2021 has come. On New Year’s mornings there are many clear skies every year, but this year it was especially clear, and the sun’s rays were shining brightly. 2020 was a difficult year for mankind. I prayed for the first sunrise of the year. I look forward to working with you again this year.
Chigasaki Beach on New Year’s Eve had a clear air and the last sunset and sunset of the year was very vivid. There were so many people on the beach that they watched the last sunset of the year. I wish you all the best next year. Thank you for stopping by the chigasaki Sunset Museum this year. I look forward to working with you again next year.
That is the 18th temple of Shikoku exceptional Sacred Sites.Its principal image is Seikanzeonbosatsu and its founder was Kobo Daishi. According to temple legend, this temple is the birthplace of Tamayori Gozen, Kobo Daishi’s mother. Behind the main hall is the Seto Inland Sea. I was comforted for a while by the calm view of the sea after a long time. At the temple gate, local sumo wrestlers greeted me instead of Nio statues. From the main hall to Daishi-do called Oku-no-in, cross the JR Yosan Line. Hydrangeas float on the chozubachi in Okunoin and it is beautiful.
I enjoyed the Koharubiyori of Mt. Azuma in late autumn. Mt. Azuma near Ninomiya Station on the JR Tokaido Line is a small mountain 136 meters above sea level with a wonderful view overlooking Tanzawa, Fuji, Hakone, Izu Peninsula, Oshima, Miura Peninsula and Sagami Bay. How is Chami, the idol cat of Mt. Azuma in Scottish Fold walking up to the top of the mountain? It was a beautiful sunset.
Ritto has come again this year. It is said that the day of 24 divisions of the old calendar is the day when autumn reaches its climax and the sign of winter begins to appear. From now until the first day of spring is winter. The day before the first day of winter, the Chigasaki Beach saw a spectacular sunset that seemed to welcome the first day of winter.
In October, there were two full moons in a month at the beginning and the end of the month. The first one was the harvest moon of the first day and the second one was on the 31st. It is rare for a full moon to occur twice a month, but once every two or three years. The second full moon is called a Blue moon. I watched the full moon climbing toward Kamakura from the bank of Chigasaki fishing port.
Autumn has advanced, and it is the season of frosting of 24 sekki. It is said that it is the time when dew is cooled by cold air and falls as frost, but today’s Chigasaki is blessed with good weather and many fishing boats are out. The air was becoming clearer and the sunset more vivid. The sunset is beautiful.
That is the 17th temple of Shikoku exceptional Sacred Sites.Its principal image is Yakushi Nyorai and its founder was Kobo Daishi. It is said to have been built by Kobo Daishi with the reward he received when he renovated the Manno-ike pond on the order of Emperor Saga. It is about 25 kilometers from Hagiwara-ji Temple, which is the 16 temple of the special sacred ground. Although it is a small temple, it is surrounded by greenery and has a charm. A statue of this temple Kobo Daishi on a small hill watched over the Manno-ike Pond in the rain. The Manno-ike, which I visited after a long time, was still beautiful and large. It is surprising that the flood control system that Kobo Daishi devised 1,200 years ago still exists today. I ate udon with healthy vegetables while looking at the pond at ‘Karintei’ near Mannoike. From the bank of the pond you can see the streets of Tadotsu and the Seto Inland Sea.
Today is the day of the harvest moon in 2020. According to the lunar calendar, the sky is the clearest and the moon is bright and beautiful in this period of the year. As the name suggests, the beautiful moon rose on the Chigasaki Beach, entertaining the visitors.
That is the 75 th temple of Shikoku 88temple pilgrimage.After Kobo Daishi returned to Japan from Tang, he built the temple on the land donated by his father, SAEKI no Yoshimichi, imitating the Qinglong Temple in Changan, China, where his master, Keika Osho, lived. The head temple of the Zentsuji School of the Shingon Sect is said to be the birthplace of Kobo Daishi and the principal image is Yakushi Nyorai. The monastery is huge with majestic buildings and trees such as the Kondo, the five-storied pagoda, and the Nandaimon gate, and is about 1.5 kilometers away from Kozan-ji Temple. I stayed at this temple’s temple lodgings for two nights and attended the morning service every day. The view of the sunset from the shukubo(temple lodgings) is wonderful. It is quite different from other fudasho temples.
