Located in the Chubu region of Japan, Ryumyoji Town in Ishikawa Prefecture is home to a paradox of peaceful prayer and images of hell.   The cave enshrines the latter while nearby Hanibe Gankutsu-in, where the stated mission is world peace, enshrines deities and hosts the faithful dedicated to that mission.

From the cave of hell, a short walk will take you to a recumbent statue of Shakyamuni Buddha  lounging peacefully in the more heavenly setting of a nearby park.

Also in the area you will find glowing bronze head and shoulders of  what will eventually be the largest statue of Buddha in Japan on the grounds of Hanibe Gankutsu-in.

Heaven or hell?  It’s your choice in Ishikawa’s Ryumyoji Town!

Hanibe Cave

Open: Daily from 8:30AM to 5PM (March-November) &  9AM to 4PM (December-February）

Admission: Adults Y800, Children up to and including high school students Y500

Access: From JR Komatsu station, take the Komatsu bus bound for Nishikarumikai, Hanibe and get off at Hanibe bus stop.  (Hanibe Gankutsu-in access map)

Travel Time From Tokyo: Approximately 4 hours by train

Image Credit:  Flickr, Hanibe Gankutuin Temple(2009.4.25) – 78, Hanibe Gankutuin Temple(2009.4.25) – 69, Hanibe Gankutuin Temple(2009.4.25) – 85 & Hanibe Gankutuin Temple(2009.4.25) – 97

Today, statues and images of Kobo Daishi abound in Japan and many believe that he has been in a state of perpetual meditation since his death in 835 and that he continues to provide relief to those who seek salvation.

“Kobo Daishi is known as the father of Japanese culture. He is renowned for his talents as a teacher, engineer, inventor, poet, calligrapher and for creating the first public school in Japan.”
Source: Kobo Daishi & Koyasan

The site of Kobo Daishi’s seminary and school, Koyasan, is part of the “Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range” (more commonly known as the Shikoku Eighty-eight Temples Pilgrimage), one of Japan’s fourteen UNESCO as a World Heritage sites.

The statue of Kobo Daishi pictured above is typical and was found on the grounds of a temple near Nippori in Tokyo.  It represents how he would have looked as he made the Shikoku pilgrimage: a robed monk with his sleeping mat tied to his back, wearing a straw hat and carrying a walking stick and a small bowl to collect offerings along the route.

Image Credit: Personal Collection

Here are a few Japanese superstitions:

Inanimate Things Have a Spirit

Many Japanese Buddhists believe that even inanimate objects have a spirit and many Japanese ghost tales involve an object coming to life. A great example of this is the annual ningyo kuyo ceremony which is a funeral of sorts for unwanted dolls.  Donors and Buddhist monks offer prayers of thanks for the joy and fond memories brought by the dolls before they are burnt in a small hearth at a temple. The Japanese folktale about a living umbrella also serves as a reminder that even inanimate objects can have a spirit, or not.

Unlucky Numbers

In western cultures the number seven is thought to be lucky while the number thirteen is said to be ominous.  In Japan the number four is considered bad luck along with the number nine.

The number four is pronounced as “shi” in Japanese, and is the word for death.  The number nine is pronounced “ku” and rhymes with “kutsuu” which means pain in Japanese.  The number four and two together are pronounced “shi-ni” which means to die and as a result the number forty-two is considered unlucky as is number twenty-four or “ni-shi” meaning double death.

It is rare to see athletes wearing these Jersey numbers and some hospitals do not have rooms with these numers.

Superstitions around Death in Japan

• Don’t cute your nails at night (yozume) as the kanji for the term can also be read as “quick death”.
• Don’t say the word “shio” or salt near nightfall as it could be mistaken for “shi”(the word for death).
• The middle person in a photo of three will become unlucky and may die at an early age.

