Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
with that age; while that on the left shelters an early fifteenth-century statue of
Daikoku-ten, the cheerful God of Wealth. In fact the statue here is a copy. The real one
is in the small
treasure hall
immediately behind, alongside the original temple bell,
cast in 1264. The next building along is the Sutra Repository, where a revolving drum
contains a complete set of Buddhist scriptures - one turn of the wheel is equivalent to
reading the whole lot. Ranks of Jizō statues are a common sight in Hase-dera, some
clutching sweets or “windmills” and wrapped in tiny, woollen mu
ers; these sad little
figures commemorate stillborn or aborted children. Finally, a cave in the far northern
corner of the complex contains statues of the goddess Benten and her sixteen children,
or disciples, though it can't compete with the atmospheric setting of the Zeniarai
Benten cave shrine (see p.233).
The Daibutsu
େ
• 4-2-28 Hase • Daily: April-Sept 7am-6pm; Oct-March 7am-5.30pm • ¥200 •
Entering inside Daibutsu
Daily 8am-4.30pm • ¥20
From Hase-dera, turn left at the main road and follow the crowds north for a few
hundred metres to find the
Daibutsu
, in the grounds of Kōtoku-in temple. After all the
hype, the Great Buddha can seem a little disappointing, but as you approach, and his
serene, rather aloof face comes into view, the magic begins to take hold. He sits on a
stone pedestal, a broad-shouldered figure lost in deep meditation, with his head slightly
bowed, his face and robes streaked grey-green by centuries of sun, wind and rain. The
13m-tall image represents Amida Nyorai, the future Buddha who receives souls into
the Western Paradise, and was built under the orders of Minamoto Yoritomo to rival
the larger Nara Buddha, near Kyoto. Completed in 1252, the statue is constructed of
bronze plates bolted together around a hollow frame - you can enter inside - and
evidence suggests that, at some time, it was covered in gold leaf. Amazingly, it has
withstood fires, typhoons, tidal waves and even the Great Earthquake of 1923. Its
predecessor, however, was less successful: the wooden statue was unveiled in 1243,
only to be destroyed in a violent storm just five years later. Various attempts to build
a shelter suffered similar fates until, happily, they were given up after 1498 and the
Daibutsu left framed by trees and an expanse of sky.
20
Enoshima
ߐͷౡ
Tied to the mainland by a 600m-long bridge, the tiny, sacred island of
Enoshima
has a
few sights - some shrines, a botanical garden and a couple of missable caves - but its
prime appeal is as a pleasant place to wander away from the tra
c.
The private Enoden-line train rattles from Kamakura to Enoshima station, from
where it's roughly a fifteen-minute walk southwest to the island, via a bridge
constructed over the original sand spit. Enoshima's eastern side shelters a yacht harbour
and car parks, but otherwise the knuckle of rock - less than 1km from end to end - is
largely covered with woods and a network of well-marked
paths
. From the end of the
bridge, walk straight ahead under the bronze
torii
and uphill past restaurants and
souvenir shops to where the steps up the hill begin; though the climb's easy enough,
there are three
escalators
(¥350 for all three, or pay for each separately) tunnelled
through the hillside.
The walking route described below ends at the island's two caves; from here, instead
of retracing your steps, on weekends you can hop on one of the small
boats
shuttling
tourists back to the mainland, weather permitting (Sat & Sun 10am-4pm; ¥300).
Enoshima-jinja
ߐͷౡਆࣾ
• Daily 9am-4.30pm • ¥150
The island features a wide-ranging shrine area, with three separate components. Inside
one, Hatsu-no-miya, sits Enoshima's most famous relic - a naked
statue of Benten
,
THE DAIBUTSU, KAMAKURA >
