Touring Sugiyama Shrines: A Journey Along the Katabira River (3)
This continues from the Kawashima Sugiyama Shrine.
This time, I would like to visit the Sugiyama Shrines in the Katabira River basin while incorporating information about the topography and old highways.
The Katabira River and Topography
Better late than never... I looked into the Katabira River.
The Katabira River is an urban river that originates in Wakabadai, Asahi Ward, Yokohama City and flows from west to east through the urban areas of Asahi Ward, Hodogaya Ward, and Nishi Ward, before emptying into Yokohama Port.
In the upper reaches, it joins tributaries such as the Futamatagawa, Nakaborigawa, and Araigawa rivers, and in the lower reaches, it splits and merges with distributaries such as the Imaigawa, Ishizakigawa, and Nittamagawa rivers. It is a Class B river with a channel length of approximately 17 km and a basin area of approximately 58 square kilometers.
Origin of the Name
There seem to be several theories regarding the origin of the name Katabira River, but according to the (Hodogaya Ward Historical Data Map), the area around present-day Tennocho was once a flat area with mountains on one side and fields on the other topography, so it was called Kata-hira, and the river flowing through it was called the "Katabira River."
As for the kanji "帷子川," there is a place name "Katabira" (near present-day Tennocho) in Ota Dokan's Heian Travelogue from the 12th year of Bunmei (1480), and the current Katabira River is said to have originated from this.
There are other theories, such as that it was called "Kata-hira" because the sea formed an inlet, which then evolved, or that the topography resembles a katabira (unlined kimono). (Source: From "Report from the Waterside" edited by the River and Water Culture Research Group)
First, let's look at the topography on the Geospatial Information Authority map.
Is it "Kata-hira" because the area around Tennocho is open to the northeast?
The flat land is very narrow even in the middle and lower reaches.
Since rice cultivation would have made tax payments difficult, I wonder if there was some other industry?
Yokohama Environmental Science Research Institute
Looking at the topography, the Katabira River basin consists of the Tama Hills in the upper reaches and the Shimosueyoshi Terrace in the middle and lower reaches. Both are areas with large elevation differences where dendritic dissection is progressing.
The riverbed gradient of the Katabira River is 1/2,000 in the lower reaches, 1/150 to 1/1,000 in the middle reaches, and 1/250 in the upper reaches. It drops 65m in elevation all at once over a distance of just 17km.
In particular, the section from Tsurugamine Station to Wada Station on the Sotetsu Line is a middle section of an urban river with a large population, yet it has a riverbed gradient comparable to an upper section. Since the river width is also narrow, this is the reason why the Katabira River is nicknamed the rampageous river.
【Reference】
The Formation of Hodogaya Ward Yokohama City
Kamihoshikawa Sugiyama Shrine
It is a shrine close to the Kawashima Sugiyama Shrine, but... I didn't notice its existence and missed it, which is a great regret. It's a painful loss right from the start. I will add more if I have the opportunity to visit.
The enshrined deity is one of the Yamato Takeru deities. The date of its founding is unknown, and it was worshipped as the main guardian deity of Kamihoshikawa Village during the Edo period.
Flood control of the Katabira River
Plastic debris, presumably washed up during high water, is tangled in tree branches here and there. It made me realize that the water level rises quite high during heavy rain.
[Reference]Katabira River flood damage status(Yokohama City)
It is said that after the Katabira River diversion channel was completed in 1997, flood damage in the middle and lower reaches, such as in Tennocho and around Yokohama Station, was reduced. Of the 510 m³/s flow rate at the Shirane intake side, 350 m³/s is shortcut through a tunnel to near the river mouth.
[Reference]Katabira River Diversion Channel(Kanagawa Prefectural Government Prefectural Land Development Bureau, Yokohama City Sewerage Bureau)
It is usually a very calm river.
Bukko Sugiyama Shrine
First of all, the name "Bukko-cho" is intriguing, so...
Regarding the origin of the town name "Bukko," the "Shinpen Musashi Fudoki Ko" records an episode where, long ago, when the head priest of Shofuku-ji Temple had an audience with the Hojo family, he was told, "If you have a wish, you may state it." He replied, "As a monk, I have no other ambitions. Since my true intention is toalways face the Buddha, I request that you name the temple's mountain title and the villageusing the two characters for Bukko (facing Buddha)," and it was named accordingly. It also mentions that it was written as "Bussho" (offerings to the Buddha) in ancient times.
In the middle of a steep slope in a town that seems deeply religious...
