5.Gabisan Fugenji Temple

Fugen Bodhisattva’s smile
greets you on top of a hill

　Built in 1294. Called Notsu-in Temple, Yorimune Goro Notsu Goro Yorimune, the governor of this place, dreamt of Fugen Bodhisattva riding a white elephant. Thinking his dream was a miracle, he built a small monastery, the beginnings of the temple. The temple later fell into disuse due to war, but in 1647, it was reconstructed in its present location, with Daian, the 4th Head Monk of Gekkeiji Temple in Usuki, as the founder of the reconstructed temple. The principal images are the Buddha triad of Shaka Nyorai, Monju Bodhisattva, and Fugen Bodhisattva, but there is also an image of Fugen Bodhisattva at the temple that is normally hidden from view. In place of that hidden image, which cannot be shown to the public, a much larger image of Fugen Bodhisattva was cast around the end of the Edo Period (1603-1868). Many visitors come to pray to Fugen Bodhisattva, smiling gently amid the trees, and also symbolizing the temple. Some 200 maple trees of different types line the road up the hill to the temple, making it a renowned place to see the autumn colors and the spring greenery. There is the thickly forested pathway approaching the temple, and beyond it, mossy stone stairs, the temple gate, and then the main temple. This temple lets you escape the hustle and bustle of town for a while, as time passes slowly amid the tranquility.