02 July 2015

Buddhist statuary and a rocket ship....the beautiful and some times strange things we saw in Koyasan's Okunoin

As I mentioned earlier, we arrived into Koyasan early enough to go for a walk. Thank goodness we did, since it poured all of the next day, so it was some of the only moments we had on the mountain where we weren't getting drenched.

We spent most of the time before dinner traipsing through Okunoin, Kobo Daishi's mausoleum. Because it is such a sacred spot, many familes, warlords, religious and political figures and even corporations have tombstones and at least partal remains here. And many statues of Jizo whom I mentioned in my last post.

The tall trees made for a solemn walk, and the late afternoon light was just perfect. The enormous grounds were jam packed with stones and statues, many of which were quite impressive.


Bridge into Okunoin



Main path, surrounded by trees

The only animal statue I saw, unless you count the blowfish

This was one of my favorites


Look at those tall trees 





Well dressed 

The lanterns were just starting to come on

Don't forget, we are on a mountain, it's not all flat



He is very well dressed, with several layers



The bright red stands out amongst the gray stone

I really like this one



Frank giving us some background 


One of the first corporations we came across

The founder of UCC Coffee

Even car companies

A rocket...not sure why


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