Kanzakura at Shuzenji Temple ~MAR,2025~

It may be a little late to say this, but the name of the town is Shuzenji（修善寺） and the name of the temple is Shuzenji（修禅寺）. It was originally a Shingon Buddhist temple built by Kukai, but there is a theory that it was converted to the Rinzai sect and Zen was introduced during the Kamakura period, but this is not certain. Minamoto no Yoritomo's younger brother (Noriyori) and second son (Yoriie) were imprisoned and killed in this town.

After his triumphant return following the downfall of the Taira clan, Noriyori was given land and built a mansion in what is now Yoshimi-machi, Hiki-gun, Saitama Prefecture. In 1193 (the fourth year of the Kenkyu era), he incurred the wrath of Yoritomo, was confined to Shinko-in, a sub-temple of Shuzen-ji Temple, and was attacked by Kajiwara Kagetoki. While the Taira clan was downgraded in the Battle of Dannoura (1185) and the Minamoto clan was established under the rule of the country, the three brothers who supported Yoritomo lost their lives either by being pursued or executed: Yoshitsune (1189), Noriyori (1193), and Matanari (1203).

Noriyori was married to the granddaughter of Yoritomo's wet nurse, Hiki no Ama, and they had two children. Hiki no Ama pleaded for her children's lives to be spared, and was eventually pardoned by becoming a nun, but one of the children, Hanen, took the name Yoshimi and continued to serve as a retainer.

Fans of the Sengoku period will have heard of this, but the Yoshimi clan, based in Tsuwano, Iwami Province, was a branch of this clan, and although they were caught between the powerful Ouchi, Amago, and Mori clans, they ultimately submitted to the Mori clan and survived the Sengoku period. 

The tragic end of the second Shogun, Yoriie, is well known, and he was killed by an assassin from the Hojo clan (Tokimasa or Yoshitoki) while taking a bath. The Gukansho (Jien) tells the cruel story, saying, "Yoriie Nyudo was stabbed to death again at Shuzenji Temple : They were unable to kill him quickly enough, they put a rope around his neck, pressed against his vital spots, and stabbed him. In the Taiga drama, Yoriie fought coolly.

If you go up the slope behind Shuzenji Temple, you will find the graves of the thirteen retainers of Yoriie who were killed in a rebellion after the assassination, Yoriie's grave, and Shigetsuden, which Masako built to pray for Yoriie's soul. The Kamakura Shogunate began with a series of ups and downs, including the assassination of members of the Shogun family, the purge of influential vassals, and the Jokyu War which involved the Imperial Court, and it also marked the beginning of a period of trial and error for the military government.

Ike no Zenni, who pleaded for Yoritomo's life to Taira no Kiyomori and Hojo Masako, changed the history of Japan from the 12th century. The Hojo clan, the main players in establishing the Kamakura Shogunate, gradually became the de facto Japanese government through strong family management, skillful manipulation of the Imperial Court, and the nationwide deployment of vassals' shugo and jito (local stewards), but the structure still contained many unstable factors. In the 14th century, Emperor Go-Daigo, a kind of superstar, appeared at the Imperial Court, and the government collapsed in a relatively short period of time. However, I foolishly believe that the reason the Hojo clan's government ended after 130 years was firstly its legitimacy (although they claimed to be a branch of the Taira clan) and secondly, excessive family rule. In 1333, Hojo Takatoki and his family committed suicide at Tosho-ji Temple in Kamakura.

Takatoki's mother, Enjo-ni, fled from Kamakura to Nirayama, Izu, with the clan's children and women. They returned to the site where the Hojo clan's residence had been before they moved to Kamakura, and built Enjo-ji Temple to pray for the souls of the Hojo clan. It seems that the Hojo clan had moved to Kamakura as a family after Yoshitoki and Yasutoki, and during the Kamakura period this area was used as a family cemetery, as it was a land handed down by the Hojo clan's ancestors. Enjo-ji Temple was under the protection of the Yamanouchi Uesugi clan during the Muromachi period, but was abandoned after the second half of the 15th century.

There are many sights to see in the area, but you can visit Ganjojuin Temple, built by Tokimasa, to see Unkei's national treasure Buddha statue, reminisce about the early days of the Kamakura Shogunate at Shuzenji Temple, and feel the impermanence of all things at Enjoji Temple, making this a great trip to remember the Hojo clan.

I don't know much about cherry blossoms, but I've learned that Kawazu cherry blossoms reach their peak at the end of February, Kanzakura cherry blossoms from early March, and Somei Yoshino cherry blossoms from the end of March.