寺 Rurisan Io-Ji . - Gifu

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- Further Information -

中津川 Nakatsugawa was a postal station along the 中山道 Nakasendo Road. On the road toward Magome was the next station, the small hamlet of 落合 Ochiai.

山中薬師の狐膏薬伝説 Yamanaka Yakushi and the legend of the Fox Medicine

ズイトンさんの狐膏薬 The legend of Zuiton san and the Fox Medicine

Once upon a time
there lived an old monk at the temple, called ズイトンさん Zuiton san.
Once he was working in the garden when a fox appeared who looked rather painful. When he picked him up, he saw a large thorn in the leg of the fox. Zuiton san pulled it out and the fox suddenly seemed to smile at Zuiton san. Then he walked back into the mountain forest.



A few evenings later
he heard a sound at the entrance door and when he opened he saw the fox. The fox wanted to show his gratitude by teaching Zuiton san how to make good medicine cream.

まず、マムシグサの根っこのまあるい奴をすり潰す。そこへオオバコの種とキツネノマゴの葉をすり潰して混ぜる。次はモーチを入れて良く練り合わせる。それと油を布切れに塗り付けて、痛いところに張れば、たちどころに痛みが取れます.

(Other versions talk about the fox appearing in the dream of Zuiton san, teaching him.)
Zuiton san made the cream as told and put some on his back, which always hurt him. And in no time his pain was healed. Zuiton san was overjoyed.

He put up a sign 御夢想狐こうやく (Fox Medicine given in a Dream) and began to sell it. The villagers came and soon buyers from other parts of Japan showed up in a never-ending row.



In a similar legend, a fox in the disguise of a running messenger 飛脚 taught how to make the medicine, then called
Tokusan no kitsune kooyaku 徳さんの狐膏薬


source and more photos : saikoro0438/nakasendo

- reference : jimy1700 -
- reference : ja-higashimino.or.jp/book -

. kitsune densetsu 狐 伝説 fox legends .
- Introduction -

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- quote -
Ochiai-juku (落合宿 Ochiai-juku) was the forty-fourth of the sixty-nine stations of the Nakasendō.



It is located in the present-day city of Nakatsugawa, Gifu Prefecture, Japan. The honjin and the sub-honjin, as well as some old street lights, remain from the Edo period. The Honjin were the main rest areas in old post towns and very few remain today.
There are ten hills that must be traversed to get to Ochiai-juku from the preceding post town of Magome-juku.
- source : wikipedia -


. Nakasendō 中山道 The Nakasendo Road .

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Join the friends on facebook !


. Yakushipedia - ABC-Index 薬師如来 .

. Yakushi Nyorai - Legends from the provinces .

. Yakushi Nyorai Pilgrimages 薬師霊場巡り - Introduction .


. O-Mamori お守り Amulets and Talismans .

. Japan - Shrines and Temples - ABC List .


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2015/06/10

Four Word Zen Teachings

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Four-word Zen Teachings 四字禅語 yoji zengo

. Koan and Haiku 公案と俳句 .
- Introduction -

- quote
四字禅語集 100 Zen Teachings in Four Words

shooken 正見(しょうけん)
shooyui 正思惟(しょうしゆい) 
shoogo 正語(しょうご)
shoogoo 正業(しょうごう)
shoomyoo 正命(しょうみょう)
shooshoojin 正精進(しょうしょうじん)
shoonen 正念(しょうねん)
shoojoo 正定(しょうじょう)

- - - - -  extensive resource in Japanese
- source : 四字禅語集


Japanese-English Glossary of Zen Terms
Compiled by Gábor Terebess
- source : Terebess Online -

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A55
泥多佛大(どろおおければほとけだいなり)
doro ookereba hotoke dai nari

時々、不思議な意味を持つ言葉に出遭う。この「泥多ければ佛大なり」もその分野に入る言葉である。泥とは煩悩であり、煩悩が多ければそれだけ悟りも大きいと言っている。私達は佛になるのには、煩悩という迷いを持っていてはいけないと理解している。この理解を土台ごとひっくりかえしてしまう言葉である。佛教では、迷いが多いということは、それだけ努力しているのだと考える。自分の欠点に気づくということは、それを直したい自分があるということである。迷いや煩悩がないということは、自分に対しての反省もないのである。私達は物事に失敗したときは、何故失敗したのだろうかと、反省をする。そして「不運」とか「幸運」という言葉にいき当たる。私が失敗したのは不運だった。彼が成功したのは幸運だったという言葉である。しかし、待ってください。
「不運だ」「不幸だ」と嘆いても、人間の都合で勝手に善いものと悪いものに振り分けているのだ。自分を中心とした身勝手な嘆きといえる。結局、「不運」「不幸」も私達自身の心が作り出した「幻影」に過ぎないのである。自分で作り出した「幻影」に腹を立て、イライラしているようである。幻影に惑わされない方法如何なるものかと、考えを進めなければならない。一言で言うと「感謝」という言葉に代表される。血気盛んな青春時代は、自分を中心に世の中が回っていると思っている。社会へ出て、一つ一つ壁にぶち当たり、、挫折しなければ、本当の意味の感謝は理解出来ないであろう。皆のおかげで自分が存在していること、目に見えない「ご縁」に対しても感謝が出来る心を持ちたいものである。

doro ookereba hotoke dai nari
mizu maseba fune takashi

Much mud will make a larger Buddha
with much water your boat will ride high.

