The Goddess and the Dragon : A Study on Identity Strength and Psychosocial Resilience in Japan [1 ed.] 9781443868723, 9781443865210

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The Goddess and the Dragon

The Goddess and the Dragon: A Study on Identity Strength and Psychosocial Resilience in Japan

By

Patrick Hein

The Goddess and the Dragon: A Study on Identity Strength and Psychosocial Resilience in Japan, by Patrick Hein This book first published 2014 Cambridge Scholars Publishing 12 Back Chapman Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2XX, UK British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Copyright © 2014 by Patrick Hein All rights for this book reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. ISBN (10): 1-4438-6521-4, ISBN (13): 978-1-4438-6521-0

TABLE OF CONTENTS

List of Tables ............................................................................................. vii List of Figures............................................................................................. ix List of Appendices ...................................................................................... xi Preface ...................................................................................................... xiii Chapter One ................................................................................................. 1 Encounters with the Goddess: A Critical Analysis of Travel Essays of Foreign Visitors to Meiji Era Enoshima Chapter Two .............................................................................................. 15 Embracing Togetherness and Community Bonds: A Sociological Analysis of the Tenno-sai Festival in Enoshima Chapter Three ............................................................................................ 33 Expecting the Unexpected: A Case Study on Tsunami Mitigation in Fujisawa Chapter Four .............................................................................................. 63 The Legacy of Nichiren in Enoshima Final Thought ............................................................................................ 85 Appendix A................................................................................................ 87 Brief Chronology of Enoshima Appendix B................................................................................................ 89 Annual List of Events in Enoshima

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3-1: Historic Tsunami damages Enoshima area Table 3-2: List of qualitative field interview questions Table 3-3: Overview hazard maps Table 3-4: Tsunami budget figures Fujisawa

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 0-1: Former Katase post office Figure 0-2: Home on grounds of former Katase office Figure 0-3: Location map Enoshima Figure 1-1: Historic view of Enoshima Figure 1-2: Eight-armed Benten sculpture from Iwamoto-in Figure 2-1: Early Meiji map of Enoshima Figure 2-2: Main hall of the Koyurugi Shrine in Koshigoe Figure 2-3: The Yasaka Shrine on Enoshima Island Figure 2-4: Floats with children in festive clothes Figure 2-5: Map of Enoshima Figure 2-6: Tenno-sai festival route map Figure 2-7: Dipping of the palanquin into the sea Figure 3-1: Aerial view of Enoshima Figure 3-2: Backwash Tsunami in Enoshima (2011/3/12) Figure 3-3: New Tsunami evacuation tower Enoshima Figure 3-4: Official Tsunami hazard map Fujisawa Figure 3-5: Inofficial prefectural Tsunami map Kanagawa Figure 4-1: The honan festival is held at the Ryuko-ji temple Figure 4-2: The crossing in front of Ryuko-ji in 1954 Figure 4-3: The same crossing in 2014 Figure 4-4: A girl with a fireman’s standard Figure 4-5: View of the Honren-ji temple

LIST OF APPENDICES

Appendix A: Tenno-sai festival events Appendix B: Brief chronology of Enoshima Appendix C: Overview annual events Enoshima

PREFACE

In 1876 a mere 1,241 souls lived in the Enoshima fishing village (presently known as Katase-Enoshima ward), the location of the field study. It used to be a poor, rural area with a low population density, an underdeveloped infrastructure, abundant farmland and a flourishing natural environment. During the Edo period (1603-1867) Enoshima began to thrive as a place of pilgrimage to worship the local Buddhist goddess of luck called Benzaiten. Many of the famous men who set foot on the island of Enoshima or who are mentioned in this book, such as the scientist Edward S. Morse, the novelists Lafcadio Hearn, Yukio Mishima and Eiji Yoshikawa, the Buddhist religious spiritual leader Nichiren, the founder of the Tokugawa ruling dynasty Ieyasu Tokugawa or the powerful Hojo regents who controlled the emperor in Kyoto through the office of the Kamakura military government, have had a lasting effect on Japan. The construction of the first railway line in Japan-the Tokaido route, which opened in 1872 and is running from Shinbashi in Tokyo to Sakuragicho station in Yokohama-, the opening of the first sea spa resort in 1885, the construction of seaside weekend villas for the rich, artists and intellectuals and the massive influx of consumer tourists was a major turning point in the history of Enoshima. Thereafter, ambitious development projects brought about even more radical changes to the local economy and landscape. To host the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, a major event in the history of Japan, Enoshima's infrastructure needed to be modernized. To meet the Olympic requirements a large scale harbour that started in May 1961 was built which was finished ahead of the games in July 1964. By 2010, the number of Enoshima residents had risen to more than 20,000. The professional farmers and fishermen who once populated the area have been gradually replaced by modern city dwellers, independent business owners and salaried office workers who commute to Tokyo. A common theme of the four essays in this volume is the relationship between globalization and the individual. In order to understand individuals, it is necessary to situate them within the network of social relations that informs and influences their life. Does globalization simply mean that all individuals are becoming the same? Arguments about globalization have become commonplace. Scholars define globalization as the increased interconnectedness and interdependence of different societies

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around the world. The penetration of modern technology into daily lives and the worldwide movement of goods are sweeping away cultural pluralism and differences. The original meaning of the word 'culture' is cultivating the nature surrounding human beings. It derives from the Latin word, 'cultura', meaning 'to cultivate'. It is a way of life - an indigenous way of life - that includes religion, spirituality, language, moral and social norms, family values, eating habits, and so on adopted by a certain group of people of a particular society at a specific time and place. It is postulated that culture is distinctive or particular, individual and stable. However, in a globalized society some dominant cultural values supersede other values believed to be inferior or less relevant across borders. Western inspired principles, values and norms such as standardization, predictability, competitiveness, productivity, secularization, individualism and consumerism underlie and drive the current transformations on a global scale. Cultural heritage protection and language communication are two segments that have been affected by these changes. First, the meaning of culturally important assets has been altered as a result of changing social and economic flows and because of modernity and its concomitants. In a world that is becoming increasingly homogenized, many tangible and intangible treasures that are unique and priceless cultural assets, providing a basis for national identity, scientific and historical research, have been lost forever because governments and business circles pursue a selective approach in choosing appropriate cultural heritage sites by having in mind potential revenues generated by heritage tourism, and other economic development opportunities for future generations. Local cultural heritage sites that do not qualify as tourist attractions or do not offer any prospect for economic revitalization are often destroyed. Take for example the local post office in Katase-Enoshima (Fig. 0-1 and 0-2). The sumptuous art deco building with fine wooden interior carvings became a cultural landmark of Enoshima but was suddenly demolished in 2000 because the land owner, who happened to be the branch director of the post office, decided to build his new private home there. Nobody prevented him from tearing down the historic building (figures 0-1 and 0-2). Second, the ways in which the cultural landscape is changing can also be considered in the area of language communication. Languages preserve and transmit culture but as a matter of fact the emergence of English as a global language demonstrates the dominant influence of one single language on the way we interact with others. It is estimated that, if nothing is done, half of 7,000 languages spoken today will disappear by the end of this century. With the disappearance of unwritten and undocumented languages, humanity would lose not only a cultural wealth but also

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important aancestral know wledge embeedded, in parrticular, in in ndigenous languages.

oshima-Katase post office, (ab bove) was Fig. 0-1 and 0-2. A culturall asset, the Eno demolished annd an urban hom me (below) stan nds there now.

As globalization proggresses, all parts p of the w world seem to getting closer and ccloser to one another. a In otther words, cuultural differen nces fade and local cuultural practicees are disappeearing. Will loocal cultures inevitably i fall victim tto the global consumer cu ulture? Citing the growing need for standardizatiion, homogeneeity and uniforrmity, supportters of the globalization trend claim m that a globbal world is more acces sible, free and a gives consumers m more choices. People know w that whereveer they are in the t world they can gett the same prooduct, the sam me taste, the saame packagin ng and the same servicee. Hence, globbalization givees people whaat they want. Above A all people seem m to want coonvenience, quantity, efficiiency, availab bility and control. How wever, defininng globalizatio on as a processs that is good d because

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it just happens the way it happens is not satisfactory because it is just an assumption, a conclusion based on limited knowledge of the facts. Some scholars have tried to frame globalization by looking at its impact and consequences. One of the leading contemporary Japanese political scientists Takashi Inoguchi (2009) claims that it is the 'cultural nationalism' that has helped Japan to protect itself against the bad influences of globalization when he writes that: “Japanese culture's deep traditions normally stand in the way of globalisation's penetrating processes” (p.349/350).

Furthermore, he suggests that the Japanese nation-state and the Japanese population have joined forces to defend Japanese cultural values against the excesses of (Western) globalization (p.339). Does this ethnically colored interpretation really make sense and is it realistic? If one looks for example at the negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)-in what could become the world's biggest free trade region-it has become clear that the super-protected Japanese rice farmers do not support their government's participation in the TPP and there will be no government guarantee that key agricultural products will be exempt from future abolition of tariffs. Taking a different approach, this volume reexamines the underlying assumptions of globalization arguments from a critical perspective and addresses the broader question of the meaning and purpose of globalization induced social change. The definition of globalization by the former national cultural affairs commissioner of Japan as “change without purpose” (Tamotsu, 2004, p.90) seems more appropriate to describe the conflicting relationship between individuals on one side and a globalized mass society on the other side- regardless of ethnic or citizenship affiliations. Japanese society is often thought of as much more group-oriented than that of Western society; many scholars believe that the traditional vertical Japanese ie family structure is largely responsible for this (Hendry, 1996) whereas others have cautioned that it is wrong to assume that group orientation is an immutable, essentialist feature of Japanese society, that has presumably existed since ancient times (Yamazaki, 1994). It may be true that most Japanese people are keenly aware that their society is primarily group-oriented, and group harmony is highly prized at the expense of the individual but that does not mean that individual personality (in Japanese called kosei) and agency play no role or that individuals are better off with groups as a matter of fact. Even within specific groups, each individual is unique, even though all members of the group may share distinctively similar group characteristics such as language or business etiquette. Indeed, the sociologist Emile Durkheim

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(1933) once observed that rapid social change can result in a loss of shared values and a sense of purpose in society that affects everyone. As a society becomes more complex, individuals play more specialized roles and their identity may be reduced to functional tasks and responsibilities. What has basically happened in modern mass societies is that everything is increasingly split up, separated, so that each person is alone. Durkheim's recurring question is: How do societies manage to hold together in times of radical social change and technological advances? In ‘The Division of Labor in Society’, Durkheim concludes that preindustrial societies are held together by strong traditions and by members’ shared moral beliefs and values. Local communities are able to provide people with a sense of belonging because every member is engaged in social interaction characterized by face-to-face, intimate, primary group relationships. Everyone is engaged in similar work and little specialization is found. What matters most is that people are not bound together by practical considerations or their functional roles as is the case in large cities where conversations usually start (and end) with questions about the job or the professional qualifications one holds. They are rather bound together in individually rooted, long-term trust relationships of dependability and reliance on the other. This responds to the idea of 'whole person' approach embracing the whole of life. The present volume tries to refocus the discussion on individuals that struggle to preserve their social identity and maintain independent judgment and autonomy. The present study fills the gap in the current body of research by reevaluating the socially integrative functions and symbolic meanings of local festivals, religious rituals and community enhancing activities. Few studies have been conducted on the capacity for change and adaptation of local Japanese communities subject to intense economic development and technological advances. The aim of this book is to show how local inhabitants are struggling to give purpose to their individual lifestyles in a globalizing world of constant change without purpose. The topics presented in the volume focus on community life in the KataseEnoshima ward, a popular coastal tourist spot belonging to the city of Fujisawa and located in the south of Kanagawa prefecture, which is right next to the capital of Tokyo (Figure 0-3).

