 Omiwatari (御神渡: literally. God's Crossing )
Once upon a time, there were a goddess named Yasakatome-no Mikoto (八坂刀売命) and a god, Takeminakata-no Mikoto (建御名方命). When the Goddess alone moved to the Lower Shrine, the God missed her so much but found that Lake Suwa was too large to cross. Then, when Lake Suwa was frozen over, he took the chance and walked over the ice to her shrine. |
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The 7 wonders of Lower Shrine of Great Shrines of Suwa
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| The bridge stone over Shochi River (承知川) On his way to the Battle of Kawanakajima (川中島), Takeda Shingen paid homage at the Gracious Deity of Suwa for his victory and he committed his contribution of new construction to the shrine. After the battle, when Shingen reached the river just past the Suwa Shrine, his horse stopped all of a sudden as if it were petrified. That reminded him of the commitment he had made to the Deity and said, "Shochi Shimashita " (「承知しました」: "Message Received!"), which started the horse trotting again. This anecdotal story is said to have been the origin of the name of the river "Shochi River". Shingen offered contribution to the shrine, but it had not been long since the shrine had been constructed. Then another legend goes like this. Shingen buried coins or bills for the building expenses somewhere in the ground and the map of the location was engraved on the surface of the wooden bridge over Shochi River. There are some other versions of the story for the location. Shingen left the following word, "Under the ground of the foot of a hackberry on which the morning and evening sun shine, you'll find money and treasure lying idle". Maybe his words could give us some clue as to the location. |
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The Stone Talisman which parried Shingen's arrows (信玄の矢除け石) On Shingen's march to the battlefield in Kawanakajima, on the premises of Jiun Temple (慈雲寺) was a Buddhist priest standing on a boulder. Shingen thought there should be some respect paid to himself, but the priest didn't move. So Shingen ordered some master archers to shoot at the priest, never to hit him. Wondering why, first he offered his apology and then asked the priest why he had not had shot. The priest confessed that the talisman from the temple kept the arrows away from him. Shingen was overjoyed and took the talismans, which were given to his troops, and continued his expedition. |
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| Shingen's stone coffin（信玄の石棺） Shingen is said to have left his dying wish as follows; His death should be kept concealed for three years after his death. Then he should be laid with his armor on in a stone coffin, which should be submerged in Lake Suwa. |
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| Kanayaki Jizoson(銕焼地蔵尊: Kanayaki Guardian Deity of Children) ―Tradition of Izumi Shikibu (和泉式部) in Raiko Temple（来迎寺） A long time ago there was a girl called Kane, who had lost her parents when very young and was working as a servant at a public bath, Betto (別当). Her work involved daily lunch delivery to the farming area. She often managed to gather some rice out of the lunch boxes and offered it to a figure of a Bodhisattva, a Buddhist saint. But as ill luck would have it, she was seen making an offering to the Bodhisattva, which was reported to her master. The master's wife was so furious that she struck Kane's forehead with red-hot tongs. Kane cried in agony and ran out of the house to the Bodhisattva. When she looked at the face of the figure, there was a stream of blood flowing down on the forehead. In front of the idol Kane knelt down with no wound but with wonder. Looking at the miracle, the local people said, "Fall down on your knee and worship everyday, so you'll be gifted not only with beautiful mind but also lovely appearance". Hearing the rumor of the work of God, Kane's master and his wife felt so remorseful about what they had done to her that, to make up their disservice, they loved and cherished Kane ever after. Then, the rumor about Kane's beauty reached the capital and she was invited there by the Emperor. It is said that Kane later became Izumi Shikibu (A Japanese poetess of the 11th century) . Shikibu moved the Bodhisattva to the capital and took good care of it as her guardian saint. After she passed away, a buddhist priest at Saimyo Temple (最明寺) happened to stay at Shikibu's thatched cottage, where he got revelation from the Bodhisattva. To follow the message, he moved the image to Seijuin（聖聚庵）at Raiko Temple. This is what we see today as Kanayaki Guardian Deity of Children. |