Fudo Legends Miyagi

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. Legends about Fudo - Part 02 .
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Legends about Fudo お不動さま　
Miyagi prefecture　宮城県　　

for Tanishi Fudo, see below
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玉造郡 Tamazukuri district 鳴子町 Narugo / Naruko

鬼首村 Onikobe village (Demon Head Village)　
in the Kurikoma Quasi-National Park, is famous for its two geysers, “Benten” and “Unryu”
Onikoobe onsen　鬼首温泉　Onikobe Hot Spring



oni 鬼 the Demon
Once upon a time
a demon wanted to enter the village of Onikobe, but Fudo killed him and burned the body.
From the ashes arose many many many mosquitoes which to our day suck the blood of the people.



- 鬼の橋 Oni Demon Bridge to the village

. Onikobe Kaido 鬼首街道
Onikobe Highway - "Demon Head Highway" .

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伊具郡　Igu Gun

tatsubu 田ツブ Tanishi mud snail
The 田ツブ tatsubu  is seen as a sacred animal of Fudo Myo-O.
Therefore people in the villages around Igu who believe in Fudo Myo-O do not eat them and also do not eat dogs.
ツブや犬を食べない。

. tanishi 田螺 / たにし mud snails .
Cipango paludina. Teichschnecke

Tanishi-ko, Snail Prince, was an early haigo for the poet 山頭火　Santōka.

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- More about O-Fudo sama and the Tanishi

Tanishi Fudo タニシ 不動 ・たにし不動 Mud-Snail Fudo
"Wasserschnecken-Fudo"

- - - - - Niigata 新潟県
新発田市 Shibata town
People in this town who believe in Fudo think of the rooster as his messenger. So they do not eat chicken meat and also they to not eat tanishi 田螺 mud snails.

Mitarase no Taki waterfall





- source and more photos : 郁丸 fumimaru


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Sugaya, Sugatani 菅谷

菅谷不動尊のお不動さま Sugatani Fudo and the Tanishi
temple 菅谷寺(かんこくじ) Kankoku-Ji

The temple has been founded in the Kamakura period. In 1189 when the uncle of Minamoto no Yoritomo, Minamoto no Mamoru源護念 had to flee from Mount Hieizan in Kyoto, he took the head of a Fudo Statue from temple Mudooji 無動寺 Mudo-Ji and brought it to Niigata. The statue is said to heal eye diseases 眼病. It is shown every seventh year, in the year of the hare / rabbit 卯年 and the rooster 酉年.

The temple is very old and has a lot of beautiful woodcarvings.
Here is the Dragon.



In the pond below the Mitarase waterfall are many tanishi mud snails. People bring them here and pray for eye diseases to be healed.
Some use the water to rinse their eyes to seek healing.



- source : masugatasou.jp


Sugatani Fudo Son on facebook
- source : www.facebook.com/sugatanifudouson

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お不動さまとタニシ O-Fudo sama to tanishi
- source : www.youtube.com

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The mountain priests of temple Shinko-Ji carried a wooden box with the head of a Nyorai Buddha on their mountain wanderings. The hairdo with many whirls is similar to the mud snail.



- quote -
Die Berg-Asketen des Shinko-Ji, Tokyo, trugen in einem hölzernen Schrein nur den Kopf eines Fudo mit auf ihren Bergwanderungen. Dieser Kopf hatte die Frisur eines Nyorai, mit vielen Wirbeln, daher auch "Wasserschnecken-Fudoo" (Tanishi Fudo) genannt.

. Fudo Myo-O - Deutsch .



source :　hamatravel.com/shinakoji

"tanishi hairstyle"


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. Fukushima - Iwashiro province 岩代国.
Nishiniidono, Nihonmatsu, Fukushima

Once upon a time
in the hamlet of Mokusho-uchi 杢少内 (Mukkyoji in local dialect ムッキョジ) in 西新殿 Nishiniidono there was a wooden statue of Fudo Myo-O お不動様 in the Fudo Hall on the hill.
The villagers had great faith in the statue and came to pray and worship here every day with all kinds of wishes.
"Dear Fudo Sama, please let us have a bountiful rice harvest this year!"
"Please let my father get well soon!"
"Please let me become pregnant with a healthy baby!"

In the villge lived a man called Gohei 五兵衛.
He went to his fields every day to work hard.
And then one morning, when he came to his rice field he found a mud snail lying beside the path.
Gohei, who was a gentle man, began to talk to the mud snail:
"A very good morning to you, dear Mister Mudsnail たにしどん !"
The mud snail looked at him and replied
"Good morning to you too, Gohei san!"

On this day Gohei worked as usual till the evening and then went home.
Next morning he found two mud snails lying beside the path.

"Well, what do we have here! You found a friend, dear Mister Mudsnail! Good morning to you both!"
And this day too Gohei worked all day long in the fields.

And from this day on when he came to the field, he saw one more and one more and one more mud snail and greeted them all with a friendly "Good Morning".

Then after a few days he realized that the many mud snails begun to move on toward the hill.
"Oh well, what do we have now? All of you Mudsnails going to move on! What a surprise!"
And as he looked they almost reached the hill and were gone.

