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Mount Miwa, a sacred region
I remember visiting the area once and will never forget the "sacred" feeling all around.
The mountain is covered with old sacred sugi pine trees, which give it a rather dark look.
The gods of Mt. Miwa are also regarded as gods for rain.
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Mount Miwa (三輪山, Miwa-yama, Miwayama) or
Mount Mimoro (三諸山, Mimoro-yama)
is a mountain located in the city of Sakurai, Nara Prefecture, Japan.
It has been an important religious and historical mountain in Japan, especially during its early history, and serves as a holy site in Shinto.
The entire mountain is considered sacred,
and is home to one of the earliest Shinto shrines, Ōmiwa Shrine. Several burial mounds from the Kofun period can be found around the mountain.
Religious worship surrounding Mount Miwa have been deemed the oldest and more primitive of its kind in Japan, where the very mountain itself is designated sacrosanct.
The kami generally associated with Mount Miwa is Ōmononushi (Ōmono-nushi-no-kami), a rain kami. However, the Nihon Shoki notes that there was a degree of uncertainly when it came to naming the principal kami of Mount Miwa.
Yamato leaders often ruled from palaces near sacred mountains, and built burial mounds around them. The kami residing on Mount Miwa was judged the most powerful by the Fujiwara clan, and consequently palaces and roads were built in the vicinity.
Six KOFUN tumuli
have been found in the Shiki area at the base of Mount Miwa. These earthen mounds were built between 250 CE to 350 CE, and all display the same keyhole shape and stone chambers found in earlier mounds. However, the tumuli found at Mount Miwa hint at the beginning of a more centralized Yamato state. All six mounds are exceptionally large, twice as large as any similar mounds found in Korea, and contain prolific amounts of mirrors, weapons, ornaments, as well as finely built wood and bamboo coffins.
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Shrine Omiwa Jinja 大三輪神社
Oomiwa Jinja
. . . CLICK here for Photos !
Omiwa Temple 大三輪寺 Oomiwadera
. . . CLICK here for Photos of the temple !
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Itō Satoshi writes:
Miwa-ryū Shintō
A form of Shinto belonging to the tradition of Ryōbu Shintō that developed primarily at Byōdōji and Ōgorinji (Ōmiwadera), temples serving as the "parish temples" (jingūji) of Ōmiwa Shrine in Nara Prefecture. The founder of Byōdōji, Kyōen (also read Keien, 1140-1223) is usually considered the creator of Miwa-ryū Shintō. However, while the Miwa Shōnin gyōjō, his only certain biography, does mention a few events related to the kami, it contains no indications that Kyōen established a clearly defined form of Shintō. Thus, scholars suggest that Miwa-ryū Shintō actually arose later in history.
It is not clear to what extent this form of Shintō had existed during Kyōen's lifetime, but from the fact the Miwaryū jingi kanjō shi ki was copied in 1266, we know that the tradition had been developing since at least the mid-Kamakura period. However, the existence of Miwa-ryū Shintō at Miwa can be clearly attested only from the time of the reconstruction of the Ōgorinji (Ōmiwadera) —the original jingūji of Miwa shrine— by Eison (1203-1290); subsequently, Miwa Shintō developed there thanks to the efforts of Eison and members of his order (Saidaiji-ryū).
The Saidaiji-ryū order also played an important role in the development of Ryōbu Shintō at Ise after Eison's pilgrimage to the Grand Shrines of Ise; it is thus likely that Eison's monastic order was responsible for a massive introduction of Ryōbu Shintō to Miwa. Among the early texts of Miwa-ryū Shintō is the Miwa Daimyōjin engi composed in 1318. It states that the kami of Ōmiwa is identical in essence to Amaterasu, thus attempting a fusion with the doctrines of Shinto practiced at Ise.
Subsequently, the transmission of Miwa-ryū Shintō occurred especially at Byōdōji and Ōgorinji. Since the Kanekuni hyakushu uta shō (composed in 1486) mentions the Shinto of "Miwa Kyōen Shōnin" as one of the "four Shinto traditions" (shintō shiryū), we can assume that its existence was widely known by the mid-Muromachi period. Nevertheless, most Miwa-ryū texts existing today date from the Edo period, and many of them show the influence of Yoshida Shintō; as a result, we know little about the actual aspect of this tradition during the medieval period.
However, with the publication of the Miwa sōsho and, more recently, of Miwa-ryū texts in the Ōmiwa jinja shiryō collection (vols. 5, 6, and 10), many primary sources have become more easily accessible. Further, studies such as Miwa-ryū Shintō no kenkyū, edited by the Ōmiwa Shrine, have also begun to appear, and we can expect new developments in research on this tradition in the near future.
source : Kokugakuin University 2005
. Yoshida Shinto 吉田神道 .
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三輪素麺 Miwa Somen
. WASHOKU
Miwa soomen 三輪そうめん
thin Somen noodles from Miwa
。。。。。
. Folk Toys from Nara .
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H A I K U
observance kigo for late spring
Hanashizume matsuri 鎮花祭 (はなしずめまつり)
"appease the blossoms"
Festival of scattering blossoms for good health
Ritus zur "Beruhigung der Blumen"
..... chinkasai 鎮花祭（ちんかさい）
..... hanashizume はなしずめ
Now April 18, former 18th day of the third lunar month
This is an old ritual dating back to the Heian period. The god of epidemic diseases 行疫神（ぎょうやくじん） had to be appeased by scattering cherry blossoms in the wind. Thus pestilence in the Yamato region could be prevented.
Held at the shrines Omiwa and Sai.
大和の大神(おおみわ)・狭井(さい)二社
The deity of epidemic diseases was believed to live on Mount Miwa.
The cherry blossoms, which begun to scatter during this time, were also seen as the flowers of the rice plants and farmers prayed that they would not fall down. This name "appeasing the blossoms" remained the name for the festival to our day.
After praying at Omiwa Shrine, the priests go to Sai shrine, which is dedicated to Princess Isuzu. The shrine has a famous well and the water is sold during the festival.
Some say this is a festival to prevent the onset of pollen allergy sniffles ...
This festival is also performed at other shrines in Japan.
At another shrine, Mizutani Jinja 水谷神社 in Nara, a performance of kagura to "appease the blossoms" was held on the 5th day of April.
. . . CLICK here for Photos of Mizutani Shrine!
Medicine sold at Miwa Shrine:
花鎮薬（はなしずめのくすり) medicine for hanashizume
大神薬（おおみわのくすり）medidine from Omiwa
三諸薬（みもろのくすり) medicine from Mimoro
. . . . .
yasuraibana, yasurae no hana やすらい花
Special cake with cherry blossoms, served during the festival.
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花雲三輪は真黒のくもりかな
hanagumori Miwa wa makuro no kumori kana
haze in the cherry blossom season ...
Mount Miwa is all black
with clouds
神とおもふかたより三輪の日の出哉
kami to omou kata yori Miwa no hi no de kana
from where the Gods are
there comes the sunrise
above Mount Miwa
Kobayashi Issa
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三輪山のいよいよまろき雲雀かな
Miwa yama no iyiyo maroki hibari kana
Hosokawa Kaga 細川加賀
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. Saikusa matsuri 三枝祭 Saikusa lily Festival .
Isagawa matsuri 率川祭（いさかわまつり）Isagawa Shrine festival
yuri matsuri 百合祭（ゆりまつり） lily festival
with lilies from Mount Miwa
. The snake - water sprout at Miwa Shrine .
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