Carpe Diem #1824 Yasaka-ji (temple 47)

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

First I have to apologize (again). At the moment my life is a bit upside down, because of circumstances in private and at work, so my mind isn't really at our wonderful Kai. So before I give you our Thursday episode I have to tell you all that this month I will not always publish an episode every day. I just can't find the peace to create them for you in the quality you all deserve. I hope you all will accept this choice.

This month we are on a pilgrimage at Shikoku Island, a kind of reprise of our earlier pilgrimage there back in 2014. Today we have a nice episode about Yasaka-ji, the 47th temple of the Shikoku Pilgrimage.

Yasaka-ji (temple 47)

Yasaka-ji temple is dedicated to Amida Nyorai. Let me tell you a little bit more about Amida Nyorai.
Amitābha, also known as Amida or Amitāyus, is a celestial buddha according to the scriptures of Mahayana Buddhism. Amitābha is the principal buddha in Pure Land Buddhism, a branch of East Asian Buddhism. In Vajrayana Buddhism, Amitābha is known for his longevity attribute, magnetising red fire element, the aggregate of discernment, pure perception and the deep awareness of emptiness of phenomena. According to these scriptures, Amitābha possesses infinite merit resulting from good deeds over countless past lives as a bodhisattva named Dharmakāra. Amitābha means "Infinite Light", and Amitāyus means "Infinite Life" so Amitābha is also called "The Buddha of Immeasurable Light and Life".

Kobayashi Issa, one of the big-five haiku poets, was a buddhist in the tradition of the Pure Land Buddhism and he wrote several haiku with that theme, here are a few examples:

"Praise the unshackled
heavenly gods!"
plum blossoms

if you're praying
pray to Amida Buddha!
summer cicadas

one paulownia leaf
good choice!
it falls westward

© Kobayashi Issa

That 2nd and 3rd haiku are very specific themed Pure Land. According to Pure Land Buddhism is paradise situated in the west.

at dusk
the colored clouds show the Way
Pure Land calls
reaches out to humankind
Eternity awaits

© Chèvrefeuille

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 18th at noon (CET). Have fun!

Carpe Diem #1823 The Path Of Enlightenment

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at a new episode of our Kai, but before I start with this episode I have to apologize for not publishing last weekend. There were circumstances in private life that needed my attention so I hadn't time to publish our weekend meditation last weekend.

Today I have a more informative episode for you all about the Shikoku Pilgrimage, the pilgrimage that is our theme this month.

The Shikoku Pilgrimage or Shikoku Junrei is a multi-site pilgrimage of 88 temples associated with the Buddhist monk Kūkai (Kōbō Daishi) on the island of Shikoku, Japan. A popular and distinctive feature of the island's cultural landscape, and with a long history, large numbers of pilgrims (known as henro still undertake the journey for a variety of ascetic, pious, and tourism-related purposes.
In addition to the 88 "official" temples of the pilgrimage, there are over 200 bangai — temples not considered part of the official 88. To complete the pilgrimage, it is not necessary to visit the temples in order; in some cases it is even considered lucky to travel in reverse order.

The pilgrimage is traditionally completed on foot, but modern pilgrims use cars, taxis, buses, bicycles, or motorcycles. The walking course is approximately 1,200 km long and can take anywhere from 30 to 60 days to complete. "Henro" is the Japanese word for pilgrim, and the inhabitants of Shikoku call the pilgrims o-henro-san, the o being an honorific and the san a title similar to "Mr." or "Mrs.". They are often recognizable by their white clothing, sedge hats, and kongō-tsue or walking sticks. Alms or osettai are frequently given. Many pilgrims begin and complete the journey by visiting Mount Kōya in Wakayama Prefecture, which was settled by Kūkai and remains the headquarters of the Shingon sect of Buddhism. The 21 km walking trail up to Koya-san still exists, but most pilgrims use the train.

mysterious Island
dedicated to the Path of Enlightenment
four countries* as one

© Chèvrefeuille

(*Shikoku means "four countries")

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 16th at noon (CET). Enjoy!

Carpe Diem #1821 Ryozenji (the first temple)

Youkoso at Shikoku dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Today we start with our Shikoku Pilgrimage and so I started this episode with "Youkoso", which means "welcome''. From this day on we will make a pilgrimage along a selection of the 88 temples on the Isle of Shikoku and will trod in the footsteps of thousands of O-Henro (pilgrims on Shikoku-route) and in the footsteps of Kobo Daishi (774-835).

The Shikoku Pilgrimage starts at the first temple, Ryozenji, but before we start with our Shikoku Pilgrimage we first have to learn the "Heart of the Great Wisdom Sutra":

Heart of the Great Wisdom Sutra

When a sincere truth seeker attains the wisdom of enlightenment, he realizes that all the five senses are empty and he transcends every suffering.
Listen: All things are no different from emptiness; emptiness is not different from all things. Form is emptiness; emptiness is form. Feelings, perceptions, impulses, consciousness are also like this.
Listen: The original nature of all things is neither born nor extinguished. There is no purity, no defilement; no gain, no loss.
In this world of emptiness there is no form, no feelings, perceptions, impulses, or consciousness. No eye, ear, tongue body, or mind. Therefore, no color, sound, smell, taste, touch, or thought. The world of form does not exist, nor the world of the mind or of ignorance; no old age and no death.
Yet there is continuous ignorance, old age, and death.
There is no suffering, no cause of suffering, no cessation of suffering; no wisdom and no attainment because there is nothing to be attained. The compassionate truth-seeker depends upon the wisdom of enlightenment.
When the mind does not become attached to anything, there are no obstacles and fear does not exist. This mind goes beyond all disruptive views and attains Nirvana. All the Buddhas of the past, present and future depend upon the wisdom of enlightenment--and so attain the supreme, wisdom of enlightenment as the great unexplainable true word, the great shining true word that is able to remove all suffering. It is true, not false. This true word of wisdom says:
Gyate Gyate Hara Gyate Hara So Gyate Bodhi Sowa Ka.

