Enmei Jizo 延命地蔵

Official explanation

A Temple for Long Life

This temple is known to date back to at least 1725. At that time, it contained only a small statue of Jizo, the protector of pregnant women, travelers, and children. In 1813, a traveler spotted an unusual rock in the bed of the Araragi River, which runs parallel to the main street of Tsumago. The rock had a discolored patch in the shape of a reclining Jizo at its base. The local priest arranged for the rock to be brought here, where it was placed on a stone base in the shape of a lotus leaf and enshrined in a two-tier miniature shrine, or zushi. (The original Jizo statue is on the upper level, but cannot be seen.)

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Notice also the giant prayer beads hanging on the left-hand side of the miniature shrine. Groups of people would hold these and count them off as they chanted the sutras over and over again in a practice known as hyakumanben nenbutsu, “a million [recitals of the] nenbutsu prayer.” The pieces of paper stuck randomly all over the porch of the building are senmaifuda, on which pilgrims have written their names as proof of their visits.

Enmei-do means “Hall of Long Life.” A prayer to Jizo is a prayer for a long life.

出典: 地域観光資源の多言語解説文データベース（観光庁） — www.mlit.go.jp/tagengo-db. この英語解説文は観光庁の地域観光資源の多言語解説整備支援事業で作成しました。
Source: Japan Tourism Agency, Multilingual Explanation Database. This English text was produced by the Japan Tourism Agency's multilingual explanation project and is shown unedited. Opening hours and services may have changed since it was written.