Now it was midnight. The village had become quiet and all had gone to sleep.
Suddenly there was a sound: jaan, jaaaan 「ジャーン、ジャーン」

The noisy sound from a temple bell was heard - oh dear - there was a fire!
The farmers woke up and run out of their homes to have a look.
"Over there, on the hill, at the Fudo Hall!"
Great flames lightened the sky above the Fudo Hall.
"Hurry up, get some water . . . hurry hurry!"

They all run up the hill and begun to carry water from the river way below it. They all worked in a frenzy . . . but it could not be helped, the Fudo Hall was almost burned down.
"How terrible, our dear Fudo sama, your hall is all burned down!"
"Our dear Fudo is made of wood . . . he has burned down now, how sad!"
They all stood by the burning remains and wept loudly, folding their hands in prayer.



Then came the next morning and it became light again.
"Look, hey look at that!"
Gohei raised his voice and pointed at the statue of Fudo Myo-O. It was all black now but still it was their beloved Fudo!
Gohei walked closer to have a good look.
All around the statue were the mud snails, protecting him and got burned themselves.
With little plops and plumps the finally fell down from the statue - quite dead.

But the statue had remained in its full splendor, thanks to the mud snails!

The surprised villagers all run up to the statue of Fudo.
"What a miracle! It seems the mud snails knew there would be a fire and had all moved up the hill and protected him! What a miracle indeed! Thanks to our dear Fudo Sama!"
They all wept in gratitude.
Later they had a new Fudo Hall built and by that time - as you might guess -
the statue was called

Tanishi Fudo たにし不動 Fudo of the Mud Snails

- source : Iwashiro Tourist Association

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白井市　Shiroi town 下戸沢

Tobifudoo, Tobi-Fudo 飛び不動 Flying Fudo
The statue is said to be carved by Kobo Daishi Kukai 弘法大師
with respect to Itto Sanrai..
Once the Fudo Hall was all in flames, so the statue flew for a secure place in a rock cave. This is the reason why the halo of the statue has scratches - from the rock cave. So this statue does not have a halo any more.
In 1731 during the Great Earthquake on the 7th day of the 9th lunar month a huge boulder came down from the mountain behind the hall, but only one pillar of the small hall was crashed and like a miracle again the statue was not hurt.


. . . CLICK here for Photos !

宮城県白石市小原字江志山6−1

. ittoo sanrai 一刀三礼 itto sanrai
carving one stroke with the blade and praying three times .

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- - - - - reference

yokai database 妖怪データベース
- source : www.nichibun.ac.jp

- source : www.google.co.jp

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. Legends - 昔ばなし mukashibanashi about Fudo . 　
- Part 01 -

. Legends about Fudo - Part 02 .

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. - Join Fudo Myo-O on facebook - Fudō Myō-ō .

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. Pilgrimages to Fudo Temples 不動明王巡礼
Fudo Myo-O Junrei - Fudo Pilgrims .


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- - #fudomiyagi #miyagilegends #onikobe - -
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Senryu-Ji North Kanto 13

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Senryuuji 泉龍寺 Senryu-Ji

Nr. 13 御瀧山 - 明王院 Myo-O In 泉龍寺 - Otome Fudo 乙女不動尊
泉龍寺 Senryu-Ji
Tochigi prefecture 口密の道場 - kumitsu

. 北関東三十六不動尊霊場
36 Fudo Temples in Northern Kanto . 　

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. . . CLICK here for Photos !

栃木県小山市乙女１－２５－８ / 1 Chome-25-8 Otome, Oyama-shi, Tochigi

The temple has been founded by Rooben 良弁 Roben in 765.
The bell tower has been reconstructed in 1844.
There is also a Benzaiten Pond 弁財天池 and Hyotan Pond ひょうたん池 in the precincts.



. 良弁僧正　Roben Sojo .
(689 - 773)



- source and more photos : rsjjr083

Dragon carving above the entry

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mizukake Otome Fudo 水掛け乙女不動尊 in the compound


source :　okuno san - facebook

The main Fudo Statue has been declared a sacred and hidden by Saint Akimoto 淳元上人 in 1714 during a reconstruction of the temple. It is hidden behind the closed doors of its sanctuary and should not been shown again. Later it was shown every 25 years.
The statue is 5尺 high.
Before showing the statue, there are special rituals to be performed
omoirkae, o-morikae 御守替 and kangen omorikae 還元御守替.

When the statue had to be re-located to the main hall due to repair work in its own hall in the beginning of the Showa period, many unmarried men of the village had to perform severe purification rituals before carrying the statue to the main hall - and later back to the repaired Fudo Hall.

The next showing of the statue 本尊大開帳 is scheduled for 2016.

In the summer of 1995 the Fudo Hall was hit by lightning and a fire started. Thanks to the quick action of the head priest, the statue was transported outside and the Fudo had again shown his power of hibuse - surviving a fire.
The following year the burned beams and decorations of the temple were renewed and now the Fudo Statue is in its own space again.


