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Earthen Storehouse at Yoshino Honjin

Before Fujino was a town, it was a loose collection of independent communities and villages (one of which was Fujino) linked to the Yoshino post station on the Kôshû Kaidô (Kai Province Highway). The honjin or official inn was located at the center of the town, and served official travelers, including the feudal lords of three domains on their trips to Edo. Two huge fires, one in 1890 and the other on the last day of 1896, destroyed virtually everything in the old town of Yoshino, however, including the magnificent five-story honjin inn. This three-story earthen storehouse, or dozô is all that remains of the honjin today. It is said that an old bronze mirror was found a few years ago in the top floor of the storehouse, and it was thought to be a divine shintai—the "god-body" that serves as object of worship in a Shinto shrine. Rumor went around that the storehouse had been preserved in the fire due to the presence of the mirror. Across the street is the local museum of folk history, housed in what was another inn of the day, the Fujiya, which was rebuilt in 1897 the year following the last disastrous fire. To return to your previous location, use your browser's "BACK" button, or click your heels together three times while saying, "there's no place like home" . . .

Green Gables: A Contemplative Companion to Fujino Township
by Norman Havens nhavens@gol.com
Updated: April 20, 2002

URL: http://www2.gol.com/users/nhavens/