On our way toward the beach we decided to stop at the Ōfuna Kannon, the goddess of mercy in a white robe. She is so majestic jutting out from amongst the pines, it's enough to leave you breathless ...plus, we had to haul our luggage up the side of a bamboo laden hill. The origination of her building began in 1929, but because of the tragedy of war, she was not completed until 1960. She houses stones from Nagasaki and Hiroshima, as well as an eternal flame lit from the fires of the atomic bomb. We happened to visit on the date of Pearl Harbor, and I couldn't help but tear up over the losses on both sides and the horrors of war. It reminded me of one of my favorite quotes from Mark Twains Joan of Arc- '"Picture a pure and dainty white rose growing up out of the rude soils of war and looking abroad out of it's tender eyes upon the horrid machinery of death, and then- it blushes for the sinful nature of man and turns red in a single night." The one picture during my trip that encapsulated my hopes and dreams for a brighter future was of a little brother and sister who posed for a picture for me while smiling their broadest smiles and holding up the peace sign.
Once we got to Shichirigahama beach, we walked to our new Airbnb that was a bedroom above the Palms Cafe within walking distance to the beach with our new host Kazz. He immediately offered us a welcome treat of homemade ginger ale and fresh pear. We had told him that we were going to head to the Daibutsu Buddha and that we would meet him back at the beach at sunset so where we later sipped on champagne while trying to get another glimpse of Mt. Fuji-san.
The Amida Buddha of Kamakura was cast in bronze in 1252. This monumental statue was originally housed within a building structure but that structure was demolished and rebuilt four times because of typhoons and tsunamis. So, now the Giant Buddha rests surrounded by nature. It was particularly spectacular during the warm and sunny autumn days surrounded by brilliant changing leaves. Buddhists tell a story of Siddhartha who went walking through the forest with his cousin Devadatta who was a hunter. His cousin shot a swan out of the sky, and Buddha cradled it in his arms and put some ointment on to heal it. When the boys argued over who the swan belonged to, the kingdom was divided until an elderly man spoke and said, “The prized possession of every creature is it’s life,” the elder stated. “As such, a creature belongs to whoever protects it, not the one who attempts to take its life away.”
The following day our goal was to hike to Jinmuji temple built in 724 CE! Lynzie highly doubted my shoe selection for the boulder strewn hike...flip flops! I can't handle it when my feet get hot, but when I pictured how I must look while hiking, I could only get a mental image of a duck-billed platypus trying to get to the top of a muddy riverbank. At one point Lynzie casually told me to watch out because there was something dead on the ground, I screamed and jumped and I realized that I still am the little girl who did not want to get off the picnic table while camping for fear I would get my fingernails dirty. I also saw a sign with a warning to watch out for wild boars which reminded me of how scared I was of chipmunks when I saw them as a girl in the woods. Once we made our way through moss, ferns and a place so clean, there was literally someone sweeping the forest, we made it to the ancient temple. The temple and the stone Buddhas were a worthwhile sight to behold, and it was even worth the fact that I got a bug in my eye and that people laughed and pointed at me for wearing my 'slippers' in the woods. As we gazed out at all the ships in the harbor from the viewing point, I was thankful to be anchored to such a dear and wonderful friend that I have in Lynzie.
We headed from the temple to a natural hot spring outdoor Onsen where we bathed as naked as Jaybirds in the soft sea air. The elements in the water made our skin so smoothe, the stars were glowing in the inky sky, and we let all of our worries slip away into the darkness. After that we went to a Yakiniku restaurant with our new pal Kazz and his adorable wife Sumi. We ate for hours and drank delicious plum sake and soda water and enjoyed the bonds of friendship that we so luckily cultivated while in this beautiful land.
On our last morning at the beach, I walked down to the ocean to watch the sun rise in the East. I felt such gratitude toward people who came before me and people that encourage me to fly freely during this mad and crazy flight we call life.
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