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「御瀧山泉龍寺不動尊縁起絵巻伝」
Scroll about the History of the Fudo Temple



Once upon a time,
an unknown monk came to the lake of Chuzen-Ji in Nikko to make ablutions in the waters and pray. After 100 days his vow was fulfilled. On the surface of the lake he saw a beautiful light coming near him. It was a statue of Fudo Myo-O - says the legend.
The monk was overwhelmed with joy and cried, taking the statue in his arms. Then he followed flow of the river, walking down the waterfall, all the way South. He prayed:
"Please, please let me find the right place where I can be of help to all people past, present and future."

During the daytime he walked down at the riverside, at night he slept in the wilderness, always trusting the bond he had established with Fudo Myo-O.
Then one day, when he had reached the small hamlet of Otome 乙女の里, the statue of Fudo Myo-O suddenly became very heavy and he could not continue walking. He placed the statue by his side to rest for a while.
When he tried to pick it up again, the statue had become so heavy it would not move any more.

Now the monk was convinced this was the region Fudo Myo-O had choose for him. So he asked the local people for their permission to build a hall for Fudo and placed the statue there for worship.
The place is now called 不動塚 Fudo Zuka - Fudo Mound in Otome Kanzawa 乙女寒沢.
The Fudo Hall has changed place a few more times and is now at its present location at Fudo Hara 不動原 in the compound of temple 泉龍寺 Senryu-Ji. According to ancient records, the temple had been constructed in 1333.

During the 南北朝 Nanboku Period around 1333 there was a lot of fighting of the Oyama clan 小山義政 (Oyama Yoshimasa, ? - 1382) and the temple was burned down, but the statue was never damaged. So people began to call it

hibuse no Fudo 火伏せの不動 Fudo preventing fire
Fudo protecting from fire
and believed in his power more and more.
- - - - - By the way
during repair work in the Showa period, they found a small part on his back side scorched by fire.

During the Edo period when Tokugawa Ieyasu passed the region he gave some land to the temple and Fudo, 「不動仏供領」.
Later they built a landing place for boats carrying construction wood for the building of the Toshogu Shrine in Nikko.

In the Mid-Edo period around 1721 the Fudo Hall was in dire need of repair. So the head priest of that time, Saint Akimoto 淳元上人 decided to built it anew. Many people offered money or gold, others came to work for free. Once the hall was finished, the statue was placed behind closed doors as a hidden statue, 秘仏 hibutsu .


- - - - - Homepage of the temple
- source : otome_senryuuji



. Hibuse 火伏不動尊 Fudo preventing fire .

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- - - - - Yearly Festivals 年中行事

１月　　元朝護摩供・初詣
２月　　初不動護摩供
３月　　春彼岸
５月　　蛇祭り
７月　　夏不動護摩供・朝顔市　Summer Fudo Festival
８月　　お盆
９月　　秋彼岸

- - - - - others
御守替斎戒沐浴水行
還元御守替斎戒沐浴水行
入仏式
御開帳（または御開扉）


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source :　gkohun.world.coocan.jp

There is also a kofun mound called
Otome Kanzawa Kofun　乙女寒沢古墳
in Oyama Town.
栃木県小山市乙女947. - 小山市寒沢古墳

It is about 20 meters in diameter and 3.5 m high.
Said to be from the early to mid-Jomon period.
Close to it is a shrine for Inari 稲荷神社.


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- - - reference - - -


. Pilgrimages to Fudo Temples 不動明王巡礼
Fudo Myo-O Junrei - Introduction . 　

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- quote -

Unryuu-in, Unryū-in 雲龍院 Temple in Kyoto
a sub-temple of Sennyū-ji
The temple has two large halls, Ryugeden and Reimeiden, each one with its rather empty garden.
- source : damien.douxchamps.net/photo -

In 豊中市 Toyonaka (Osaka) is a legend about unryuu 雲龍 Unryu,
a dragon in the clouds
This drgon lived in the nearby pond and was finally allowed to fly up into the clouds.
Every year during the O-Bon dance rituals, it comes back, shapeshifts as a woman and joins the dancers.

Unryu-In 雲龍院　（泉涌寺 Sennyu-Ji 別院）

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. Narita Fudo 成田不動尊 .
Temple Shinshooji 新勝寺 Shinsho-Ji

. O-Mamori お守り　Amulets and talismans from Japan .　

. Japanese Temples - ABC list - .


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- #fudosenryuji #senryuji -
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carp koi

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koi　鯉 carp

. Goldfish and KOI 鯉 . 　
- Introduction -

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- quote
John Dougill wrote
I visited Jako-In at Ohara, north of Kyoto, and got a personal guide round from the eccentric 80-year old nun running the place.



There's a pond there, and she told me in no uncertain manner that carp were the incarnation (keshin) of Fudo Myo-o . . .
- source : John Dougill - facebook



Still trying to find the connection with Fudo Myo-O!

