On the island of Shikoku runs a circular route of some 1,200 kilometres linking 88 temples associated with the monk Kukai. Pilgrims dress in white, carry a staff and write on their hats that they travel as two: themselves and the master. Matsuyama holds the densest stretch of the circuit and the legend of the first pilgrim. Twelve stops between the temple clinging to the cliffs, the sanctuary of the Medicine Buddha and its ancient junipers, the temple of the eight slopes, the house of the rich man who broke a monk's bowl, the spring of the staff, pilgrim graffiti five hundred years old, the hill of quiet temples, the temple of the stone in the hand, the hot springs of the walkers, the castle that watched the roads, the national treasure hall of 1305 and the copper plaque left by a pilgrim in 1650. Approximate audio duration: 25 minutes.
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Shikoku: el camino de los 88 templos y el peregrino que nunca camina solo
En la isla de Shikoku hay un camino circular de unos 1.200 kilómetros que une 88 templos ligados al monje Kukai. Los peregrinos visten de blanco, llevan un bastón y en el sombrero escriben que viajan de a dos: ellos y el maestro. Matsuyama concentra el tramo más denso del recorrido y la leyenda del primer peregrino. Doce paradas entre el templo colgado de los acantilados, el santuario del Buda de la medicina y sus enebros milenarios, el templo de las ocho cuestas, la casa del rico que rompió el cuenco de un monje, el manantial del bastón, las inscripciones de peregrinos de hace quinientos años, la colina de los templos tranquilos, el templo de la piedra en la mano, las aguas termales de los caminantes, el castillo que vigilaba los caminos, el salón nacional de 1305 y la placa de cobre de un peregrino de 1650. Duración aproximada de audio: 25 minutos.
Tour stops
12 stops · ~25 min of audio · 49.52 km on foot (~12 h 25 min walking) · about 13 h in total
You are standing at the foot of a grey rock wall rising into the sky, in the mountains of Kumakogen. The halls of Iwaya-ji seem glued to the cliff, as if the mountain were holding them in its hand. This is temple number 45 on a route that circles the entire island of Shikoku.
That route is called the henro. It links 88 temples along roughly 1,200 kilometres, always travelled clockwise. On foot it takes between forty and fifty days. Every temple is tied to Kukai, a monk born on Shikoku in 774 who founded the Shingon school of Buddhism.
Look at the people climbing the steps. Many wear a white …
2
The Medicine Buddha and the Thousand-Year Trees
You have come down from the mountain into the valley. You are in the courtyard of Joruri-ji, temple 46, on the southern edge of Matsuyama. It is small and full of greenery. Look at the twisted trees shading the yard.
They are Chinese junipers, called ibuki. Tradition says Kukai himself planted them, and they are estimated to be around a thousand years old. Along the 88-temple route almost everything has a story linking the master to something you can still touch: a tree, a stone, a spring.
The temple's name comes from Joruri, the pure land of lapis lazuli. It is the paradise of Yakushi Nyora…
3
The Temple of the Eight Slopes
You have walked less than a kilometre through rice fields. You are in front of Yasaka-ji, temple 47. Its name means temple of the eight slopes. Tradition says eight sloping paths were cut into the hill to build it.
Legend credits its founding to En no Gyoja, a mountain ascetic, in the early eighth century. Before Kukai, Japan already had a long tradition of monks seeking the sacred by walking and meditating in wild places. The Shikoku route grew out of that custom.
That matters for the real history. Kukai spent part of his youth practising austerities on capes and mountains of Shikoku, and h…
4
The House of the Man Who Broke the Bowl
You are in front of Monju-in, a small temple among houses and fields. It is not one of the 88, yet almost every pilgrim stops here. Tradition says this was the site of the house of Emon Saburo, hero of the route's most famous legend.
Emon Saburo was a rich, miserly man from this area. One day a mendicant monk came to his door asking for alms. Saburo sent him away. The monk returned day after day, until Saburo, enraged, struck his begging bowl with a broom and broke it into eight pieces.
According to the story, in the years that followed his eight children died one after another. Close by, am…
5
The Spring of the Staff
You have walked about four kilometres north, crossing the river. You are in front of Sairin-ji, temple 48. Its main image is the eleven-headed Kannon, the figure of compassion who, tradition says, looks in every direction to see anyone who suffers.
When Emon Saburo, exhausted, finally met Kukai, he was dying at the foot of the mountain of temple 12, in Tokushima province. Kukai appeared and forgave him. He asked what Saburo wished for, and Saburo asked to be reborn into the Kono family, the lords of this province of Iyo.
Tradition says he was buried on the spot and his staff was planted on t…
6
Pilgrim Signatures Five Centuries Old
You are in front of the main hall of Jodo-ji, temple 49. Look at the dark, unpainted wood and the broad roof. The building dates from the Muromachi period, the fifteenth century, and is protected as an Important Cultural Property of Japan.
The temple is associated with Kuya, a tenth-century monk who travelled the country chanting the name of Amida Buddha among ordinary people. Tradition says he stayed here three years. The temple keeps a wooden statue of Kuya, also protected.