Lucky Superstitions in Japan

• If you step in animal dung or bird dropping fall on you is it said to be lucky as the word for luck, “un”, is pronounce the same as the word for excrement.
• Eat an umeboshi (pickled plum – pictured on the right) every morning and you will avoid accidents during the day.

Don’t Say This

• Do not say the words “kaeru”, meaning to go home, or “modoru”, meaning to return at a Japanese wedding or you will jinx the marriage and the bride will leave her husband’s home and return to her parents.
• Fishermen headed out to sea are sure to say “etekou” instead of the word “saru” which means to leave and not come back.

Don’t Do This

Bad luck will ensure if you:

• Step on the cloth border of the tatami floor mats.
• Stick your chopsticks upright in a full rice-bowl (part of the Japanese funeral ceremony).
• Break a comb.
• Break the strap of your geta (wooden clog) or zori (slippers).
• Eat fried eel and melon at the same meal.

Predicting the Weather

Did you know that if you throw your shoe up in the air that you can predict the weather?  An old Japanese superstition states that if the shoe lands on it’s sole the day will be pleasant.  If it lands on it’s side the day will be cloudy and if it lands upside down it will rain.

Protect Yourself from Bad Fortune

Pick up a omamori (amulet containing prayers – pictured on the right) at a temple or shrine in Japan to ward off bad fortune and bring you luck.  There are omamori for good health, safe driving, good performance school exams and a whole host of other situations where a little divine intervention might ensure a favorable outcome.

Image Credit:  Personal Collection & Flickr, Umeboshi & Omamori and Sensu (舞扇)

Both religions date back thousands of years. The Shinto religion is a spiritual ideology that began back in the feudal days of Japan and is based on the belief that powerful deities called kami (gods) inhabit both heaven and earth.  Each clan identified with it’s own kami and utilized a shaman or diviner to help them pray and often built shrines dedicated to their chosen kami.  The Shinto religion was unified in the 700′s when the mythology was documented for the first time to include the various kami formerly worshipped by the individual clans. The Japanese refer to Shinto as kami no michi (the way of the gods) but the pronunciation of the Chinese ideographs that for the words is shin tao or Shinto.

Buddhism was introduced to Japan from China and Korea in the sixth century and gained wide acceptance in the following century when it was endorsed by the nobility.  The Japanese word for Buddhism is bukkyō which is a combination of two words: butsu meaning Buddha and kyō meaning doctrine.

Most people in Japan practice both faiths and there are no restrictions against doing so.  Shinto tends to be viewed as the religion of earthly matters and shrines are often used to host weddings and are where one would go to pray for success in life or business.  On the other hand, Buddhism is considered the religion of spiritual matters and temples usually host funerals and are where you would go to pray for your ancestors.

So what are the differences between a shrine and a temple?

Signs that you are at a Shinto Shrine:

• You always enter a Shinto shrine through a torii gate.
• Shinto shrines use the suffix  jingu, as in Meiji Jingu.
• A pair of guardian dogs or lions, called shisa or komainu, often sit on each side of the entrance to a Shinto Shrine
• There is a purification fountain near the entrance to a Shinto shrine where you cleanse your mouth and hands before prayer.

Image of Ikuta Jinja (Shrine) in Kobe, Japan.

Signs that you are at a Buddhist Temple:

• Buddhist temples use the suffix ji in their name.
• A Buddhist temple always houses an image of the Buddha.
• A large incense burner is usually that the front of a temple.  The smoke created by the burning of incense is said to have healing properties.
• There is often a pagoda on the premises of a Buddhist temple.

Image of Byodo-in in Kyoto that can also seen on the Japanese 10 yen coin.

A visit to Japan is not complete without taking in and appreciating the temples and shrines that are scatterd throughout the country.  A small local shrine or a large iconic one mentioned in your guidebook – they are all different and each one is special in it’s own way and worth taking the time to visit.

Image Credit: Flickr, Ikuta Shrine main building & 平等院 Byodo-in