Temple 63 Kichijoji - walk
Temple 64 Maegamiji - walk
Temple 65 Sankakuji - monks
Temple 66 Unpenji - engineer ride
Temple 67 Daikoji - engineer ride
Temple 70 Motoyamaji - engineer ride
Miles Walked: 7.7
Slept at: Motodai Business Hotel
You haven't lived until you've hitchhiked with a van-load of newly graduated Shingon Buddhist monks on a road trip. Of course we were tired from walking and faced a 45.1 km stretch between temples. The monks, noting our distress, told us to wait "just one hour." We were uncertain if this meant they were going on an errand first, but the four young men began throwing blankets and bags and two half-liter containers on whiskey on the parking lot, preparing to make room. It turns out, two of them squeezed in the back of the car, seatless, while we took the actual seats.
Although English was scarce, we managed to learn the ages of the men (23, 31, 27, 27), where they were being stationed after monk school (I got that one was assigned to Mount Koya), and a bit about the restrictions of monk school. No wives or alcohol allowed, but both are acceptable afterwards. And we connected with them on Facebook.
Once at the Temple, our four monks created quite a scene with the other Henro, who took photos of them, and the. Of us, because we had walked in together.
Although English was scarce, we managed to learn the ages of the men (23, 31, 27, 27), where they were being stationed after monk school (I got that one was assigned to Mount Koya), and a bit about the restrictions of monk school. No wives or alcohol allowed, but both are acceptable afterwards. And we connected with them on Facebook.
Once at the Temple, our four monks created quite a scene with the other Henro, who took photos of them, and the. Of us, because we had walked in together.
When it came time to chant the heart sutra in front of the temple, we got confirmation that our monks were the real deal. Their chanting was beautiful and otherworldly, a perfection that could only be gained through years of practice.
After this we still had four temples to visit, most great distances apart. We met an older (our age) Japanese man, also in a van. His van was tricked out as a camper with a butan stove (vented), boxes of small vitamin drinks, cupboards, bags, and so on. We sat on a wooden platform at the back of the van and watched as he expertly maneuvered the serpentine roads up to the top of Unpenji -- one of the tallest mountains.
Laura and I both pegged him as a widowed engineer, perhaps visiting the temples as tribute to his wife. But who knows? No English. At the last temple, we were quite a ways from our hotel and it was late -- temples close at 5:00 pm. It took an hour, but we asked him to take us to temple 70, which he did. Laura thought he was going to a spa (he kept saying --spa), but I'm guessing it was a campground.
After this we still had four temples to visit, most great distances apart. We met an older (our age) Japanese man, also in a van. His van was tricked out as a camper with a butan stove (vented), boxes of small vitamin drinks, cupboards, bags, and so on. We sat on a wooden platform at the back of the van and watched as he expertly maneuvered the serpentine roads up to the top of Unpenji -- one of the tallest mountains.
Laura and I both pegged him as a widowed engineer, perhaps visiting the temples as tribute to his wife. But who knows? No English. At the last temple, we were quite a ways from our hotel and it was late -- temples close at 5:00 pm. It took an hour, but we asked him to take us to temple 70, which he did. Laura thought he was going to a spa (he kept saying --spa), but I'm guessing it was a campground.
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