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Jakkooin 寂光院 Jakko-In, Jako-In, Jakoin
京都市左京区大原草生
Oharakusaocho, Sakyo Ward, Kyoto

- quote -
Jakko-in, a nunnery of Tendai sect, is said to have been established in the year 594 by Shotoku-Taishi, or Crown Prince Shotoku, to pray for the soul of his late father, Emperor Yomei. The first abbess had been a wet nurse of the prince. The temple is dedicated to Rokumantai-Jizoson.



Jakko-in is well known as a place where Kenreimon-in lived in seclusion. Kenreimon-in Tokuko (1155－1213) was a daughter of Taira no Kiyomori (the chief of Heike clan, 1118-1181) and the consort of Emperor Takakura. She was rescued from her attempted suicide when the Heike clan was destroyed by Minamoto no Yoshitsune (a younger brother of the chief of Genji clan, 1159-1189) at the naval battle of Dan-no-ura. She lost her whole family including her eight-year-old son, Emperor Antoku, and she spent the rest of her life in the temple to pray for the souls of her family.

The main hall was set fire on May 9, 2000 and rebuilt in June 2005. The principal Buddhist image is also newly built and modeled the original image faithfully as well.
- source : kyoto.asanoxn.com/places


. Darumapedia about 寂光院 .

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. - Join Fudo Myo-O on facebook - Fudō Myō-ō .

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. Pilgrimages to Fudo Temples 不動明王巡礼
Fudo Myo-O Junrei - Fudo Pilgrims .


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Kozen-Ji Nagano

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Koozenji 光前寺 Kozen-Ji
宝積山 Hoshakuzan/ Hoshakusan 光前寺 Kozen-Ji

長野県駒ヶ根市赤穂29番地
29 Akaho, Komagane-shi, Nagano-ken

The founder was Honjoo Shoonin 本聖上人 Saint Honjo Shonin in 860.
Saint Honjo had studied Mikkyo at Hieiszan and practises ascetics unter a waterfall of the river Otagirigawa 太田切川 / 太田切黒川の瀑 in Ngano, where later he founded the temple.




- - - - - Look at more photos here :
- source : www.city.komagane.nagano.jp


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Fudo Myo-O on the way to the temple


source :　www.city.komagane.nagano.jp


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The main statue is
a secret statue of Fudo Myo-O 不動明王.
Amulets are sold at the temple.



shuin stamp of the temple 光前寺 駒ヶ根 朱印



omamori amulet of the faithful dog Hayataro

霊犬早太郎伝説
The legend of the spiritual dog Hayataro.
"A Heroic Dog of the Kozenji Temple"

Once upon a time
There lived a strong mountain dog at the temple, called Hayatoaro by the priest and the villagers, who all loved the strong but gentle dog.
At that time, the village of Mitsuke in Omi had a problem. The fields were destroyed by wild animals and as a precaution, the villagers had to offer a girl from the village to the deity of Shrine Yanahime Jinja 矢奈比売神社.

In the year 1308 in August, a priest travelled in the region. He thought that the deities could not really be that bad and malicious and tried to find out what rally happened in the night of the festival. The monster arrived and said

「信州の早太郎おるまいな、早太郎には知られるな」
I hope Hayataro from Shinshu is not here,
I hope Hayataro does not know about this!"
And took the girl away.

So the monk travelled to Shinshu (Nagano) and found Hayataro at the temple Kozen-Ji. The priest agreed to help and during the festival next year, Hayataro was given as an offering instead of a maiden.
And what do you know?

Hayataro drove out the monster in no time, by the way, it was an old monkey （老ヒヒ）.
But while fighting with the monkey, Hayataro got a deep would. When he finally made his way back to Kozen-Ji he could only bark faintly once more and then died.
So the priest decided to give him a fine burial and pray for his soul from now on.

This story is written in the sacred history book of the temple and told to our day.

- - - Homepage of the temple
- source : www.kozenji.or.jp


. Hihi (狒々, 狒狒. 比々) Baboon Monkey Monster .
Legend of Jutaro Iwami (Kanesuke Susukita) and Shippeitaro (Hayataro)


. Inu Jinja 犬神社　dog shrines .
- Introduction -

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. - Join Fudo Myo-O on facebook - Fudō Myō-ō .

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. Pilgrimages to Fudo Temples 不動明王巡礼
Fudo Myo-O Junrei - Fudo Pilgrims .


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Shoshin-Ji North Kanto 20

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Shooshinji 崇真寺 Shoshin-Ji

Nr. 20 稲毛山 Inagetasan - 金剛王院 Kongo-In
Kai-un Inukiri Fudo 開運犬切り不動尊
Fudo who killed a Dog

Tochigi prefecture 口密の道場 - kumitsu

. 北関東三十六不動尊霊場
36 Fudo Temples in Northern Kanto . 　

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. . . CLICK here for Photos !


