Matsushima, Japan

By Glen Bruels
This is part of a series called Northern Pacific Wanderings 2024
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After a rolly polly last 24 hours at sea, we pulled into Sendai, Japan, the capital of Miyagi Prefecture in Northern Honshu. We’re only here for a short time, so rather than spend time in what is more or less an industrial city, we headed out to Matsushima, a famous bay with a group of about 260 tiny islands made up of sandstone with many covered in pines. We would have really liked to take a boat ride to experience the bay and the islands themselves but, sadly, we only had 4 hours to take advantage of. We really came here to visit the three famous temples that our here — Zuiganji, Entsuin, and Godaido.

Approaching Matsushima; lots of islets in the bay.

The Zuiganji Temple was originally established in 828 AD by Jikaku Daishi, a priest who spread Buddhism throughout northern Japan. Over the next 800 years, the temple fell into disrepair, but in 1609, Samurai ruler and founder of Sendai City, Date Masamune (also known as the “one-eyed dragon”) rebuilt Zuiganji as his family temple. The results of his work are truly amazing. He spared no expense and brought lots of craftsmen (including wood carvers who did some of the most intricate work I have seen) to create a masterpiece that has largely survived until today.

The Garden Deity of Longevity.
Approaching the main building (or “hondo”) of the temple. The trees are all sugi, a type of red cedar native to this area.
The joinery in this place is spectacular…
… as is the decorative carving.
As is the painting. This is the central room in the temple where many rituals were performed. Look at the painted panels of pine trees and peacocks. Also the grid-patterned coffered ceiling. Wow!
This is the pine trees room, where participants in tea ceremonies waited. This is probably the biggest use of blues and greens we have seen in any temple.
This is Date Masamune’s black armor — quite unusual for the time. Have you seen a helmet that looks like that somewhere else? That’s right, George Lucas used this helmet as inspiration for the design of his Darth Vader helmet!

Next we went to Entsuin, which is next door to Zuiganji. It was built in 1646 by Date Tadamune (son of Date Masamune) to house the mausoleum (Sankeiden) of Date Mitsumune, his son, who died an untimely death at the age of 19. From what the guide said, it seems that Mitsumune may have been poisoned as a message from the Shogunate in Tokyo who were getting worried about the Sendai clan. By the way, I should note that when these feudal lords died, their immediate warriors would all commit ritual suicide and be celebrated as martyrs. In addition to the mausoleum, there were a number of gardens and ponds. While I didn’t really understand it all, there were also a number of carved caves and decorations in the sandstone near the mausoleum. As I understand it, these are graves of nobles from over the years.

Approaching Entsuin, we passed another, more traditional, rock garden…
… and an altar to make offerings.
Deb and Alma enjoying the scenery.
Approaching the Sankeiden — the mausoleum for Date Mitsumune.
Mitsumune is dressed in formal nobility costume and riding a white horse.
The sandstone walls around the mausoleum were carved out with decorations and little caves. I understand that a variety of nobles were buried here.
I’m not sure who this statue is of, but he reminded me of Dr. Bunsen Honeydew from the Muppets.

The last stop was at the Godaido, a small temple hall on an islet next to the pier along the waterfront. While small and not very well maintained, its location has caused it to become a symbol for Matsushima. While originally built in 807, the current building is a 1604 reconstruction by Date Masamune.

As a final word, I should mention that Matsushima was involved in the 2011 9.0 magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami. While the epicenter was relatively close, those 260 islets did their job, serving as a natural buffer that weakened the impact of the waves and sparing the town from devastation. Despite the flatness of the waterfront area, none of the three temples were damaged.

The final temple was Godaido, essentially the symbol of Matsushima.
To get to it, you have to cross two bridges over the water…
… looking out towards the islets that broke up the 2011 tsunami wave that prevented the city from being devastated.
The shrine houses the five Buddhas of wisdom and is rarely open to the public.
But, once again, the joinery and decorative carving are magnificent.
Before we left, I asked what else Matsushima was famous for. The answer was barbequed beef tongue — you can find it everywhere around town, including in convenient take home packs!

We are now heading north to Hokkaido and the town of Hakadote.

This entry was posted in Cruising, Japan, Sendai, Travel
Glen Bruels

I am a traveler and sometimes clay sculptor, following a long career working in consulting. My work allowed me to travel the world extensively and I was hooked. Today, I travel with my wife/best friend to explore new places, meet new people, and learn new things.

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