The One Taste of Truth: Zen and the Art of Drinking Tea
By William Scott Wilson
Mud and water here symbolize adversity. The more clay or mud, the bigger and more impressive the Buddhist statue will be; as water increases, your boat will ride high above the river bottom. Thus, the more your confusion, the more your despair (if you continue and work hard), the deeper your enlightenment, the more exquisite your skills will be.
- source : www.slideshare.net -


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身心脱落とは坐禅なり
Dropping off body and mind is zazen.



Skeleton Performing Zazen on Waves, Maruyama Okyo
(Daijoji Temple, Hyogo, Japan)

Ōkyo’s “Skeleton”, Not Performing Zazen;
Reflections on the Iconography of the Daijōji’s kyakuden
Beatrice Shoemaker
Ōkyo's "Skeleton" may have been the first anatomically accurate skeleton depicted in a lotus position, but skeletons had a long and bifurcated history in Japanese iconology. Ōkyo's innovative depiction rested on shasei, the realism he adopted from rangaku, Western studies [...]. Until the first officially authorised dissection of a human corpse, performed in Kyoto in 1754 by the physician Yamawaki Tōyō, published as the  Zōshi 蔵志 Anatomical Record in 1759, knowledge of human anatomy had rested exclusively on Chinese medical treatises. [...]
The visual dissonance between the naturalistic skeleton and the traditional, Song inspired waves would have shocked the non-metropolitan viewer, who might not have easy access to Sugita Denpaku's Kaitai Shinsho [another rangaku anatomical work]. Ōkyo effectively uses the latest scientific findings to represent what is left once all that is transient, from human passions to the various processes of aging, disease and decay, have been stripped away.
- source : www.academia.edu -

- reference -

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. Japan - Shrines and Temples - ABC .


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- - #gokurakuzenteachings #fourwordzenteachings #zenteachings -
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2015/05/20

Yakushi Legends Tokyo

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. Yakushipedia - ABC-Index 薬師如来 .
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Yakushi Nyorai 薬師如来 the Buddha of Medicine - Bhaisajyaguru
Legends from Tokyo / Edo  東京 - 江戸と薬師さん 

- and
Tako Yakushi 蛸薬師 Octopus Yakushi  

Spelled 多幸薬師 TA KO Yakushi for a lot of happiness and good luck.

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. Kinegawa Yakushi 木下川薬師 Yakushi from Kinegawa .
- Kigegawa Yakushi Engi - misspelling of Kinegawa

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三宅島 三宅村 Mitake Island

Yakushi Sama no kara neko 薬師様のカラ猫

When a child cries and mother does not know what to do about it, she tells it
"Here comes the karaneko cat of Yakushi Sama!".
、薬師様のカラ猫だぞ

karaneko 唐猫 ?

. Neko Yakushi 猫薬師 Yakushi Nyorai and the Cat .


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. Tako Yakushi 目黒の蛸薬師 Octopus Yakushi in Meguro, Edo .
多幸薬師 TA KO Yakushi for a lot of happiness and good luck

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- - - - - and one more Tako Yakushi in Kyoto

Tako Yakushidō (Octopus Yakushi Hall), Eifukuji Temple 永福寺 (lit. = Temple of Eternal Fortune), Kyoto
浄瑠璃山林秀院永福寺 - 京都市中京区新京極蛸薬師東側町503


- quote -
The temple originally stood in Nijo Muromachi and was founded in 1181. The engi, retold in the temple's pamphlet, informs believers about the miraculous origins of the temple.



In the Muromachi ward of Kyoto lived a rich man who shaved his head and sought his refuge in the Yakushi Buddha of Enryakuji on Mt Hiei 比叡山. Year after year, he made monthly pilgrimages to this Buddha. But as the years went by, he became old and weak, and one day, he spoke in front of the Yakushi Buddha:

"I am getting too old to continue my practice of monthly pilgrimages. Please let me have your image to place in my home, Lord Yakushi!"

After uttering this wish, the devout believer descended from Mt Hiei. That night, the Yakushi Buddha appeared to him in a dream and spoke: "In a certain place, a stone Yakushi statue carved by St Dengyo 伝教大師 [i.e. Saicho 最澄, the founder of Enryakuji and Tendai Buddhism] himself has been buried. You can take that home."

Full of joy, the next day the wealthy man climbed the mountain and when he dug in the indicated spot he indeed found a holy image hewn from stone that emitted a wondrous light.

He took this image home and built a hall of six by four bays for it. This temple was called Eifukuji, or Temple of Eternal Bliss, and it greatly flourished and young and old, men and women, flocked in great numbers to the temple to pay their respects.

In the Kencho period (1249-56) of Emperor Gofukakusa 後深草天皇 (1243 - 1304) there lived a monk called Zenko 善光 in this temple. It happened at one time that his mother fell ill. Although he took good care of her, she did not recover and spoke from her bed to Zenko: "If only I could eat some octopus (tako タコ), I like that so much from since I was young, that my illness might get better!"

