Nagaheta Konpira Shrine

 

Nagaheta is a village on the Kyuragi River in what is now Ochi Town in Karatsu, Saga.

The village shrine is a Konpira Shrine, one of more than 600 branch shrines nationwide of the famous Konpira Shrine in Shikoku.

Once a major cultic centre and pilgrimage destination, Konpira is known for safety at sea, and nowadays all travel.

With origins probably to the Indian deity Kumbira, Konpira was always a syncretic Buddhist-"shinto"; Yamabushi site, but in 1868 became purely "shinto" with the kami Omononushi, generally believed to be a manifestation of Okuninushi.

there was no signboard so I have no idea of the history of this branch, nor the secondary shrines in the grounds. However the unusual Komainu are said to be Hizen-style and similar to others I had seen in Saga.

I visited on the morning of my 72nd day walking around Kyushu. The previous post was on the early morning along the Matsuura River.

The Undersea World of the Oki Islands

 

Shimane, on the coast of the Sea  of Japan has some fantastic clear seas and white sand beaches, and none better than around the Oki Islands about 20k-30k off the coast.

Long known as an excellent place for snorkelling and scuba diving, the sea is so clean that oysters caught here can be eaten fresh.

For those who can't snorkel or scuba dive, there is however another option, an undersea viewing boat.

The Amanbow is not a glass-bottomed boat, rather the hull has huge, picture windows, so passengers can sit in the middle and look out as if in an aquarium.

The boat leaves from Hishiura port on Ama Island, and heads out to view the Saburo Iwa Rocks, a group of rock pinnacles rising from the sea just off the coast.

Near the rocks the passengers then head below and look out into a surreal undersea forest of seaweed.

The crew meanwhile throw out food to attract fishes and soon they appear.

It is possible to imagine you are looking at what might be on your dinner table later that night. The seafood on the Oki's is superb.

The previous post in this series exploring the Oki Islands was on the Saburo Iwa Rocks.

Watari to Shikaga Along the Gonokawa River

 

After visiting the Hachiman shrine I carry on up the riverside road through what used to be called Watari but is now just considered Kawagoe.

It used to be a sizable settlement, having a village shrine and a couple of temples.

Now, at least half the properties are abandoned...

Across the river on the opposite bank is the former Mizunokuni Water Museum.

It has been closed now for several years, around the time that the rail line closed. Even though it is on the main road it never had many visitors and I am amazed is stayed open as long as it did. many of my older posts about it no longer have photos, but this one does.

Though we are about 25 kilometers from the mouth of the river, it is still fairly wide at this point.

There may well have been a trail along this section before the railway was built in the  1930"s, but the road, as narrow as it is, was only built at the same time as the train line. Traffic of any kind is very rare, usually a small post office or delivery van a couple of times a day... that it...

Sections of the bank are so narrow that tunnels were necessary.

I am amazed many of the roadside altars are regularly supplied with fresh flowers. As the few elderly inhabitants die off they too will become abandoned.

The next settlement of any size, with a new, concrete bridge across the river, a big shrine, a couple of temples, and the abandoned railway station, is Shikaga. Here I will take a  few kilometers detour  inland.

The previous post was on the Hachiman Shrine in Kawagoe.

Hirata Honjin Gardens, Mansion, & Museums

 

The Hirata Honjin Museum is located on a hillside overlooking the old town of Hirata near the shore of Lake Shinji.

A honjin was a property used as a guesthouse by feudal lords when they traveled within their domain and this one was the residence of the wealthy Honkisa family who made their fortune locally with sake brewing and trading cotton.

The buildings and most importantly the garden were dismantled and moved here from their original site about 2 kilometers away.

It is an Izumo-style garden, karensansui, with the arrangement of stepping stones that marks it as uniquely Izumo.

It is sometimes referred to as Gentan-style after Sawa Gentan, a gardener brought to Izumo by The famous daimyo Matsudaira Fumai who had a hand in designing many of the gardens in the Izumo and Matsue area.

Unfortunately, the garden cannot be entered, however, it can be enjoyed from the main room of the house.

Some say that the garden can be best appreciated in the rain when the wet stones shine....

However, visitors are allowed to enter the gardens that lead from the main house to the Yuyuan Teahouse.

The Yuyuan is a Shoin-style teahouse of 4.5 tatami.

It is not open to visitors, but can be rented.

It was reproduced using the original Edo period plans.

As well as the gardens, the whole house is open to visitors.

On display are artworks and artifacts from the family, including some samurai armour.

The traditional bathroom and toilets are also open.

There are also two large, modern, galleries that show temporary exhibitions, and sometimes more works from the family collection of prints and paintings.

These sometimes  have an entry fee, though I must stress that everything else is free.

And yet there is more......

Some large storehouses have been converted into a Folk Crafts Museum....

In many ways this place is similar to the Izumo Cultural Heritage Museum which also offers gardens, traditional architecture, and exhibitions with no entry fee. If anything The Hirata Honjin has the edge in terms of displays and gardens.

In the entrance hall you will see a big example of a local artform, Isshiki Kazari. I have briefly touched on this before, in this post.

In the old section of Hirata you will be able to see many more examples of isshiki kazari and also visit a wealthy merchant home and gardens, that while not as spectacular as the Hirata Honjin, is well worth a visit.

For those into gardens, less than 2 kilometers from Hirata Honjin is Kokokuji, a zen temple with a small but excellent garden. It and the Hirata Hoinjin garden always appear in the top gardens list of the American magazine Journal of Japanese Gardening. The top garden in that magazine is always the Adachi Museum Garden, also in Shimane.

The previous posts in this series on Izumo and Matsue were on Izumo Cultural Heritage Museum and Gardens.