What else is there in Shiga besides Lake Biwa?

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Tokyoite Masako Shirasu describes her impressions of Shiga in her essay "Konoji":

For me, who had many chances to visit Kansai when I was growing up, Omi is an extremely intimate place. Soon after passing through Gifu, the train entered the mountains. Soon, as soon as Ibuki Mountain appeared on my right near Sekigahara, my heart leapt with excitement. A definite feeling came over me: I have come to Kansai. As soon as I crossed the Yamato-e-like hills and came to the plains, Lake Biwa loomed in the clouds and Mt. There were many times when the top was covered with snow. Next was Mount Hiei, and then Kyoto. Although I had seen the scenery dozens, no, hundreds of times, I had only glimpsed it from the train window, and for a long time Konoha was an unknown world to me.

I went to Shiga in the opposite direction from her. Instead, I took the JR Tokaido Main Line eastbound from Kyoto Station and passed through the Fungsakayama Tunnel with a void in my ears. Out of the tunnel, it was soon Yamashina. Next is Otsu, Zenso, Ishiyama, Seta, Minami-Kusatsu, and Kusatsu. Otsu was the capital of Shiga Prefecture, close to Kyoto City, easily accessible by public transportation, and sitting on Lake Biwa and Mount Hiei, with beautiful scenery. Many people who work in Kyoto and Osaka choose to live here. Kusatsu is known as an industrial city in Shiga Prefecture, and many large corporations choose to locate their branches in Shiga Prefecture here because the capital, Otsu, is so close to Kyoto. As the car passes through Kusatsu, an idyllic landscape gradually appears outside the window, and the mood is relaxed.

Although Shiga is close to Kyoto, there are only a handful of cities that are easily accessible by public transportation. For example, the famous Miho Museum of Art, located deep in the mountains of Shigaracho Town, Koga City, is a day to go back and forth from Kyoto to Ishiyama Station, and then change buses with few departures. On a day off in mid-February this year, I wanted to travel with the week. If you have an old cat to take care of at home, it's best to make a day trip. Looking at the "Three Mountains of Hunan" in Hunan City, Shiga Prefecture, the three Tendai temples established in the Nara period have been selected, and there are many national treasures and important cultural properties. When I asked Kaori if she wanted to go along, she had something to do that day, so she arranged for her mother to accompany us by car. We didn't have to rush according to the public transport routes we had checked in advance, and we were able to take a leisurely tour.

Lake Biwa, Japan's largest freshwater lake, is located in Shiga, and is roughly divided into four areas: Hunan, Hubei, Kosai, and Koto. In the mountains southeast of Lake Biwa, there is an area called Koga, which is adjacent to Kyoto Prefecture and Mie Prefecture. In 740 AD, after the Fujiwara Hirotsugu Rebellion, Emperor Shomu moved his capital to Kyoshikyo (present-day Kamo District, Kizugawa City, Kyoto Prefecture). In 742, the Imperial Palace was built in the village of Shikaraku, Koga County, Omi Province, which is the "Zikaraku Palace" that frequently appears in the "Continuation of the Japanese Chronicles":

In August of the 14th year of Tianping (742), "the edict said, I will be fortunate in the village of Zixiangle in Koga County, Omi Province."
In the 14th year of Tianping (742), August Jihai, "Xingxing Zixiangle Palace...... On the same day, the car drove to the Zixiangle Palace".
In the fifteenth year of Tianping (743), in July, "Xingxing Zixiangle Palace".
On the afternoon of October in the fifteenth year of Tianping (743), "the twenty-five countries of the East China Sea, Dongshan, and Hokuriku three provinces, this year's adjustment and other things, all ordered tribute to the Zixiangle Palace."
In the fifteenth year of Tianping (743), in October, "the emperor of the Imperial Purple Xiangle Palace, in order to enshrine the statue of Lushena Buddha." The first temple ground. Therefore, Master Xingji led his disciples and others to persuade the people."
In November of the fifteenth year of Tianping (743), "the emperor returned to the Gongren Palace, and the car drove even the purple fragrance music, where the April Yan".