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Fig. 0-3 Enosshima belongs to t Fujisawa city y located in Kannagawa prefectu ure

Enoshim ma has been seelected as field d research loccation for the following f reasons: firsst, the authorr himself has been living iin the area fo or a long time; secondd, the festivalls and beliefs of Enoshima reflect the im mportance of fisheries traditions annd livelihood ds in a cultur ure often desccribed as dominantly rice farmer nation, and third, t the areea located next to the world's largest urban aggglomeration arrea of Tokyo and Yokoham ma with a total populattion of more than t thirty milllion people hhas undergone dramatic changes oveer the last one hundred yearrs from a smal all, insignifican nt fishing village to a mass tourism m destination. It is preciselyy the change from the 'cultured travveller' destinaation to mass tourism t destinnation that hass affected Enoshima m most. There is hardly a day of the year leeft which has not been filled with a public eveent to attract tourists (seee Appendix C for an overview off annual tourrist events). According A to the Enoshim ma Tourist Association,, the number of o visitors peaaked at thirteeen million in 1995, but has since beeen steadily on o the decline with the num mber falling to o roughly eight millioon in recent years. y Mass tourism, one oof the fastestt-growing industries inn the secondd half of the twenty first century has not only become onee of the prinncipal beneficciaries, but aalso one of th he major vehicles of globalization:: the tourism industry has generated inccome and employmentt for the locall residents. However, this ccan be a doub ble-edged sword with nnegative sidess as well. The question is w who benefits frrom mass

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tourism and who bears the cost? The Enoshima field study will show the risks associated with a mass tourism oriented development policy; especially with regard to local autonomy, socio-economic equality and environmental sustainability. The thematic issues are presented in four different essays. The first essay ‘Encounters with the Goddess: A Critical Analysis of Travel Essays of Foreign Visitors to Meiji Era Enoshima’ analyzes the impressions and perceptions of early foreign travelers to Enoshima; the second essay ‘Embracing Togetherness and Community Bonds: A Sociological Analysis of the Tenno-sai Festival in Enoshima’ discusses the role of festivals as a means of social stability, well-being and strengthening of community bonds in times of radical social change; the third essay ‘Expecting the unexpected: a case study on tsunami mitigation in Fujisawa’ discusses tsunami mitigation policies implemented in Enoshima after the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake; and the fourth essay ‘The legacy of Nichiren in Enoshima’ explores the religious zeal of the followers of the marginal Buddhist Nichiren-Shu sect. By taking a specific geographic entry point for inquiry- a local fisheries community-, the study will be situated around a series of recurring issues and problems. These include but are not limited to the following questions related to the existence of individuals in the context of globalizing transformations: In what ways and to what extent has the rational, scientific, social Darwinist worldview of the 19th century influenced and distorted foreign descriptions of Enoshima? How have individuals-in this case local fishermen-coped with mass consumerism and the commercialization of everyday life in Enoshima? Has globalization brought about more secularization-defined as the decline of religious beliefs and practices-in Enoshima? Or have religion and spirituality conversely contributed to strengthening the anti-globalizing, self-centered sentiment of individuals? And finally: what lessons have individuals learned from the Great East Japan earthquake tsunami disaster with regard to preparing for and demonstrating independent, self-responsible selfevacuation behaviors? The significance of the present study is twofold. First it is hoped that the findings will contribute to a better understanding of the dynamics of social change in local communities exposed to globalization and mass tourism. Second, it is expected that the information obtained through the field studies will offer new avenues into the research of local autonomy and individual self-determination in the absence of global governance and globally shared social norms.

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References Durkheim, Emile. (1933). The division of labour in society. New York: Free Press. Hendry, Joy. (1996). Understanding Japanese society (second edition). New York: Routledge. Inoguchi, Takashi. (2009) Globalisation and cultural nationalism. In: Sugimoto, Yoshio (Ed) The Cambridge companion to modern Japanese culture (pp. 336-351).Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Tamotsu, Aoki. (2004) Globalization, cultural diversity and Japanese culture: for the development of a multicultural world. In: Proceedings of the International Symposium. Cultural Diversity and Globalization. The Arab-Japanese Experience and Cross-Regional Dialogue (pp. 8994). Paris: Unesco. Retrieved May 1, 2014, from unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001393/139318e.pdf Yamazaki, Masakazu. (1994) Individualism and the Japanese. Tokyo: Japan Echo.

CHAPTER ONE ENCOUNTERS WITH THE GODDESS: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF TRAVEL ESSAYS OF FOREIGN VISITORS TO MEIJI ERA ENOSHIMA

Enoshima is an important pilgrimage site dedicated to the Benzaiten goddess. This essay describes how two early Meiji foreign travelers—the American zoologist Edward S. Morse and the Irish writer Lafcadio Hearnhave presented and interpreted what they saw in Enoshima. Both men try to convey a frank and accurate picture of their observations but ultimately fail to fully capture and grasp the deeper social and historical context of Enoshima’s significance and its importance for religious leaders and worldly rulers of the time. The reasons for this are twofold: their intellectual representations of Enoshima are influenced and shaped by their translators on one hand and by their strong exposure to the dominant 19th century ideology of social Darwinism on the other hand.

Introduction When individuals invent new communities, societies, and nations— both now and in the past—they create gods, rituals, and miracles to support them. Even what seem to be some of the most timeless and sacred sites in the world have been shaped, reshaped, and reinterpreted to find new relevance and meaning in a world of incessant change. A major challenge for anyone interested in Japan today is to understand where ancient religious worship, pilgrimage and the gods fit in the structures of modern contemporary Japan. Many stories, tales, plays and novels have traced the power of sacred places and benevolent gods (Hardacre, 2002; Thal, 2005). While some stories focus upon the miraculous and divine power of religion and the gods, other narratives seem to underscore the more profane and tangible nature of such beliefs. Such appears to be the case in the travel accounts of early Meiji foreign visitors to the tiny sacred

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island of Enoshima, a popular pilgrimage destination of the Edo period located fifty kilometers south of Tokyo in the vicinity of Kamakura (Figure 1-1). After three hundred years of self-imposed isolation under the Tokugawa Shogunate Japan reopened its doors to the world only reluctantly. When Yokohama port was opened in 1859 Japan was still in a state of turmoil with the new Meiji rulers struggling to put an end to the fierce resistance of Satsuma Samurai. Foreigners who came to Japan were more or less confined within the foreign settlement of Yokohama. There was no free movement within Japan and permission was required to leave the settlement.

Fig. 1-1 View of Enoshima in the 19th century.

In his memoirs Sir Ernest Satow, the Meiji British veteran diplomat, mentioned that anyone who dared to venture outside the treaty border limits needed a “bold adventurous spirit” (p. 23). Thus, at the end of the 19th century Enoshima remained for most foreigners an unknown, far distant territory. Besides, Japan was at that time by no means a safe place. Only in 1864 two British officers had been killed in Kamakura near Enoshima by two local Samurai with swords probably either because the officers did not know that they were supposed to clear the street when Samurai passed or because they failed to descend from their horsebacks and walk in order to show reverence to the kami. It was only in 1878 that the last disgruntled Samurai were defeated by governmental troops in the south of Japan. From this point onwards, foreign visitors felt more secure

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in Japan and started moving freely around including visits to Enoshima. So, for example, the French industrialist Emile Guimet (1878), the sailor M. Cook (1891) or the missionary Joseph Thomas (1897). Detailed accounts of their visits were published overseas and rendered thereby accessible for the first time to a larger western audience. Their observations were both intimate and informative, combining personal insight and scientific knowledge of their destination to provide the reader with an engaging, educational account of their travels. In this paper I will examine the travel essays of two well-known and highly respected early Meiji foreign visitors to Enoshima—the American zoologist Edward S. Morse and the Irish novelist Lafcadio Hearn-and focus in particular on their encounters with the local population and their folk beliefs. At the center of those folk beliefs is the worship of a goddess called Benten or Benzaiten, whose miraculous powers have been described in the local folk tale, Enoshima engi (English: Tale of Origin). The rich and fascinating legend tells how people from all walks of life gave shape to the gods, shrines, and rituals so often attributed to ancient, indigenous Japan. The authors chose this tale because it shows the impact and importance of Buddhist thinking elevated to a quasi-state religion under the reign of the Tokugawa rulers. How did the first foreigners interpret the unknown and unfamiliar cults and religious beliefs of Enoshima? Before going into more details it is warranted to put the visits in their proper contexts. At the time in question most foreigners did not master the Japanese language and were dependent on Japanese acquaintances who acted as translators or assistants. It can be presumed that their views were most likely influenced by what their Japanese companions told them. Take for example Lafcadio Hearn. While he was travelling around Yokohama and visiting temples and shrines by rickshaw, he met an intellectual Buddhist priest, Akira Manabe, who could speak English (Rosenstone, p.33). With his guide, Lafcadio Hearn visited Kamakura and Enoshima. Likewise, Edward S. Morse was surrounded by his Japanese research assistants who—among other things—translated for him. Moreover, these foreign visitors were under the influence of the intellectual mood of the time dominated by social Darwinism on one hand and proselytizing Christian missionary thinking on the other hand. The American zoologist Edward Morse, for example, a professor at Tokyo University, introduced Darwin to Japanese audiences in the 1870s (Cross). In this paper I will demonstrate that some of the foreign visitors were deeply moved by the legend whereas others were rather indifferent. Whereas the former use a lively language of admiration to idealize and stress the significance of popular worship in Enoshima, the latter use a language of secular, scientific progress to distance themselves

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from what they deem to be superstitious or irrelevant phenomena. The paper will conclude that early Meiji foreign travel essays of Enoshima try to convey a frank and accurate English language account of observations but fail to fully capture and grasp the deeper social and historical context of Enoshima’s significance and its importance for religious leaders and political rulers of the time.

The advent of Buddhism Academics rarely cite images from the historical periods when the Enoshima area consisted of dispersed fishing villages. Compared to today’s urban density of white collar dwellings, 19th century Enoshima was mainly composed of a small village population of fishermen, artisans and petty shopkeepers. It is noteworthy to mention that fishermen were very poor and had a social status which was far below other groups such as farmers, merchants or craftsmen. Communal life embraced various forms of archaic cults. In pre-modern times fishermen venerated dragon-gods associated with rainfall and the prosperity of fisheries and safety at sea. At a time when they were plagued by diseases, natural calamities and famines or food penuries they turned to the local native gods to seek relief and redress. Offerings were made to appease what were thought to be ‘angry’ gods. Even though they were angry they did not morally condemn human beings for their shortcomings and failures. The findings of the renowned German ethnographer and folklorist Nelly Naumann, who has translated and interpreted Japanese ancient myths, indicate that kami had nothing to do with morality at the beginning. Folk beliefs rooted in the pre-agrarian culture of fisheries, hunting and gatherers thought that “natural disasters were sent from the Gods, who thereby tried to get attention, ask for sacrifices, establishment of shrines and veneration by specific people. Will their wishes be fulfilled then they will be helpful in the future” (Naumann, p.187). In this interpretation human beings are at the mercy of natural powers they can at the end neither understand nor control. It was Buddhism that changed this what it thought to be archaic thinking radically. From the sixth century onwards newly introduced foreign Hindu gods and goddesses displaced the local native gods- in the case of Enoshima the evil dragon was tamed by a benevolent Hindu goddess named Benten or Benzaiten. In this new dual worldview good behavior was distinguished from bad behavior. Good behavior led to the paradise, bad behavior to the hell. Benzaiten and Buddhism promised salvation and rebirth to those who followed the way of Buddha and of the worldly rulers. This way was essentially made of suffering (Jaspers, 1967).

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The over evaluation of life’s negative elements brought Buddhism closer to the ruling class. Buddhist monks were praying for the military victory of the rulers and were seeking their patronage in return for their services. As Mumford has pointed out the Buddhist doctrine was close upon rulers because “since man only learns by suffering, conquerors and tyrants who promote suffering are divine instruments of man’s salvation” (p.74).

The Enoshima Engi As Sarah Thal has laid out in her ground-breaking study ‘Rearranging the Landscapes of the Gods’ (2005), it has been a common practice in the past for rulers in Japan to commission tales of origin and Noh plays written by religious leaders. Those tales were supposed to strengthen the bonds between the rulers and the ruled. What seems more important though in the context of this paper is that according to Thal the identities of the deities changed over time (2005). The governments changed and so changed the meanings associated with the gods and conveyed to the people. Different social groups competed in defining the gods they worshipped. While the Buddhist monks, wealthy merchants and innkeepers lobbied for patronage among the powerful, the fishermen and lower classes adapted divine identities to the needs of the masses. Enoshima’s fortune as a site of pilgrimage was formed by the presence of a deity called Benzaiten or Benten (Figure 1-2). Enoshima’s history began when the Buddhist monk Kokei wrote a tale in Chinese letters about the creation of Enoshima in 1047 AD-without ever having visited the island by himself. Kokei (977-1049) was a priest of the dominant Tendai sect in the middle days of the Heian period. In this tale he describes how Enoshima became a divine place thanks to the benevolence of the Hindu goddess Benzaiten. The ‘Enoshima Engi’, which Monk Kokei completed two years before his death, presented the goddess both as a protector of the state and as a savior of the people. According to the tale, Enoshima villagers were haunted for a thousand years by a destructive five-headed dragon that had its lair in a nearby swamp. The people even offered a human sacrifice to the dragon-god, but the offering was in vain. Aware of their suffering, the goddess Benzaiten caused the island of Enoshima to rise from the sea in 552 AD to serve as her abode. The dragon fell in love with the goddess and asked her to be his consort. Benzaiten, widely known for her persuasive eloquence, rejected the proposal and made the ill-minded dragon understand that he had done a terrible wrong in plaguing the villagers. Rejected, the dragon devotedly faced south toward the island of Enoshima where Benzaiten lived and

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turned into a hill which is known even today as Tatsunokuchi or Dragon’s Mouth.

Fig 1-2 The eight-armed deity Benten, believed to be the oldest existing religious artifact, from the Iwamoto-in.