1400 Inageta, Haga, Haga District, Tochigi
稲毛田山 金剛王院 崇真寺
栃木県芳賀郡芳賀町大字稲毛田1400

In the compound of the temple, there is also a


O-hyakudo Fudo お百度不動
Fudo of the 100 prayers circuit

and a scroll of
Byakue Kannon Bosatsu 白衣観音 Byaku-E Kannon



絹本著色白衣観音像の掛軸
source : town.haga.tochigi.jp



. "100 prayers circuit" (百度参り hyakudo mairi) .
- Introduction -

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The Fudo statue of this temple is secret and only shown once in 60 years.
- source : onsanmaya.at.webry.info

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- - - - - Homepage of the temple
- source : town.haga.tochigi.jp


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- - - - - The legend of
犬切り不動 Fudo who killed a dog
Once upon a time in a temple in Japan
there lived a young priest called Sanchin さんちん, who was quite prone to play pranks and he also liked to eat a lot.

One day san Sanchin was cleaning the main temple hall, he realized that the manju rice cakes, offerings to Fudo Myo-O in the hall, had disappeared. When he reported this to the head priest, he told him "Well, go and search them."
This happened a few more times and the head priest finally thought that Sanchin was the thief, since he liked to eat rice cakes.
"Next time the rice cakes are gone, you will have to leave my temple" he told the acolyte in anger.

One day one of the parishioners had come to bring rice cakes as offerings for Fudo Myo-O. Sanchin, worried about being driven away from the temple, took a large broom and hid behind the hall. waiting for the thief.

That evening, when Sanchan was already half asleep, there was a noise : gattari ガタリ.
When Sanchin looked in the direction of the noise, he saw the floor plank had moved a little and a huge dog had come out. When the huge dog jumpet to Sanchin and bite into his foot, Fudo Myo-O blinked with his wild eyes, moved his large sword and hit the dog.

Next morning when the head priest came into the hall he found Sanchin bleeding on the floor. He asked what happened and Sanchin told him the story of the monster dog. And quite true, on the floor there was also the body of this huge monster dog. And blood dripped from the sword of Fudo Myo-O.
Now it was clear,
the rice cake offerings had been stolen by the huge dog !



As long as the dog had stolen his offerings, Fudo Myo-O had turned a blind eye on the happenings. But when the dog attacked the innocent Sanchin, Fudo got angry and helped him to show he was innocent and saved his life.

That is why the statue of this Fudo is now called
"Fudo Myo-O who killed a dog".
source :　manga mukashibanashi


. Legends about Fudo Myo-O 不動様 .

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. 犬突き不動 Inu-tsuki Fudo, Fudo piercing a dog　 .
慈恩寺 Jion-Ji Yamagata 山形県
Once a mad dog appeared and caused a lot of trouble.
So Fudo took his sword and stabbed the dog to kill him.


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- - - reference - - -


. Pilgrimages to Fudo Temples 不動明王巡礼
Fudo Myo-O Junrei - Introduction . 　

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. Narita Fudo 成田不動尊 .
Temple Shinshooji 新勝寺 Shinsho-Ji

. O-Mamori お守り　Amulets and talismans from Japan .　

. Japanese Temples - ABC list - .


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[ . BACK to DARUMA　MUSEUM　TOP . ]
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Legends about Fudo

[ . BACK to Daruma Museum TOP . ]
. Legends and Tales from Japan　伝説 - Introduction .
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Legends about Fudo Myo-O 不動様

There are so many legends, folktales, stories about Fudo . . .
This page is now Part 01.

. Legends about Fudo お不動さま　- Part 02 .

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Manga Mukashibanashi Database まんが日本昔ばなし
不動様

. Inukiri Fudo 犬切り不動尊 Fudo killed a dog .
Tochigi, 崇真寺 Shoshin-Ji

. おしのと火童子 O-Shino and the "Fire Child" .
Mino, Toki town, Gifu - Hiwarashi


お不動さま - Fudo from Tosa
八つ化け頭巾 Yatsubake Zukin - The hood . . .
甲斐の湖 Kai no Mizuumi - The Lake of Kai
宝の川 Takara no Kawa - The River of Treasures
笛吹川 River Fuefukigawa- Yamanashi



- source : nihon.syoukoukai.comx

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O-Fudo sama from Takaoka in Tosa, Shikoku
土佐の高岡 - 積善寺

Once upon a time
there was a temple in Takaoka in Tosa where a statue of Yakushi Nyorai, Buddha of Medicine, was venerated and also a statue of Fudo Myo-O.
The Fudo did not have a special name, but it was said he was carved by the famous master Unkei.

One day the chief retainer of the Daimyo together with two samurai came to this temple to rest on their way from hunting. The retainer ( 家老 ) looked at the statue of Fudo and liked it very much. Despite the protest of the priest, he took the statue home to his estate.

When he reached his estate, he put the statue up an one side of his gate. Then in the evening he happily got drunk with sake.
At midnight suddenly a huge thunderstorm came up, with torrential rain and brought the slope behind his estate to slip down in a mudslide, destroying three farmhouses below it.



"This is certainly the revenge of Fudo Myo-O!" the villagers began to gossip the next morning. But the retainer laughed if off.
"No way, nothing happened to my own estate and my home is still here . . . hahaha!"