Ryozenji (the first temple)

Well ... as we are prepared now I say again "Youkoso" and I bow for you. In my heart I chant the Heart Sutra to become in tune with Shikoku. We are on our way and will start at the first temple Ryozenji at Naruto in Tokushima Prefecture. It is here were the pilgrimage starts.

Ryozenji Temple is also known as "Vulture Peak" which refers to one of the sermons the Buddha once gave on a mountain with the same name. It was on that mountain that Buddha started with his religion and wrote the Heart-Sutra and e.g. the Lotus-Sutra.
So this first temple is in every way the start of our Shikoku Pilgrimage.
In the upcoming episodes of our Shikoku Pilgrimage I will try to tell you all more about Buddhism as one of the roots for our beloved haiku. As you maybe know ... in the classical rules of haiku is said that there has to be a Buddhistic layer in haiku. Of course I will use haiku examples written by the classical haiku-poets and sometimes written by modern haiku-poets.
OK ... let us start with our Shikoku Pilgrimage and I love to share my first haiku for this new month with you and I am looking forward to all our new insights and wonderful haiku.

Vulture Peak

pilgrims chanting
the Heart Sutra to honor Kukai -
cry of a Vulture
breaks through the serene temple -
pilgrims chanting

© Chèvrefeuille

Well ... our new month has started ... enjoy our small pilgrimage along the 88 temples on Shikoku Island.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 9th at noon (CET). Have fun!

Carpe Diem #1820 Introduction to Shikoku Island

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Maybe you can remember our earlier Shikoku Pilgrimage months back in 2012 and in 2017, we became Henro (as the pilgrims are called) and walked this wonderful pilgrimage along the 88 temples on Shikoku Island.

This month we are going again to walk this pilgrimage together hoping that Shikoku Island will bring us the inspiration for our Japanese poetry. The Shikoku pilgrimage is a once in a lifetime to do pilgrimage for Buddhists ... so this month we will be Buddhists, Henr-o that walk the pilgrimage along the 88 temples established by Kobo Daishi (774-835).

One of the 88 temples on Shikoku Island, the Sakura Temple

Are you with me this month?

first cherry blossoms
winter is running towards its end --
a new day rises

© Chèvrefeuille

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 8th at noon (CET). Enjoy this new month.

Carpe Diem #1746 Shikoku Island ... the Path of Enlightenment

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

I hope you all have had a wonderful weekend full of inspiration ... and peace of the soul and heart. I hope you are all okay and into a new week of CDHK. This month we are pilgrims, our theme "an act of devotion" describes what pilgrims feel when they are on a pilgrimage.

A few days ago I told you a little bit about the "Hajj", the once in a lifetime pilgrimage to Mecca for our muslim neighbors. A same once in a lifetime pilgrimage is the Shikoku pilgrimage, a pilgrimage on the Island Shikoku along 88 temples. This is a once in a lifetime pilgrimage for Buddhists.

Maybe you can remember that we walked this pilgrimage together back in February and March 2014 and it was really a wonderful (digital) pilgrimage.

Logo Shikoku Pilgrimage 2014

The Shikoku Pilgrimage or Shikoku Junrei is a multi-site pilgrimage of 88 temples associated with the Buddhist monk Kūkai (Kōbō Daishi) on the island of Shikoku, Japan. A popular and distinctive feature of the island's cultural landscape, and with a long history, large numbers of pilgrims (known as henro still undertake the journey for a variety of ascetic, pious, and tourism-related purposes.
In addition to the 88 "official" temples of the pilgrimage, there are over 200 bangai — temples not considered part of the official 88. To complete the pilgrimage, it is not necessary to visit the temples in order; in some cases it is even considered lucky to travel in reverse order. The pilgrimage is traditionally completed on foot, but modern pilgrims use cars, taxis, buses, bicycles, or motorcycles. The walking course is approximately 1,200 km long and can take anywhere from 30 to 60 days to complete. "Henro" is the Japanese word for pilgrim, and the inhabitants of Shikoku call the pilgrims o-henro-san, the o being an honorific and the san a title similar to "Mr." or "Mrs.". They are often recognizable by their white clothing, sedge hats, and kongō-tsue or walking sticks. Alms or osettai are frequently given. Many pilgrims begin and complete the journey by visiting Mount Kōya in Wakayama Prefecture, which was settled by Kūkai and remains the headquarters of the Shingon sect of Buddhism. The 21 km walking trail up to Koya-san still exists, but most pilgrims use the train.

pilgrims chanting
the Heart Sutra to honor Kukai -
cry of a Vulture
breaks through the serene temple -
pilgrims chanting

© Chèvrefeuille

mysterious Island
dedicated to the Path of Enlightenment
four countries as one

© Chèvrefeuille

(note: Shikoku means "four countries")

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until September 22nd at noon (CEST). I will try to publish our new episode later on. For now ... have fun!

