Shikoku Henro : It's not over after 88!

 

One of my favorite quotes from the movie " The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" is: "Everything will be alright in the end, so if it is not alright, it is not yet the end".

Bearing this in mind, after we left Temple 88, we kind of felt like it was a non-end to a spectacular journey which required two trips to Japan and many days of sometimes gruelling hiking, overcoming so many obstacles both physically and emotionally.

As it turned out, it was not yet the end! After sending a photo of us holding up the scroll we had journeyed with for about 1200km to our new friend and trail angel Wilson, he pointed out that although we had the 88 calligraphy stamps from the 88 Temples we had been to, we were missing the two completion stamps. Once we looked carefully at the scroll, we saw the locations for the missing stamps. 

One of these had to be obtained by returning to Temple 1 to complete the circle and the second was to make the journey to Koyasan on Mount Koya and visit the mausoleum of the eternal resting place of Kukai (Kobo Daishi) and receive the stamp at that temple.

So we did this.... It involved 12 train journeys to return to Tokushima in Shikoku and then journey to Koyasan on Mount Koya from Osaka.

It was actually a wonderful and nostalgic experience to go to Temple 1 again and the monk at the Noukyocho office recognized the journey and actually said  "congratulations". 

The second journey, a train ride up Mount Koya was a beautiful day trip experience. As we arrived high up in the mountains we were greeted by chilly air and huge cedar trees dusted with snow. Once we arrived at Gokurakubashi station, we had to take a cable car up the rest of the mountain side to reach our destination. At the end of the ropeway is a bus terminal and all visitors are required to take the bus into the village of Koyasan.

At the very end of Koyasan is Kobo Daishi's mausoleum. After paying our respects we then received the 90th stamp on our scroll. Now the journey was completed and we felt satisfied.

Amongst some of the incredible sites up on the mountain was the Tahoto Pagoda, built in 1223, the oldest surviving architectural structure in Koyasan. Adjacent to it was the Kyozo built at the same time which houses Buddhist scriptures passed down through the generations. A very interesting place for history buffs and those interested in architecture.

There is also a beautiful and interesting stupa up there with many historical artifacts and photos as well as an ancient group of cedar trees which left us in awe.

The train ride through the mountain towns offered beautiful scenery and is a fun day excursion for anyone, even if you aren't chasing down a 90th scroll stamp!

We also thought we should mention that we absolutely could not have navigated our way through the Shikoku Henro without the guide book available at Temple 1. It is filled with essential information, maps, hints and tips on places to stay, a bit of information about each temple, alternative routes, bus lines, train lines, taxi numbers and etiquette education. We used it multiple times every day on the trail.

We would like to thank the people of Shikoku for their kindness, graciousness and goodwill towards us as we walked through their towns, villages and countryside. The journey, not the destination was the rewarding part of our experience as we take home so many wonderful memories of the people we met and the places we've seen.

Our journey has now come to an end and everything is alright. 

Temple 87-88: The long and difficult trail to "Nirvana".

After a warm and comfortable night, spent sleeping on traditional mattresses on the tatami mat covered floor of our room in Ryokan Fujiya, we were summoned downstairs to a traditionally cooked, delicious breakfast. 

Our host family have managed this Ryokan for 80 years! We bade them farewell with gratitude for our shelter for the night and continued on our journey.

Temple 87: Nagaoji: This is a neighborhood temple. We vaguely knew that it would be a long walk to Temple 88 from here but in retrospect were completely ignorant of what lay ahead. As we meandered through the neighborhoods enroute to the mountains we met an elderly gentleman standing outside his home. He was extremely soft spoken and was trying to tell us something in Japanese. Through our translation app we picked up the sentences " please proceed with caution and be careful". We thanked him and continued on.

The first half of the walk was blissful, following a path that wound around a dam and through forests with babbling streams. We stopped to take a rest beside a ramshackle shed that looked abandoned and saw through a broken pane of glass a statue of a woman that looked in fairly good shape compared to everything else in there that was ancient and broken. It was odd and very out of place.

Twice we almost stepped on a snake, which after some research seemed to match the description of a harmless jungle rat snake.

 As we climbed further up the mountain the trail became steeper and more difficult with numerous false summits. After many hours we came to the most difficult section of all,  where we basically had to do rock climbing over a knife's edge with our heavy backpacks for a long distance which seemed at some moments threatening to topple me over the edge. Josh is far more nimble than I am and he talked me through the scary sections, with me muttering intermittently " I'm really not having fun right now". There are many sections on the Shikoku hike that are referred to as Henro Korogashi " Henro fall down", meaning where pilgrims often fall. This term is used to describe particularly difficult sections and to me this was the most treacherous part of the journey.

A network of nature trails called Shikoku no Michi that spans 1545km which are categorized as historical trails form much of the Shikoku Henro. 

The hike today took many hours longer than what we expected and we arrived at Temple 88 physically and emotionally drained, in a slight state of dehydration. We now understood what the elderly gentleman along the way was trying to tell us. After getting out stamps at the Noukyocho office and finally figuring out how to obtain a completion certificate,the temple very quickly shut down for the day shortly thereafter. We were stranded on the mountain top and had missed the last bus down to town.

Thank heavens for o-henro-san Tonies, a pilgrim we had met on and off throughout our journey. He offered to call us a taxi which was a huge help and we bade him farewell. Arigato Tonies!

