Last Sunday we went to Kamakura. Kamakura is a town slightly more than one hour away from Tokyo that used to be Japan’s capital during the 12th and 13th century. As a result one can find there now some of the most impressive Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples in the country. We arrived in the morning at Kita (north) Kamakura station, in a train that was already full of tourists (most of them Japanese). The first temple we visited was the Engaku-ji. This is the largest of Kamakura’s five great zen temples as we discovered walking among the 17 subtemples.
People usually think of Japan as a crowded place. Maybe you don’t really get this impression in Tokyo: after all I don’t really think it’s much different from any other big city. On the other hand what is really impressive is the fact that it never seems to end. Taking the train we passed by a number of places, and towns (including Yokohama), but it was completely impossible to tell where one finishes and the other starts. Just like in a single huge town. It is then even more impressive when you arrive in Kamakura and you visit this temple that goes up the hill, inside a wood, in the green, with so much space that in spite of the hordes of tourists it still feels calm.
An even stronger impression of calm one has when going to the Tōkei-ji, a much smaller and more tranquil temple a few meters away. This temple used to be a nunnery and has a peculiarity. Until the 19th century, the easiest way for a woman to get a divorce was to stay in the temple for three years.
After the Tōkei-ji we crossed another of the five big temples: the Jochi-ji temple. This marks the beginning of the great Buddha hiking trail that in one hour crosses a hill and leads to the 14 m-tall statue.
The hiking trail itself is extremely pleasant. Nestled in the woods, it is popular among people of all ages (from small children running in front of their parents to groups of elderly people that need a stick). In particular there’s a place where it becomes especially nice: all of a sudden the trees open and reveal a view of the underlying town and the ocean.
Arriving at the Daibutsu (great Buddha) after the hike makes it even more rewarding. In any case, even in the middle the mass of tourists one can’t help being impressed by the statue that seems to look down on the offers of fruits left at his feet.
passender könnte der Himmel gar nicht sein, er vermittelt eine besinnliche Stimmung, denke ich.
Paps
The pictures are beautiful. One really gets the feeling of peacefulness, if that makes any sense. Take care and keep posting!
hey Gem! ho appena scoperto che anche tu scrivi su questo blog! non me n’ero ancora accorto: come stai? fatti vivo (anche su facebook) qualche volta e tienimi aggiornato. un abbraccione, hag.
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