Central Japan Day 4 - Takayama - Higashiyama Temples

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03 June 2008

Woke up in the wee hours of the morning at 5am. It was drizzling but, being summer, the sky was already lit. Thankfully most hotels provide umbrellas. So the three of us departed for a morning walk to visit the Higashiyama Temples in Takayama. It was really cold and we had to keep walking to keep warm.

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The long walk to the temple trail. The eastern loop of the blue line is where the trail is. The red line was a detour we made while following some confusing signs.


Walking out of our hotel on a drizzly morning


Miyamae-bashi in the morning


Along the road leading from Miyamae-bashi towards Sakura-yama Hachimangu Shrine/Temple


1st Entrance to Sakura-yama Hachimangu Shrine, we were here last night


2nd Entrance, there is one more gate in front


In the main compound. White ribbons probably containing wishes


The main building

Sakura-yama Hachimangu Shrine is dedicated to a local guardian deity that guards Takayama from evil spirits that approach from the north east. At the annual autumn festival, a float display is held here. In the past, this shrine was supported by wealthy merchants. This may be why a grand Shinto archway stands at Miyamae-bashi that leads all the way to this shrine.

Some mini-shrine altars


This stone lantern seems to feature everywhere


I'm not sure what this is but there's a stone dragon in the pool of water


Heading off to find the start of the Higashiyama Temple Trail

The first series of temples at the start of the trail. There are so many temples here with confusing signs that I probably got most of their names wrong. From left to right here are, Kyushoji, Eikyoin, and Daioji Buddhist Temples, thanks to an online map here. Many of these temples are constructed from 16th to 18th Century CE.

This should be a small pagoda at Eikyoin Temple


Hall of the ten kings


Nested within the cluster of Buddhist Temples is the entrance to the Higashiyama Hakusan-jinja Shrine (東山白山神社) that is not Buddhist but Shinto.


Some really tall trees line the path


Probably some kind of mystical animal.


Although more colourful than the Buddhist temples, the building is rather ordinary


Entering Unryuji Temple that was hidden from the main road


Temple building. From here we got lost and followed the red line in the map. Now that took us halfway round the hill!


Back at the start of the temple trail


We moved on to the next one -- Daiyoji Temple


Who are these huge slippers for?


On the ``real" temple trail that lead us to Gohozan Dounin Temple built in 1783 CE


Going past some other temples, we arrived at Hokkeji Temple, built in 1632 CE.


Bell tower


Main building of Hokkeji Temple. Most of the temple have small courtyards making it hard to take pictures. It was almost 7am and we could hear the monks chanting inside.


Zennoji Temple


A small shrine dedicated to a variant of the Goddess of Mercy that has something to do with children.


We arrived at Soyuji Temple and decided to turn back here. Distance-wise, we had only covered half the walking course. But it was the half where most of the temples are. The other half was mainly in Shiroyama Park where the ruins of Takayama Castle lie.


It says something being dedicated to the Chinese people


Statue of the Laughing Buddha


Temple bell tower


It was about 7:30am, people were going to work and children to school


The complexity of bridges where two rivers, Enako River and Miyagawa River (the larger one), meet


School children. It's still drizzling!


The local school

Back and hungry from our two and a half hour walk, we rushed to have our buffet breakfast. After breakfast we will be visiting the morning markets, where the elderly peddle their home-made/grown wares to pass time, and the old private houses area that we passed by the night before. Then, we will depart Takayama and head off to the scenic Hirayu Ohtaki (Great Waterfall).

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