When I started working in Kitashiobara Village, I was taken to a place by a local who said, 'There's an amazing spot.'
After climbing steep stairs at the beginning and end, and navigating a narrow mountain path surrounded by trees, a quietly standing hall appeared before me. As I looked up, breathless, it was hard to believe that such a magnificent carving lay beneath the roof, built so deep in the mountains.
Why do you think the people of the past went to the trouble of building a magnificent hall on the "high mountain peak," which was difficult to transport materials to? There was a profound reason hidden there, a deep respect for nature and a desperate "urgency of prayer."
The miracle that the feudal lord's wife clung to. The beginning of the "Two-Year-Old Pilgrimage."
This hall is called "Kitayama Urushi Yakushi" and is an important Buddha that protects the northern part of the "Aizu Five Yakushi" introduced in the previous article.
Around the beginning of the Edo period, the eldest son of the Aizu feudal lord, Gamou Hideyuki (Kamechiyo Maru), was born with a very weak constitution. In an era without modern pediatrics or medicine, the survival of a young life was always on the brink of death. If you were a parent at that time, wouldn't you pray to the gods and Buddhas with a desperate heart?
A custom born from a mother's prayer that has lasted for 400 years
The feudal lord's wife, Furihime, ascended the steep mountain path to this Kitayama Yakushi to save her child. She continued the goma ritual three times a day for seven days, fervently praying for healing. Miraculously, Kamechiyo Maru regained his health.
At that time, since Kamechiyo Maru was "2 years old," the custom of climbing this mountain and pressing the child's belly against the large stone (Harauchi Stone) in the precincts to pray for health, called "Two-Year-Old Pilgrimage," was born and has been cherished for 400 years.
[Ancient Mystery] The "Inner Sanctuary" where light only shines on the winter solstice.
Furthermore, this mountain has many mysterious spots that stir the romance of history.
For example, the stone statue called "Onba-sama" located along the approach.
For some reason, the eyes and nose of the face have been worn away, and it is said to have been a marker for the "barrier" of the ascetics (Yamabushi) who once practiced severe training here.
And the highlight is a small spiritual cave (Inner Sanctuary) about one tsubo in size located behind the main hall.
Standing on site, one cannot help but feel the overwhelming energy (the power of a power spot) that cannot be explained in words.
A village submerged at the bottom of the lake. Together with the harsh and beautiful nature of Urabandai.
The history of Kitashiobara Village has always been intertwined with the natural fury of the "eruption of Mount Bandai."
The strong faith in Kitayama Yakushi stemmed from the awe of nature, which could erupt at any moment. In the great eruption of Meiji 21 (1888), the village of Hibara-juku at the foot of the mountain was completely submerged.
Even today, during the winter drought period (when water levels drop), the torii gate of "Yama Shrine," which was the village's main shrine, emerges from the lakebed, quietly conveying memories of that time.
At Tabinoito, we offer academic style tours that trace the dynamic natural history of Urabandai and the traces of the prayers of the people who lived there.
This deep history, which local middle school students learn as the "treasure of the village," cannot be reached through superficial information in guidebooks. Would you like to experience the "truth of Urabandai" that satisfies your intellectual curiosity with us?