Carpe Diem #1630 Kumano Kodo Pilgrimage ...The Kohechi Trail

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

I have to apologize (again) for not publishing yesterday, but sometimes ... time is not at my side. Today however I had time to create a new episode of this wonderful pilgrimage month.
As I told you earlier this month the Kumano Kodo (Ancient Road) is a complex of five different pilgrimage route and today I love to take you on another Kumano Kodo trail ... The Kohechi trail.

Let me tell you a little bit about this Kohechi trail: Kohechi connects Kumano with Koyasan. This mountaintop route is long and challenging, and consequently should not be undertaken without careful preparation. Inns are rarely found without zigzagging up and down the mountainsides into valley towns, greatly increasing the distance traveled. Kohechi was used mainly by Buddhist monks from the temple complex of Mount Koya.

a fallen cocoon
in the first rays of the morning sun -
a butterfly rises
drying it's young blue wings
to live fully

© Chèvrefeuille (2014)

About the temple complex of Mount Koya there is a lot to tell but of course that;s not possible, but I just had to tell you a little about it.

Mount Koya (Kōyasan) is the center of Shingon Buddhism, an important Buddhist sect which was introduced to Japan in 805 by Kobo Daishi (also known as Kukai), one of Japan's most significant religious figures. A small, secluded temple town has developed around the sect's headquarters that Kobo Daishi built on Koyasan's wooded mountaintop. It is also the site of Kobo Daishi's mausoleum and the start and end point of the Shikoku 88 Temple Pilgrimage.

Garan Temple

Kobo Daishi began construction on the original Garan temple complex in 826 after wandering the country for years in search of a suitable place to center his religion. Since then over one hundred temples have sprung up along the streets of Koyasan. The most important among them are Kongobuji, the head temple of Shingon Buddhism, and Okunoin, the site of Kobo Daishi's mausoleum.

pilgrims chanting
the Heart Sutra to honor Kukai -
cry of a Vulture
breaks through the serene temple -
pilgrims chanting

© Chèvrefeuille (2014)

Here we make a connection with one of our earlier pilgrimages here at CDHK ... the Shikoku pilgrimage. Back in 2014 we digitally walked this pilgrimage for two months visiting the 88 temples on Shikoku Island. The above tanka I wrote back in those months.

I have wonderful memories of that Shikoku pilgrimage and I hope, you my dear Haijin, have those memories too.

deep meditation
high up in the mountains
chanting Buddhist monks

© Chèvrefeuille

What an awesome feeling this episode gives me. Here we can feel how all the post on CDHK are connected with each other ... isn't that awesome?

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 27th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new episode later on. Have fun!

Carpe Diem #1524 O-Henro Shikoku pilgrims (memory lane)

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

At CDHK we have done a lot of pilgrimages, one of the pilgrimages was on Shikoku Island along the 88 temples of Kobo Daishi, the once in a lifetime pilgrimage of Buddhists. I love to look back at that beautiful pilgrimage.

I remember that we first travelled with Trans Siberian Railway straight through the former USSR and read that wonderful novel by Paulo Coelho, Aleph. At the end of that journey we arrived on Shikoku Island and became O'Henro or pilgrims of Shikoku. What a wonderful time that was here at CDHK. We visited all the 88 temples in two months and (maybe) found peace of mind.

To become real O-Henro we had to change clothes (virtualy) without those special clothes we couldn't do the Shikoku Pilgrimage. I remember that we experienced the beauty of all the temples and for sure, as I look at myself, that changed my life.

O-Henro traditional clothing

At every temple we said the Heart Sutra ... to become silent and open-minded for changing:

Heart Sutra:

Heart of the Great Wisdom Sutra

When a sincere truth seeker attains the wisdom of enlightenment, he realizes that all the five senses are empty and he transcends every suffering.
Listen: All things are no different from emptiness; emptiness is not different from all things. Form is emptiness; emptiness is form. Feelings, perceptions, impulses, consciousness are also like this.
Listen: The original nature of all things is neither born nor extinguished. There is no purity, no defilement; no gain, no loss.
In this world of emptiness there is no form, no feelings, perceptions, impulses, or consciousness. No eye, ear, tongue body, or mind. Therefore, no color, sound, smell, taste, touch, or thought. The world of form does not exist, nor the world of the mind or of ignorance; no old age and no death.
Yet there is continuous ignorance, old age, and death.
There is no suffering, no cause of suffering, no cessation of suffering; no wisdom and no attainment because there is nothing to be attained. The compassionate truth-seeker depends upon the wisdom of enlightenment.
When the mind does not become attached to anything, there are no obstacles and fear does not exist. This mind goes beyond all disruptive views and attains Nirvana. All the Buddhas of the past, present and future depend upon the wisdom of enlightenment--and so attain the supreme, wisdom of enlightenment as the great unexplainable true word, the great shining true word that is able to remove all suffering. It is true, not false. This true word of wisdom says:
Gyate Gyate Hara Gyate Hara So Gyate Bodhi Sowa Ka.