That night the retainer had a strange dream.
From a high mountain came a red burning light with a man on a horse and began to chase him around.
On the next day, he had been invited by a friend so they drank sake again and the retainer talked about his dream:

"Last night in my dream a huge man on a horse came down the mountain in a veil of fire!"
Another man had also seen this dream:
"That was a ghostly flying fireball!" 飛ぶ火の玉

"Never mind, that was just a trivial dream" the retainer dismissed the story with a loud laugh.

In the evening the retainer returned to his estate, but at the entrance gate the string of his sandals tore off, a sign of bad luck. When he tried to pass the gate, there stood Fudo Myo-O in a veil of flames and did not let him pass. Fudo stood there in the flames and did not listen to the excuses of the retainer. In no time his whole estate burned down.

Now the retainer was cured and brought the statue of Fudo back to the temple, where Fudo could stand like before next to Yakushi Nyorai, his friend. Both of them continued in their duty to look after the well-being of the villagers from now on again.



. Unkei 運慶 (1148 - 1224) .


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Yatsubake zukin 八つ化け頭巾
The hood for eight spooks
no location.

A priest with a magic hood from a fox that lets him change into anything does a lot of nuisance.
kitsune no bake zukin 狐の化け頭巾



Once upon a time, a priest who liked to play pranks on people observed a fox in the forest, who tried to learn shape-shifting.



He tried to talk the fox into exchanging the hood, for a normal hood. and hoped thus to be able to shapeshift like the fox.
When he returned to his temple, there were two visitors, a head priest from another temple with his young acolyte.
So our priest thought this was a great chance to play a prank on them both.

He told the head priest to use the room he liked best from the two he showed them.
In the first room was a pretty lady.
In the second room was a Buddha statue.

The head priest, aware of his young acolyte, choose the room with the Buddha statue and began to chant his sutras. After a while, the young acolyte fell asleep.
So he sneeked out of the room to the other one with the lady and began to drink sake rice wine.

But the beautiful lady - you guess it already - was in fact our priest who had shapeshifted.
He changed again, became the flaming figure of Fudo Myo-O and shouted:
"Hey you, a priest should not drink sake, you know that!"

The head priest was taken by surprise and run away.

The fox on the other hand, who did not know his hood was now just a normal piece of cloth, tried to transform himself into a pretty lady and began to walk around in the village in his fox figure. All saw this ruse and laughed at the fox, who had been tricked himself.




. zukin 頭巾 (ずきん) hood - Introduction - .

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国母稲積地蔵立像 Inazumi Jizo at Kokubo, Kofu
山梨県甲府市国母8丁目 - / 国母地蔵 - 法城寺 Kokubo Jizo - Hosho-Ji, now 東光寺 Toko-Ji



This is a story how two Shinto deities and two Buddhist deities 二仏二神
helped the people of Kai.


甲斐の湖 The lake of Kai (Yamanashi)

Kai is a province surrounded by high mountains on all sides and once upon a time,
the villagers here were all very poor, living in homes near the mountain slopes. looking down at a huge lake in the middle of the valley. There was no plain to use for rice fields and the ground was full of stones and gravel. They could only grow some kinds of millet and catch small fish in the rivers.

The Inazumi Jizo was thinking all the time about how he could help the poor farmers and drain off all that water. He asked two strong deities for their advise and help. They were really huge and when they stood by the lake they could reach the other side of the lake in the evening sunshine. Their shadow made the area all dark, even during daytime.

These two strong deities did not take long. One demolished the mountain, the other cut a valley into the slope. And there - all the water began to drain off through the new valley toward the river Fujigawa 富士川 and then into the ocean.
When the water began to move with great noise, another strong deity, Fudo Myo-O, heard the noise and thought that the water should be regulated by some dams so that it would not destroy the villages further down. So he made some dams and let the lake drain slowly within seven days and seven nights, until all the water was gone and the bottom of the valley became visible.

Suddenly there was a really, really huge plain down there, where all the villagers could have rice fields and homes.
So the villagers thanked Jizo Bosatsu with a great festival at the temple 東光寺,
and made a cave into the mountain and built the shrine Anagiri Jinja 穴切神社 (hole-cutting shrine) for the two strong deities who had helped drain the water. They called the deities now 蹴裂明神 Kesaki Myojin.
And further down at a dam they venerated a statue of
Sedate Fudo Myo-O 瀬立不動 （せだてふどう)
Setate Fudo sama （せたてふどうさま）.


Anagiri Dai Jinja 穴切大神社 Anakiri Dai Jinja - founded around 708.
2 Chome-8-1 Takara, Kofu, Yamanashi Prefecture / 山梨県甲府市宝二丁目8-1
- source : HP of the Shrine - anagiri


- source : anakiri

- - - - - Deities in residence
大己貴命 Onammuchi no Mikoto
少彦名命 Sukunahikona no Mikoto
素戔鳴命 Susanoo no Mikoto

- - - More in the Japanese WIKIPEDIA !

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宝の川 The river of treasures
福島県の西会津、鬼光頭川
Fukushima, Nishi Aizu, river Kikozugawa




Once upon a time
in a village along the Kikozugawa in West-Aizu there lived a woodworker with his daughter, O-Yuki おゆき (Snow Girl). The mother had died five years ago and the two of them were now alone.