The identity of the goddess has been subject to change over the course of history. Early images pictured Benzaiten as goddess of war. She was associated with Yoritomo Minamoto (1147-1199), the founder of the Kamakura Shogunate, who sought her divine assistance to defeat his enemy, the Fujiwara clan. Hence, he invited the goddess to the Shingon sect Buddhist temple Yoganji. Yoritomo’s prayer was answered. With his victory over the Fujiwara Clan in 1189, the goddess gained reputation for her ability to fulfill the wishes of worshipers. Nevertheless Enoshima remained for a long time a closed sacred location where only representatives of the noble upper classes were allowed to visit. In 1600, Ieyasu Tokugawa (1542-1616), the founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate, visited Enoshima and made it the official prayer hall for the Tokugawa family. The third shogun Iemitsu conferred the shuin (red seal) status on Enoshima in 1648. Thal states that the red seal granted a special status to religious associations in the Edo period. In the case of Enoshima the red seal had been bestowed on the Iwamoto-in, which controlled the temple complex in Enoshima. The red seal not only acknowledged the right to income from religious activities but also elevated religious representatives to higher social status positions similar to minor territorial lords. She concludes that “through these systems of privileges, confirmations and grants, Tokugawa Iemitsu strengthened the network of loyalties and responsibilities that tied both daimyo and prestigious religious institutions

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to shogunal authority” (Thal, p.61). As these transformations occurred social tensions inevitably rose. The local fishermen, for example, felt disadvantaged and were at odds with the Iwamoto clan over the unequal distribution of income and benefits from pilgrimage (Nenzi, p.306). In the mid-Edo Period (1603-1868), the complex was finally opened to the public. In 1871 when the new Meiji leaders defined Shinto as a set of officially sanctioned practice—not even claiming it to be a religion—the kami became part of the state (Breen et al., 2000). Consequently, the Buddhist Yoganji temple in Enoshima was removed, the Buddhist priests converted to Shintoism and the goddess Benten was transferred to the Enoshima shrine where it was enshrined. She had finally become, essentially, a native Shinto deity of wealth, luck and good fortune. In 1885 the first seaside resort opened near Enoshima. With the arrival of summer vacationers and the establishment of resort villas, Enoshima became an exclusive health and relaxation resort for liberal professions, artists and the wealthy. It was then that two national railways- the Tokaido line and the Yokosuka line- enabled visitors to reach Enoshima within two and a half hours from Shinbashi station in Tokyo. Intensive urbanization and infrastructure works during the 1950s and 1960s further changed Enoshima’s social and natural landscape. These developments have shaped the -what Nenzi calls-“consumer tourist” of today. It embodies the ideal of the modern traveler, who in contrast to the “cultured traveler” fails to “recover the idea behind rather than to delve into the present substance of the site” (Nenzi, p.291). In other words a consumer tourist wants to physically experience a location and satisfy a want or need for buying souvenirs and eating local specialties. By contrast a cultured traveler is defined as a person who can interact with a scenery or engage with a landscape in poetic or contemplative terms from a far distance. The short story Enoshima monogatari (Tale of Enoshima) by Eiji Yoshikawa offers a fine example of marvelously written literary prose and composition. In the next section I will explore how foreign travelers interpreted what they saw in Enoshima and what meaning they attached to unfamiliar events and stories from the past.

The rational observer: Edward S. Morse Upon invitation by the Meiji government and in search of new specimens for his studies the US zoologist Morse (1838-1925) prepared for a journey to Japan, where he eventually arrived in June 1877 and stayed much longer than planned, almost three years. Among the early visitors he stayed the longest in Enoshima, almost one month from July 17

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to August 18, 1877. He was a firm believer in Social Darwinist evolutionary thinking, a scientific and evidence-based research approach of social stratification among individuals based on inherited biological differences (Cross, 1996). Hence his education and beliefs have been clearly reflected in his writings. Morse (1917) refers to his local hosts as “savages” (p.239) or “Buddhist pagans” (p.234) and ignores the main raison d’être of Enoshima as a religious center of worship. Even though the goddess Benzaiten had drawn pilgrims from all over the nation for several hundred years Morse never records her name, and never bothers to inquire into the legends that have made the island a place of worship. He is a man who only believes in what he sees. Thus he describes the physical attributes of a cave and a shrine but refrains from mentioning Benzaiten, who is the tutelary deity of the cave. Scientific observation leaves no room for metaphysical speculation. Things that have no determinable basis of fact or that cannot be explained in scientific terms are dismissed by Morse. Twice he sails to Benzaiten’s sacred cave on the island, but viewing its shrine and the dragon carvings on the wall interest him far less than collecting insects for his zoological laboratory established in Enoshima. The following excerpt about his visit to the cave tells more about the worldview of Morse than about the place itself. His biggest pleasures come from the discovery of several insects. Morse only occasionally describes or discloses his most inner feelings. Usually he favors a more factual narrative style focused on details. His tone does not suggest that he admires and reveres what he feels in the cave of Enoshima: “The cave seemed to be an immense fissure in the rock, which had been rounded out by the waves in former times when the land must have been submerged; now the waves reach only to the entrance. The rocks were light in colour, so the dark entrance of the cave stood out strongly by contrast. About one hundred and fifty feet within was a Shinto shrine covered with gilt, which reflected the few light rays which came from the entrance, making a striking effect in the dark cave. The shrine was nearly ten feet high and as wide, carved in the most elaborate way. It was an odd place to find a shrine, this dark, damp cave, and yet in Japan, wherever you find a striking feature in the landscape, such as this place, the top of a mountain, the verge of a precipice or deep ravine, there you will find these religious and devoted people erect their churches or shrines. There was room on one side of this shrine to pass and penetrate farther into the dark recesses, and here we were provided with lights, and we plodded ahead a few hundred feet until we had to stoop to get along. It was absolutely dark except for what little light our candles afforded. At the extreme end of the cave was a board partition mouldy and rotten with age. A wooden grating was in the partition, and looking through it we saw a polished circular metal mirror

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about twelve inches in diameter, and this represented a Shinto shrine. Going back toward the entrance we came to an arm of the cave, and following that up we came to another grating through which we saw another Shinto shrine and mirror. The passage was hardly wide enough for two to walk abreast, and along the walls were symbolic figures—coiled dragons wrought in the stone and other emblems of mythology. I could not help reflecting on the devotion and piety of the early devotees who have left their marvellous rock carvings and prodigious temples in Java, India, and China. I scanned the walls closely for evidence of twilight insects, but it was not dark enough to find typical cave animals. To my delight I found two little spiders, two very small sow bugs, and, better than all, two cave crickets”. (p.165)

Only once does he make time to visit the famous hilltop shrines and temples and here his journal entrance discloses his utter disbelief in religious superstitious beliefs that seem to contradict scientific evidence and empirical observation. When a priest shows him an old relic and tries to ‘sell’ his story to him Morse feels that he has been made a fool. He describes his disbelief in the following excerpt: “The priest brought (out) a large piece of a hard substance which he said was wood turned into stone. An examination of it showed it to be a fragment of a lower jaw of a sperm whale and this I told him. The look he gave me was to the effect that I was a poor fool to doubt him; and as he went on explaining the various relics his rapidity of speech, due to the fact that he had uttered the same sentences a thousand times in explaining to others, caused Matsumura [Morse’s assistant, author note] some difficulty in translating (…) So the Buddhist priests are like the religious devotees of the rest of the world, attempting to combat facts by written authority”. (p.246)

The above anecdote conveys the thinking of Morse in a rather amusing way. It should be added that the artefact in question is still preserved on the shrine grounds as of today. Ironically the shrine seems to have adopted the explanation given by Morse and thus the former “piece of wood turned into stone” is now presented and exhibited as a “whale bone” national treasure that protects the region.

The sentimental observer: Lafcadio Hearn Lafcadio Hearn (1850-1904) arrived in Japan in 1890 and stayed there until his death in 1904. In 1894 he wrote a picturesque travelogue Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan, in which he explained vividly what he saw—or perhaps better did not see—at Enoshima. Because Hearn was not

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able to speak or read Japanese his knowledge of the soul of Japan came mainly from people surrounding him and therefore his judgments and feelings were strongly influenced by them. As in all of Hearn’s books, a note of regret is persistently sounded: regret for the loss of the customs and practices of ‘Old Japan’, the Japan which Hearn felt was being undermined by the processes of modernization during the Meiji period (Askew, 2009). It is perhaps as a result of Hearn’s sympathy and understanding for this old Japan, that his work is still so widely admired today. In his description of Enoshima (Hearn, 2009) the reader notices the growing disenchantment and disappointment of the author. Arriving from Kamakura, he is at first delighted by what he sees. He describes Enoshima as the “ever-open Portal of the Sea-City, the City of the Dragon-goddess” (p.69). Hearn is a great storyteller and he uses figurative language to catch the reader’s interest. But soon he becomes aware that the imagined Enoshima does not correspond to the reality he discovers. For example, when he ascends the stairs towards the first shrine dedicated to Benzaiten he finds that “there is nothing in the shrine of interest, only Shinto emblems” (p.72) and after moving on to the second shrine he laments “But there is no Benten! Benten has been hidden away by Shinto hands. The second shrine is void as the first” (p.73). When reaching finally the third and last chief shrine Hearn repeats again what he wrote earlier: “we can look in the temple of Benten, and see that Benten is not there” (p.74). His expression “Vanity and vexation of spirit” (p.73), a phrase used by Solomon and taken from the Bible, means that there was nothing in it all but an empty puff of air that could only fill a bubble for a moment. His deception becomes obvious when he writes: “But I fear exceedingly that in all this place we shall find nothing save stones and serpents!”(p.74). In order to understand Hearn’s disappointment and frustration we have to set it in the proper context of 19th century Japan. In the years immediately following the Meiji Restoration of 1868 Shinto-long subordinated under Buddhism- was officially separated from it. A hierarchical system of shrines was newly established nationwide resulting in struggles with rival shrines. Buddhist buildings and symbols were torn down, sold off or redefined (Kawano, 2005). The Meiji restoration definitely changed the religious and ideological setting of Benten worship. There can be no doubt however that it is Hearn himself who seems to have lost his belief in the power of religion. He writes repeatedly about money donations to Benten to seek protection or as a thank you gift for having been granted specific favors but fails to describe the importance of praying, bowing, clapping hands and other ritual actions. For example, when walking from one shrine

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to the next he relentlessly mentions the many “money-boxes” (p.75) on his way. After reaching the shrine he feels betrayed: “We reach a shrine with no deity in it, pay a fee (…)” (p.75). In Hearn’s view of worshipping money becomes a key frame of reference. It comes as no surprise when he confesses that “to look at anything in Japan is to want to buy it. So I buy, and buy, and buy!” (p.70). Later on he continues: “I wonder if I can buy a picture of Koushin” (p.82). Hearn’s vanishing esteem for the Shinto religion he held so high in his earlier books cannot be underestimated. He feels that his earlier enthusiasm for Shinto was simply wrong. Not one time does he mention in the text that he bowed in front of images of Benten or showed respect to her by clapping in his hands or offering prayers instead of money. Nevertheless he pretends that he is “bewitched” by Enoshima and that he feels “indefinable charm”: “And this,” the reader may say,—“this is all that you went forth to see: a tori, some shells, a small damask snake, some stones?” It is true. And nevertheless I know that I am bewitched. There is a charm indefinable about the place—that sort of charm which comes with a little ghostly thrill never to be forgotten. Not of strange sights alone is this charm made, but of numberless subtle sensations and ideas interwoven and inter-blended: the sweet sharp scents of grove and sea; the blood-brightening, vivifying touch of the free wind; the dumb appeal of ancient mystic mossy things; vague reverence evoked by knowledge of treading soil called holy for a thousand years; and a sense of sympathy, as a human duty, compelled by the vision of steps of rock worn down into shapelessness by the pilgrim feet of vanished generations”. (p.76)

What makes the reading of the text about Enoshima problematic is that Hearn mixes fairy-tale language-by using words such as “weird majesty”, “bewitched”, “charming”, “mysterious”, “magic” and “dreamy”—with personal experiences and stories recounted by others. On one side he idealizes the past or what he describes as a “happier world” (p.82). By concluding that the “Western civilization has invaded all this primitive peace” (p.83) he makes it responsible for the decline of the good old, traditional Japan. On the other side, when gathering information, he relies exclusively on insight or knowledge gained by his perceptions. It poses difficulties for him to believe in things he cannot see and to distinguish between reality and what he believes it to be. Rosenstone sees in Hearn a prisoner of his own imagination. His writings make it impossible to know what “he sees happening and what he wishes had happened; what he feels at any given moment and what later, pen in hand, he imagines it would have been nice or appropriate or interesting to feel” (p.151).

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Discussion and conclusion This paper has examined the travel essays of two early foreign visitors to Meiji era Enoshima: Edward S. Morse and Lafcadio Hearn. It has been argued that both authors present a distinct tangible and profane image of Meiji Enoshima. Their intellectual representations of Enoshima are constructed either indirectly through the interpretations and accounts of their translators or directly by their own visual perceptions and observations. Whereas Morse’s approach from a rational and scientific perspective discloses his indifference with regard to the appreciation of the religious element, Hearn’s interpretation seems to have lost faith in the spiritual power of the Shinto religion. Unlike Morse, who fails to express or state any of his personal feelings, Hearn’s overwhelming feelings shade the reality. Judging from their writings on Enoshima it seems that both authors have been strongly influenced by the Darwinist mood of the time which presumes that only physical or concrete evidence is really convincing. It follows that no blunt authority can replace factual observation. Morse is trying to find natural explanations for what he observes in the world around him. He cannot accept “wood turned into stone”-like statements (p.246) the Buddhist priest wants to make him believe. Likewise, Hearn refrains from engaging with the symbolic dimensions of the Benten cult and searches instead for physical objects representing the goddess-either in the form of “wood or stone” (p.75). His strong desire to satisfy his want for buying souvenirs, charms and religious objects puts him apart from Morse. In this sense he resembles more the modern “consumer traveler” than the traditional “cultured traveler”.

References Askew, R. (2009). The critical reception of Lafcadio Hearn outside Japan. New Zealand Journal of Asian Studies, 11(2) 44-71. Bocking, B. (1996). A popular dictionary of Shinto. London: Curzon Press. Breen, J. et al. (Eds). (2000) Shinto in history. Ways of the kami. Milton Park: Routledge. Cook, M.B. (1891). Japan: A sailor’s visit to the island empire. London: J.P. Alden. Cross, S. (1996). Prestige and comfort: The development of social Darwinism in early Meiji Japan, and the role of Edward Sylvester Morse. Annals of Science 53(4), 323-344.