A torii gate! (It seems there was a first torii gate in the opposite direction of the path I came. I missed it again.)
The red stone lantern visible in the photo of the shrine building was inscribed with 'Dedication: Commemorating the Relocation of Sugiyama Shrine.' It is said that the shrine, which was once located near the Shofuku-in Entrance intersection, was moved to its current site in 1993 due to the construction of the Miyazaki Overpass.
The date of its founding is also unknown. During the Edo period, it served as the tutelary shrine for Bukko Village. The enshrined deity is Isotakeru no Mikoto.
Since it is shown on maps from the Meiji period as being located on the low-lying land along the river, I believe it was likely established around the same time as the Wada Sugiyama Shrine downstream.
Wada Sugiyama Shrine
It was enshrined quietly near the Katabira River, beside the elevated Yokohama Shindo road.
The enshrined deity is Yamato Takeru no Mikoto. While the date of its founding and other details are unknown, it was worshipped as the tutelary shrine of Wada Village during the Edo period.
Origin of the name Wada-cho
Although the authenticity is uncertain, it is said to be related to Wada Yoshimori.
Intersection of the old highway
Wada Village faced the Hachioji Road (Yokohama ⇄ Machida ⇄ Hachioji) and the Soshu Road (Yokohama ⇄ Atsugi), and Wada Sugiyama Shrine sits at the junction of these two roads.
In the medieval period, Hodogaya was called Hangaya Mikuriya (a manor), and it was a manor controlled by a powerful samurai (the Oyamada clan). (At the time, samurai could not own large manors, so they donated their land to Ise Jingu and gained possession rights by becoming its administrators.)
It was such a strategic point that the Hojo clan seized it from the Oyamada clan by taking advantage of the 'Hatakeyama Tadasige Rebellion'.
The Hachioji Road and Soshu Road run parallel along the Katabira River, and the Kamakura Shitamichi road intersects them near the river mouth. Surely, there must have been a lot of human traffic there even back then. Given this background, I am considering the possibility that Sugiyama Shrines were enshrined from the medieval to the early modern period to pray for the safety of the region.
Hoshikawa Sugiyama Shrine
Regarding the Hoshikawa Shrine, which is said to be a candidate (ronsha) for the Engishiki-naisha, I have written a separate article, so please see here ↓.
Now, from Hoshikawa Station, I will proceed along the road by the Katabira River again.
Tennocho
Tennocho is an amazing name. However, the history of the town name is relatively new; it was renamed from Katabira-cho in 1927. It seems to originate from Gozu Tenno, which was enshrined here after being invited from Gion Shrine.
Just as I was about to cross the bridge, suddenly in front of me...
You don't have to go to popular photo spots; there are plenty of wonderful scenes right in the middle of the city.
Passing by the Nishi Ward Office, I entered the bustling district. In the city where factories, office buildings, shopping streets, and houses are all mixed together, there are several parks. Many local Yokohama kids were playing energetically. It is a very typical Yokohama scene.
Tobe Sugiyama Shrine
It stands quietly next to one of those parks.
Even in this state, the leaves are still vigorous... it has amazing vitality.
Deities
That means... the enshrined deity is Onamuchi-no-Kami (Okuninushi-no-Kami).
This originates from the myth where Onamuchi-no-Mikoto overcame trials given by Susanoo with the help of a mouse and married Suseribime. (Even though he is Susanoo's sixth-generation descendant, marrying Susanoo's daughter... what kind of timeline is that?)
Okuninushi has many aliases, and his name changes to Omononushi (a different deity in the Kojiki), Oanamuchi, Onamuchi-no-Mikoto, and so on.
It is of the same lineage as the Kitaniiba Sugiyama Shrine in Kohoku Ward. Because it is easily accessible, many people visit to spin the 'koma-nezumi' (mouse statue) and make a wish. It is a magnificent shrine that also has a shrine office.