O-Henro at one of the 88 temples on Shikoku Island

In our first episode of the Shikoku Pilgrimage I shared a so called "cascading haiku", but for this episode I have "redone" that "cascading haiku" into a tanka.

pilgrims chanting

the Heart Sutra to honor Kukai -

cry of a Vulture

breaks through the serene temple -

pilgrims chanting

© Chèvrefeuille

This pilgrimage took us two whole months (February & March 2014) and I love to share part of the first episode of March 2014, about the 40th temple Kanjizai-ji.

Kanjizai-ji (temple 40)

[...] Kanjizai-ji is situated in the town called Ainan and is devoted to Yakushi Nyorai or the Buddha of Medicine and Healing. He is still one of the most important Buddhas especially during rituals which are performed at funerals, because he is also the Buddha who leads the buddhists to Nirvana.

Nirvana calling

Yakushi Nyorai guides you

to Enlightenment

© Chèvrefeuille

With Kanjizai-ji temple we are on our way to the last temple of the Shikoku Trail. Than we will have seen and visited the 88 temples who are inspired on the life of Kobo Daishi (774-835) who was born on Shikoku Island and was one of the founders of Shingon Buddhism. [...]

It was really an honor to be on the Island of Shikoku as your guide and inspirator. Thank you all.

The task for this episode is to look back into our rich CDHK history and share your favorite episode. Please share with us why you did like that specific episode and maybe you can share a new haiku or tanka inspired on your favorite episode.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until October 24th at noon (CEST). I will try to publish our new episode later on. For now ... have fun!

Carpe Diem #1274 Ryuko-ji (compassion)

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

In our CDHK history we have done exciting things all along the virual road. We made several journeys and we have walked pilgrimages all over the world. Back in 2014 we went to Shikoku Island, Japan after our journey straight through the former USSR. On Shikoku Island we visited, like millions of other O-Henro, the 88 temples converted to Kobo Daishi (also known as Kukai). The Shikoku pilgrimage is to Buddhists what the Hajj is for the Muslim. The Buddhists have to make this pilgrimage once in a life time and so it was our duty, as haiku poets, to visit Shikoku.

Today I have chosen one of the temples on Shikoku Island to inspire you with. This temple is named Ryuko-ji and is devoted to the Buddha of Compassion. One of the main ideas of Buddhism. In that episode (HERE) I also told you a little about the "State of Zen" in haiku and I remember that I told you a little bit more about "wordlessness".
"Wordlessness" is (in my opinion) one of the pillars of haiku. Look at our haiku. Three lines, approximately 17 syllables and around 15 or 20 words. It's a very short poem, but in that poem the strenght is the scenes that are tols about without words. So "wordlessness" is part of haiku.

Kobo Daishi (a.k.a. Kukai)

As I am preparing this episode I remember that I experimented with the haiku form last month and I think those experimental haiku are the best "image" or "example" of wordlessness in haiku. Nice to realize that. I hadn't thought about experimental haiku in the way of "wordlessness". Awesome.

Here is an example of what I call "experimental haiku", I think you will remember this one from last month.

stepping
into heaven
incense

© Chèvrefeuille (experimental haiku)

This one fits also the idea of pilgrimage in a way.

Let me try another "wordlessness"-haiku, sounds a bit strange ...

at dawn
dew shimmers
morning glories

© Chèvrefeuille ("wordlessness"-haiku)

This episode is open for your submissions tonight at 7:00 PM (CET) and will remain open until October 17th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new episode, nakedness, later on.

Carpe Diem Tan Renga Challenge Month 2017 #8 The flower of a pumpkin (Tomiyashu Fusei)

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Another day has gone, we are running to halfway this wonderful Tan Renga Challenge month and until today I just loved all the continuations and completions you all have shared here. Thank you all for participating in this daily challenge to create Tan Renga.

Yesterday we had a nice haiku by Hamish Managua Gunn and so today it is time for another classical haiku poet, however ... our "hokku" of today is written by Tomiyasu Fusei (1885 - 1979), a contemporary of Shiki and maybe not that classical as other haiku poets from the past I used here, because Tomiyasu died in 1979. I had planned to use another haiku written by him, because I really didn't know more about him. So as I was doing some research for this new episode I ran into other beauties written by him. So I decided to use another haiku.

Tomiyasu Fusei

Let me tell you first a little bit more about Tomiyasu Fusei:

Tomiyasu Fusei was a famous member of the Hototogisu Haiku Group (started by Shiki), from Aichi prefecture. He later founded the "Haiku Association of Tokyo University", Toodai Haiku Kai with Mizuhara Shuoshi and Yamaguchi Seishi. They were all students of Takahama Kyoshi.

Ishizuchi mo nankin no hana mo ooi nari

The flower of a pumpkin
as well as Mt. Ishizuchi
is great in scale

© Tomiyasu Fusei (1885 - 1979)

He was born in Aichi Prefecture as the fourth son to father "Saburo" and mother "Naka", in 1885. His real name was "Kenji". Naka's father had the Haigo (pen name) "Baigetsu (plum moon)", so his literary talent was descended from his mother.

In May of 1937, he retired as the vice minister of communications after 27 years' service with the Ministry of Communicaions. In July 1937, he visited Matsuyama for the first time and arrived at Niihama, he composed this Haiku as his first impression of Ehime. (Mount Ishizuchi is a famous holy mountain in Shikoku Island.)

Mount Ishizuchi in autumn (Shikoku Island Japan)

Shikoku Island is a once in a lifetime to do pilgrimage for every Buddhist along the 88 temples on this island. A few years ago we did this pilgrimage virtually here at CDHK (February and March 2014, you can find those posts through the "archive-list" at the right side of our Kai.)