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Guimet, E. (1878) Promenades Japonaises. Ill. de Félix Régamey. Paris: G. Charpentier. Hardacre, H. (2002). Religion and society in 19th century Japan: a study of the southern Kanto region. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. Hearn, L. (2009). Glimpses of unfamiliar Japan. Hong Kong: Tuttle. Jaspers, K. (1967). Socrates, Buddha, Confucius, Jesus. New York: Harvest Book. Kawano, S. (2005). Ritual practice in modern Japan. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. Morse, Edward Sylvester. (1917). Japan day by day. Houghton: Mifflin Company. Mumford, L. (1956). The transformations of man. New York: Harper & Row. Naumann, N. (1997). Gut und Boese in den Mythen und in der Fruehen Geschichte Japans. [Good and Bad in the Myths and in the Early History of Japan]. Horin: vergleichende Studien zur japanischen Kultur 4, 187-196. Nenzi, L. (2004). Cultured travelers and consumer tourists in Edo-Period Sagami. Monumenta Nipponica 59(3), 285-319. Rosenstone, R. (1988). Mirror in the shrine. Cambridge, Massachusetts and London: Harvard University Press. Satow, E. (2000). A diplomat in Japan. New York and Tokyo: ICG Muse. Thal, S. (2005). Rearranging the landscapes of the gods. Chicago: Chicago University Press. Thomas, J. L. (1897). Journeys among the gentle Japs in the summer of 1895, with a special chapter on the religions of Japan. London: Sampson Low, Marston & Company.

CHAPTER TWO EMBRACING TOGETHERNESS AND COMMUNITY BONDS: A SOCIOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF THE TENNO-SAI FESTIVAL IN ENOSHIMA

The value of religious festivals (matsuri) as a means of adapting to socioeconomic changes remains mostly unexplored. The present study is guided by the assumption that traditional religious community festivals are the active, physical expression and enhancement of traditional local autonomy and independence in the face of centralization of power and unprecedented modernization. This paper looks at how fishermen in the coastal town of Enoshima experience the annual Tenno-sai festival, a mini version of the famous Gion festival in Kyoto. The goal is to show how socially disadvantaged fishermen have been trying to uphold their independence and autonomy amid profound economic transformation and unequal treatment. This has been done by examining the historic origins, the symbolism contained in rituals, the spatial elements of parading, and the social background of participants. Upon examination of these features, it becomes clear that matsuri fulfil an important role of social stability, well-being and strengthening of community bonds in times of radical social change. Through looking at ritual practices in a fishing village, this research highlights the importance of religious festivals in terms of social stability and personal well-being.

Introduction The word matsuri can refer to any occasion for offering thanks and praise to a deity at a shrine. It comes from the word meaning matsuru” to worship” or “to serve” (Bocking, 1996). The core of the matsuri as a religious event is a public procession in which some type of large, sanctified object -typically a palanquin-like vehicle or mikoshi containing the spirit of the local guardian deity- is borne shoulder-high through the streets, in order to revitalize the community with its supernatural presence.

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Many studies have been conducted on the Shinto festivals or traditional local festivals in Japan (e.g., Kawano, 2005; Nelson, 2000, 2003; Ono, 2004; Reader, 1998; Roemer, 2010; Schnell, 1999). These studies have focused on folkloristic, psychological and anthropological aspects of Shinto festivals. The current study draws from these studies and seeks at the same time to add a new element that explains how festivals can symbolically help to mitigate socioeconomic marginalization and social divisions created in the past.

Location and Main Festival Places In Chinese culture, the year of the snake is sixth in the cycle of the 12year cycle of animals that appear in the Chinese zodiac related to the Chinese calendar. Hence, the Tenno-sai festival off the island of Enoshima, some 50 kilometers south from Tokyo, is held every six years to venerate Susanoo no Mikoto, the principal male deity (kami) of both the Yasaka Shrine and the Koyurugi Shrine located on Enoshima Island in Fujisawa city and the Koyurugi Shrine located in Kamakura city, on a small peninsula facing Enoshima, just a few hundred meters away. The idiom Tenno is composed of the two symbols ten, originally a Sanskrit term which means ͆immortal͇ or ͆heavenly͇ and the prefix ‘ǀ’ which refers to the Shinto mythological deity Susanoo no Mikoto, also known by the Buddhist name Gozu-Tenno (Hori, 2013a). The average population of Enoshima has been estimated at about 500 people and never exceeded more than 600 (Kanagawa Prefectural Government, 1985; see Appendix A for a brief chronology). Figure 2-1 shows the two main communities on the island: Higashi-machi (East town) is home to the fishermen, whereas Nishi-machi (West town) is inhabited by small shopkeepers and innkeepers who besides offering accommodation to pilgrims and tourists have also been in charge of operating and managing the temple complex. The fishermen living in Higashi-machi earn their income from harvesting the sea, whereas small shopkeepers and innkeepers in Nishi-machi depend on pilgrimage related revenues and rice donations that were an important source of income in the past. During the Edo period (1603-1868), it was compulsory to donate rice to the temple operators (Tonomura, 1992). Thus, 15 koku of rice were yearly shipped from the rice fields in Kamakura to Enoshima. The koku unit was originally defined as the quantity of rice sufficient to feed one person for one year. A koku of rice weighs about 150 kilograms. Under the Meiji government the land on Enoshima was distributed and allocated among all the households and landownership that had been officially

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registered. The names of the households owning land are listed and recorded on the historic map.

Fig.2-1. Early Meiji (1868–1877) map of Enoshima.

The Yasaka Shrine and the Koyurugi Shrine are the two key places of interest of the Tenno-sai. Compared to Yasaka Shrine, Koyurugi Shrine has a long and glorious history (Kamio & Willson, 2008; Kamakura Board of Education, 2009). Figure 2-2 shows the main hall. It was originally built by Moritsuna Sasaki, a samurai warrior from the mid-twelfth century and follower of the famous warlord and founder of the Kamakura Shogunate, Minamoto no Yoritomo. When he passed through in 1185 on his way to Benzaiten̾another important female deity worshipped in Enoshima̾he was impressed by the natural beauty, especially the pine trees, and decided to build a shrine dedicated to Hachioji-gu̾his clan's guardian kami from

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Shiga prefecture̾in Enoshima. According to the official record of the Kamakura Shogunate, Moritsuna followed Minamoto no Noriyori’s troops to subjugate the Hei-shi clan (also known as Heike or Taira). In 1184, he and his five retainers succeeded in bringing Taira Yukimori to justice in Okayama prefecture. To express his gratitude towards the kami, he finally found the ideal place to build a branch shrine of his clan's guardian deity Hachioji-gu, here in the coastal hills. Thus Koyurugi Shrine was originally called Hachioji-gu.

Fig. 2-2. Main hall of the Koyurugi Shrine in Koshigoe.

In 1333, before Nitta Yoshisada began attacking the Hojo clan in Kamakura, he came to the shrine to pray for victory and his wish was granted. To express his gratitude, Nitta donated a sword and gold towards reconstructing the new shrine. The Lord of Odawara Castle, Tadazane Okubo wrote a tablet San-jinja (The Three Shrines) and donated it to the shrine. The three deities Susanoo no Mikoto, Takemina-katano-kami and Yamato Takeru-no-mikoto are worshipped here. Toshitoku-jin, a lucky deity known for symbolizing a “favorable direction” or in other words a direction that brings good luck, is also enshrined here. In the Edo Period (1603-1868), the shrine was under the supervision of Josenji, a Shingon sect temple nearby. In 1868 the name was changed from Hachioji-gu to Koyurugi Shrine due to the enforced separation of Shinto and Buddhism. In the early 19th century, the community in Koshigoe reconstructed Koyurugi as their guardian shrine.

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Fig. 2-3. The Yasaka Shrine on Enoshima Island.

The year of construction of Yasaka Shrine is unknown. Its existence seems to go back to the Edo period. Figure 2-3 shows the main hall of the shrine. There is evidence suggesting that Yasaka Shrine was called Tenno Shrine during the Edo period (Hori, 2013a). The Yasaka mikoshi (sacred palanquin) was built in 1823 and the shrine itself was rebuilt in 1844 and renamed Yasaka Shrine in 1873. As the name Yasaka indicates, it is an offshoot of the main Yasaka Shrine in Kyoto. Besides Yasaka Shrine, there are three other major shrines on Enoshima Island and each shrine is managed by a different clan or group: Yasaka Shrine was constructed in the precincts of today’s Hetsu-no-miya (Shrine at the edge) which belongs to the residents of Higashi-machi and the Shimo-no-bo clan. The other two shrines are Nakatsu-no-miya (Shrine at the Middle) managed by the Kami-no-bo clan and the Okutsu-no-miya (Shrine at the Depth) managed by the powerful Iwamoto-in (the Iwamoto temple complex) clan who played a leading role in shaping Enoshima’s identity, initially as a pilgrimage destination and later on as a popular mass tourism site (Iwamoto, 1973). How is it possible that a Buddhist organization owns and manages Shinto shrines? Contrary to earlier studies that portrayed Shinto and Buddhism as totally separate traditions, more recent scholarship by Kuroda Toshio stresses the similarities (Dobbins, 1996). One of the reasons why Buddhism became so successfully implanted into Japan is that Buddhism and Shinto held common beliefs and traditions and were from the beginning thoroughly intertwined

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(Reader, 2005). Iwamoto-in representatives were the first to build a shrine on Enoshima Island to honor and worship Benzaiten, enshrined in the rocky sea cave. Benzaiten is the Japanese name for the Hindu deity Saraswati. The current chairman Yasuaki Iwamoto, who used to manage the family business and is the 49th generation, has recently been released from his duties to become a Shinto shrine association official. According to Hardacre (2002), the Iwamoto-in family fought hard to gain “the authority to appoint the priests of Kami-no-bo and to prevent the priests of Shimo-no-bo from selling talismans and amulets” (p.122).

Historic Origins and Meaning of the Tenno-sai Festivals reflect institutional and socioeconomic power arrangements that are fundamental to understanding the organization of society. Residents tend to be affiliated with different groups less as a matter of religious belief than because of their membership in a particular age group, profession or household that defines their economic and social status in the community. From the Heian period (794–1185) to the Edo period (16031868), the religious authority of Shingon Buddhism benefited from having a stable parish membership and stable financial base. The Tokugawa Shogunate (1600-1868) institutionalized a nationwide system of Buddhist affiliations on the local level-known as the danka system, whereby every family household was compelled to register with its local Buddhist temple (Tamamuro, 2001). When Buddhism was introduced to Japan in the 6th century, it flourished under the protection of the nation’s rulers until the Tokugawa Shogunate (1600-1868) ended in 1867 with the abdication of Tokugawa Yoshinobu. From the very beginning, Buddhism saw itself as a part of the state and governing apparatus (Starrs, 2011). As a religion, Buddhism promised salvation and rebirth to those who followed the way of Buddha and, by the same token, the way of the worldly rulers. Buddhist monks prayed for the military victories of the rulers and sought their patronage in return for these services. The over evaluation of life’s negative elements and of suffering in general brought Buddhism closer to the ruling class. As Mumford (1956) has pointed out, Buddhist doctrinal formulations were supportive of secular rule because “since man only learns by suffering, conquerors and tyrants who promote suffering are divine instruments of man’s salvation” (p. 74). As a result, the Buddhist doctrine of original enlightenment led Japanese Buddhism “to become highly conservative, socially moribund, and complicit with power structures” (Reader, 2005, p. 435). The leading temples of Enoshima associated themselves with the

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dominant Shingon sect to further strengthen their relationship with the Tokugawa rulers. In 1600, Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616), the founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate, visited Enoshima and made it the official prayer hall for the Tokugawa family. The third shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu (16231651) conferred the shuin (vermillion seal) status on Enoshima in 1648. Thal (2005) has argued that this seal granted a special status to religious associations in the Edo period. In the case of Enoshima, the vermillion seal had been bestowed on the Iwamoto-in, which controlled the temple complex in Enoshima. The vermillion seal not only acknowledged the right to income from religious activities but also elevated religious representatives to higher social status positions similar to minor territorial lords. Thal (2005) concludes that: “through these systems of privileges, confirmations and grants, Tokugawa Iemitsu strengthened the network of loyalties and responsibilities that tied both daimyo (shogunal lords) and prestigious religious institutions to shogunal authority” (p.61).

