In cooperation with Jizo Peace Center in Pine Mountain near Los Angeles, Cultural News provides a program of the visit to Jizo temples in Shikoku and the visit to atomic-bomb survived Jizo in Hiroshima from March 15, 2014, through March 21, 2014.
Cultural News editor Shige Higashi will lead this tour, make arrangements of meeting local people, and provide English translations.
The participants will meet in Takamatsu City, Kagawa Prefecture on March 15. The tour will be disbanded in Hiroshima City on March 21.
Cultural News will provide participants from Los Angeles the information for buying airline tickets and to making hotel reservations for the portions of before and after the Jizo Tour.
Shikoku Pilgrimage #36 Seiryu-ji Temple in Tosa. (Source: Flickr)
Shikoku & Hiroshima Jizo Tour 2014 Itinerary
March 15 (Saturday)
The participants from Los Angeles will check in a hotel in Takamatsu by 5:00 pm. The first meeting will be held.
March 16 (Sunday)
By JR trains, we will make one day trip to Itano in Tokushima Prefecture from Takamatsu to visit the Shikoku Pilgrimage #5 Jizo-ji Temple.
In the early ninth century, the Jizo-ji Temple was founded by the Kobo Daishi under order of the Emperor Saga. A two-inch-tall statue of Jizo Bosatsu of Victory carved by the Kobo Daishi, was later replaced with a large statue of Enmei Jizo by the priest Jokan, the renovator of this temple, in the 13th century.
In the same manner as other temples, this temple was burned down by the invader Chosokabe from the Tosa region in the 16th century, and later rebuilt.
There are 500 famous Rakan Jizo statues in the hall corridor of this temple. Various kinds of faces on the Rakans attract visitors and take them back to the time of ancient India.
These artistic works were done by two priests in the 18th century, and later collected inside the hall.
We will stay in the hotel in Takamatsu.
March 17 (Monday)
By JR trains, we will go to Kubokawa in Kochi Prefecture to pay our visit to Shikoku Pilgrimage #37 Iwamoto-ji Temple. We will stay at a dormitory inside the temple.
March 18 (Tuesday)
By JR trains, we will leave Kubokawa for Oboke in Tokushima Prefecture. From Oboke with a taxi, we will visit Chiiori Project, 300 years old housing preservation at mythical Iya Valley under the direction of Alex Kerr, a famous Japanologist.
After the Iya visit, we will continue train ride to Kompira-san place and stay at a ryokan inn in Kompira-san.
March 19 (Wednesday)
We will visit Konpira Shrine and adjacent buildings and move to Zentsuji City by train to visit Shikoku Pilgrimage #75 Zentsu-ji Temple.
In the evening, we will return to Takamatsu and stay there.
March 20 (Thursday)
By JR Train, we will leave Takamatsu for Hiroshima via Seto Bridge and Shinkansen. We will check in a ryokan inn in Hiroshima City at noon.
Hiroshima photographer Ken Shimizu will lead the tour to visit atomic-bomb survived Jizo in downtown of Hiroshima.
March 21 (Friday)
Ken shimizu will take the tour to Peace Memorial Park and Museum in the morning.
After ”okonomi-yaki” lunch at JR Hiroshima Station, the tour will be disbanded.
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Ruth Handy of the Jizo Peace Center will continue her travel to Kyoto and Koyasan.
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The tour costs from March 15 in Takamatsu through March 21 in Hiroshima are approximately $1,200 per person. This cost includes JR train tickets, 6-night accommodations, 6 breakfast, 1 dinner, and program participation fee.
For more details about the Jizo tour in Japan, please contact Shige Higashi at (213) 819-4100 or emailhigashi@culturalnews.com
