Sanpuku Seidō
Cliffside Shrine was a shrine of the Phoenix Clan, the ancestral seat of power of the Kaito vassal family. The Kaito Daimyō was also the high priest of the shrine. It was located in the Garanto Province, on the tallest mountain at the very edge of the Phoenix territory, three-four days' travel from Kyūden Isawa. [1]
Founding[]
Near the dawn of the 5th century, a demon named Ateru was slain by the Kaito founder, Isawa Kaito, and she sacrificed herself to trap its spirit, freezing it deep in the bottom of a well, the Well of the Ateru. Sanpuku Seidō was erected at the battle site with the well at its center. The Kaito's duty was to protect the shrine, which contained ropes of binding which prevented the demon to be released again. The well became a portal to Tōshigoku. [1]
Appearance[]
To reach Sanpuku Seidō, a pilgrim must travel north from Kyūden Isawa, following a road that soon becomes increasingly narrow, rough, and poorly maintained as it climbs into the Great Wall of the North mountains, and finally winding among stands of cypress and dark pines. [2] The shrine was close to a monastery no larger than a city block, which ended abruptly at a stone precipice. A long, rickety wood-plank bridge crossed a ravine between both buildings. The bridge deck rested on live wisteria vines woven together and rooted on either side. The origin of the well was supposedly as one of the last remaining artifacts of a Tengu village. In 1123 the bridge was replaced by a stone one and a new wing was addded to the shrine for the worship of their older ancestors, who belonged to yobanjin of the Hyōketsu tribe. [1] A small, cloistered garden was home to eight setsumatsusha auxiliary shrines, each dedicated to one of the Eight Great Fortunes. [3]
External Links[]
Cliffside Shrine
- Sanpuku Seidō (Disciples of the Void)
References
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