達谷窟 毘沙門堂

Takkokuiwaya bishamondō - Takkoku no Iwaya Temple - Takkoku Saikoji Temple


Useful Information

Location: Kitazawa-１６ Hiraizumi, Nishiiwai District, Iwate 029-4102.
(38.968226, 141.058270)
Open: Mid-MAR to OCT daily 8-17.
NOV to mid-MAR daily 8-16:30.
[2022]
Fee: Adults JPY 500, Children (12-17) 100, Children (0-11) free.
Groups (30+): one free entry per 30 persons.
[2022]
Classification: SubterraneaCave Church
Light: LightIncandescent
Dimension:
Guided tours: self guided
Photography: allowed
Accessibility: no
Bibliography:
Address: Takkounoiwaya Bishamondo, Kitazawa-１６ Hiraizumi, Nishiiwai District, Iwate 029-4102, Tel: +81-191-46-4931, Fax: +81-191-34-9911.
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then.
Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

801 temple built by Sakanoue no Tamuramaro to thank the god of war Bishamon.
11th century Minamoto no Yoriyoshi and later his son Yoshiie offered prayers at Iwaya and gave land in thanks.
1189 Minamoto no Yoritomo gave thanks here after defeating his half brother Yoshitsune in the nearby battle of Koromogawa.
1490 burned down but immediately rebuilt.
1615 Date Masamune rebuilt the Bishamondô and gave lands.
1946 fire spread from a neighboring farm and engulfed the Bishamondô.
1961 temple was rebuilt.

Description

The cave temple 達谷窟 毘沙門堂 (Takkoku no Iwaya Temple) was built into a overhanging cliff face. The Hall of Bishamon is a red wooden temple which blocks the entrance to the cave behind, where

In the 8th century the 蝦夷征伐 (Emishi Seibatsu), a people native to the north of Honshū, were subjugated by the expanding Japanese Empire. The warlord Akurô Takamaro had his headquarters in a fortress in the cavern at Takkoku. They made a lot of trouble like tormenting people, kidnapping women, stealing, and were generally violent. The provincial government was unable to cope with the situation. The 50th Emperor Kanmu sent the court noble 坂上 田村麻呂 Sakanoue no Tamuramaro (*758–✝811) as general to subjugate the barbarians. Akurô Takamaro was defeated in 801 and peace restored. To thank the god of war Bishamon, Sakanoue no Tamuramaro ordered the construction of a temple in the style of Kyoto’s Kiyiomizudera in the cave. He installed 108 statues of Bishamon and called it Iwaya Bishamondô (Bishamon Cave Temple).

The current temple is the fifth on the same location, because it burned down several times. It is still dedicated to Bishamon, a god of war who protects those born in the Year of the Tiger. People pray for wealth, a good position in the company, for meeting a suitable partner, for fertility, and for success in studying. Prayers to Bishamon are thought to be very effective.