One day the father had gone out to the forest to help rescue a co-worker, who had been trapped under a fallen tree. But he got trapped himself and died. Before his grave the villagers promised to look after his daughter, O-Yuki.

They looked after her for a while, but then forgot all about her. So she had to make some money for herself and begun to collect shijimi clams シジミ from the river and sold them in the postal station nearby, to be used for the miso soup in the morning.

One evening an agent from the village came to her home. He proposed O-Yuki to become a maid servant for a family with children in Aizu. But O-Yuki refused, because the graves of both her parents were here in the village. So the agent told her that this land and house belonged to him, in fact, and she was to leave the premisses within 10 days. He had made up the tale of the family with children just to get rid of her.

Dear little O-Yuki did not know what to do and so the 10 days passed. The next day the agent came back and told her the house would be torn down tomorrow.
O-Yuki went to the little roadside sanctuary of Fudo Myo-O, sat down and thought about her future, sobbing and crying all along. Suddenly she heard a voice from the sanctuary.
She looked up and saw Fudo Myo-O standing there in his flaming halo.

He said:
"Dear little girl. Don't you worry. Just continue to collect the clams from this river. I will take care of the rest!"

The next day O-Yuki went to the river very early to collect clams, just as Fudo sama had told her. And then, when the sun was just about to rise there suddenly was a strong earthquake. A mountain tsunami 山津波 (mud slide) destroyed all the homes of the village and burried everything under the fallen earth. But to her surprise, her own home was left intact and not even touched by the huge mountain slide.
And the evil agent was probably killed by the slide, too; anyway, he never showed up again.



When O-Yuki walked down to the river, the clams had all disappeared. But in their place, there were beautiful stones, all glimmering and shining. When she brought them to the postal station, they sold for a lot of money and O-Yuki became quite rich. Now she could built a nice grave for her parents and live well for ever after.

That is why folks call it "the river of treasures" (hookawa 宝川).

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笛吹川 River Fuefukigawa
"River where the flute was played"
Yamanashi 山梨県


- source with more photos : kousyuusai_001

笛吹川中流（一之釜、不動の滝）Fudo Waterfall


Gonzaburo Fudo 権三郎不動



Upstream of this river, there was a small village called Mitomi 三富村 and there lived a young man called Gonzaburo 権三郎 with his old mother, just the two of them.
He liked to play the flute and his mother liked to listen to him very much.



Then one day in a summer with a lot of rain and then a typhoon, the river was overflowing, swallowing all the homes near the riverbank. The house of Gonzaburo was also lost in the water. Gonzaburo held onto the arm of his mother, but the river was so fast and strong, he could not hold her any more and she was eventually swallowed by the waters.

Next morning the river was all quiet again. But the body of his mother was nowhere to be seen. So Gonzaburo thought, his mother must still be alive somewhere and he went to the riverbank every day, walking up and down, playing his flute for her.

Winter came and went and it was spring again. Gonzaburo kept walking up and down the riverbank, playing the flute. But one day, the sound of the flute was not heard as usual and all was quiet. Eventually the dead body of Gonzaburo was found on the riverbank.

The villagers felt so sorry for Gonzaburo and his mother. They called on a priest from the nearby temple to have a proper burial for him. They build a small sanctuary and called it
Gonzaburo Fudo 権三郎不動.

Since then, the river was known under the name of
Fuefukigawa 笛吹川 "River where the flute was played".

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Yamagata, Tazawa　山形　田沢

A record of winning with the help of Fudo
不動明王の利勝記

Once upon a time
in 白夫平 Shirobudaira there lived a man called 三十郎 Sanjuro. He was born a weak boy and his greatest wish was to become a strong man.
In his village there was a heavy stone of more than 23 kan 二十五貫 (one kan is about 3.75kg), called the banmochi ishi 番持石 "stone to test your strength". The young men of the village tried to move it and play with it.
Sanjuro, who had only one seventh of the strength of the other young men, could not move this special stone.

When nobody was around, late at night or early in the moning, Sanjuro came to this stone ant tired to move it, but he never could and felt really left out and angry at himself.

So one day he had the idea that to improve his strength, he needed the help of Fudo Myo-O. So at the double-hour of the bull on three days of the month 三、七、二十一日の丑の刻, he made a strong wish and plea to the deity.

In the first week, Sanjuro went to the temple of Fudo Myo-O to pray. When he clapped his hands in prayer, he realized that the small temple had inclined to one side. So the straightened it out and went on to the Fudo Waterfall.
On his way he had to deal with a few more difficulties - as if the deity was testing him. Even a huge bull was sleeping in the middle of the road.

But Sanjuro was quite determined and made it to the last day of his pledge.
There he heared the voice of Fudo:
"Hey, Sanjuro" and in all innocense he answered "Yes, right here!".

Because he had replied to the call, he could not receive all the strength of Fudo Myo-O and could only get 倍力の力 - part of the strength.
But he could pass on that "power of God" 三十郎の神力 to his own son.