However, at the beginning of the construction of the Zixiangle Palace, it suffered frequent earthquakes and wildfires, and was regarded as ominous. In 745 AD, Emperor Shomu returned to Heijokyo. At that time, the Zixiangle Palace was "empty and unoccupied, full of thieves, and the fire was not extinguished", and it had become a ruined capital. The Great Buddha, which was originally planned to be built in Koga, was also transferred to Nara, where it became the Great Buddha of Todai-ji Temple. Why did you build a capital city deep in the mountains of Koga? The fog of history shrouds us. It is possible that Emperor Shomu wanted to move away from the Fujiwara clan, which controlled the Yamato region, and the Tachibana clan, which occupied the area around Kyoshikyo, and tried to unite the forces of high-ranking monks such as Ryoban and Gyoki to open up a new territory based on Buddhist beliefs in the deep mountains of Koga.

Ryokan (689-774) was a monk of the Huayan sect in the Nara period, and there is a biography in the second volume of the Yuan Heng Shishu (Yuan Heng Shi Shu) by the Huguan Shilian:

Shi Liangban, surnamed Baekje, is a native of Shiga (or Sangshu) in Jinshu. His mother prayed for the statue of Guanyin. When he was two years old, his mother Sangyan put her son in the shade of the tree, and suddenly the big eagle fell and caught her child. The mother was sad and longed to go to the vulture, and did not return home. At the beginning, Nanjing Yiyuan Yi Spring Shrine, see the vulture bird in the wild, will be a child. The vultures avoided the people when they saw them, and returned from the abyss. He went to school at the age of five, and he knew everything he knew. Slightly longer, the Yuan taught Xiangzong, and received the Huayan Decree from the Cixun Master. ……

"The surname is Baekje", that is, the people of the Korean Peninsula. "Nanjing" is another name for Nara, because it is in the south of Kyoto, and it is also known as "Nandu". Yoshibuchi was a monk of the Hosho sect in the Nara period, and Jixun was a monk of the Kagan sect in the Nara period. Ryokan was trusted by Emperor Shomu and was the founding patriarch of Todai-ji Temple. At the time of the construction of Todai-ji Temple, he collected wood from the Omi area at Ishiyama-ji Temple in present-day Otsu and transported it to Nara via the Uji River. There are many temples in the Shiga area that were founded by good grass, such as Togarkuji Temple and Changshouji Temple in the three mountains of Hunan, which are said to have been built for the "ghost gate" of the Purple Xiangle Palace, and are also known as West Temple and East Temple. The term "Onimon" originated in China and has a unique development in Japan, referring to the northeast direction where ghosts enter and exit. For example, for Miyagi in Heiankyo, the Enryakuji Temple of Mt. Hiei to the northeast played a role in suppressing the onimon. Judging from the map, Changle Temple and Changshou Temple are located more than ten kilometers north of the ruins of Zixiangle Palace, which makes people reverie. Nowadays, many old houses in Kyoto are still planted with trees that are said to ward off evil spirits, such as Nantenzhu and Hiiragi. I also see Nantianzhu in the corners around my house, I was puzzled at first, and then a local friend said, it seems that the previous owner of this house is very particular about the ghost door. Only then did he suddenly respect the local customs and did not uproot the overly dense Nantian bamboo.

Mt. Mikami in Shiga is known as "Omi Fuji”

The three-storied pagoda of Togarkuji Temple

There is a shallow stream bridge in front of the temple, and the abbot collects money to buy tickets at the entrance. Later, I learned that it was necessary to make an appointment in advance to visit here, because the abbot went to the homes of the believers from time to time to recite scriptures or go to other temples to help, and the village was always seriously understaffed. Although the area of the temple is not large, there are two national treasures, the main hall and the three-storied pagoda. If you climb the stone steps next to the main hall, you will come to the bottom of the three-storied pagoda. Behind the main hall is a hillside, and there are stone Buddhas of the 33 places of the Western Kingdom on the side of the road. After descending the mountain, enter through the side entrance of the main hall to see the Buddha statue. Bright red warning signs were everywhere, such as "No Shooting", "No Touching", "Put the camera in your bag", "There is a camera here, if you misbehave, you will be immediately caught and asked to leave", which is quite surprisingly harsh.