As these transformations occurred, social tensions inevitably rose. In the Edo period Iwamoto-in, the most powerful of the three groups that manage the shrines in Enoshima, assumed control of the island. With an increase in visitors to Enoshima, a positive economic effect occurred. However, Iwamoto-in excluded fishermen of Higashi-machi from the profits. The fishermen felt disadvantaged and were at odds with the Iwamoto clan over the unequal distribution of income and benefits from pilgrimage (Nenzi, 2004, p. 306). As the Edo period came to a close, Buddhist temples needed to create additional income to compensate for the loss of earlier forms of income related to pilgrimage activities. Many temples went bankrupt in the early Meiji period (1868-1912) because of a lack of economic resources. Such was the case for some of the temples in Enoshima. The temples that survived the economic crisis were often those that had possessed considerable land holdings. The ownership of land was a key predictor of an institution’s ability to secure financial stability. Although these richer temples lost their shogunal land-grants, they managed to create enough new revenue to survive. Buddhism in general suffered a drop in wealth and prestige in the transition years from the Edo era to the Meiji era. Buddhist temples on all levels of the Buddhist hierarchy lost the financial security they had previously enjoyed under the Tokugawa system when temple lands granted by the Shogunate were reclaimed by Meiji authorities in 1871. A second blow came in 1872 when the danka system was abolished (Nakane, 1990). Finally, the Meiji government obtained the right and prerogative to appoint and dismiss

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Buddhist priests (Breen, 2000). Despite the sudden economic downturn, Iwamoto-in escaped bankruptcy and started a new business operating a Japanese inn. Hence, it changed its official name from Iwamoto-in (Iwamoto temple) to Iwamoto-ro, which means watchtower or lookout and refers to the high location of the building on a hill. The Tenno-sai festival in Enoshima is believed to be a copy of the famous Gion festival in Kyoto, whose beginnings date back to the year 863 CE. In cities, frequent outbreaks of infectious diseases during the summer months were believed to be caused by displeased kami and angry spirits. Thus, many traditional summertime festivals were originally meant to ward off illness and disease. Neighboring areas with close trading ties with Kyoto also suffered outbreaks of diseases and organized their own festivals similar to the Gion festival. On the other hand, people in the countryside faced different problems. Summer was the season when farmers’ crops were threatened by insects, typhoons, and floods. Consequently, many rural summer festivals were supposed to drive away pests or fend off typhoons (Fukami, 2008). The main Yasaka Shrine in Kyoto was first built in 656 CE to stave off epidemics in Kyoto. The epidemics were believed to have been caused by the curse of Gozu-Tenno. The Yasaka Shrine was built to appease the angry kami. As epidemic diseases suddenly decreased, people in Kyoto began to venerate the kami. Gozu-Tenno was associated with Susanoo because both were considered to be gyoyaku jin or deities that spread epidemics. There is little information about the origins of the Tenno-sai festival. No evidence indicates that it has similar ancient roots to the Gion festival. It is believed to have existed only since the end of the 19th century and was initiated by fishermen to stave off epidemics that most likely spread during the hot summer months. Contrary to the Gion festival in Kyoto which is supported by the township associations composed of selfemployed shop owners, merchants and craftsmen, the Tenno-sai is a festival that is primarily organized by the cooperative fishermen associations of Enoshima and Koshigoe. Another difference between the Gion festival and the Tenno-sai festival is the spatial element: whereas the Gion festival is confined to Kyoto city, the Tenno-sai festival is a cross border event commemorating the union between two city wards (Katase Enoshima ward of Fujisawa city and Koshigoe ward of Kamakura city). Finally, the Gion festival lasts almost one month, whereas the Tenno-sai festivities are spread over one week. Apart from protection against evil spirits and diseases, the Tenno-sai was initiated to strengthen the symbolic bonds between the two fishing

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communities. There are two reasons to support this point. First, according to legend, the shintai (the kami body) statue of Susanoo enshrined in Koyurugi was washed out by a huge tsunami and drifted away from Koshigoe towards Enoshima Island where it was rescued in front of a sacred cave by a local fisherman from Higashi-machi. The fishermen took care of the shintai and placed the statue in front of Yasaka Shrine where it has been worshipped since. Thanks to the miraculous rescue, deep new bonds of friendship were established and forged between Higashi-machi and Koshigoe. The fishermen of Koshigoe showed their appreciation and gratitude to the fishermen of Enoshima by holding a festival to commemorate the rescue. Second, consecutive municipal mergers created the need to foster and reinforce already existing bonds by conducting a festival. Indeed, during the early Edo period, Koshigoe was an independent village that maintained close ties with the fishermen from Higashi-machi on Enoshima Island. However, in the wake of the newly enacted Meiji city-town-village (shi-machi-mura) system that was established to make regional administrative governance more efficient, Koshigoe village and adjacent Tsumura village were merged in 1889 into Koshigoe-Tsumura town (Mosk, 2001). At the same time, Enoshima village was merged with another adjacent village, Katase, and renamed Kawaguchi village. Therefore, Enoshima and Koshigoe were physically separated from each other through these administrative reforms. Several fishermen from Enoshima and Koshigoe disagreed with the administrative mergers and were convinced that the situation prior to the merger reflected a more natural order. Hence, the festival was created to embrace the close historic, professional and spatial ties between the two fishing communities that had been separated by the mergers.

Discussion The Tenno-sai differs from other festivals in one important point: Local historians such as Hori Hironao (Hori, 2013) agree that a symbolic reunion between male and female deities, generally observed during festivals in Japan, does not seem to take place in this case. The same deity Susanoo is symbolically shared between two communities and this act symbolizes the annual conjunction of the two communities. Two questions that immediately come to mind are: How can the same kami be carried simultaneously in two different palanquins and how can the same kami be enshrined in two different locations? This is certainly one aspect of Shinto religion that defies conventional explanations.

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As stated already, it is argued that the Tenno-sai is not directly related to the cult of Benzaiten as has been previously suggested by academic scholarship. For example Helen Hardacre, a professor of Japanese religions at Harvard University, claims that the Tenno-sai festival symbolizes the reunion of a male deity-in this case Susanoo-and a female deity-in this case Benzaiten. In a detailed study on the topic, she writes that the Tenno-sai resembles the Tanabata festival: “The principal deity of the Koyurugi Shrine is Susanoo, a male deity famed in Kojiki myth. During the seventh month, the Enoshima deity [Benzaiten] is taken in her vermilion palanquin to meet Susanoo in his purple-decorated palanquin at his shrine, in a motif corresponding to the Tanabata festival. On this festival of the seventh day of the seventh month, the stars Altair and Vega in their mythologized forms of the Cowherd and the Heavenly Milkmaid rendezvous in the sky, their only meeting throughout the year. Likewise, the Koyurugi and Enoshima shrines enact an annual conjunction of their deities (respectively male and female) during the seventh month”. (2002, p. 189)

Even though the assumed ritual reunion between a male and a female deity reflects more wishful thinking than reality, the nature of the relationship between Benzaiten and Susanoo has given rise to speculation. There is, for example, speculation that Benzaiten might be the daughter of Susanoo. Further studies are required to determine the relationship (if any) between Benzaiten and Susanoo. Another point worth noting is that every sixty years another grand festival is held in Enoshima, called the Midoshishikinentaisai, to celebrate the reunion of Benzaiten with the male dragon kami.

Main Ritual Performances During the Festival During the weeklong festival, two mikoshi are carried into the sea and paraded through the streets linking the two shrines (Hori, 2013a). It should be mentioned that mikoshi are not “portable shrines” as widely believed, but rather a sacred palanquin. The deity of the shrine is symbolically transferred to the palanquin and carried out of the shrine by the parishioners to visit the community and bestow virtues on them. Before the festival, participants will refrain from secular activities for a certain period in order to purify their bodies. On the main day of the Tenno-sai, the festival begins with a ritual purification performance in Hetsu-nomiya, one of the Enoshima shrines. The mikoshi is then carried into the village, to bring the power of the divine spirit to the community. It is

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believed thhat renewed energy will pervade thhe village. Thus, T the community reconfirms itts relationship p with the deeity. Dependin ng on the festival, there are occasioons when dasshi (festival ccars) and yata ai (floats) accompany the portable shrines (Figuree 2-4).

Fig. 2-4 Floatts with childrenn in festive cloth hes.

In the ppast, huge festtival cars of Koshigoe K acccompanied thee mikoshi parade but ddue to the hiigh maintenan nce cost and m manpower reequired to operate the cars it has been decideed to leave tthem in garaages. The participants,, mostly parisshioners of th he Yasaka Shrrine, carry thee mikoshi of Yasaka arround Enoshim ma. Women are a neither alloowed to carry the main mikoshi intoo the water nor n permitted to enter the ssacred shrine locations out of custoom and tradittion. They arre, however, aallowed to fo ollow the procession aand attend riitual performaances outsidee the shrine sanctuary. s Access to the Tenno-saai has traditionally been restricted to resident fishermen eeven though anyone a may participate p ass an observerr. Despite these restricctions, the meen who carry the mikoshi are neither volunteers v nor local ressidents. Due to t the shortag ge of local fishhermen, it has become customary tto hire the fesstival pullers and carriers oof mikoshi, dressed d in white loinclloths, from ouutside. They are professioonals who tak ke part in matsuri nationwide and are a recruited ju ust for this puurpose. Figures 2-5 and 2-6 show deetails of the location and of the route takeen by the miko oshi.

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Fig. 2-5. Grraphic detail of o the festival zone betweenn Enoshima Island I and Koshigoe harrbor.

In Figuree 2-6, the Yassaka Shrine caan be seen on the left side at the top of the islandd; the Koyuruugi Shrine is on the upper right side. Th he dotted line shows the parade rooute for the Yasaka Y mikoshhi. A large mikoshi m is carried from m the Yasaka Shrine S located at the top of E Enoshima Islaand down into the watter next to thee harbor front. Then the mikkoshi is moveed up and down rhythm mically. A boaat carries a priiest who perfoorms Shinto riituals and blesses the ccrowds. He is assisted by a shrine maidenn. They hold up u golden gohei (sacreed paper streaamers) as a symbol s of thee deity and purify p the palanquin aand bearers again with evergreen (ssakaki) branches. As participants take the palannquin into thee waves, musicc and drums urge u them on from thee shore. At thhe same timee, another miikoshi is carrried from Koyuguri Shrine into thee ocean off th he mainland beach. Howeever, both mikoshi do not meet in thhe sea. After the t sea dippinng, each of thee mikoshi leaves the seea and returnss (Figure 2-7). The Yasaaka mikoshi is i then carried d to the otabiisho temporarry resting place whichh is located inn the village square of Higaashi-machi. This T is the place wheree the sacred palanquin p is lodged duringg the festival. With the arrival of thhe mikoshi at the resting place, p the Otaabisho-sai cerremony is performed. T Then, it returnns to the shrin ne by a differeent course. Th hus, these spaces are liinked and form m a unity thro ough the passsage of the miikoshi. At the same tim me, the ritualls help connecct these spacees to the com mmunity’s daily activitiies.

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Fig. 2-6 Festtival route mapp. The two mik koshi, surroundded by fishing boats, are carried into thhe sea from oppposite sides

Fig. 2-7 The ppalanquin is dippped by men into the sea.

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In the afternoon, the mikoshi of Yasaka pays a courtesy visit to Koshigoe. While the mikoshi of Yasaka is carried to Koshigoe, the mikoshi of Koyurugi is already waiting for it to exchange greetings. Both mikoshi are then paraded around Koshigoe and arrive later at Koyurugi. Then, the mikoshi of Yasaka returns to Enoshima, while the mikoshi of Koyurugi sends it off by following halfway. Nowadays, the passage at sea is performed for both mikoshi; however, the passage at sea for the mikoshi of Koyurugi is a newly introduced element of the festival. Thus, the rituals, which are performed at sea with each mikoshi, differ in terms of their symbolic meanings.

Conclusion This essay has argued that festivals can be interpreted as an emotional means to embrace local independence and autonomy. We can see from the examination of the Tenno-sai the important role festivals play in preserving the identity and pride of fishing communities threatened by socioeconomic marginalization and social exclusion. The present study demonstrated that fishermen had mostly been excluded from the benefits of the pilgrimage business in Enoshima during the Edo period (16031868). It was further argued that a new festival, the Tenno-sai, was created in the early Meiji period (1868-1877) when Buddhism had gradually lost its economic wealth and prestige. This new festival, named after the famous Gion festival in Kyoto, presented an opportunity for fishermen to reshape and redefine their social identity in the wake of rapid modernization. The main reasons that have been identified for creating the festival were: warding off diseases and epidemics in the summer season by worshipping and appeasing the kami to avoid their anger and curses as well as reiterating symbolic bonds between two fishing communities separated by municipal mergers. The article further pointed out that the Tenno-sai has been mistakenly interpreted by some scholars as a reunion between the main male deity Susanoo and the male female deity Benzaiten. The opposite was found: the same deity, in this case Susanoo, has been enshrined in two different locations and is shared between two different communities. The symbolic division of the deity during the festival further enhances the close and intimate ties between the two fishing communities. It can be said that the Tenno-sai seeks to reaffirm the identities of fishermen and to revitalize the community bonds among local fishermen separated by municipal mergers and marginalized socioeconomically.

