Utatsuyama is the quietest and oldest of the temple districts in Kanazawa sporting 100 temples. After today, we have 96 to go. You won’t find any crowds in this neck of the woods. No cutesy cafes or souvenir shops.
In Utatsuyama, nestled in the foothills of the Japanese Alps, is Shinjoji Temple. A bit of a climb into the hills and then a few flights of stone stairs brought us into the quiet temple courtyard. We poked around for a bit and then Grubb plopped down on a bench. It looked like the main hall was locked up and he needed a rest.
I was exploring the courtyard when two young women came up the steps and slid open the door to the main hall. Ohhhhh. One young woman turned and waved at me to come on in. Jai was her name, at least that’s what I think she said. Jai explained that this temple is known for events where people bring cherished objects they don’t need but can’t quite get rid of. Jai said she does tea ceremonies as her life’s work and would be handling the tea ceremony at the upcoming *discard* event. She’d come to check the tea room in the temple to make sure everything was ready. She introduced me to the wife of the priest, told me to look around, and went off to scout the tearoom.
The temple is dedicated to protection of children and is a place to grieve the loss of dead children.
Here is the explanation from the signage:
“This temple is dedicated to Kishimojin, a female Buddhist deity associated with protection of children, fertility, easy delivery, happy child-rearing, and the well-being and safety of a family. The Kishimojin worshiped in this temple is Koyasu Kishimojin（子安鬼子日神）with a merciful countenance.
Offerings made to the temple include hishaku (tik), hyakutoku（百徳）, semamori（背守 ），and senbazuru（干羽鶴）.
A woman who wants to be blessed with a child offers a hishaku ,or a ladle, and prays that she will be given a healthy baby. A hishaku is symbolic of scooping up a baby. When a baby is born, she offers hyakutoku, a patchwork baby kimono, made of small pieces of kimono fabric collected from many people, and prays for health and longevity of the baby. Hyakutoku is designated as an Important National Folk Cultural Asset.
Semamori, or “back protection”, is an amulet stitched onto the top of the back of a child’s kimono. It is believed that devils come from behind and that semamori protects the child from them. Senbazuru, or a string of a thousand origami cranes, is offered as a prayer for child’s good health.
Kishimojin (Hariti) Kishimojin had 500 children of her own, whom she loved very much, but she abducted and devoured the children of others. The Buddha kidnapped and hid Kishimojin’s youngest child whom she loved most. She searched for the missing child desperately, and finally came to the Buddha for help. The Buddha said that if she grieved for having lost one child out of 500, could she imagine the grief of those parents whose only child had been abducted? Thanks to the teachings of the Buddha, she understood and vowed to protect children. From then on Kishimojin became the protector of children and women in childbirth.”