The haiku by Fusei which I shared above is our "hokku" for today and here is my attempt to create a Tan Renga with it by adding my two-lined second stanza.

the flower of a pumpkin

as well as Mt. Ishizuchi

is great in scale                                   © Tomiyasu Fusei 

glowing Halloween eyes
scaring the ghosts away                     © Chèvrefeuille

Not as strong as I had hoped, but as I read "pumpkin" I just had to use Halloween in my continuation. And now it is up to you to add your second stanza through association.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until May 15th at noon (CET). I will try to post our next episode, a new "weekend-meditation", an episode of Namasté, The Spiritual Way, later on. For now .... have fun!

PS. I have included a new exclusive CDHK E-book on Troiku, titled "Flamingo Clouds", in our CDHK Library. A preview of this new CDHK E-book you can find above in the menu.

Carpe Diem #1151 Shikoku Island

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

First this: At the left side of our Kai you can find the link to the download of "Only Footprints" by Candy, the latest exclusive CDHK e-book. Candy has created a wonderful e-book and I hope, as the editor of it, that you all will like it as much as I liked creating it.

Maybe you have noticed it already, but I haven't published our new episode of our new special feature "Namasté", but that had to do with time. After our regular episode I will also publish our new "Namasté" episode.

We are on a journey "criss-cross" through Japan the native country of haiku and today I love to travel on to the island of Shikoku. Maybe you can remember our pilgrimage along the 88 temples on this island. The Shikoku pilgrimage is a once in a lifetime to do pilgrimage of Buddhist, as is the Hadj for the Muslim.

The Shikoku pilgrimage is originated by Kobo Daishi (also know as Kukai), the founder of the Shingon sect of Buddhism, and it brings you along the 88 temples on Shikoku island. During some circumstances that take a bit of time from me I have taken the easy way today. I will reproduce the first episode of our Shikoku pilgrimage back in 2014 here again. I hope you don't "hate" me for that choice (smiles).

Sakura Temple on Shikoku Island

Shikoku is one of the four main islands (Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu) that make up Japan. The island is located between the Seto Inland Sea and the Pacific Ocean. There are four prefectures located there: Tokushima, Kagawa, Ehime, and Kochi. Tokushima has close political, economic, and cultural ties to the Kansai region of Honshu, which includes cities like Osaka and Kyoto. In recent years, three bridges spanning the Seto Inland Sea have created land routes between Honshu and Shikoku. One connects Kobe to the city of Naruto in Tokushima via Awaji Island on the Kobe-Awaji-Naruto Expressway (the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge). The second route connects Okayama Prefecture's Hayashima with the city of Sakaide in Kagawa via the Seto-Chuo Expressway (the six Seto-Ohashi Bridges; this route also features a rail line). The third connects Hiroshima's Onomichi with the city of Imabari in Ehime via the Nishi-Seto Expressway (the three Kurushima-Kaikyo Bridges; this route is also accessible on foot or by bicycle). With the construction of these routes, travel between Honshu and Shikoku via expressway and railway (Seto-Ohashi Bridge) has become more convenient than ever before.

Iya Kazurabashi Bridge, Takushima Prefecture Shikoku

The Pacific side of the island, which consists of the portion located to the south of Shikoku's mountain range that runs east to west, sees more than its share of rain, but the climate of the entire island is relatively warm.
There are plenty of wild and natural spots, scenic and historic places, and traditional festivals.
Naoshima, where nature and contemporary art coexist, Mt. Ishizuchi, one of the highest peaks in West Japan and a popular destination for hikers, the Naruto whirlpools, one of the largest whirlpools in the world, the thatched traditional house known as Chiiori which is located in the Iya valley, known as one of the three most remote places in Japan and the place where the defeated Heike warriors took refuge at the end of the 12th century, the Shimanto River which is called Japan's last clear stream where local people enjoy river recreation., Kompira Shrine which is home to the god of the sea, Dogo Hot Spring which is one of Japan's oldest hot springs with several thousand years of history, Awa Odori summer festival which attracts 1.3 million people annually, Kochi prefecture's summer Yosakoi festival which attracts 1 million people, Kochi's outdoor Sunday Market which is one of Japan's largest, and many many other attractions are what make up Shikoku.

Kan Henro, tradiotnal pilgrim clothing for the Shikoku pilgrimage

mysterious Island
dedicated to the Path of Enlightenment
four countries as one

© Chèvrefeuille

Shikoku Island knows four prefectures and that's reflected in it's name that means "four countries". Back in 2014 I enjoyed this Shikoku pilgrimage very much and I hope you all have nice memories at it too. By the way if you would like to read those episodes again or for the first time? Scroll down in the menu at right side of our Kai and click on the year 2014, February and March. Than you can "re-do" that pilgrimage again or discover the beauty of that pilgrimage.

pilgrims chanting
the Heart Sutra to honor Kukai -
cry of a Vulture
breaks through the serene temple -
pilgrims chanting

© Chèvrefeuille

To enlighten the meaning of the above tanka I have a short explanation for you about this tanka.

Ryozenji Temple, the first temple of the Shikoku pilgrimage, is also known as "Vulture Peak" which refers to one of the sermons the Buddha once gave on a mountain with the same name. It was on that mountain that Buddha started with his religion and wrote the Heart-Sutra and e.g. the Lotus-Sutra.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until February 16th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our next episode later on.

