October 13, 2018

EDO - Bunkyo ward legends

https://edoflourishing.blogspot.com/2018/06/bunkyo-ward.html


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. Legends and Tales from Japan 伝説 - Introduction .

. . . . . . Legends from Koishikawa 小石川, Bunkyo .

. . . . . . Legends from Denzuuin 伝通院 Denzu-In, Denzuin, Dentsu-In .
文京区小石川3-14-6 / 3 Chome-14-6 Koishikawa, Bunkyō ward



................................................................................. Bunkyo 文京区

....................................................................... 小日向 Kohinata

. Amazake Baba Jizo 甘酒婆地蔵尊 .
東京都文京区小日向 Kohinata - 日輪寺 Nichirin-Ji

boozu 坊主 a priest
In 1814 the adopted girl of a 旗本 Hatamoto retainer met a pale priest in a striped robe and soon lost her mind. This priest even turned up in her dreams. This priest had been a servant turend out of her father's home. They had some rituals performed to appease the soul and the girl got well again.
Since he had left the house in the 12th lunar month, they made this day his death anniversary.


. kori 狐狸と伝説 Legends about fox and Tanuki badger .
In October of 1783, a farmer met an old lady, wearing a beautiful Kimono, and he promised to take her in and care for her.
She never took any meal and sometimes disappeared suddenly. This must have been a fox or a Tanuki!


. ryuu, ryū 龍 竜 伝説 Ryu - dragon legends .
Around 1790, in 小日向大曲 Hinata Daigoku there was a dragon flying toward heaven. Before that, an old priest had been walking in the roads of Hinata, warning the farmers about this event.
The priest was invited to the home of a Hatamoto Tsuchiya 土屋, where he told the Samurai, that he himself was the dragon. He had been to earth because there was not enough water.
Tsuchiya took the water of his inkstone, poured it into a ritual Sake container and gave it to the old priest, who took it with great pleasure.
A few days later the blue sky turned dark and a long strong rain started. The raindrops were all black, they sy.


- - - - - 本所深川小日向 Honjo Fukagawa Kohinata
In former times there was a shallow valley between the higher areas of 小石川 Koishikawa and 小日向 Kohinata.
In former times children's songs were used to predict the fate.
In 1657, on the 18/19 of the New Year, there was a great fire. At that time a song from 越後 Echigo about fire had been popular.
In 1728, there was a large flooding in Honjo Fukagawa Kohinata, and there was a song to go with it.

. Fukagawa 深川 Fukagawa district / Kōtō 江東区 Koto Ward. .

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. dokuro どくろ / sharekobe 髑髏 skull legends .
At the slope 服部坂 Hatorizaka there was a Zen temple called しうりん院 Shorin-In.


. hikigaeru 蝦蟇 toad legends .
At 江戸の関口 Sekiguchi in Koishikawa.

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. Ochanomizu 御茶ノ水 / 御茶の水 / お茶之水 / 御茶ノ水 "Water for Tea" .
reikon 霊魂 soul of a dead person

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reimu 霊夢 oracle dream
Koogenji 光源寺 Temple Kogen-Ji

2 Chome-38-22 Mukogaoka, Bunkyō

A person was visiting one of the Inari shrines in the compound, when he found a rare mask. He took it home, but that night his wife has a strange oracle dream.
Since there was some construction going on at the Inari shrine, the mask wanted to be taken good care of and had been found by her husband.
When he went back to the temple Kogen-Ji, there were indeed construction workers. They had stapled all the old ema 絵馬 votive tablets and put kudan no men くだんの面 / 件 a mask of a Kudan on top of it.
He took the mask of the Kudan home and kept it as his protector deity. Every time he had a problem and prayed for guidance to it, he got an answer.

kudan 件 is a "human-faced bovine" kind of Yokai monster.

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. Yaoya no O-Shichi 八百屋の七 Greengrocer's Daughter Oshichi .



................................................................................. Hongo 本郷

Fuji Gongen 富士権現 Fuji Deity
There was a shrine for Fuji Gongen in Hongo, but about 100 ago it was relocated to 駒込 Komagome. Thre was a small mountain, looking similar to Mount Fujisan, with some large trees.
On the first day of a certain sixth lunar month, it was suddenly snowing, which looked like blossoms on the branches. The villager nearby had a divine inspriation telling him that Fuji Gongen wants to go back to his original place in Hongo. So they relocated the shrine again.


. Gyoki 行基 Saint Gyoki .
From 富士浅間社の縁起 the records of Shrine Fuji Sengen Jinja in Hongo :
In the year 1573 Kimura had a dream: From 古塚 an old mound in 本郷 Hongo they had found various carvings, like 牛王板, a plank carving of the Go-O Bull Deity, made by Gyoki.
To venerate them properly they built this shrine.
Fujisengen Jinja , 7 Chome-2-6 Hongo, Bunkyō

. Gyooki Bosatsu 行基菩薩 Gyoki Bosatsu . (668 - 749)


kyoo o yomu mokuzo 経を誦む木像 wooden statue reading Sutras
In a home of a Samurai living in 本郷元町 Hongo Motomachi there was a special hall for reading Buddhist sutras. One day they heard the statue of Amida Buddha reading the sutras.
When taking a closer look, there was a swarm of bees making the sound of sutra reading.


sennen mogura 千年土竜 a mole of 1000 years
At the house of a rich merchant living in Hongo Daikonbatake 本郷大根畑 the big radish fields of Hongo they captured shiroi mogura 白いもぐら a white mole.
It was about 30 cm long.

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- reference : nichibun yokai database -

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