Strangely, finally finishing the 88 Temples pilgrimage on foot divided into 2 sections  (Temple 1-40 in 2020 and Temple 41 -88 in 2025) covering about 1100km in total felt anti-climactic for both of us. There was a lesson in humility to be learned here. We both expected " something" at the end and there was nothing. It was a lesson of how your own expectations when not realized can lead to a feeling of disappointment and that is something you create in your own mind, it is not something done to you. We laughed when we realized this, we had built up an imaginary triumph or acknowledgement at completing this arduous journey but that was not reality. 

Apparently nirvana in life is obtained by releasing desire because desire leads to disappointment and pain. Inadvertently we learned this and had to let go of the desire to feel some type of " groovy feeling" or acknowledgement of obtaining our final stamp. I guess hereby we did arrive at Nirvana upon this realization for a brief moment!

Temples 84-86: Takamatsu to Sanuki

 

One of the top ten things to do in Takamatsu is to walk up Mount Yashima on very steep paved switchbacks to the summit to Temple 84. Without a heavy backpack this could be a pleasant enough day walk but with the backpack it was pretty hard going.

Along the path was a stone with writing carved into it which was evidently done by Kobo Daishi.

Once at the summit we were rewarded with spectacular views of Takamatsu City and the surrounding sea and islands.

Temple 84: Yashimaji: Temple of the Roofed Island: There is a river that cuts the peninsula off that Mount Yashima sits on and turns it into an island. This mountain also has a flat top which gives it this name. The temple sits on sprawling grounds with numerous interesting statues. We crossed paths with other Japanese henro who we had met in passing before. The weather had warmed up which made it harder to backpack. We found a great hydrating drink called "Pocari Sweat" which makes a huge difference to our hydration status since it contains electrolytes. The temple grounds were very busy with bus loads of tourists pouring in.

After climbing that first mountain of the day we decided to take the ropeway built in 1964, which is a retro tram cable car on rails up the next mountain to Temple 85.

Temple 85: Yakuriji: Temple of the Eight Chestnuts: An older temple and a much more peaceful place with no tourists, set against the backdrop of the imposing cliffs of Mt Goken. We lingered a little longer here, regaining our strength before the long, steep winding walk down the other side of the mountain.

As we walked one of our discussions was that we have not observed a single homeless person in all the time we have spent walking around the island of Shikoku. In addition, we have never observed anyone panhandling or begging. Japan must be doing something right!

Temple 86: Shidoji: Temple of the Fulfilled Wish: Situated in the seaside town of Sanuki which is centered around agriculture and manufacturing. The temple was built in 625 and has a five story pagoda which was completed in 1975.

We met Clive, a British man who lives in Germany who loves Shikoku so much that he comes here often for a vacation.

Late in the afternoon we had nowhere to stay and decided to knock on the door of a ryokan which is a traditional Japanese Inn and find out whether they had a room we could stay in. As it turned out, they did and we were ushered into a tatami room with traditional table and chairs and were offered a pot of hot green tea and kimonos to wear. The lovely host and her very helpful daughter made us feel very comfortable. We would highly recommend staying at Fujiya Ryokan which was founded 80 years ago as an authentic experience to anyone traveling here. It also has a full sushi bar restaurant downstairs which has been highly recommended by past patrons. We arrived too late for dinner but our host will be preparing us breakfast in the morning.

Goodnight from Sanuki.

Temples 81-83: Up a mountain, Keiko's path and down into the city of Takamatsu.

 

Waking up in the early dawn on the mountain with the beautiful views of the city below was magical. Our tent had kept us safe and snug all night up there on the scenic outlook platform.

Temple 81: Shiromineji: Situated near the summit of Mount Shitomine (white peak), this temple has a sprawling campus. We were welcomed into the temple grounds when it opened up by the most friendly cat I have ever met. The temple had many animal symbols and statues on the grounds. The lady at the Noukyocho office gave us a candy packet gift of "osettai" which was so sweet of her.

From there we walked along the Sanuki Henro Trail National Historic Site. It was a gorgeous nature walk along this trail to Temple 82. The highlight of the morning was stumbling upon a trail- angel cache called "Keiko Cian Osetutai No Jiyo". There were bins stacked up with free drinks, snacks and other items a hiker might need along the way with an information poster: Keiko's father had set up this trail angel station in memory of his daughter who had died of what seems to be cancer as a young child. It was all very moving and choked us up with emotion. Her father wrote:

"This place was built with 3 wishes:

1) that the pilgrims who visit Kagawa Prefecture will complete their pilgrimage in good health.

2) that the children who will be responsible for the future will cherish life.

3) that the support for children who suffer from serious diseases such as childhood cancer or children with disabilities will expand."

What a beautiful place and it puts a real perspective on what we consider to be problems in life.

Temple 82: Negoroji: The glorious nature trail led us right up to the temple along the flanks of the hilltop. We met an interesting character, Jonathan the Scotsman from New Zealand. After a bit of "talk story" on multiple fascinating topics, we parted ways and continued the very long walk down the mountain and then zig zagged through neighborhoods trying to to outhike a rainstorm. I must mention that Josh is a map reader extraordinaire and gets us exactly where we need to be by consulting both the Shikoku pilgrimage guide maps and Google maps simultaneously. I am in awe and just follow him like a puppy!

Temple 83: Ichimomiyaji: The rain abated while we were here and we needed to make a decision about where to go for from there. We decided to continue towards temple 84 and the huge, bustling city downtown area of Takamatsu is where we landed up being for the night. We celebrated by enjoying a very delicious meal at a Nepalese restaurant called "Samjhana" right near our hotel. The hungry henros were tired but satisfied.

Takamatsu is a large port city of 420,000 people  It has a massive covered shopping street, beautiful gardens and spectacular surrounding mountains. We shall journey on to Temple 84 in these surrounding mountains tomorrow.