THE JEWEL OF LAKE BIWA-

Chikubushima (竹生島), a tiny island on Lake Biwa (琵琶湖), is home to Tsukubusuma-jinja (都久夫須麻神社) & Hogon-ji (宝厳寺), 1 of Japan's 3 great Benzaiten (弁才天) Shrines.
It is believed Benzaiten's first steps on Earth were here.
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#Shiga #Japan Benzaiten, as goddess of 'all that flows', is often enshrined close to water.
Hogon-ji's statue of Benzaiten is one of the most celebrated in Japan. Created in 1565, unusually the goddess is depicted with 8 arms, each carrying an object that confirms her power & divinity. -2-

THOUSANDS OF BOARS HELP WITH THE FOUNDING OF YOSHIMINE-DERA (善峯寺)🐗🐗🐗🐗-

Yoshimine-dera is the 20th (of 33) temple on the famed Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage (千手観音は西国三十三か所巡礼第20番札所). It is known for its early summer hydrangea & autumn colours. 1/13
#Kyoto #京都 The temple's huge grounds (10,000 square metres) sprawl up the upper slopes of Shaka-dake (釈迦岳-631m). In the Middle Ages it was known as Nishiyama-no-miya (西山宮) and was classed as a Monzeki temple (the abbot was of imperial blood), with over 50 main structures. 2/13
#善峯寺

ORIGINS OF THE GREAT SEND-OFF FIRES (送り火) PART 1-

The origins of the Shukyo Gyoji (宗教行事/aka Oshorai おしょらい) are hazy at best, but there are many stories about how the great mountain fires came to be.
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#五山送り火 #GozanNoOkuribi #大文字 #Daimonji #京都 #Kyoto Iwata Hideaki (岩田英彬) in his work 'Kyo no Daimonji Monogatari' (京の大文字ものがたり) says "The event was launched by people with no particular status or fame, so there’s no record of its origin". This helpfully explains why we know so little about the Okuribi (送り火). 2/10