A Hidden Treasure on Sado Island, Japan

Up a narrow mountain road on the island of Sado, I came upon a remarkable shrine. If you’re not looking carefully, it’s easy to miss the small sign and narrow driveway that leads behind bushes and into a forested area overgrown with grass and weeds.

At first blush, it looks like a fairly typical countryside shrine. But on closer inspection, the grounds reveal treasures.

Nashi no Ki Jizo has a story to tell.

Who is Jizo

Jizo, also written Jizō, is a Buddhist bodhisattva, that is, one who achieves enlightenment but postpones Buddhahood in order to help others. Jizo statues are a common sight along the old roads of Japan. He has long been considered a guardian of travelers, as well as of children.

This shrine, with its Buddhist deity, seems to be a classic example of the syncretism of Buddhism and Shinto, as was the case throughout Japan for centuries until the late 1800s.

Nashi no Ki Jizo

Long ago, some men were out fishing in the Sea of Japan. To their surprise, they spied a stone statue of Jizo visible beneath the clear waters. They pulled it from the sea, brought it to shore, and enshrined it on this hilltop.

By and by, word of this Jizo spread. He was said to have extraordinary powers. People came from far and wide to pray to this Jizo for their sick children. Every prayer for healing offered to the Nashi no Ki Jizo was answered.

Jizo healed the children by removing their illnesses and selflessly taking them upon himself.

You can imagine the sense of gratitude felt by the happy parents.

After their children were healed, parents brought stone Jizo statues to this shrine. Each statue carries the malady of a healed child.

So many thousands of statues have been offered that they overflowed the small shrine building and now fill the grounds, many buried under pine needles or grown over by weeds.

Thousands of statues are old and weathered, their features unrecognizable. Others are new, fresh-faced, and sweet.

Stuffed toys, pinwheels, flowers, and drinks remain where they were offered in front of the Jizo.

If you ever visit Sado Island off the Niigata coast of Japan, take some time to search out this beautiful and sublime hilltop shrine to the beneficent Jizo.

The post The Jizo Statues of Nashi-no-Ki—1,000s of Unique Offerings of Thanks first appeared on More Than Tokyo and is written by Diane Tincher.

Along the old highways of Japan, you will find Jizo statues, often wearing a red cap and bib

*Jizo (also written Jizō) is a bodhisattva, that is, one who achieves enlightenment but postpones Buddhahood in order to help others.

Jizo was originally the keeper of souls before they were born. From the late 1800s, Jizo came to be known as the guardian of travelers and children, both in this world and the next.

Jizo watches over all children who have died, including miscarried and aborted babies. These children did not have time in their brief lives to build up good karma, as well, they suffer judgment for the heartbreak that their deaths brought to their mothers. Each day the children build towers of pebbles along Sai no Kawara, the riverbank of souls in limbo, in hopes of crossing over and into heaven. But each evening, demons knock down their towers and beat the children.

Don’t worry, though, Jizo rescues the children, hiding them in his big sleeves.

Thinking of their children undergoing this suffering, mothers pray to Jizo to take care of them. Red is the color for expelling demons and illnesses, so mothers clothe Jizo statues in red bibs and hats, both as a show of gratitude and also in prayer that Jizo will care for and protect their children.

You may see piles of stones around Jizo statues, placed there to help the little ones perform their penance, or sometimes toys, left by mothers thankful to Jizo for healing a sick child.

Jizo also protects the spirits of muenbotoke, those who have died an unnatural death, at sea, along the road, or those who have no family to look after their graves. These “unconnected dead” find comfort in the care of compassionate Jizo.

Photos ©Diane Neill Tincher

The post Jizo—Charming, Child-Like Statues of Japan first appeared on More Than Tokyo and is written by Diane Tincher.