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Annex: Timetable of Main Festival Events July 9 to July 12 All day: Preparing for main festival day. Transfer of the shintai of Susanoo from Yasaka Shrine to a temporary shrine. July 13, 2013 (pre-festival day) 2:30 a.m.: Participants gather in front of the Fisheries Cooperative Community Hall 6:00 a.m.: Departure of children’s portable shrine 7:45 a.m.: Move to the temporary shrine where the shintai rests 11:30 a.m.: Return to the Fisheries Community Hall 12:00 a.m.: Disperse July 14, 2013 (main festival event day) 7:30 a.m.: Move the shintai from the temporary shrine location to the Hetsu-no-miya shrine 8:15 a.m.: Welcome the delegation from Koshigoe on the Benten Bridge, connecting Enoshima with the mainland 8:30 a.m.: All participants depart for Hetsu-no-miya Shrine 9:00 a.m.: Arrival at Hetsu-no-miya Shrine 9:30 a.m.: Play shangiri (festival music) in front of the Hetsu-no-miya Shrine 10:00 a.m.: Departure of two mikoshi: one from Yasaka Shrine and one from Koyurugi Shrine 11:00 a.m.: Participants enter the sea separately on the Enoshima harbor side and Koshigoe beach side and return to their respective home shrines. 1:30 p.m.: Grand procession from Enoshima to Koyurugi shrine and back to Enoshima 6:30 p.m.: Show the statue of the deity Susanoo to the public (displayed only once every 6 years) 8:30 p.m.: Crowd arrives at Fisheries Community Hall and disperses

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References Bocking, B. (1996). A popular dictionary of Shinto. London: Curzon Press. Breen, J. (2000). Shinto in history. Ways of the kami. Milton Park: Routledge. Dobbins, J. (1996). Editor's introduction: Kuroda Toshio and His Scholarship. Japanese Journal of Religious Studies, 23, 217–32. Fukami, S. (2008). Activities for maintaining and succeeding tradition of the Gion festival Yamahoko events [PDF document]. Retrieved June15, 2013, from http://www.accu.or.jp Hardacre, H. (2002). Religion and society in 19th century Japan: A study of the Southern Kanto region. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. Hori, H. (2013). Roku nen ni ichido no taisai [A once in 6 years big festival]. The Enoden Ensen Shimbun, p.2. Hori, H. Heisei (2013a). 25 nen Enoshima Tenno-sai ni tsuite [About the 2013 Enoshima Tenno-sai festival, printed handout document]. pp.15. Iwamoto, J. (1973). Enoshima no Iwamoto-ro konjaku monogatari [Story of the past and present of the Iwamoto building on Enoshima Island, self-published print book].pp.78. Kamakura Board of Education. (2009). Kamakura kodomo fudoki [Kamakura children’s ancient records]. Kamakura: Toshoinsatsu. Kamio, K., & Willson, H. (2008). An English guide to Kamakura temples and shrines. Tokyo: Ryofuku Shuppan. Kanagawa Prefectural Government. (1985). The history of Kanagawa, Tokyo: Dai Nippon. Kawano, S. (2005). Ritual practice in modern Japan. Honolulu:University of Hawaii Press. Mosk, C. (2001). Japanese industrial history:Technology, urbanization, and economic growth. Armonk: M. E. Sharpe. Mumford, L. (1956). The transformations of man. New York: Harper & Row. Nakane, C. (1990). Tokugawa Japan: The social and economic antecedents of modern Japan. Tokyo: Tokyo University Press. Nelson, J.K. (2000). Enduring identities: The guise of Shinto in contemporary Japan. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. —. (2003). Myths, Shinto, and matsuri in the shaping of Japanese cultural identity. In: P. Craig (Ed). Religion and the creation of race and ethnicity: an introduction (pp.152-167). New York: New York University Press.

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Nenzi, L. (2004). Cultured travelers and consumer tourists in Edo-period Sagami. Monumenta Nipponica, 59(3), 285-319. Ono, S. Shinto. (2004). The kami way. Tokyo: Tuttle Publishing. Reader, I. (1998). Simple guide to Shinto. London: Global Books. —. (2005). Historical, new, and 'new' new religions. In: J. Robertson (Ed). A companion to the anthropology of Japan (pp. 431-451). Oxford: Blackwell. Roemer, M.K. (2010). Shinto festival involvement and sense of self in contemporary Japan. Japan Forum, 22 (3/4), 491-512. Schnell, S. (1999). The rousing drum. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. Starrs, R. (2011) Politics and religion in modern Japan. Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan. Tamamura, F. (2001). Local society and the temple-parishioner relationship within the Bakufu's governance structure. Japanese Journal of Religious Studies, 28(3-4), 261-292. Thal, S. (2005) Rearranging the landscapes of the gods. Chicago: Chicago University Press. Tonomura, H. (1992). Community and commerce in late medieval Japan. Palo Alto: Stanford University Press.

CHAPTER THREE EXPECTING THE UNEXPECTED: A CASE STUDY ON TSUNAMI MITIGATION IN FUJISAWA (JAPAN1)

Japan has superior knowledge and state of the art systems in place to face tsunami risk. Nevertheless, after the 3/11 Tohoku tsunami disaster, plans have been reviewed nationwide to strengthen tsunami preparedness in the event of a mega-tsunami. This paper supports the opinion that despite improvements and progress made in risk assessment, tsunami disaster mitigation planning faces great challenges in securing mass evacuation. Findings of a field interview survey conducted among local residents supplemented by a thorough review of local risk assessment policies and disaster management plans suggest that residents do not believe that they are sufficiently prepared to escape a mega-tsunami despite very advanced risk control systems. The reasons for this are twofold: first, local autonomy is hampered by top down prefectural and national interference and second, realistic response planning for if the protective measures fail has not been sufficiently enforced.

Introduction Problem statement, research question and key assumptions Coastal communities require reliable, accurate, and timely warning of approaching tsunamis and well-designed mitigation and evacuation planning for the worst case scenario. Failure to do so may result in increased damages and casualties. On March 11, 2011 an extremely powerful and destructive tsunami hit the Tohoku region after a strong earthquake with numerous aftershocks had occurred off the coast shortly 1

Article first published in: Environmental Hazards Volume 13, Issue 1, January 2014, pages 1-20. www.tandfonline.com. Reprinted with permission of the Taylor and Francis Group.

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before (Mori et al., 2012). Within a three minute timeframe the Japanese Meteorological Agency (JMA) announced tsunami wave heights to be expected via the national TV broadcasting system. Instead of predicted 3 to 6 meter high waves the tsunami run-up height was actually between 10 and 20 meters (Kawata, 2011). Furthermore, the tsunami inundated larger areas than predicted by the official hazard maps. In the small town of Kamai in Iwate prefecture 1,046 residents died from the tsunami because they did not evacuate in time to higher ground. Despite this high number of casualties a group of school children was quick enough to sense the tsunami danger and acted properly to save their lives. The last minute selfrescue of the 562 school children made nationwide headlines. Applying evacuation skills learned in past trainings and school lessons, the children managed to escape the approaching tsunami at the last minute by fleeing about 1 kilometer to higher ground. Thanks to sound judgment and swift action all the lives of the elementary and high school children were saved. The evacuation time from both schools to the final evacuation site took less than ten minutes (Shaw et al., 2012). In the event of an earthquake tsunami waves may arrive within minutes. Could this window of opportunity be exploited to ensure mass evacuation in the event of a near-field mega-tsunami in the densely populated coastal areas of Japan? Taking the tsunami mitigation measures in the coastal town of Fujisawa in Kanagawa prefecture as an example, this paper proposes to examine what lessons have been learned from the 2011 Tohoku tsunami with regard to mass evacuation awareness and preparedness. The goal of the research is to identify barriers to mass evacuation by probing perceptions and attitudes among the public, by comparing and contrasting local practices, by analyzing prefectural and central guidelines and by exploring the viewpoints and perspectives of tsunami scientists. For the purpose of this study it is assumed that mass evacuation of a particular area is necessary when a tsunami hazard threatens and puts at risk the safety of those residing within the area, or following the impact of a hazard which has subsequently rendered the area uninhabitable (Fraser et al., 2012; Eisner, 2005). It follows that risk exposure to a tsunami hazard is more than just a pure physical event. This is especially true in the case of an unanticipated mega-tsunami that may strike in an unexpected location at an unexpected time and on an unexpected scale. Hence, in the event of a mega-tsunami when warnings may be inaccurate or when coastal defenses and protection and back-up systems may break down, timely mass evacuation in high risk coastal zones may become a matter of life and death as illustrated in the cases of Indonesia, Chile and Japan (Gaillard et

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al., 2008; Marin et al., 2010; Katada, 2012). Second, it is posited that an overall disaster evacuation plan needs to be put in place so that mass evacuation can follow suit instantly in controlled and coordinated ways. An integrated, overall evacuation plan would assess what the overall risk assessment is (tsunami risk, geography, number of people, etc.). From there the overall plan for how to reduce deaths and injuries from a tsunami would be put in place (Bosner, 2012). Third, the paper claims that local governments are key stakeholders in the disaster risk reduction process because they have a very close relationship with local neighborhood associations, business owners and other civil society stakeholders and because they coordinate rescue operations in an emergency (Kingston, 2012). Good governance principles of independence and autonomy need to be safeguarded when establishing implementation plans for mass evacuation. It will therefore be important to analyze the decision making process and external factors affecting local politics.

Definitions This study considers particularly exceptional mega-tsunamis. In Japanese they are named souteigai or “unexpected” tsunamis. A team of 299 Japanese researchers who measured 5,247 tsunami height measure points listed the Tohoku tsunami with measured run-up heights (wave elevation at maximum inundation) of 40 meters as the third mega-tsunami this decade since the Sumatra disaster in 2004 and the Chile earthquake in 2010 (Source: http://www.coastal.jp/tsunami2011/). They represent the worst case scenario and provide the basis for future improved hazard maps. After the 2011 experience, tsunami experts and officials have become more cautious and prefer to estimate the highest possible wave height when simulating or anticipating future risks. Risk is typically defined as a probability, the probability of damage or harm within a specified region and time frame. Tsunami risk is defined as the product of tsunami hazard, i.e. the annual probability of the occurrence of a tsunami, times its consequence in terms of economic loss and/or loss of human life. The UNESCO tsunami glossary defines tsunami preparedness as “readiness of plans, methods, procedures and actions taken by government officials and the general public for the purpose of minimizing risk and mitigating the effects of future tsunamis” (UNESCO, 2007). Resilience is the ability to recover from a disaster and build up redundancies for future disasters. It is the capacity to quickly restore lifelines and other basic supply functions, transportation networks and energy systems. Tsunami disaster victims who are remaking and reconstructing their lives in ways

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that give meaning to them are likely to become more resilient in the future (Hastrup, 2011; Pardasani, 2006). There is a wide range of concepts and models associated with tsunami vulnerability (Larsen et al., 2008). To help reduce the damage done by tsunamis vulnerability assessments have been carried out. Tsunami vulnerability assessment models help to identify geospatial and construction/building related risk factors and educate people living or working in coastal tsunami hazard zones (Sinaga et al., 2011; Papathoma et al., 2003). Structural vulnerability factors that may have an impact on evacuation outcomes but cannot be easily controlled or accounted for have been excluded from this study. These include building codes and materials, design standards, topography of coastal sea lines, coastal population density levels, land-use zoning regulations and urban development practices.

International literature review on mass evacuation planning Tsunami evacuation encompasses a wide variety of subjects and specific situations. There are significant regional and ethnic differences in the way people respond within and across nation states. Within the body of literature, discussions from the Indian Ocean tsunami -which caused the deaths of 229,000 people in 2004 and can therefore be considered the deadliest tsunami so far- occupy a prominent position. A study by Charnkol and Tanaboriboon (2006) has examined the evacuation behavior of local residents and tourists in Thailand. They looked at the different time components involved in the evacuation process and found differences in evacuees’ response patterns. Two other studies, one on the evacuation responses of some local ethnic groups to the 2004 tsunami in the Aceh province of Indonesia (Gaillard et al, 2008) and another on the unique tsunami evacuation system set up in Nishiki town (Nakaseko et al., 2008 ) in Japan discuss criteria for tsunami mitigation control. Whereas the Nishiki study highlights the importance of a locally independent and self-responsible evacuation scheme rooted in a firm disaster subculture, the Aceh study stresses the importance of contextual factors such as political or economic conditions that may severely restrain disaster preparedness. According to Gaillard et al (2008), the path leading to successful evacuation can be derived from the existence of a disaster subculture. The three elements that foster and nurture the development of a disaster culture are: the repetitive experience with tsunami damage in the past; the forewarning time which allows for the implementation of the evacuation and the living collective memories

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and tales of past damages. Both the Aceh and Nishiki studies argue that evacuation preparedness goes beyond mere technical and technological measures. The Nishiki system for example revolves around the notion of mass evacuation via stairways to higher ground on foot within a five minute timeframe, the operation of a decentralized, self-responsible tsunami warning system, a well-conceived evacuation tower, well designed evacuation routes and continuous real life drills. The Nishiki study cautions that technocratic approaches lead to a steep increase of dependence and passivity among the citizens: “the centralized, or top-down tsunami warning makes people insensible to natural matters, as if waiting for an earthquake/tsunami on time as a scheduled train” (Nakaseko et al., 2008:5).

