Ishiteji

Ishiteji ( 石手寺 ) literally means the Stone Hand Temple, is one of the Shikoku 88 temple pilgrimage. The Shikoku Pilgrimage (四国遍路 ) or Shikoku Junrei (四国巡礼) is a famous 88 temples pilgrimage to honor Buddhist monk Kuukai on the island of Shikoku, Japan. The Ishiteji is temple number 51.

While I was in Matsuyama, I visited this temple on my free time. Unfortunately, I couldn't explore the whole temple because I needed to go back to my Hotel to prepare for Shimanami Kaido trip. A shame, but I managed to explore quite a bit.

Ryusenji Temple Meguro Fudou

There are probably exist a few thousands of temple and shrine in Japan. It's quite to easy find a temple or shrine close to where you live. One day, I was taking a walk around Meguro and I was surprised to find the Ryusenji Temple (滝泉寺) there. It is also commonly known as Meguro Fudou or Meguro Fudouson (目黒不動尊). It turned out that the temple is one of the oldest of it's kind. It is also the 'Black' temple of the Five Colors of Fudou (五色不動) : White (白), Black (黒), Red (赤), Blue (青), Yellow (黄).

Goutokuji - The Maneki Neko Legend

The Maneki Neko ( 招き猫 = The Beckoning Cat ) is a Japanese cat sculpture, usually made of ceramic, which is believed to bring good fortune and wealth. If you come to Japan, you will be able to see Maneki Neko in shops, restaurants, pachinko, banks, offices, houses, etc. The Maneki Neko is also one of the famous souvenirs from Japan. You could also found Maneki Neko as piggy banks, keychains, straps, and other miscellaneous ornaments.

招き猫は日本の猫の彫刻です。招き猫は福を招くとして商家、銀行、事務所などで飾る縁起物です。招き猫は有名な日本のお土産です。彫刻だけでわなくて招き猫の貯金箱、キーホルダー、ストラップなどもある。

There are many stories regarding the origin of Maneki Neko. The three famous legends are the Goutokuji, Imado, and Yoshiwara.

招き猫の由来はいくつ説があるけど豪徳寺と今戸神社と吉原説が一番有名です。

Shoufuku Ji

Shoufuku Ji (正福寺) is a Zen Buddhist temple in Higashi Murayama (東村山). The Shoufuku Jizo Hall is registered as one of the National Treasure of Japan. It is considered to be the oldest intact building in Tokyo Prefecture and a unique example of Kamakura era architecture.

Inside the hall are thousands of small Jizo statues that were offered by worshippers during the Edo Period. Every year on November 3rd, they have a festival there. During the festival, the hall is opened and you could see the Jizo statues.