- source : www.tazawa-forest.com



. ushi no koku 丑の刻 double-hour of the bull .
This time was the best to make a wish or place a curse with the help of the deities, be it Buddhist or Shinto.


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. Senryuuji 泉龍寺 Senryu-Ji . - Ibaraki
「御瀧山泉龍寺不動尊縁起絵巻伝」
Scroll about the History of the Fudo Temple



. Legends about Fudo お不動さま　- Part 02 .

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. - Join Fudo Myo-O on facebook - Fudō Myō-ō .

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. Pilgrimages to Fudo Temples 不動明王巡礼
Fudo Myo-O Junrei - Fudo Pilgrims .


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[ . BACK to DARUMA　MUSEUM　TOP . ]
- - - - - #fudolegends - - - - -
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Legend Hiwarashi

[ . BACK to Daruma Museum TOP . ]

. Legends about Fudo .
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Hiwarashi 火童子 the "Fire Child"
Toki in Mino 美濃の国の土岐 / now in Gifu
Toki town is famous for its pottery to our day.

- quote
Inheriting 400 years of Mino Ware tradition represented by Oribe, Shino, and Kiseto wares, Fudogama has been manufacturing modern, warm, and unique pottery, mainly tableware.



We modestly attempt to express the identity of our products through their universal beauty, by eliminating excessive decoration. Both grace and boldness coexist in Fudogama products.
Teruaki Ito, 2457 Dachi-cho, Toki-shi, GIFU. Since 1986
- source : gifuproduct.jp


火童子（ひわらし）はお不動様の使い
Hiwarashi is the messenger of Fudo Myo-O.


and surprize - - - a sweet tarte called



ひわらしがま Hiwarashigama 火童子窯
Hiwarashi Kiln




- source : bellph/diary





hiwarashi cafe ヒワラシカフェ
Gifu Prefecture, Toki, Oroshicho, 1443−1, Ambience Square 1F

- Hiwarashi cafe on facebook -


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おしのと火童子 O-Shino
and the "Fire Child" Hiwarashi

Once upon a time, there lived a good couple doing pottery in Toki.

ある時、おっとうは浅野館（あさのやかた）の嫁入り道具の器を焼くという大仕事を請負った。おっとうは娘のおしのに、この仕事を無事にやり終えたら赤いべべ（着物）を買ってやると約束する。そしておっとうとおっかあは、それこそ寝る間も惜しんで働いた。器は天日に干され、釉（ゆう）が塗られ、窯に入れられる。



ところが窯焚きが始まって三日三晩がたち、あと一日という朝のこと、生来からだがあまり丈夫でないおっとうは、ここ数ヶ月の無理がたたり、高熱を出して倒れてしまう。窯焚きはこれからが一番難しいところ。仕方なくおっかあは、見よう見まねでおっとうがやっていたように窯に割り木をくべた。そしておしのは、窯の焚き口まで割り木を運んだ。おしのは夜になる頃にはヘトヘトに疲れてしまい、いつしか窯の前で眠ってしまう。

おっかあは、一人で夜中も割り木をくべている。ところが、夜中におっかあの悲鳴でおしのは目を覚ます。見ると、窯の色見穴（いろみあな）からこれまで見たこともないような真っ黒な煙がモクモク出ていた。おっかあが、一生懸命のあまり割り木を入れすぎ、窯の火力が落ちてしまったのだ。おっかあは途方にくれてその場にしゃがみこんでしまう。

これを見たおしのは、窯の神様の祭壇まで走って行き、「窯の神様、おっかあを助けて下さい。」と一心に祈った。するとそこに一陣の風が吹き、木の葉が舞い上がった。木の葉は緑色の美しい童子に変わり、窯へ向かって飛んでいく。火童子（ひわらし）はお不動様の使いと言われ、神様を敬う正直者の窯へやって来て、焼き物がうまく出来るよう助けると言われている。火童子が窯の中に入り火打ち石を打つと、火童子の髪は炎となって燃え上がった。そして色見穴は再び真っ赤に輝き始めた。おしのが色見穴を覗くと、火童子は楽しそうにクルクルと踊っている。そして、火童子が踊るたび、焼き物はいい具合に焼きあがっていった。おしのは、一夜に三千里を走る火童子が、秋葉の山から来てくれたと思うのであった。



窯出しの日の朝には、おっとうも起き上がれるようになった。澄んだ緑釉（りょくゆう）が日に輝いて、それはよい窯出しだったということだ。おしのがおっとうにだけ火童子のことを話すと、おっとうは嬉しそうに何度も頷いていた。
- source : nihon.syoukoukai.com

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. - Join Fudo Myo-O on facebook - Fudō Myō-ō .

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. Pilgrimages to Fudo Temples 不動明王巡礼
Fudo Myo-O Junrei - Fudo Pilgrims .


[ . BACK to WORLDKIGO . TOP . ]
[ . BACK to DARUMA　MUSEUM　TOP . ] - - - - - #fudohiwarashi - - - - -
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