Izumo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage Temple 32 Zenkoji

The penultimate temple of the Izumo 33 pilgrimage is located just south of downtown Matsue in the township of Nogi. It is said that the pine tree in front of the Kannon-do was planted by General Nogi, one of the heroes of the Russo-Japanese War who is known for his ritual suicide following the desth of Emperor Meiji. It is just coincidence that the town is also called Nogi.

The Kannon-do was originally located some distance away at a temple called Fukuoji and was moved here about 350 years ago. The monument in front of the main hall is a memorial to the dead of Iwo Jima.

Zenko-ji belongs to the Jishu sect, a branch of Pure Land Buddhism founded by the monk Ippen, and is not such a common sect, in fact I don't remember having visited a Jishu temple before.

It's a relatively small, urban temple but with quite a few statues in the grounds including this fine Fudo Myo and this one below who had lost his head at some point.