April 29,
Hi All,
We left Yunotsu for the 25nm run to Taisha on Sunday, April 29…..yes, finally a short run!! We left 0630 in order to see the Shrine all in one day. We had very nice conditions….winds no bother and a 2-4′ swell off the port stern gave us a little motion but hey, all was from behind….sweet as…..we had forgotten what that was like having almost all action forward of the beam since we left KK in January!!!!
We arrived around 9:30am…..but the wall we had marked was full….hmmm, try the next one….oh crap, full of buoys….ok, 3rd times the charm….try the one by the fishing coop…..ok, but hope we don’t block any fishing boats…look, see that cone…bet it means ok to go forward of it….and that is what we did….wow, probably the best and easiest access wall we have been on…..Kathy said she is never leaving:))))
We were off by 10:15ish for the 2k walk to the Shrine….passed a nice beach on the way with a few surfers!!! Wow…..this is a huge Shrine complex:
“Izumo Taisha (出雲大社) is located in the city of Izumo in Shimane Prefecture, a one hour train ride west of Matsue. It is one of Japan’s most important shrines. There are no records of exactly when Izumo Taisha was built, but it is often considered the oldest shrine in Japan, being already in existence in the early 700s as revealed by the nation’s oldest chronicles. Izumo used to be ruled by a powerful clan in pre-historic times, and the region plays a central role in Japan’s creation mythology. The main deity (kami) enshrined at Izumo Taisha is Okuninushi no Okami. According to the creation myths, Okuninushi was the creator of the land of Japan and the ruler of Izumo. He also became known as the deity of good relationships and marriage. Visitors consequently clap their hands four times instead of the usual two times during their prayers: twice for themselves and twice for their actual or desired partners.”
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5804.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izumo-taisha
We could not find any English speaking guides so unfortunately much of the history was lost to us except what we could find on Google!! Also, these temples/shrines are simplistic elegant with very little wealth shown….so different than the gold/silver laden churches in Central America or the Buddha/Hindu temples we saw in Bhutan, Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia. Not sure if wealth/treasure was collected here and has since been taken/stolen elsewhere. Also, very few of the temples were open to the public.
But ODG, were there hordes of people….reminded us of the crowds in Thailand and Malaysia. Many came to pray….I am fascinated by this Shinto religion….where God is part of nature and harmony/karma is sought…..people would line up to these individual alters, all talking, walk up to the shrine when it was their turn, pay their offering, bow, clap 4 times, a moment of meditation and then leave….very simple but yet so pleasing/powerful to these people!!! The whole grounds gave a spiritual vibe but yet for me as a Westerner, it was too busy and too many people for me to seek any tranquility.
“Shintoism Facts. Shintoism is Japan’s ethnic religion that focuses on the belief that spiritual powers manifest in natural places such as mountains, rivers, and other aspects of nature including people and animals. There is no founder of Shinto but some of its practices date back to the 8th century.
http://www.softschools.com/facts/religion/shintoism_facts/2738/
Shinto is an optimistic faith, as humans are thought to be fundamentally good, and evil is believed to be caused by evil spirits. Consequently, the purpose of most Shinto rituals is to keep away evil spirits by purification, prayers and offerings to the kami.”
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2056.html
A quick bite to eat….hmmm…..so many restaurants it was hard to chose and of course many were full….but we found one that had a nice tempura and Izumo Warigo soba noodles….”The Japanese soba, a buckwheat noodle, is usually divided into “Shinshu soba,” popular in the eastern part of the country and “Izumo soba,” popular in the western part. The characteristics of Izumo soba are first noticeable in its color. Unlike Shinshu soba, made of husked soba nuts, Izumo soba is made of unhusked nuts, which makes it brown. (With a comparable taste, Izumo soba has the merit of incorporating the eventual nutrients included in the husks.) Another difference resides in the serving style. Izumo soba is served in stacked bowls called warigo. Condiments like sliced onion are first put directly on the soba in the bowls and the soba soup, tsuyu, is then poured over it. Usually a person is served three bowls.”
http://www.nippon-tea.co.jp/another/sobeng.html
Hmmmm…..must be an acquired taste…..served cold the top bowl had some fish roe on top which I did not notice….thus the noodles had a strong fish taste which I did not care for….so onto the 2nd bowl and while better I did not care for it…..next time I will try the hot noodles and try to get some salt and other more savory sauces….then it might be really good!!!
Then it was back to the boat, a nice nap to be woken up by 4 fishing boats unloading right behind me…..oh my, again a nice walk along the docks…..and some really nice Yellowtail….a Japanese amberjack…..”The Japanese amberjack or yellowtail, Seriola quinqueradiata, is a species of jack fish in the family Carangidae. It is native to the northwest Pacific Ocean, from Japan to Hawaii. It is greatly appreciated in Japan, where it is called hamachi or buri (鰤). These fish are eaten either cooked or raw, and are a seasonal favourite in the colder months when the meat has a higher fat content. Amberjack is typically thought of as a winter delicacy of Toyama and the Hokuriku region. Although it is frequently listed on menus as “yellowtail tuna”, it is a fish of an entirely different family, the Carangidae, rather than the family Scombridae that includes tunas, mackerels, and bonitos.”
We have had the yellowtail as sashimi and it is excellent!!!
The Plan: Unfortunately this pesky LO continues to creep upon us….now late Wed – Fri….ugh!!! We will have to leave Kathy’s favorite wall early on Monday and go 87nm to Tottori and then decide if we leave Tuesday or Wednesday for Ine…another 66nm.
Hope all is well!!
John
Mystic Moon
on passage to Tottori as I write this blog!!
PS: Pictures on the website: http://mysticmoonvoyages.com/photo-gallery/nggallery/main-album/Taisha
—