Carpe Diem #589, Zentsu-ji (February & March 2014) reprise

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Yesterday I told you about our journey straight through the former USSR and at the end of that journey we took the airplane to Japan, to finally arrive at Shikoku Island were we took part in the pilgrimage along the 88 temples. 
Today we are re-visiting the Zentsu-ji temple in Zentsu-ji Kagawa Prefecture. This temple is built in the early 9th century and is built in the birth place of Kobo Daishi. This temple was built by his father, Zentsu Saeki.

Zentsu-ji (temple 75)

The Shikoku trail is based on the life and actions by Kobo Daishi (or Kukai) and is established in honor of him. This Shikoku Pilgrimage is for Buddhists, what the Hajj is for the muslim. It's a once in a life-time to do pilgrimage for the Buddhists.
We followed this trail of Kobe Daishi for two months (February and March 2014) and it was a very uplifting and inspirational pilgrimage. We met other O-Henro (the name for the Shikoku pilgrims) and learned at lot about Buddhism and ourselves.

in deep silence

monks cleaning up their garden -
willow leaves fall

(c) Chèvrefeuille

It was really a joy to do this Shikoku Pilgrimage together with you and I recall that we also followed the Road to Santiago de Compostela by following Paulo Coelho in is novel "The Pilgrimage". As I look back to the last two years I only can say "we have seen and learned a lot". (By the way ... I am behind with commenting. I hope to catch up a.s.a.p.)

This episode is open for your submissions tonight at 7.00 PM (CET) and will remain open until October 27th at noon (CET). I will publish our next episode, Kite (April 2014), later on. For now ... have fun!

Carpe Diem #434, Okubo-ji (temple 88)

Dear O-Henro ... Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Here it is, our last episode of Carpe Diem's Shikoku pilgrimage along 88 temples. It was a joy to go on this virtual pilgrimage with you all, with our haiku-community, our haiku-family, but this is it. Next month we will have another wonderful month of kigo (seasonwords), all modern ones based on "A Dictionary of Haiku" by Jane Reichhold, but before we enter this new month I love to tell you all about the last theme in the State of Zen in Haiku, courage.

The last of the manifestations of Zen is in the form of courage. Though not one of the virtues especially emphasized by the moralist, it nevertheless includes all the other twelve characteristics which came along in the last two months, selflessness, loneliness, grateful acceptance, wordlessness, non-intellectuality, contradictoriness, humour, freedom, non-morality, materiality and love. All these elements are in some way present when an act of courage is performed.

It may be difficult, however, to see how courage is an essential, even the most essential part of a poet. Courage is life, living. Life is change; change is suffering; the will to suffer is courage.
Without courage we shall never be able truly to grasp the fact that all things, all events are vehicles of something that is far above and beyond the rules of morality.

It takes courage to become a pilgrim, as we have seen the last two months. It takes courage to become a haiku-poet, because you have to say what you have seen in an eye-blink in three lines of 5-7-5 syllables. Courage to say in a minimum of words that short moment as short as the sound of a pebble thrown into the water.

the sound of water
resonates through the mountains
deepens the silence

(c) Chèvrefeuille

Okubo-ji (temple 88)

Maybe it takes courage to enter the last temple on our Shikoku Pilgrimage, but at the other hand ... it must be a joy to realise that we have made it to the last temple Okubo-ji, devoted to Yakushi Nyorai the Buddha of Healing and Medicine. Maybe that's what this pilgrimage has brought us Healing ... but that I can not say, because I don't know how you all have experienced this pilgrimage. To me it was just a joy and in a way very healing and I think this pilgrimage has transformed me into ... another strong loving being.

Well ... that concludes our pilgrimage along the 88 temples on Shikoku Island and now we will enter a new month of Carpe Diem in which we will celebrate spring and in which month we will have our first 'ghost-writer' week.
This episode is open for your submissions tonight at 7.00 PM (CET) and will remain open until April 2nd 11.59 AM (CET). I will (try to) post our new episode, the first of a new month of Carpe Diem, later on today. Than we will enter spring with Awe.

Namaste

Carpe Diem #433, Nagao-ji (temple 87)

Dear O-Henro ... Haijin, visitors and travelers,

With this episode we enter the last phase, the last two days of our Shikoku pilgrimage and as I have promised I will the last two themes of the State of Zen in Haiku.
In this episode that will be love and in our last episode tomorrow that will be courage.

Love ... a wellknown emotion and in Zen-Buddhism love is very much referred to all and everything, but what to say about love as theme for the State of Zen in Haiku? Let me tell you ...

Credits: Spiritual Love

Zen is love of the Universe. Without this love, joy is uncertain, pain inevitable, all is meaningless.
This love must be complete, - not that it aims at the Universe as a whole, but that the personality as a whole is to be concentrated on the thing; the thing is to be suffused with the personality.

