Byodo-ji Temple (Anan)

Past a hillside hamlet in Shinno, a two-story gate rises behind green rice fields: this is Byodo-ji, a temple of the Koyasan Shingon sect. Its mountain name is Hakusuisan, its sub-temple name is Io-in, and its principal image is Yakushi Nyorai, the Medicine Buddha. As Temple No. 22 of the Shikoku 88-Temple Pilgrimage, it is a quiet mountain temple where pilgrims pause for a silent prayer.

Temple tradition says that while Kukai (Kobo Daishi) was training here, he sensed the presence of Yakushi Nyorai, carved an image of it and enshrined it as the principal image. The name Byodo, meaning equality, expresses the wish to save all beings equally. The mountain name Hakusui, or White Water, comes from the spring said to have welled up when the temple was founded, and the water still flows below the steep men-zaka stairs. It is said to cure all illnesses. The temple is said to have flourished with a seven-hall complex and 12 branch temples, but the halls were lost to fire when the forces of Chosokabe Motochika burned them in the Tensho era (1573-1592), and they were rebuilt in the Kyoho era (1716-1736) of the Edo period.

The main sights begin with the two-story irimoya-style gate, which houses guardian Nio statues and, surrounded by green, is one of the most photogenic gates on the pilgrimage. The main hall enshrines the principal image, Yakushi Nyorai. In front of the hall, three flights of stone steps total 88 steps, a number that echoes the 88 temples.

The temple is also known for prayers for strong legs and feet. Three wooden hand-pulled carts hang in the main hall. They were offered in the Taisho and Showa eras by a person with disabled legs, abandoned by doctors, who began the pilgrimage and was healed here. Among cultural properties, a set of four gold-ground screen paintings of autumn grasses attributed to Kano Naizen is a Tokushima Prefecture Tangible Cultural Property, and in October 2021 the Awa Henro Road, including the stretch near Byodo-ji, was designated a National Historic Site. Walking the section that keeps the look of the old pilgrim road gives a real sense of the journey pilgrims once made.

Fresh green, early summer when the rice is growing, and clear autumn days are the most pleasant times to visit. Allow about 30 minutes to an hour for the stairs and the spring. The temple is about 5 minutes by taxi from Shinno Station on the JR Mugi Line, and free parking for about 30 cars is available. Temple No. 21, Tairyu-ji, is about 10 km away, so the gaps between temples are long and pilgrims should plan with time to spare. Visitors with a car can also reach the sea turtle museum Caretta in Hiwasa, about 14 km away.