The importance of instinctive self-evacuation behavior rooted in ancient knowledge and past experiences has been reconfirmed by a study on evacuation behavior after a tsunami hit a small coastal fishing town in 2010 in Chile (Marin et al., 2010). The mortality rate was kept low because residents could predict the instant tsunami danger by themselves. This reaffirms the importance of heeding natural warning signals and fostering mutually supportive, strong social networks for ensuring successful mass evacuation (Aldrich, 2012). Even if warning systems are fully operational this does not mean that evacuation follows promptly and smoothly. Another important point that has been given attention in the mass evacuation literature is the user friendliness and efficacy of evacuation information contained in hazard maps. Kurowski et al. looked at evacuation maps in the US states of Washington and Oregon and concluded that these do not provide the public detailed tsunami hazard information even though Oregon for example has recently undertaken efforts to streamline and standardize evacuation maps by introducing new design technologies (Kurowski et al., 2011). Recent research on the role of social capital in strengthening community disaster resilience confirms this point. Aldrich (2012) has highlighted the critical role of social capital in the ability of a community to withstand disaster and reconstruct. In addition to quickly disseminating information and financial and physical assistance, communities with an abundance of social capital are able to minimize the migration of people and valuable resources out of the area. In an earlier study Eisner (2005) codified the way to design tsunamiresilient communities through seven principles. Among them is the need for evacuation planning. Some studies have argued that enhanced coastal protection against natural hazards does not always lead to improvements in disaster risk mitigation and vulnerability reduction. Santha (2011) for

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example argues in his field study on fishing communities in Kerala, India that technical protective solutions implemented by state authorities have increased vulnerability levels because they have not taken into account the livelihoods of locals. Where speedy evacuation is not possible because of long travel distance to higher ground it makes sense to consider building tsunami evacuation buildings (TEBs) instead. In a recent geotechnical study Raskin et al. present the conception design of a tsunami resistant City Hall that serves also as evacuation shelter at Cannon Beach in the state of Oregon (Raskin et al., 2011). It is the first of its kind in the U.S. and believed to become a model for more tsunami evacuation buildings in other coastal areas. The building project will be completed in 2014 and will have room for about 1,500 evacuees. A review of literature on the different aspects of mass evacuation behavior leaves a number of gaps in our understanding of effective response operations and human based tsunami preparedness. The existing literature offers limited insights on the various factors that may affect the local mass evacuation process negatively: lack of evacuation shelters and vertical evacuation structures, lack of sufficient emergency supplies such as fresh water and blankets, important presence of tourists and temporary visitors, crowded streets and heavy traffic conditions, coastal land areas weakened by soil liquefaction, raging tsunami fires (burning cars, buildings and debris) obstructing evacuation routes, long distance to safe refuge, age, sex, disability, cultural group behavior patterns, lack of autonomy, rigid building codes and land-use zoning regulations, the role of social capital and the inability or unwillingness to heed for natural warning signals.

Description of location The coastal stretch of Katase-Enoshima located in the town of Fujisawa has been chosen as the target area for the current field research because of its double risk exposure as a crowded tourist spot and as a high risk disaster area located in the so called Tokai earthquake zone (Shizuoka Prefecture, 2010). Located in the central part of Kanagawa Prefecture adjoining western Tokyo, Fujisawa is a city with a population of approximately 415,000 and is endowed with all facets of housing, industry, agriculture, commerce, tourism and education. Daytime tourists and pilgrims visit temples and shrines all year round and populate the beaches in summer. It lies in the center of the Japanese Archipelago and is facing the Pacific Ocean washed by the warm Kuroshio (Black Current). In the northern part of the city, the Sagami Plateau, which was formed by

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the activity of the Fuji mountain volcanic zone about 400,000 years ago, extends into gentle hills that rise to an elevation of 40 to 50 meters. Fujisawa is surrounded by the sea on the south side and three large riversnamely the Hikiji, Sakai and Kashio rivers- on the north side. Lakes and wetlands have often formed in the course of these rivers by flooding and the area has long been known for suffering caused both by flooding, especially flash floods, and drought.

Fig 3-1. Aerial view of the coastal line protected by pine tree walls (Source: NASDA)

The research area for this study covers a 5 kilometer stretch of beach from East to West along both sides of Enoshima Island (fig 3-1). Enoshima belongs to the Katase ward of Fujisawa city. Out of a total of 114,000 residents, 50,000 live in the coastal high risk area surrounded by flat land and few vertical evacuation structures. This number does not include the seasonally high fluctuation of daytime tourists and visitors. As mentioned already, Enoshima is located near the so-called Tokai earthquake zone which has been predicted the likely site of a major earthquake in the near future according to the JMA (Source: //www.jma.go.jp/jma/en/Activities /earthquake.html). In this region the Philippine Sea plate sub ducts beneath the Eurasian Sea Plate. Tokai earthquakes have repeatedly struck the area in 1498, 1605, 1707 and 1854 in regular intervals of between 100 to 150

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years. Tsunami damage records for the Enoshima area show relatively moderate damage in terms of death tolls but according to historical sources material damage has been reported to be very extensive (table 3-1).

(Source: National Geophysical Data Center: http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/hazard/)

Table 3-1: Historical tsunami records for the Enoshima area. The largest ever recorded tsunami is believed to have originated from the Keicho Nankaido earthquake in 1605. There was reportedly little shaking but the tsunami was so forceful that it went up the rivers and inundated large inland areas. The exact number of casualties in Enoshima is unknown. The most recent tsunami that caused considerable damage to the Enoshima coast was caused by the Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923. A railway bridge made of steel and several railway stations as well as many public buildings and private houses were completely destroyed. In Enoshima, the only wooden pier/bridge connecting the beach with the island was ravaged by the waves. Two children were swept away on the island along with 60 tourists from Kobe who drowned when they crossed the pier at the time of the tsunami. Enoshima did however not suffer any damage from the 2011 Tohoku tsunami. According to eyewitness reports, the sea off the coast receded on March 11 in the afternoon leaving the shore and river banks in a muddy slick. When the sea suddenly withdraws it may be a sign that a tsunami will build up in a remote area. This phenomenon is called backwash. In

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Enoshima the water of the Kashio River suddenly pulled back far out to sea according to eyewitnesses near the scene. Ships were overturned and the river banks were almost empty of water. After the quake, loudspeakers asked people to leave the beaches and head for higher ground. The meteorological agency foresees several warning levels from ‘advisory’ to ‘major tsunami warning’ levels according to the intensity of the quake. In Enoshima the authorities gave a high alert warning soon after the quake had struck the Tohoku region. In the following hours the road stretch along the coast was completely closed to traffic by the authorities out of fear of a large tsunami hitting the coast line and bringing extensive damage to the densely populated coastal area. Nobody was allowed to drive on the roads or cross the bridges along the coast. The fishing boats equipped with their own independent tsunami warning and communications systems moved quickly to the open sea. The subsequent tsunamis that finally hit Enoshima were much smaller than feared. The run-up height of the tsunami at the Katase west side beach was estimated to be about 2.2 meters. Some waves hit the shores with a one day delay on March 12 and went upstream in the adjacent rivers (Figure 3-2).

Fig 3-2: Tsunami backwash on March 12, 2011 near Enoshima.

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Methodology To support and strengthen the findings of the present research, qualitative field interviews were conducted to determine whether local key stakeholders believe that self-evacuation, mass evacuation planning and local autonomy have been firmly established in disaster management policies or not. This section describes the methods. The methodology is closely related to the three initially formulated assumptions, namely that mass evacuation must be a priority and not an option, that a comprehensive, well designed mass evacuation plan is needed, and that local governments must safeguard their independence and autonomy in the emergency planning process. The study proposes three methods to support the argument; a field interview with key stakeholders, an evaluation of national and local mitigation policies, and field visits to tsunami related facilities. Special attention was given to analyzing local mitigation policies and practices whilst the purpose of the field interviews was to validate and confirm the findings. A qualitative analysis using in-depth interviewing has been used to provide insight into the evacuation experience thereby reflecting attitudes and cognitive perceptions. Primary data collection was obtained by conducting a focused, qualitative interview with selected local key stakeholders. The respondent’s group is composed of ten people: a head Buddhist monk from Katase ward, a local city assembly member, a local government official from the city disaster section, the director of the Katase ward community center, a leader of the Katase ward neighborhood association, the chief of the Katase fishery’s cooperative association, a senior police officer from the Katase police station as well as two teachers and a principal from the Katase elementary school. All of them are directly or indirectly involved in the Katase ward local disaster management planning. The survey follows a structure that informs respondents of the purpose, namely to seek to determine what action they will take in the event of a tsunami and what they think about the tsunami mitigation measures taken by the city. How representative and reliable are the interview results? The interviews were conducted with 10 participants out of a total population of 20,000. The number of participants has been intentionally restricted to local key stakeholders with tsunami knowledge or experience. Respondents answered a total of 15 questions related to emergency management. They are listed in table 3-2.

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1. Do you think a mega-tsunami is likely to hit Fujisawa in the future? 2. Do you think the tsunami mitigation measures of the city are sufficient and sustainable? 3. Are you aware of the prefectural disaster management plans and policies? 4. Do you know about the new worst case scenario hazard map designed by the prefecture? 5. Do you think that the worst case scenario is reflected in the tsunami hazard map? 6. How would you define an “unprecedented” tsunami (megatsunami)? 7. Do you think the mega-tsunami worst case scenario is well reflected in the new prefectural map? 8. How will you respond (what will you do) if a mega-tsunami occurs? 9. What tsunami information do you expect to receive in the first place? (Tsunami arrival time, wave height data, information on dangerous areas etc.) 10. What needs to be done in the future to protect people from tsunamis? (Select from: increase protective coastal infrastructures; more evacuation drills; new advanced technical warning/forecasting systems (GPS etc.); intensified tsunami education) 11. What should be the ultimate goal of tsunami education? 12. Do you think the newly built tsunami evacuation tower (in Fujisawa) is useful and fulfills its purpose? 13. Do you think Fujisawa has enough evacuation sheltering capacity? 14. What should be the role of a local disaster leader? 15. What are your thoughts on evacuation measures for aged and disabled persons? Table 3-2: List of qualitative field interview questions To lend more credibility to the field interviews, the present research was supplemented by a comprehensive review of disaster management related source documents such as articles, briefing notes, memos, reports, educational tsunami DVDs, tsunami education manuals, academic presentations, local hazard maps and official documents from governmental agencies amongst others. All the primary sources were translated from Japanese into English, carefully studied and compared. Finally, field visits were conducted to a local elementary school, coastal protection infrastructures, an evacuation shelter, a tsunami evacuation

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tower and to a tsunami educational facility to inspect shelters and evaluate tsunami educational programs.

Qualitative field interview findings The results of the interview analysis suggest that respondents expect that a mega-tsunami is likely to hit the city in the future. It is however felt that tsunami mitigation measures taken by the city are not fully satisfactory and sufficient. Hazard maps nationwide have been upgraded and revised to include future mega- tsunamis. Respondents think that the official local hazard map of Fujisawa does not take into account the worst case scenario of a huge, unprecedented mega-tsunami. They have mixed feelings about the usefulness of the newly inaugurated vertical evacuation structure. Among those who think the tower is useless, many believe that the maximum capacity of 100 people is too low and the tower height of 12.5 meters might be insufficient to withstand a mega-tsunami. Respondents also feel that the total ward evacuation shelter capacity does not meet actual needs and that many more public buildings should offer temporary space to stay overnight. Many respondents do not know the prefectural disaster plan, which acts as master plan for the city disaster plan. The prefectural disaster plan integrates the national guidelines and must be approved by the central disaster council in Tokyo. Only then can local cities establish their own disaster plans. Respondents were further asked if they would rather head for higher ground or wait to be told what to do to assess their level of self-evacuation preparedness and state of autonomy. The answer may not be evident. The results of a post-disaster field survey conducted in the Tohoku area by Yalciner et al. found that residents put too much faith in official information instead of relying on their own judgment. They reported that even though a tsunami alert was issued three minutes after the quake, residents waited for evacuation instruction from officials for an average of 16.4 minutes (Yalciner et al., 2012). All the respondents agreed to head for higher ground immediately which shows a high awareness level. Regarding the functional role of local leaders most respondents believe that it should not be the role of local leaders to transmit national tsunami guidelines from the top down but to listen to the needs and concerns of residents and transmit them to the central government. Regarding the evacuation of the elderly and disabled, most respondents believe that there is a need to improve current procedures. To protect residents from tsunami damage respondents’ answers were mixed: whereas some believe that it is important to invest in protective infrastructures others prefer to see investments in evacuation

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drills and tsunami education. As to the ultimate purpose of tsunami education most respondents feel that it is crucial to educate residents to be able to make independent judgments and become autonomous. The second priority is to increase the awareness about the danger posed by tsunamis. When asked about what kind of tsunami related information residents would like to receive from public authorities in an emergency, respondents answered that they expect to get information on the expected tsunami height and arrival time followed by information on dangerous or flooded areas. After sensing the pulse of public perceptions, the next step will be to shed light on the city’s disaster management policies. In order to determine whether local disaster mitigation measures respond to the criteria of selfevacuation, mass evacuation planning and local autonomy it is necessary to shed light on the mitigation measures taken by the city.