[...] "When an object is picked up, everthing else, One and All, comes along with it, not in the way of suggestion, but all-inclusively, in the sense that the object is complete in itself" [...] (Source: Dr. Suzuki)

The relation of love to poetry may be easy to make, but that to Zen is more difficult. Look at it like this.
If we are without self-love, greediness, without desire of gain, of happiness, of life itself, all this energy must overflow somewhere. It overflowes into all things, including one self, so that now no actions are selfish or unselfish, good or bad, but are like the sunshine or the rain, but with mind instead of mindlessness. We say that we see the beauty of the fine drops of rain, the glittering of the leaves in the sun, the stars in their calm, - but what we really see is in the mind of man, or own mind, in all these things. Through our activity and cooperation, these inanimate things acquire mind and affection.
In return, we become windy, rainy, starry, sunny creatures living in all things, in all times and places.

Love is also a kind of Dualism

Haiku are an expression of the joy of our reunion with things from which we have been parted by self-consciousness, so strong and tender in the sexual act, more diffused, yet equally powerful and delicate in our poetic moments. Though our love of things is so feeble, we all desire to be loved ardently in the wrong, the unbuddhistic, the unchristian way.

A few haiku to give you all an idea of love as a State of Zen in Haiku:

mountain persimmons;
the mother is eating
the astringent parts

(c) Issa

shutting the great temple gate,
creak! it goes:
an autumn evening

(c) Shiki

And a last one composed by San-in, a not so well-known haiku-poet:

it walked with me
as I walked,
the scarecrow in the distance

(c) San-in

Now we know a little bit more about love as a State of Zen in Haiku and now we can enter Nagao-ji, temple 87, devoted to Guanyin the boddhisattva of compassion. Guanyin is in this idea of love as a State of Zen in Haiku the most important boddhisattva, because Guanyin is depicted in both ways, as a male and as a female. So in Guanyin love is clearly there.
Now we can celebrate love as the ultimate, unconditional and universal energy which makes us who we are and who we will become. In my opinion love is the strongest energy to transform us into godlike loving creatures.

Nagao-ji (temple 87)

the last steps taken
to find universal love -
the sound of rain

(c) Chèvrefeuille

And now it is up to you my dear Haijin, visitors and travelers to write haiku inspired by love as a State of Zen. This episode will be open for your submissions tonight at 7.00 PM (CET) and will remain open until April 1st 11.59 AM (CET). I will (try to) post our last episode of this month, of this wonderful and spiritual pilgrimage, later on today. In that episode we will finally, after two months, enter the last temple of the Shikoku trail, Okubo-ji (temple 88).

Carpe Diem #432, shido-ji (temple 86)

Dear O-Henro ... Haijin, visitors and travelers,

First this: Thank you all for the congratulations shared with me and my family with the birth of our (7th) grandchild, Myron. My daughter and Myron are both well and they have left the hospital today.

It's almost over this pilgrimage along the 88 temples on Shikoku Island in which we have trod in the footsteps of Kobo Daishi (774-835) one of the founders of Shingon-sect of Buddhism. We have visited a lot of temples and we have gotten more knowledge of Buddhism ... and as I stated in our yesterday's post about The Way of St. James, I think this pilgrimage has transformed us all.
I have read wonderful haiku, senryu, tanka, kyoka and haibun, but I am also glad that these months are almost over, because it was a challenge to write an every day post about the temples and Buddhism.
As I was preparing this new episode I watched the prompt-list again of this month and I realized that I had forgotten March 31th. So after this episode we have another two episodes to go. In those episodes I will visit the last two temples and I will share the last two themes of the State of Zen of Haiku.
Our last two days, March 30th and 31th, we will visit respectively temple 87 and 88 (Nagao-ji and Okubo-ji) sorry for this little change in our prompt-list of March.

For this episode I will only share a photo of Shido-ji temple for your inspiration and I hope that photo will give enough inspiration. By the way the name Shido-ji means Temple of fulfilling One's Wish.

Shido-ji (temple 86)

pilgrimage's end in sight
just one wish left to fulfill
to be Enlightened

(c) Chèvrefeuille

I hope this episode will give you all enough inspiration to write haiku. This episode is open for your submissions tonight at 7.00 PM (CET) and will remain open until March 31th 11.59 AM (CET).
Our next stop will be temple 87, Nagao-ji, and in that episode I will share another theme of the State of Zen of Haiku ... LOVE.

Carpe Diem #431, Negoro-ji (temple 82) & Yashima-ji (temple 84)

Dear O-Henro ... Haijin, visitors and travelers,

As you all could have read in the small post of yesterday I have become a granddad (again). Our youngest daughter has given birth to her first born, a baby-boy named Myron. I couldn't post the episode of Negoro-ji and Yashima-ji on time, so I have chosen to do both temples in one post. I hope you don't mind that.
We are almost at the end of our pilgrimages on Shikoku Island and in the Northern region of Spain and then we will enter a new month full of exciting 'modern' kigo (seasonwords) for spring and of course we will have our first week of "Ghost-Writing". All family-members whom I had invited to be 'ghost-writer', have accepted my invitation. So in week 15 (April 7th until April 11th) we will have posts written by (respectively) Jules (April 7th), Managua (April 8th), Ese (April 9th), Belinda (April 10th) and Bjorn (April 11th). I am looking forward to this week and the posts they will write for our Haiku Kai.

Well ... let us go on with our Shikoku Pilgrimage along the 88 temples on the Japanese Island Shikoku. As I wrote above we will visit two temples on this trail today and I hope those temples will inspire you to write nice haiku. This time I have chosen to just give a photo of the temple for your inspiration ... so have fun ...

