【Yokai & Mystery】 "Enma" (the King of Hell) and "Datsueba" (the old woman who strips the clothes off the dead) / Honkakuin Taisoji Temple (Tokyo pref.)
Right near Shinjuku Park, famous as one of Tokyo's leading "cruising spots," lies Honkakuin Temple, which houses the largest statue of Enma (the King of Hell) in Tokyo.
It's a rather mysterious place (lol), so naturally, there are all sorts of anecdotes about it♪ And it's not just the Enma statue; there's really a lot more to see here! (Nihedon @ KesaranPasaran Lab)
It is said that the temple's predecessor was a hermitage called "Taiso-an" founded by the monk Taisho around 1596.
Later, after the funeral of Naito Masakatsu, the lord of the Katsuyama Domain in Awa Province (who had a secondary residence in this area), Taisho-ji Temple was founded in 1668 when Masakatsu's eldest son, Shigeyori, donated land for the temple, with Taisho as its founding abbot.
Bronze seated statue of Jizo Bodhisattva: Designated tangible cultural property of Tokyo (sculpture) / Apparently created in 1712 (Shotoku 2), it is the third of the Six Jizo of Edo.
Enma-do Hall / Inside are statues of "Enma" (the King of Hell) and "Datsueba" (the old woman who strips the clothes off the dead). The wire mesh makes it difficult to take pictures, which is a bit of a drawback...
A photograph of the Enma statue taken through a wire mesh fence. Quite imposing. There are many anecdotes about it, which I will write about later.
It's located to the left of the Enma statue, but the angle made it difficult to photograph, so I've included a picture of the information board. The real thing is much bigger and scarier than you'd expect.
The Salt-Splashing Jizo: There are legends that if you rub salt on the part of your body that is ailing, you will be cured. This is also quite creepy.
This is the family temple of the Naito family, who established a post town in this area. This temple is truly a symbol of Shinjuku!
There's a rumor that the eyes of the Enma statue are made of crystal. Well, some might think they don't look like it in this picture, but you might be in for a rude awakening if you say that!
There's an anecdote that in 1847, a construction worker named Katsugoro, who lived in Okemachi 2-chome (present-day Yaesu 2-chome and the Kyobashi area of ??Chuo Ward), tried to steal the eyes of the Enma statue. The story goes that the moment he pulled out the eyeballs, he was struck by a flash of light emanating from them and fainted.
Since the year, the man's name, and address are recorded, it doesn't seem like a complete fabrication...
ACCESS :
2-minute walk from Shinjuku-gyoenmae Station on the Tokyo Metro Marunouchi Line