The main hall of Togarkuji Temple and the three-storied pagoda

Many temples in Kyoto also don't allow photos of Buddha statues in the temple, but most of the warnings are over. I have the impression that the tips in the Yuande Temple of the Luoxi Bao Bodhi Temple are harsh enough, to the effect that the Buddha statue also has the right to portraiture, and how much is the fine for secretly taking a photo. The dense warning words and tense atmosphere of Changle Temple should be the first time I have seen it. I wondered if there had been something unpleasant in the temple in the past, and I saw the twenty-eight people standing in front of the Sumeru altar to explain that there was no abbot in the temple for a period of time, and there were several large theft accidents. In 1981, the main hall was burglarized, and the whereabouts of the three Buddha statues of the god of wind, the asura, and the maharaja were unknown, and only one of the asura was later recovered. The Buddha statue's location board has two red letters indicating that it reads "stolen" in parentheses. It's sad. Where was it stolen? More than forty years ago, there were no cameras. Since it has not appeared in any museums and art galleries for the time being, it may still be in the hands of individuals. How can you steal three huge Buddha statues in one go? Maybe it's an acquaintance. Thinking so crankily, I don't have the heart to look at the Buddha statue carefully. When I walked out of the main hall, I saw a crooked walker hall with a log on the right side, and a wooden sign hanging on the door: "The statues of the servants and the statues of the Buddhas have been stolen." The hall was empty. "I'm used to seeing temples in Kyoto that have been restored for a long time, and I can't help but feel sympathy for the cultural heritage that is in such a bleak state.

The sad ink book notice of Togarkuji Temple

In recent years, due to the aging of the population and the shortage of manpower in temples, there have been many accidents of theft of Buddha statues in Japan. In 2018, the Buddha statue was stolen from Kazoji Temple in Tanabe City, Wakayama and Fanyin Temple in Shirahama Town, Nishimulo County, but the case was later solved and the Buddha statue was recovered, and the prisoners were antique dealers and an unemployed vagrant. In June 2021, the statue of the Tsukito Son was stolen from the Honji Temple in Kamigyo Ward, Kyoto; In January of the following year, someone found that the Buddha statue was on Yahoo Auction, and the abbot hurried to participate in the auction online, but the price became higher and higher, so he had to call the police. Fortunately, the antique dealer returned the Buddha statue, and soon the police caught the thief. This is evident in the difficulty of safeguarding cultural heritage.

In front of the mountain gate of Changshou Temple

We lamented what happened to Togarkuji Temple and worried about the fate of the temple in the middle of nowhere. Then go to the longevity temple not far away, the atmosphere is much more relaxed, and I also see a few tourists. There are abundant plants here, and each of them has a handwritten name tag. The main hall is also a National Treasure, and there are several Buddha statues that have been designated as Important Cultural Properties. Another room was opened, and the dolls of the Daughter's Day on March 3 were placed on the black lacquered tablet, which looked quite old. The people in the temple are well versed in the way of publicity, especially saying that you can take photos here, welcome to post them on the Internet. The glossy flat plate looks like a pool of water, reflecting the dolls, which is beautiful in the photo.

The main hall of Chojoji Temple

When leaving, I asked if I had published a catalogue or postcard and wanted to buy some back. The abbot apologized that the catalogue was not available, but there was a set of home-printed postcards of the Buddha statue that could be given to us, and each of us was given a small folder with the words "Longevity Temple" printed on it.

