I felt that I could not enshrine this precious Kannon in my little temple, Wabi’an, unless I knew for sure that she was not stolen, so I wrote a letter to the temple telling them that I would come in person on April 8th to talk to them about the statue. April 8th is designated as Kannon’s special day in Japan – rather like her birthday – and it was the one day I had free during the Kannon Pilgrimage, which I was about to guide.
On the ascribed day, I took a train about 600kms west of Kyoto, then a bus to the nearest village and walked another 5kms up the mountain to Daioji temple. The mountain walk proved quite challenging because I had sprained my ankle very badly at the start of the pilgrimage (and it wasn’t until I returned to Australia that the doctor informed me it was actually fractured!), but instead of sensibly resting it on my free day, I felt deeply compelled to find out if this Kannon was truly mine, despite the pain. As I walked up the mountain I began to encounter some of the stone images that Baba-san had carved: larger-than-life fiery deities with scowling faces and swords, but also gentle Kannon with flowing robes and kind Jizo, the protector of travellers.
When I reached Daioji, a collection of simple modest buildings with a sunny garden and a natural spring, a woman about my age came rushing out to greet me – her face beaming as she wiped her hands on her apron. She bowed to me and poured out a torrent of words in a dialect that I had trouble keeping up with, but the warm welcome needed no spoken language – we were immediate friends! She took me into a newly constructed temple building with an enormous wooden carving of Fudo Myo (“Immovable Light King”) enshrined as the main image – such tremendous power emanating from him that I immediately bowed and made an offering prayer. I was then led by Mrs Baba, who is the grand-daughter of the founder, Kakushin Baba, to meet her husband in a small simple tea-room adjoining the temple. Baba-san, who was much quieter and shyer that his wife, had a very kind face with a smart beard and sharp penetrating eyes, which gave him an air of subdued power.
I was immediately reassured that the statue of Kannon in my possession was indeed mine to keep. What a relief! We all laughed and relaxed while we sipped green tea and chatted about Australia and my dear Kannon. It was surmised that the image had been given by Kakushin Baba to a devotee in Kyushu for the purpose of healing many many years ago and that perhaps when that person had passed away the relatives had sold it to the antique store.
It seems that Kakushin Baba (1889-1962) was a true mountain mystic, following in the footsteps of the Buddhist holy men who, since ancient times, had garnered physical and psychic powers by practicing austerities and tantric Buddhist rituals in the wild mountains of Japan. He had wandered through these mountains and one day had a vision of Kannon while standing under the waterfall reciting mantras. He then established a small temple in this sacred place and settled down here to live. All of the statues he carved, numbering around three hundred, were the result of his tantric Buddhist practices and meditations; he was not trained as an artist but felt compelled to carve what he witnessed in his visions.
On the ascribed day, I took a train about 600kms west of Kyoto, then a bus to the nearest village and walked another 5kms up the mountain to Daioji temple. The mountain walk proved quite challenging because I had sprained my ankle very badly at the start of the pilgrimage (and it wasn’t until I returned to Australia that the doctor informed me it was actually fractured!), but instead of sensibly resting it on my free day, I felt deeply compelled to find out if this Kannon was truly mine, despite the pain. As I walked up the mountain I began to encounter some of the stone images that Baba-san had carved: larger-than-life fiery deities with scowling faces and swords, but also gentle Kannon with flowing robes and kind Jizo, the protector of travellers.
When I reached Daioji, a collection of simple modest buildings with a sunny garden and a natural spring, a woman about my age came rushing out to greet me – her face beaming as she wiped her hands on her apron. She bowed to me and poured out a torrent of words in a dialect that I had trouble keeping up with, but the warm welcome needed no spoken language – we were immediate friends! She took me into a newly constructed temple building with an enormous wooden carving of Fudo Myo (“Immovable Light King”) enshrined as the main image – such tremendous power emanating from him that I immediately bowed and made an offering prayer. I was then led by Mrs Baba, who is the grand-daughter of the founder, Kakushin Baba, to meet her husband in a small simple tea-room adjoining the temple. Baba-san, who was much quieter and shyer that his wife, had a very kind face with a smart beard and sharp penetrating eyes, which gave him an air of subdued power.
I was immediately reassured that the statue of Kannon in my possession was indeed mine to keep. What a relief! We all laughed and relaxed while we sipped green tea and chatted about Australia and my dear Kannon. It was surmised that the image had been given by Kakushin Baba to a devotee in Kyushu for the purpose of healing many many years ago and that perhaps when that person had passed away the relatives had sold it to the antique store.
It seems that Kakushin Baba (1889-1962) was a true mountain mystic, following in the footsteps of the Buddhist holy men who, since ancient times, had garnered physical and psychic powers by practicing austerities and tantric Buddhist rituals in the wild mountains of Japan. He had wandered through these mountains and one day had a vision of Kannon while standing under the waterfall reciting mantras. He then established a small temple in this sacred place and settled down here to live. All of the statues he carved, numbering around three hundred, were the result of his tantric Buddhist practices and meditations; he was not trained as an artist but felt compelled to carve what he witnessed in his visions.
We took a walk further up the mountain through the forest to a waterfall with more wonderful images carved by Kakushin, beside which there was a small rustic temple with a beautiful wooden carving of Kannon enshrined within it. This image, the first that Kakushin had carved after his initial vision of Kannon, was almost identical to my precious Kannon. And the date carved into the base of this waterfall Kannon was the same year as that carved into the base of my Kannon. As Mrs Baba exclaimed, "They are sisters!"
But that’s not the end of the story…
But that’s not the end of the story…
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