Negoro-ji (temple 82) devoted to Senju Kannon

a challenge
walking the path to Enlightenment -
poppies bow their head

(c) Chèvrefeuille

And here a photograph of Yashima-ji (temple 84) devoted also to Senju Kannon, the boddhisattva of compassion, as we have seen earlier on our pilgrimage. (The Far Eastern equivalent of the Virgin Mary).

Yashima-ji (temple 84) also devoted to Senju Kannon

full of compassion
she bows her head to Guanyin
the Virgin Mary

(c) Chèvrefeuille

I hope these photos and haiku give you all enough inspiration to write a haiku, senryu, tanka, kyoka or haibun in response on this post. By the way I have tried to write a haiku in response on the birth of my grandson Myron, but I didn't succeed right ... but I will sure share that haiku with you all. Thank you all for the congratulations given in rsponse of the birth of my grandson.
This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 30th 11.59 AM (CET). I wil try to post our new episode, that will be the last Special about The Way of St. James, later on today.

Carpe Diem #430, Sanuki Kokubun-ji (temple 80)

Dear O-Henro ... Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Today we will visit the 80th temple on the Shikoku trail, Sanuki Kokobun-ji, and that's the start of our last stage for this pilgrimage.
As you could have read in the last few post I have started a new feature named "Ghost-Writers" and I am glad that two of our family-members of Carpe Diem Haiku Kai already have said that they will be Ghost-Writer in week 15. Jules and Managua have emailed me that have taken the challenge to write a post as "Ghost-Writer". I am glad they did ... their posts will really be a joy to read I think ... we will see.

Sanuki Kokubun-ji (讃岐国分寺?) is an Omuro Shingon temple in Takamatsu, Kagawa Prefecture, Japan. The provincial temple of former Sanuki Province and Temple 80 on the Shikoku 88 temple pilgrimage, it is said to have been founded by Gyōki in 741. The main image is of Senjū Kannon and Juichimen. Around Senju also known as Guanyin there are a lot of legends I love to share here two of those legends.The first is "Guanyin and the Thousand Arms" and the second is "Guanyin and Shancai"

Sanuki Kokubun-ji (temple 80)

Guanyin and the Thousand Arms:

One Buddhist legend from the Complete Tale of Guanyin and the Southern Seas  presents Guanyin as vowing to never rest until she had freed all sentient beings from the samsara or reincarnation. Despite strenuous effort, she realized that there were still many unhappy beings yet to be saved. After struggling to comprehend the needs of so many, her head split into eleven pieces. The buddha Amitabha, upon seeing her plight, gave her eleven heads to help her hear the cries of those who are suffering. Upon hearing these cries and comprehending them, Avalokitesvara attempted to reach out to all those who needed aid, but found that her two arms shattered into pieces. Once more, Amitabha came to her aid and appointed her a thousand arms to let her reach out to those in need. Many Himalayan versions of the tale include eight arms with which Avalokitesvara skillfully upholds the Dharma, each possessing its own particular implement, while more Chinese-specific versions give varying accounts of this number.

Guanyin and the Thousand Arms

Guanyin and Shancai:


Legend has it that Shancai (also called Sudhana in Sanskrit) was a disabled boy from India who was very interested in studying the dharma. When he heard that there was a Buddhist teacher on the rocky island of Putuo he quickly journeyed there to learn. Upon arriving at the island, he managed to find Guanyin despite his severe disability.

Guanyin, after having a discussion with Shancai, decided to test the boy's resolve to fully study the Buddhist teachings. She conjured the illusion of three sword-wielding pirates running up the hill to attack her. Guanyin took off and dashed to the edge of a cliff, the three illusions still chasing her.
Shancai, seeing that his teacher was in danger, hobbled uphill. Guanyin then jumped over the edge of the cliff, and soon after this the three bandits followed. Shancai, still wanting to save his teacher, managed to crawl his way over the cliff edge.
Shancai fell down the cliff but was halted in midair by Guanyin, who now asked him to walk. Shancai found that he could walk normally and that he was no longer crippled. When he looked into a pool of water he also discovered that he now had a very handsome face. From that day forth, Guanyin taught Shancai the entire dharma.

Temple devoted to Guanyin in Surabaya Indonesia

There are a lot of Buddhistic Legends and Tales, so maybe I will use a few of them in our upcoming Carpe Diem month about Legend, Myth and Saga next May.

Really nice stories full of devotion and spirituality. It is said that Chinese fishermen pray to Guanyin with the Thousand Arms to have a save trip and to come home save. It is obvious that Buddhism one of the most important religions is in the Far Eastern countries and that the Buddhistic boddhisattvas have more than one name in those regions.

many names
for the same boddhisattvas -
one religion

(c) Chèvrefeuille

Another one more in the sphere of the traditional haiku-art:

fishermen praying
to have a good catch and return save -
koi carp pond

(c) Chèvrefeuille

To conclude this episode another wonderful photo of Sanuki Kokubun-ji Temple.

Sanuki Kokubun-ji (temple 80)

boddhisattvas gather
in front of Sanuki Kokubun-ji
guiding pilgrims

(c) Chèvrefeuille

This episode is open for your submissions tonight at 7.00 PM (CET) and will remain open for your submissions until March 27th 11.59 AM (CET). I will (try to) publish our new episode, Negoro-ji (temple 82), later on today.

Have fun, be inspired and share your haiku with us all here at Carpe Diem Haiku Kai.

Namaste