Plaque of the main hall of Changshou Temple, book mountain number "Ah Xing Mountain”

Both Changle Temple and Changshou Temple are Axing Mountain, and their names originate from the Axing Temple that protects the ghost gate of the Zixiangle Palace. According to the "Omi Province Togarkuji Rebuilding Persuasion into the Account" cloud:

In the middle of the Yuan Ming Emperor's Imperial Court and the Bronze Year, Jinsu Bodhisattva newly opened up the spiritual land of Dayue in Dangjun (Jiahe), and built the essence of Buddhism and Taoism. The Buddha Pavilion is solid, the hall of the number of Yu, the monk's room is combined, the window of five thousand is opened, and the number is Zi Axing Temple. And the demon wind together, the moment of the sudden invasion of the flames, the thousand hands and thousands of eyes for the spirit of the temple Buddha also, flying into the void to the ground, eleven sides of the Buddha of the place, divided with the stone altar and the seat. Since then, the benefits of the two saints have been mutually beneficial, and the fortunes of all people have been carried out.

The destruction of Axing Temple by fire also coincides with the mountain fire encountered by the Yunzixiangle Palace mentioned above. At the beginning, the grand scene of "the palace of the universe" and "the window of the five thousand" is no longer there, and only the special mountain name of Ah Xing is left for people to remember. Jorakuji Temple and Changshouji Temple can also be regarded as the descendants of Asei Temple.

The main hall of Zensuiji Temple and the pond on the side

Zensuiji Temple is located north of the Yasu River and is said to have been built in the Nara period and the Bronze period to guard the country's Buddhist dojo, also known as Watong Temple. In the early Heian period, Master Mosumi came to the temple and prayed for rain with Yakushi Nyorai as the deity, and changed the place into a temple of the Tendai sect and served as an annex to Enryakuji Temple. The scale of this place is very large, and it is even more spectacular than the Toshiji Temple, and it is said that there were 26 pagodas in the past.

A plaque at the entrance to the main hall of Zensuiji Temple

When you enter the main hall, the abbot will sit down in the main hall and explain the history of the temple, the overhaul of the Buddha statue in 1906, and the ancient rice grains found inside the Buddha statue at that time. Some of these rice grains have been successfully cultivated, and after more than 1,000 years, rice ears have been produced, which are enshrined in front of the Buddha. The abbot also led us to the lower corridor to look at the Gensan Master Hall opposite the pond, and described in detail the relationship between Zensuiji Temple and Enryakuji Temple on Mt. Hiei, saying that Sutsumi had offered the sacred water in the temple to the sick Emperor Huanmu, and the illness was immediately cured, and the emperor gave the temple the name "Zensui". It is also said that the temples in the Shiga area have been under the influence of Mt. Hiei since ancient times, so most of them belong to the Tendai sect. The abbot is proficient in the history of the temple and talks elegantly, and when he saw that I knew the statue of the Yuansan master posted on the door, he explained in detail the belief of the Yuansan master in the area of Mt. Hiei.

The three mountains of Hunan are famous for their autumn leaves, and they are only lively in November and February every year, and most of them are local residents. When we went, it was the off-season, and there were not many people in the mountains, so it was a kind of quiet state. The three mountains in the east of the lake are also Tiantai temples, and the red leaves are also famous.

The fine moon seen in the territory of Nanzenji Temple

At dusk, we said goodbye at Yeshu Station. Passing through Yamashina, it's very close to downtown Kyoto, but it's usually just passing by and rarely stops to visit. I got off the bus temporarily, and wanted to go to the Bishamen Hall of the Tiantai Sect to have a look. However, in winter, the monastery closes early and does not catch up. Then take the subway back to Keshang, pass through the territory of Nanchan Temple, and hear the water gurgling in the mountains. The moon appears in the clear twilight, and red and white plum blossoms bloom along the way. In her essays, Masako Shirasu repeatedly praised the beauty of Omi's scenery and the richness of historical sites, which resonated with me as the backdrop of the history of Nara and Kyoto. In used bookstores in Kyoto, there are often "Shiga books" next to the "Kyoto Hon" section, which shows the interest and affection of Kyoto people in Omi Province.

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