History
It is said that this shrine was founded on the 20th day of the third month in the third year of the Hakuhō era. Although there are many Sugiyama Shrines in the Musashi-Sagami region, it is said that this is the Sugiyama Shrine mentioned in the Engishiki. It is also said that because this shrine's efficacy was so remarkable, the name 'Sugiyama Shrine' became common in the neighborhood. Since ancient times, it has been the guardian deity of Tobe Village in Musashi Province and the ancestral deity of the local reclamation. Successive provincial governors, land stewards, and local magistrates have held it in deep reverence, and it is said that the shogunate granted it a vermilion seal. The enshrined deity demonstrated divine power in land reclamation and management even before the descent of the heavenly grandson. In other words, it is the deity of the first shrine in Japan. It saved the poor and the sick, taught industry to increase wealth, promoted the path of medicine to ensure the prosperity of clans, cultivated the foundation of peace in all matters through gentleness without resorting to conflict, and bestowed the methods of statecraft. It opened the path to wisdom and enlightenment, and prayed for the benefit of the nation and the happiness of the people. By suffering for others and showing compassion, the pioneers and masters who reclaimed this land first enshrined this Great Deity and invited it here to pray for protection.
https://www.kanagawa-jinja.or.jp/shrine/1203001-000/
Tobe is in Kuraki District, so the location is clearly different from the Sugiyama Shrine in Tsuzuki District, which is considered an Engishiki-shiki shrine, but they make a rather strong claim.
What kind of location was it in the past?
The blue circle is the mark for a salt field.
Looking at the Meiji rapid survey map, it is in the middle of rice fields.
Since the area around the current Yokohama Station was Katabira Bay (a sandbar) before reclamation (before the early Edo period), the Tobe Shrine feels more like it was by the seaside rather than just by the river.
Wikipedia states, 'It is said that in the 3rd year of Hakuchi (652), the Sugiyama clan, who reclaimed this land, enshrined a divided spirit of Onamuchi-no-Mikoto from Izumo Taisha at Shioda-no-hama.' It seems there really was a salt field there in the early Meiji period.
Sugiyama Shrine
Founded in March of the third year of the Hakuho era (675) as the ancestral deity of the reclamation of the Tobe region, it received a divided spirit from Izumo Taisha. It was deeply revered by successive provincial governors, land stewards, and magistrates, and was granted a vermilion seal by the shogunate. Festivals were also grand, and banners reached one ken in width and ten ken in length, which people called the 'Tobe Foolish Banners.' There was originally a burial mound at the shrine entrance, and during a grand festival in the past, the portable shrine stopped moving in front of this mound. Fearing the divine will, they buried it within the mound, called it the 'Mikoshi-zuka' (Portable Shrine Mound), and revered it along with the shrine. Since then, this shrine has not possessed a portable shrine.
Other Sugiyama Shrines near the river mouth include the Tsurumi Shrine (Tsurumi River basin, formerly Sugiyama Daimyojin), and both are situated on slightly elevated land (5m above sea level). It is said that this shrine also has an old founding date, which supports the theory that maritime clans founded Sugiyama Shrines in ancient times. It is also interesting that there was a burial mound on the grounds, just like at Tsurumi Shrine.
If Izumo-related maritime people settled here and enshrined Onamuchi-no-Mikoto, it makes sense, but on the other hand, why wasn't Sukunabikona-no-Mikoto, also of the Izumo lineage, enshrined? (Of course, there is no rule that Sugiyama Shrine must enshrine Sukunabikona-no-Mikoto...)
Also, considering the coastline during the marine transgression from the Heian to the medieval period, it is quite close to the sea, so it might have been right at the water's edge during high tide and heavy rain. I wonder if a shrine has really been standing here since the Hakuho era.
However, according to the Shinpen Musashi Fudoki Ko, there were about six shrines nearby at that time (it is unclear whether they were auxiliary shrines or just adjacent), so there is no doubt that it was a symbolic place for the village.
Personally, I speculate that a Sugiyama Shrine was invited to a place where some ancient shrine had already been built, after the early modern period (when the area flourished due to the Tokaido road and water transport), and the faith in Onamuchi-no-Mikoto as a god of bountiful harvests and prosperous business came to be emphasized. Next time, I will talk about the basis for that.
[Reference]
Did the people disappear? The Kamakura Period Hokuriku Regional Agricultural Administration Office, Shinano River Basin Land Improvement Survey and Management Office
Katabira River (History of land reclamation and rivers around Yokohama Station) Yokohama City Road Bureau, River Planning Division
Next time, we will approach the "Mystery of the Spread of Sugiyama Shrines in the Katabira River Basin"!?
I'm tired of walking, so I'll take the red train home. Since this is already close to 5,000 characters, I will present my own theory next time.
"Wait? I'm pretty sure there was another Sugiyama Shrine near the Katabira River, right?"... Yes, there is!
The Katabira-cho Sugiyama Shrine in Nishikubo-cho will be covered on another occasion (as I have some thoughts on it).
The enshrined deity here is Isotakeru-no-Mikoto.