The story of the Empress and the Chronicles
The story of the Empress
Emperor Gensho at the time of the mountain's founding was an empress. Ninno refers to the emperors after the first Emperor Jinmu, to distinguish them from the Age of the Gods.
It is said that Emperor Gensho reigned from October 3, 715, so the mountain was opened after October. In any case, there is no doubt that 2015 marks the 1300th anniversary of the founding of the temple, and it is almost the same age as the writings of the Kojiki (712 AD) and Nihon Shoki AD (720 AD), so it can be said to be a rare ancient temple.
It is said that the mountain was founded by Gyoki Bodhisattva. Initially, it was located on Mt. Hongu and was called Shobōji. Shoho-ji Temple was designated as a Chokugan-ji (a prayer temple built at the request of the Emperor and Retired Emperor to pray for the protection of the nation and the prosperity of the Imperial family) during the reign of Emperor Koken (also an Empress). As for its later relocation, one theory is that it was moved because the lights were reflected in the sea around Ushimado, causing a hindrance to fishing, but it was probably moved to its current location due to fires, pilgrimages, and temple duties. The temple name was changed to Enjoji Temple according to the place name, and it became Hongusan Kannonin Enjoji Temple. The principal image (or idle) is Senju Kannon (thousand-armed Kannon). I think it belonged to the Hosso sect when it first opened, but when Saicho Dengyo Daishi opened Mt. Hiei, it became the Tendai sect.
Empress Gensho's father was Prince Kusakabe , whose father and mother were the 40th Emperor Tenmu and 41st Emperor Jito(empress) respectively. And her mother was 43rd Emperor Genmei( who moved the capital to Heijo in 710) , whose father was the 38th Emperor Tenchi. The 45th Emperor was Emperor Shomu (son of Gensho's younger brother, 42nd Emperor Monmu, or nephew of Emperor Gensho), who built the Great Buddha of Todaiji Temple. The daughter of Emperor Shomu and Empress Komyo was the 46th Emperor Koken mentioned above in regard to Chokuganji. Emperor Koken was also a female emperor and later became the 48th Emperor Shotoku (accessed throne again).
There were many empresses those days. Starting with the 33rd Emperor Suiko (the last emperor mentioned in the Kojiki), the 35th Emperor Kogyoku/the 37th Emperor Saimei (accessed throne again), the 41st Emperor Jito, the 43rd Genmei, the 44th Gensho, and up to the 46th Koken/the 48th Emperor Shotoku (accessed throne again, the last empress of ancient times and the last emperor of the Tenmu lineage), 8 out of the 16 generations were female emperors. When Enjo-ji Temple was founded, it was an era when there were many female emperors. Although not directly involved, the temple probably had connections with Empresses Gensho and Koken. Incidentally, the reason why there were so many female emperors is to provide a buffer period for issues of succession to the imperial throne, and even within this situation, the tradition of men in the male line is said to be connected.
In the NHK TV drama "Dabutsu Kaigen" ( consecration of newly made great Buddist statue ), Princess Abe (later Emperor Koken) played by Satomi Ishihara was very beautiful and impressive. It is said that Imperial Princess Abe learned from Shimotsumichi (later Kibi) Makibi, played by Hidetaka Yoshioka, who had returned from the Tang Dynasty, and used him heavily. (In addition, Emperor Shomu: Jun Kunimura, Empress Komyo: Atsuko Asano, Bodhisattva Gyoki: Yoshi Oida, Genbo: Kamejiro Ichikawa - current Ennosuke, etc.) The origin of Makibi is said to be Shimotu-michi or Kato in Kibi (currently Soja/Kurashiki).
Currently, there is JR Joto station neraby, and although it has now been incorporated into Okayama City, there was a county or town called Joto.
The upper path (Kamitsu path) and the lower path would have been paired. Joto remained as a place name, but Kato did not. Ibara Railway has Kibimakibi Station. Emperor Koken, who used Kibi Makibi but allowed (and later suppressed) the tyranny of Fujiwara Nakamaro (Emi Oshikatsu), after becoming Shotoku after one generation, placed great importance on Dokyo, who had healed her illness. It is said that this caused her call Wake Kiyomaro(which means Clean man), who delivered the oracle that did not meet her wishes, "Wakebe no Kitanamaro(which means Dirty man)".
Another man of Kibi, Wake Kiyomaro, was later forgiven for his crimes and returned to the capital in the first year of Houki (770). He made great achievements in the construction of Nagaokakyo and Heiankyo, and also became a nation-builder (kuni-no-miyatuko) and was restored to power. The Tenmu lineage ended with Emperor Shotoku, and the next Emperors, Konin and Kanmu, were Tenchi lineages. During the reign of Emperor Kanmu, Mt. Hiei was opened by Saicho and became the head temple of the Tendai sect. It is said that Kiyomaro helped Saicho open the mountain together with his elder sister, who had reverted to Hiromushi-me from Samushi-me(to wide from narrow). Isamu Kurita's "Saichō" is a novel about this area. The story depicts the suffering and dedication of Hirono, who later became Saicho, and has the feel of an educational novel. It can be seen that when Tendai Buddhism was first established, it was developed as an antithesis to existing Buddhism.
What was the relationship between ancient Kibi and Shohoji and the Yamato and Heian courts?
In writing this section, I referred to the page of Wikipedia "Gensho Emperor".
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Kiki; Kojiki and Nihon Shoki
Around the 1300th anniversary of the founding of Enjo-ji Temple, 2012 marks the 1300th anniversary of the compilation of the Kojiki, and 2020 marks the 1300th anniversary of the compilation of the Nihon Shoki.
Nowadays, it can be said that both Ki and Ki are sealed, at least in elementary education. Even though I was in the first grade of elementary school when the war ended, I have no recollection of learning about historical records or myths at school. I only remember a few stories about Umisachi Yamasachi and Inaba's White Rabbit. Why don't we remove the colored glasses that associate it with militarism and nationalism and just accept it as the mythology of our country and the literary heritage of our people? If there is any criticism, then you can criticize it.
In the same way that we use words from Greek mythology, Christian scriptures, or Chinese stories to express things (some Prime Ministers quoted popular songs in their parliamentary responses), or as words that are more familiar and common, I would like people to quote the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki as their knowledge. However, whether they speak or listen, their knowledge is too limited. The mythological period, along with early modern history, is perhaps missing from our knowledge. I am neither a nationalist nor a strong nationalist, nor am I the opposite, I just think that extreme bias in information is bad. I have heard that in other countries, history is taught independently from social studies in elementary education. In the words of the historian Toynbee, "A nation that does not teach its children its national mythology by the age of 12 or 13 will perish in less than 100 years." In the case of Japan, I am worried about where the 100 years start.
Greek and Roman mythology is quite well known, with many books published in Japanese. When you think of Greece, you think of the Parthenon, but it is only a very damaged ruin. In contrast, Japan's Ise Shrine is rebuilt every 20 years, and its construction techniques have been passed down to this day. The same goes for Izumo Taisha, which is still alive today as a historical site (not as a ruin). Even in a situation where myths have almost been erased, temples like this still exist, along with the imperial family, and are held in a certain degree of faith and veneration. Myths are still alive, half-sealed. Unless things go to extremes, the nation will not perish.