But the most interesting thing for the history of the route is inside. On the shrine that holds the main image are in…
7
The Hill of Hospitality
You have climbed the slope. You are at Hanta-ji, temple 50, on top of a quiet hill. Turn around and look west: you can see the Matsuyama plain, the city and, on a clear day, the Seto Inland Sea.
It is a good place to talk about something found not in any temple but in the island's people: settai. That is the custom of offering gifts to pilgrims. It might be fruit, a drink, a few coins or a night's lodging.
For the giver, settai is not charity. It is an offering to Kukai, who travels with the pilgrim. So it is never refused. In return, the pilgrim hands over one of their name slips, which man…
8
The Child Born with a Stone in His Hand
You are in front of the great gate of Ishite-ji, temple 51. Look at the huge straw sandals hanging at the sides: they are offerings from pilgrims asking for strong legs on the road. This gate, the Niomon, was built in 1318 and is a National Treasure of Japan.
Here the legend of Emon Saburo ends. When Kukai found him dying, he took a small stone and wrote Saburo's name on it. Soon afterwards a boy was born into the Kono family, lords of Iyo, whose left hand was clenched shut.
When at last he opened it, there was the stone with Emon Saburo's name. According to legend, the family gave it to thi…
9
The Waters of the Walkers
You are in front of Dogo Onsen Honkan, a multi-storey wooden building with layered roofs and a small tower on top. It was built in 1894 and is an Important Cultural Property of Japan. But Dogo's hot springs are mentioned in Japanese texts more than twelve hundred years old.
For a pilgrim who has walked for weeks, a hot bath is almost a miracle. For centuries many henro stopped at Dogo to heal their feet and rest before moving on. Some legends even say Kukai visited these waters.
In the tower above hangs a drum that is still beaten at certain hours of the day to mark the time. Listen out for …
10
The Castle That Watched the Roads
You are at the top of Katsuyama hill, facing the keep of Matsuyama Castle. Construction began in 1602 on the orders of the feudal lord Kato Yoshiaki. The keep you see today was rebuilt in 1854, after lightning destroyed the earlier one.
It is one of the twelve castles in Japan that keep an original keep from the feudal era. From the top you can see the whole city, the Inland Sea and the mountains the pilgrims' route comes down from.
During the Edo period, from 1603 to 1868, the Shikoku route became a mass pilgrimage. Travellers needed a permit issued by their village temple or authority. Eac…
11
The Hall of 1305
You have climbed a long slope among trees. You are in front of the main hall of Taisan-ji, temple 52. Notice its size, the unpainted wood and the gentle line of the roof. It was built in 1305 and is a National Treasure of Japan.
It was rebuilt by the Kono family, the same lords of Iyo into whom, in the legend, Emon Saburo was reborn. It is a real fact linking history and myth: the Kono patronised this region's temples and paid for their buildings.
The temple has its own founding legend. It tells of a rich shipowner from Kyushu who survived a storm off this coast and, in gratitude, had a hall…
12
The Copper Plaque of 1650
You are in the courtyard of Enmyo-ji, temple 53, the last in Matsuyama. It is a temple of the plain, surrounded by houses, without the solemnity of the mountains. Yet it holds one of the most important objects in the route's history.
It is a copper plaque left by a pilgrim, dated 1650. It is regarded as one of the oldest known osamefuda. Before paper came into use, some pilgrims nailed wooden or metal plaques to the temple halls.
That plaque tells us something no legend can. By the middle of the seventeenth century, people were already making the full round of the island and wanted to record…
How long does the "Shikoku: the 88-Temple Pilgrimage and the Pilgrim Who Never Walks Alone" audio tour take?
It has about 25 minutes of audio across 12 stops and a 49.52 km walking route (~12 h 25 min on foot). Plan roughly 13 h in total, or split it up: you can pause and resume anytime.
Where does the tour start?
At stop 1, "The Temple Hanging from the Rock" (coordinates 33.65883, 132.98105). The app guides you from stop to stop with a map.
Is it free?
Trevurs is a free app for iOS and Android. There is also an optional Premium version, from USD 1.99, with unlimited offline downloads, access to every tour and no ads. It also helps keep an independent app alive.
Why use an audio tour instead of a guided group tour?
No group to keep up with and no guide to wait for. Start at any time of day, on your own schedule. Go at your own pace: pause, rewind or skip any stop. No need to commit 2 or 3 hours to a single tour: do one stop or the whole route. Works offline once downloaded.
What languages is this audio guide available in?
This tour is available in Spanish, English, Japanese, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Korean. Switch languages anytime from inside the app.
Do I need wifi to listen to this tour?
No. Download the tour over wifi before you go, then listen without any data connection.
How do I access this tour?
Download Trevurs on iPhone (App Store) or Android (Google Play), then open Matsuyama and pick "Shikoku: the 88-Temple Pilgrimage and the Pilgrim Who Never Walks Alone". No account required to start.
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No wifi needed · Spanish, English, Japanese, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Korean