Zenko was not allowed to buy octopus, a living being, for a meal because he was a Buddhist monk and therefore he was greatly distressed. Still, the thought of his sick mother was stronger than his awe for the precepts, so he took a wooden box in his arms and went to the market to find an octopus.

When he walked back, some people became suspicious that he, a monk, had bought a living creature for food and they followed him all the way to the gate of his temple, pressing him to show what was in the box. Zenko could not refuse and prayed with all his heart to the Lord Buddha: "I have only bought this octopus to help my mother recover from her illness. Lord Yakushi, please help me out of this difficulty!"

When he opened the box, the eight-legged octopus had been transformed into a set of eight sutra scrolls お経の巻物 and a light shone from them in all four directions.



The people who saw this all pressed their hands together in prayer and sang the praises of the Lord Yakushi, the Buddha of the Lapis Lazuli Paradise.

Strangely enough, the scriptures turned again into an octopus who then jumped into the pond in front of the temple where he changed into the form of the Yakushi Buddha. He emitted a green Lapis Lazuli light and when this struck the head of Zenko's mother her illness was immediately healed. She rose from her bed and in a loud voice sang the praises of the Lapis Lazuli Buddha, over and over again.

Thus the temple came to be known as Octopus Yakushi. From then on, when people visited and prayed for relief from illness, they immediately were healed; when women prayed for children, they were blessed with offspring; and all difficulties and problems were eliminated.

This reached the ears of His Majesty the Emperor and in 1441 the temple received an Imperial License. Since then prayers have been said here for bountiful harvests, the Emperor's long life, and the peace of the nation. When one prays ardently for divine protection, no wish is left unfulfilled: in the present world the seven ills are immediately dispelled and the seven blessings immediately granted.
- source : Ad Blankestijn -


To our day, the octopus is featured at the temple at the Yakushi Hall 蛸薬師堂
to rub for healing.



nade Yakushi なで薬師 Yakishi to be rubbed

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ema 絵馬 votive tablets
ema 絵馬 votive tablets
- source : yaplog.jp/emain -


CLICK for more photos !


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oboosan to tako お坊さんとタコ The priest and the octopus

Once upon a time
a priest on a trip was walking along the beach, when suddenly a large octopus came out of the waves and pleaded "Please let me be your student"!
So the priest took the octopus out of the water and carried it with him on his trip.

By nightfall the priest had completely lost his way. To ask for a shelter he knocked at a farmhouse. The owner was a man with bitter face, but when he realized the priest was carrying a delicious-looking octopus, he let them in.

While the priest was chanting the sutras for Yakushi Nyorai, the farmer prepared a very hot bath and tried to throw the octopus in it. Just at that time the priest interrupted his chanting with a loud shout of "Pay Attention"「喝!」 KATSU! and the clever octopus made his escape from the hot bath, while the farmer looked quite perplexed.
Next morning the priest and his octopus companion continued their trip safely.

The farmer, who had not gotten his delicious boiled octopus last night, was mubemling to himself and then tried to get into the hot bath himself. Just then - out of the bathtub came the large legs of an octopus and tired to suck at the body of the farmer.
This octopus was in fact Yakushi Nyorai, to whom the priest had prayed the night before.
Yakushi San begun to suck out all the bad intentions of the man's heart and attitude.



The farmer became quite a gentle caring man, after Yakushi san had sucked out his all maliciuos intentions.
And the trip of the priest and his octopus companion continued.



source : hinoki-diary.blogspot.jp

delicious Tako wafers with sweet filling 明石銘菓:たこ最中


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kuruma kaeshi no O-Yakushi san 車返のお薬師さん Yakushi who brought the car to a stop

In the time of the Kamakura Shogunate 鎌倉幕府 (1192 - 1333) they were transporting the statue of Yakushi Nyorai お薬師さん from 奥州平泉 Hiraizumi far away in Tohoku to Kamakura.
On their way, when they passes Shiraito 白糸の地, the cart suddenly became very heavy and did not move any more.
So the drivers decided to leave the statue here and built a small Hall for it.
They say that Yakushi had choosen this region of Shiraito for his stay.


- still trying to locate the Shiraito 白糸 -

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Repairing a Yakushi statue from the Edo period



薬師如来立像(江戸時代)の現状・保存修復
http://buddha-statue.at.webry.info/200901/article_1.html


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- - - - - reference - - - - -

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

- source : manga nihon mukashibanashi -

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Join the friends on facebook !


. Yakushipedia - ABC-Index 薬師如来 .

. Yakushi Nyorai - Legends from the provinces .

. Yakushi Nyorai Pilgrimages 薬師霊場巡り - Introduction .


. O-Mamori お守り Amulets and Talismans .

. Japan - Shrines and Temples - ABC List .


[ . BACK to DARUMA MUSEUM . TOP . ]
[ . BACK to WORLDKIGO . TOP . ] - - - #yakushilegendstokyo #yakushitokyolegends #takoyakushi #yakushitako - - -
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