Statue of Taira no Masakado's Final Battle
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Statue of Taira no Masakado's Final Battle
拝殿前の狛犬は胸を張って力強く吠えている感じです
Photo taken at Kanda shrine, Chiyoda city, Tokyo metropolis.
随神門から境内を見ます。拝殿の後ろには近代的なビル。都会の神社であることがよくわかります。
Photo taken at Kanda shrine, Chiyoda city, Tokyo metropolis.
随神門は比較的最近塗り直されたのもあって、すごく色が鮮やか。
Photo taken at Kanda shrine, Chiyoda city, Tokyo metropolis.
東京に出かける用事があったので、空き時間に御茶ノ水周辺を撮り歩き。最初は神田明神。
Photo taken at Kanda shrine, Chiyoda city, Tokyo metropolis.
Masakado-Tsuka (memorial for Taira no Masakado), Marunouchi/Tokyo
High School Students in 10th Century Samurai Foot Soldier Armor perform Kyudo (Japanese Archery) at Iwai Masakado Matsuri a festival for 10th Century Samurai Rebel Taira no Masakado.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JG3E-73KME
Chanbara is samurai movie sword-fighting which is a popular activity at many Japanese festivals featuring samurai.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JG3E-73KME
平将門の首塚 The Tomb of Taira no Masakado's Head
In the tenth century, Masakado led a rebellion and declared himself the new emperor of Japan. The actual emperor responded by putting a bounty on his head and, two months later, Masakado was killed in battle. His decapitated head was put on display in Kyoto as a warning to other would-be rebels.
Masakado's head did not decompose. Three months later, it still looked fresh and alive. One night, the head began to glow, and it lifted into the air and flew off in the direction of the village of Shibasaki (present-day Otemachi), Masakado's hometown. The villagers took the head, cleaned it and buried it at the Kanda Myojin shrine.
The Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 destroyed the grave and the adjacent Finance Ministry Building. The ministry decided to rebuild on the site of the former grave, but this turned out to be a mistake. The Finance Minister, Seiji Hayami, died and thirteen other officials met similar fates over the next two years. Many workers became ill or were injured in mysterious accidents. The ministry removed the structure they had been building and began annual purification rituals to pacify Masakado's spirit.
In 1945, following World War Two, the US forces occupying Tokyo decided to build a parking lot over the grave. Once again, workers met with a series of suspicious accidents.
In 1961, Japan regained control of the site and the parking lot was removed. The burial site was once more dedicated to Masakado. When new buildings were constructed next to the burial site, however, workers again fell ill. In an attempt to calm the spirit, representatives from local businesses started to pray at the burial site on the 1st and 15th of each month.
In 1987, a string of freak accidents occurred during the filming of Teito Monogatari, a film in which a character attempts to awaken Taira no Masakado's spirit. To prevent accidents on set, it is now common practice for TV and movie producers to pay their respects at the Masakado's burial site before including him in their productions.
Otemachi has grown into a throughly modern centre of journalism and finance and yet, surrounded as it is by skyscrapers on all sides, this little stone monument to a rebel samurai remains and will likely continue to remain because no one wants to anger Makasado's spirit again.
Meteorological Agency
Tokyo Fire Dept
Masakado Kubizuka
