In 12th century Japan, territorial battles were commonplace and were often bloody affairs.  Warlords enacted elaborate military attacks with the sole purpose of gaining control of more land and thereby increasing their status in the eyes of the Emperor or Shogun of the day.  The story of the Soga brothers is such a story:  it is considered of the three great vendettas in Japanese history and has been dramatized in both noh and kabuki plays since the Edo Period (1603-1868).

Two warlords, Sukechika and  Kudo, were entrenched in a bitter battle over land on the Izu peninsula in the Chubu Region of Japan.  Sukechika took some of Kudo’s land by force and in revenge Kudo had Suechika’s son, Sukeyasu Kawazu, killed.

Sukeyasu Kawazu left behind a widow a two sons, Sukenari and Tokimune who were four and two years old at the time of their fathers murder.  The boy’s mother eventually remarried and the boys were adopted into the new husbands family and took the surname of Soga.

For eighteen long years, Sukenari and Tokimune Soga dreamed of avenging their fathers death and the opportunity finally came in May 1193.  The brothers surreptitiously joined a hunting party in Odawara that Kudo was a member of and on a stormy night the brothers succeeded in their mission by killing him with their swords. (Pictured on the right is a uniko-e print depicting the brothers practicing their swordsmanship on a pile of snow by Utagawa Kuniyoshi, 1798 – 1861)

It is said that after the Soga brothers avenged their father’s murder by killing Kudo, they burned a pile of umbrellas.

It’s a true tale of bravery and loyalty but the story doesn’t have a happy ending, both Sukenari and Tokimune Soga were captured and killed for their act of revenge at the respective ages of twenty-two and twenty.

Today, young children dress up as the Soga brothers and set fire to old umbrellas in front of their graves during the Soga Kasa-yaki Matsuri to commemorate their memories.

Event Details:

Date: May 28, 2009
Location: Jozenji Temple in Odawara, Kanagawa Prefecture
Times: The umbrella-burning ritual takes place at 11:30AM and 8PM
Access: JR Gotemba Line to Shimo-Soga Station (approximately two hours by train from Tokyo station), and then walk 5 minutes.  (Shimo-Sogo Area Map)

Image Credit:  Wikimedia, The Soga brothers practising swordstrokes on a heap of snow

Things to See and Do in Kanagawa Prefecture

Visit the Japan Open-Air Folk House Museum in Kawasaki (pictured top right) to see a collection of old Japanese farm and merchant houses as well as over twenty-five Minkaen thatched roof houses that were prevalent from the 17th to 19th centuries in Japan.

Visit the Taro Okamoto Museum of Art to see more works from the creator of Myth of Tomorrow that is on permanent display in Tokyo’s Shibuya Station.

See the Goma Rite, where a priest burns Goma wood and offers a prayer for the safety and well being of the members and their families of those who have reached Yaku Doshi Age (25 and 42, for women at 19 and 33, and for both men and women at 60), at Kawasaki Daishi Heikenji.

Visit the many ancient temples and shrines of Kamakura, which was the capital of Japan from 1185-1333.

Visit the famous hot springs of Yugawara.

Take advantage of the Odakyu Freepass to explore Hakone.  Hakone is located at the base of Mount Fuji and offers visitors hot springs, museums and natural beauty.  Learn more at Hakone-Zenzan.

Explore all that the city of Yokohama has to offer including the ultra modern Minato Mirai area and one of the world’s largest Chinatown‘s.

Catch a Yokohama Bay Star’s game at Yokohama Stadium from March through September (map to Yokohama Stadium)

Visit scenic island of Enoshima (pictured middle right) & the man made Hakkei-jima Island, home to Sea Paradise, one of Japan’s largest aquariums.

Learn more about and taste a staple of the Japanese food scene the Shin Yokohama Ramen Museum.

Visit Zushi beach and explore the coastline of the Miura-hanto Peninsula.

For more trip planning ideas and resources for Kanagawa Prefecture visit Kanagawa Now and the Japan National Tourist Organization (JNTO) Kanagawa pages .

Odd Facts & Trivia

Meiji Government developed the first railways in Japan, from Shinbashi (in Tokyo) to Yokohama in 1872. Learn about this and other firsts by reading about the history of Japan’s transportation system.

Despite the end of the WWII in 1945, much of the the city of Yokohama remained occupied by allied forces until 1951.

The Great Wave off Kanagawa (picture to the right) is one of the most well known Ukioyo-e paitiings.  It was the first in a series of woodblock paintings by Katsushika Hokusai titled 36 Views of Mount Fiji and is said to have inspired the logo of Quiksilver, the surf-wear and apparel manufacturer.

Articles in the Japan: A Closer Look series:

• Japan: A Closer Look at Hokkaido
• Japan: A Closer Look at Tohoku – Part 1 & Part 2
• Japan: A Closer Look at Chubu – Part 1, Part 2 & Part 3
• Japan: A Closer Look at Kanto – Part 1
• Japan: A Closer Look at Kanto – Part 2

Image Credit:  Flickr, Emukai house, Shops lining the street up to the Yasaka Shrine on Enoshima & Wikipedia, The Great Wave off Kanagawa