Healing - Experience - Rock



Standing in the Wind
 
A huge monolith pierces the evening sky. The wind blows and carries away the old and at the same time brings something new, sometimes gently, sometimes with great ferocity. Oonikura has various legends surrounding it which have been passed down since ancient times. In the cracks of the rock there are a few little waterfalls. When it rains and the water increases, it creates spray in the air and adds a more profound and subtle taste to the atmosphere. When you reach the top, you can overlook the rocks of Fudatate Toge Pass out in front of you, and if you look down below, you can feel just how high this rock really is. A lot of spiritual seekers have visited here believing that through the medium of this huge rock they are able to become one with the 'Earth Power'.
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Onigajo
 
This huge rock wall, created by earthquakes and erosion over the years, stretches out over 1.2km from east to west. There is a legend about a pirate called Tagamaru who was defeated by Sakanouenotamuramaro, a famous general working under the orders of Emperor Kanmu. The following poem by Yasushi Inoue is about the demons who were said to reside here:

'Long ago some demons of Kumano gathered here and lived. They let their hair fly loose in the wind, they laughed at the whirlpools, and slept through in the raging billows that shook the rocks. They preferred a night of thunder to a night of the moonlight. Their horns vivid in the thunder.'
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Shimokitayama Sekiyatou
 
This is Sekiyatou, a layered rock stupa, found in Shimokitayama Village. Whereas cedars and cypresses in Kumano usually grow upward, the trees on this mountain spread their branches wide and try to stick to the precipice, which gives the impression of their having a strong will to survive, as if they were living creatures. The contrast of trees and rock, especially in autumn when the leaves turn red, is truly enchanting and has a certain mystery about it.
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Cape "Mamako Nage" in Taiji Town
 
Standing here gazing out over the Pacific Ocean one can really feel that the earth truly is round. The Cape is formed by a mountain which projects out into the sea and drops steeply into the sea. Due to the geographical features of this cape many fish gather around it making it a good feeding ground for whales and dolphins.
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The Great Rock of Koza River
 
The Great Rock of Koza is like a natural pyramid growing out of the bowels of the earth. Near the centre of the great rock the In-yo (Yin/Yang) Waterfall pours out and down into the Koza River below. In some years the flowers near the waterfall bloom throughout the four seasons. The Great Rock of Koza is considered to be a Japanese National Monument and is said to be a kind of natural 'power spot' where the gathering energy of earth can be tangibly felt. The monolith is approximately 100 meters high and 500 meters wide and seen from afar it looks like a veritable mountain in itself.
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Oonikura
 
Kumano is also known as a kind of Mecca for those who worship the divine power of 'Great Rocks'. Measuring 200 meters high and 500 meters wide Oonikura is one more example of a holy place based on its inspiring geographical features. This rock has traditionally been the object of worship and a place of practice for Mountain Buddhists.
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Tategasaki Cape
 
Tategasaki Cape is famous for being the place where Emperor Jimmu conquered Nishikinotobe. There is a massive sheet of rock called Senjojiki ('one thousand straw mats wide'), where legend has it that the great god of Ise and Kumano Gongen (the Kumano divine entity) had a drinking party. The cape is designated as a Prefectural Natural Treasure.
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Shishiiwa Cape
 
Shishi Iwa can be found overlooking a stretch of beach near Kumano city. The rock is famous for its being one of two guardian gates protecting Ooma
Shrine which is located inland. This rock, which appears to be roaring out to the sea as a fierce protectorate of the Ooma Shrine deity, forms an
energetic triangle with the Shrine and the third point known as Onigajo.

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