{Inter} Cultural Japan

In ancient times in India there lived a great and benevolent king - King Ashoka - who was a convert to Buddhism and ardently promoted the religion. Under his reign, India became a Buddhist country. In his religious fervor, King Ashoka had 84,000 stone pagodas constructed, all containing a tiny relic of the Buddha. These pagodas were distributed around India and other parts of the known world to advocate Buddhism.

After a miraculous flight, one of these relic towers landed in Japan, but as the land of the rising sun was then still unaware of the benefits of Buddhism, the event went unnoticed. The pagoda arrived in a quiet and forgotten corner of the Omi Plain and was gradually covered by sand.

[Ishidoji]

More than ten centuries later, around the year 1000, a Japanese monk called Jakucho, who had traveled to China to study the scriptures, happened to hear the story of King Ashoka’s pagodas. He even learned that one of the small towers must have landed in his native province, Omi, and was given quite reliable directions to its location. Jakucho immediately send notice back home and in 1006, under the leadership of Emperor Ichijo, King Ashoka’s pagoda was indeed discovered where it lay buried in the earth.

Today we are bound for that very pagoda, in the rustic countryside of Shiga Prefecture. The area is called Kamono and used to be popular for hunting (testimony to the fact that it was not very much cultivated). After a drive through pleasant countryside, the taxi from Yokaichi delivers us at the foot of a huge stone staircase. To the right stands a small temple hall, but we know the pagoda of the Indian King sits on top of the hill where the stairs lead.

In the late afternoon light, surrounded by trees putting forth new green foliage, we slowly climb to the top of the hill. At the flat hilltop we are greeted by an unexpected scene. In front of us is an open area completely filled with small stone pagodas - thousands and thousands of them. Most are of the same height, about 50 centimeters. In the middle of this veritable army of pagodas, among the tumble of stones, rises up a larger pagoda: a seven meter high, three-storied stone tower - the pagoda attributed by legend to King Asoka, that came miraculously flying here from the faraway Indian continent.

[The flying pagoda]

A Stone Pagoda
Of course, the truth is different from this beautiful legend. In reality, modern scholarship tells us, the large stone pagoda must have been set up by early Korean settlers in the area, as it is of a type found on the continent, in China and Korea. Besides new agricultural techniques, those settlers also brought Buddhism to the area and the pagoda still stands as a symbol of their faith. They probably arrived here in the time of Emperor Tenchi, just after the middle of the seventh century. It is possible that in intervening centuries the pagoda was forgotten and half-buried in the sand, so that the discovery in 1006 still can be fact: only the explanation given is fiction.

The present name of the temple, Ishidoji, or Temple of the Stone Pagoda, must have been given after finding the pagoda and although the temple itself dates its origin back to Prince Shotoku (as do many temples in Shiga), we presume it must have been established after the pagoda was found. We walk around the square of stones, viewing the large pagoda in the middle from different angles. It is of elegant construction, its three softly arched roofs resemble as many broad hats. The stone is yellowish and soft, sharp corners have been eroded by the play of the elements.

[Stone pagodas]

In the course of the centuries, stones have attracted stones and the big pagoda has received abundant company. The small pagodas surrounding the central tower of stone were collected by the temple, an activity that already started quite early as three of them have ancient dates inscribed: 1302, 1304 and 1349. The small stupas in Ishidoji are of so-called the gorinto or ‘Five-wheel Pagoda’ type. Dating back to the Heian period, it consists of five distinct tiers of different shape, each representing one of the five elements that make up the universe in esoteric Buddhism. These monuments could either be a grave marker, or an indication of a sutra (holy scriptures) mound. Just as the larger pagodas, they find their origin in the Indian stupa, thereby again completing the circle to King Ashoka’s legend.

Following the path along the hill, we come upon more stone art. Among the trees stand several stone statues, some wearing humorous expressions. There are stones and stones and more stones: Ishidoji is a veritable orgy of stones, tens of thousands, a place as no other in Japan.

Address: Ishido, Gamo-cho, Yokaichi-shi, Shiga-ken.
Tel: 0748-55-0213

Access: Nearest station is Sakuragawa on the Omi Tetsudo, but we came by taxi from Yokaichi, the larger town, which is not much farther away. Yokaichi is 16 min. from Omi-Hachiman (where the line starts) on the Yokaichi Line of the Omi Tetsudo. For Sakuragawa one has to change in Yokaichi to the Main Line of the Omi Tetsudo and ride for another 11 min.
10:00-17:00.