Evaluation of tsunami mitigation measures On the national and prefectural levels It is the task of the Central Disaster Management Council chaired by the Prime Minister to formulate and execute national disaster management guidelines. Disaster management is a top-down process where the central government examines and approves prefectural policies and where local governments are subject to prefectural control and guidance. In December 2011 the Japanese parliament enacted a law which stipulates the nationwide construction of tsunami resilient cities. The two principles that underlie national tsunami policies are the protection principle and the evacuation principle. There is consensus among all scientists involved in tsunami research that evacuation has to supplement protection but there is disagreement on the importance and consideration that should be given to evacuation. Whereas the protection school has in the past occupied a dominant position (Murata et al., 2009), the evacuation school represented by Toshitaka Katada’s team from Gunma University has gained recognition in Japan and abroad as well after the Kamai self-rescue (Source: http://www.atlanta.us.emb-japan.go.jp/hts5.html). Katada who has been a tsunami education advisor to Kamai town since 2005, was impressed by the evacuation behavior of the school children, who took a lead role in convincing adults to take immediate refuge on higher ground. The children not only sensed the tsunami danger but also led by example in convincing others to evacuate. Hence, he strongly believes that selfevacuation should always be the first priority regardless of tsunami threat

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levels. Reflecting on the self-rescue, he established three simple but effective principles for tsunami education and evacuation (Katada, 2012). “Do not get caught by wrong assumptions”. In other words never underestimate the tsunami danger or tsunami force. Many people underestimated the danger. Katada found that most tsunami casualties in Kamai were caused outside the danger zone boundaries of the hazard map because residents there thought they were completely safe. “Do everything you can”. Katada insists that it is important to select the evacuation route and evacuation destination based on the unfolding situational circumstances. It is important to assess the danger and adjust evacuation behavior accordingly. In other words it might be better to rush to more distant higher ground than to evacuate to a nearby building depending on the situation. “Immediately initiate self-evacuation and be the first to evacuate”. People tend to not to believe that there is a disaster threat and delay evacuation if they get insufficient or unspecific warnings such as a tsunami siren tone. They wait until the last moment before it is too late to evacuate. This mental state is also defined as normalcy bias (Auf der Heide, 2004). People with a normalcy bias have difficulties reacting to something they have not experienced before. They also tend to interpret warnings in the most optimistic way possible. Katada insists that it is important to take the lead in evacuation whatever others might think or do and be autonomous. Even though the need for immediate self-evacuation has been increasingly recognized by Katada and others, a new disaster management law enacted in 2011 puts emphasis on protective measures through reinforcing seawalls and planting coastal pine trees. It also promotes land rezoning to reduce the vulnerability to tsunami damage by relocating residential areas and public welfare buildings to higher ground (Cyranoski, 2012). Land -use zoning means that coastal areas are split into different zones with lower danger zones near the shoreline being excluded for human settlement. The law requests all coastal local governments nationwide to submit concrete land rezoning plans to prefectural and central authorities for approval. The architect Ricardo Tossani took a critical look at the proposed land rezoning plan for the ravaged city of Onagawa in Tohoku and he found that the relocation plan has not included the huge cost of piling and filling land into the cost-benefit analysis. He also criticized the arbitrary separation of land into residential (higher ground) and non-residential areas (lower grounds) as violating modern urban planning practices (Tossani, 2012, p.259).

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Against the backdrop of national debates about whether giving priority to protection or evacuation, some prefectures have decided to review their tsunami mitigation guidelines. Kanagawa prefecture has chosen a hybrid tsunami risk management strategy that tries to reconcile the two conflicting principles of evacuation and protection. Under the guidance of Tomoya Shibayama from Waseda University, who acts as prefectural adviser, a new master plan was released in March 2012 (Source: Kanagawa Shinbun 7 March 2012). It proposes a two-fold strategy based on tsunami frequency and force (velocity). The level 1 tsunami scenario level assumes tsunamis that strike in cycles of between 100 to 150 years. Against these more frequent but lower-impact tsunamis, protection by coastal infrastructures is warranted. In the event of “smaller” tsunamis, emphasis will be put on protection measures such as floodgates, beach nourishment, land-use zoning, coastal pine tree plantations, seawalls and coastal enforcement. Other tools in operation are high-tech simulation and prediction technologies. For example in early 2012 Fujitsu and Tohoku University launched the research on a new super tsunami simulation system by utilizing the world's fastest "K" supercomputer. The new system is expected to enable a more precise prediction of damage that could be caused by tsunamis in densely built-up metropolitan areas (Source: Mainichi Newspaper February 22, 2012). Soft measures (evacuation), on the other hand, are required when facing the level 2 scenario of rare highimpact tsunamis, estimated to return in intervals of 1000 years. In the case of mega-tsunamis, the focus will be on evacuation by securing existing evacuation routes and stairways to higher grounds. Unfortunately the definition of “small” or “mega” remains vague, leaving room for interpretations. Despite being committed to strengthening evacuation precautions for the level 2 scenario, Shibayama’s current research focuses on the protective engineering aspect of tsunami hazard control. Notwithstanding a willingness to improve evacuation procedures and preparedness awareness, there is still a widespread belief that advanced protective tools are instrumental in predicting or mitigating disasters. Foreign experts have voiced concerns about these developments because they overshadow what could go wrong in a crisis situation. The US disaster management advisor to the Japanese Government Leo Bosner notes: .

“My observation has been that the Japanese are great engineers and put a lot of faith in these types of engineered protective measures, but are less attentive to doing realistic response planning for if the protective measures fail” (personal communication to PH, 2012/5/18).

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On the local level Evacuation shelters Like other local governments, the city of Fujisawa strictly follows and implements the prefectural and national disaster guidelines without fail and without putting into question decisions and guidelines. The most recent local example is the decision to build the first evacuation tower in the prefecture near the coastal stretch of Enoshima in Fujisawa (figure 34). The city has offered the land whereas the prefecture pays for the project, estimated at 450,000 US Dollar (35 million Yen). The prefecture has approved the project because other cities have constructed similar towers to protect beach visitors. The single tower located along a coastal stretch covering more than 5 km can only accommodate up to 100 people in an emergency. Its height is 12.5 meters above sea level, it has a solar cell panel to supply electricity and a stock of emergency supplies is available as well. The tower is accessed through gate doors that can be automatically shut. During night-time access to the tower is not possible but the doors open automatically if a quake occurs. There is no doubt that well-conceived vertical evacuation structures can save individual lives, but in the case of Fujisawa the completed tower does not seem to be part of an overall specific plan. How a single tower can contribute to reducing deaths and injuries from a tsunami in a densely inhabited coastal zone with many day time tourists remains unclear.

Fig. 3-4 New tsunami evacuation tower in Fujisawa city (Japan).

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This does not mean that the city has not been doing anything. Already in 2008 a disaster workshop brought together experts, officials and residents to discuss tsunami mitigation measures (Tsubokawa, 2008). In addition, the city has committed itself to inform residents about tsunami hazards by distributing hazard maps to each household, by investing in protective coastal infrastructures and by designating suitable tall buildings with open roof-tops for temporary evacuation. As a result of the latter, Fujisawa now has the highest number of officially designated temporary tsunami evacuation buildings in Kanagawa prefecture (185 as of March 2012). Most of the buildings are apartment buildings with three stories or more. The city has made agreements with building owners to allow for stocking of emergency water supplies on the upper floors of the privately owned condominiums. Some residents have complained that officially designated but privately owned evacuation buildings are sometimes difficult to access from outside because of closed or obstructed stairway doors or high fences. The reason for this is owners being afraid about safety and privacy issues of tenants. Besides, residents have voiced concerns about limited sheltering capacities in the ward. The city has designated school buildings and community centers as official evacuation shelters to accommodate stranded visitors and local residents in the event of an emergency. The centers provide food supplies and have beds and blankets. In the Katase ward there is sheltering capacity for up to 2,850 evacuees. There are six official shelters: four schools, one shrine and one prefectural building for a total ward population of more than 20,000without including the thousands of tourists and visitors that may become stranded in the event of a tsunami. It is estimated that the field research area attracts more than 10 million visitors a year according to the city (Source:http://www.city.fujisawa.kanagawa.jp/introduce/english/mayor.ht ml). Like other coastal towns, Fujisawa harbors a wide range of protective defenses and warning systems such as protective pine tree plantations, seawalls, sea gates, telegraph and traffic sign poles indicating the sea level and distance to the shore, electronic signboards as well as wireless warning systems, loudspeakers and sirens. Furthermore, in response to the 2011 disaster, the number of food and drink emergency supply containers was significantly increased in various public locations such as public parks or school grounds in the ward. Hence, disaster officials of the city strongly believe that widely disseminated audible warning systems such as sirens and loudspeakers and sea level markers can be instrumental in saving lives. Yet in many regions of the world disaster experts have found that “nonspecific warning methods, such as sirens, are notoriously ineffective in getting recipients to take protective action” (Auf der Heide, 2004).

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Fraser et aal. who condducted post-ttsunami fieldd research in n Tohoku concluded tthat it wouldd be better not n to give w warnings at all “thus encouragingg total evacuatiion in responsse to natural w warnings” (Fraaser et al., 2012:56). Thhe high number of recorded d wrong tsunam ami alarms maay support this claim. B Bernard et al. have reported d that from 19 49 to 2000, 75% 7 of all tsunami warrnings turned out o to be wron ng alarms (Bernnard et al., 200 06).

Hazard mapping m Designinng hazard maaps that antiicipate risks realistically and give meaningful information can c be a daun nting task. An example of this t is the official tsunnami hazard map m distributted to all houuseholds in December D 2011 (figuree 3-4). It is baased on historrical inundatioon data from the Great Kanto quakee of 1923 with tsunami inu undation levells estimated att below 5 meters exceept for a minoor stretch. Thee map states: ““This map is based on simulation ddata (a new daata map is to be b issued in M March 2012). Please be warned that other areas may m be inundaated as well, ddepending on the t quake intensity. Inn case of stroong tremor listen to inform mation transm mitted by radio/TV annd evacuate… …After a quaake the tsunaami reaches the t shore within 5 minnutes” (transllated from Jap panese, PH). S Soon after disstributing the local official hazardd map for Fu ujisawa the pprefectural au uthorities uploaded a second, reviseed non officiaal tsunami maap for Fujisaw wa on the prefectural hhomepage in March 2012 (figure 3-5). Whereas the first map was approveed by the cenntral governm ment and the pprefecture, th he second one is only a prefectural draft d that was not approvedd by the centraal disaster council in To Tokyo (table 3--3).

Table 3-3: O Overview of the t two hazarrd maps

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Fig 3-4. Official tsunami hazard map (as of December 2011). (Source: www.city.fujisawa.kanagawa.jp/content/000276514.pdf) The map shows simulated inundation levels, evacuation buildings, evacuation routes and emergency contacts for the Enoshima coastal area. Flooded areas near the seashore are highlighted. Darker coloring indicates higher flooding levels (up to 5 meters). Arrival time is assumed to be 5 minutes after the shaking occurred.

The issue at stake is that the two maps contain different information as they are based on two different disaster scenarios. Whereas the first map assumes lower tsunami inundation levels based on the 1923 Great Kanto quake, the second map simulates higher inundation levels based on the 1605 Keicho Nankaido earthquake tsunami. It is believed that this tsunami was the largest ever recorded tsunami for the area. There has been reportedly little shaking but the tsunami was so strong that it inundated large areas of Fujisawa paving its way up to 1.6 kilometers inland. A Keicho class earthquake is classified as rare as it occurs only at a frequency of 500 years. A comparison of both maps reveals major discrepancies. First of all, the official map is meant to facilitate evacuation by mentioning altitudes, evacuation shelters and routes whereas the second non official map represents only to be expected flooding zones. Second, the non-official map shows much larger inundation zones that reach deeply inland. Next, the second map estimates that it will take between 70 and 100 minutes before the “largest possible tsunami” will hit the beaches. This contradicts the information given in the first map which cautions that a “tsunami will hit the shores within 5 minutes after a quake”. It remains unclear what the expected arrival time of the “largest possible tsunami” in the second map means in terms of evacuation urgency. Should residents take all the time which is needed for evacuation or should they rush

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Fig 3-5. Non official prefectural tsunami hazard map for Fujisawa city (as of March 2012) (Source: http://www.pref.kanagawa.jp/cnt/f360944/p393044.html). The dark colored parts show simulated flooding areas of the massive 1605 Keicho earthquake. The scale on the right lower side indicates flooding levels.

immediately to higher grounds after a quake? Finally the second map assumes a “maximum tsunami height of about 10.9 meters”, whereas the first map is more optimistic by assuming tsunami wave heights below 5 meters except for one small stretch. In sum, the maximum wave heights and inundation levels of the two maps differ significantly because prefectural officials may have been worried that their assumptions in the first map were too optimistic. The city decided further to distribute two additional disaster maps-an ‘Earthquake vulnerability map’ and a ‘Seismic intensity map’- in April 2012 to all households on top of the tsunami hazard map. It remains unclear how these three maps are related as no explanations were given to residents.

Public information policy Tsunami related public information policy is flawed because it is at times inconsistent, it fails to anticipate how the public will respond and it is non-committing. The Fujisawa city disaster section webpage for

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example still keeps the maximum expected tsunami height at “3.5 meters” which is far below the 10.9 meters estimated by the prefecture. The information on the webpage seems outdated and has actually not been renewed since October 1, 2006 (Source: http://www.city.fujisawa.kana gawa.jp/faq/faq_000074101.shtml). Regardless of these discrepancies, one question that comes up is why has the estimated maximum tsunami height been revised from less than 5 meters to 10.9 meters? According to a news report in the 26 February 2012 online issue of the Japan Times, it seems that the bureaucratic move behind revising hazard maps is the goal to remove souteigai (unexpected) in predicting future tsunamis (Source: http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/fl20120226x1.html). However, leading tsunami researchers have rejected the idea that the Tohoku tsunami was unexpected because similar events had already occurred in the past and have cautioned that better precautions should have been taken based on their warnings and recommendations (Noegerrath et al., 2011; Goto et al., 2012). The inundation of large areas outside presumed hazard zones in Tohoku indicates that the hazard maps authorized by bureaucrats were simply based on wrong assumptions. The strong desire to predict the theoretically largest possible tsunami (or worst case scenario) is understandable but in the end, the replacement of 5 meter maps with 10 meter maps does not address or resolve the main issue: how will residents react to the information or what use will they make out of it in an emergency? How and in what way will the hazard information affect mass evacuation process planning and evacuation behavior on the ground? According to Morris the ultimate success of tsunami information systems “depends on how the recipients of such information react, which is a problem beyond the realm of high science and technology (Morris, 2012, p.34).” The way public information is handled affects the safety perceptions of residents. How well do disaster officials handle public queries? In February 2012, a local children’s nursery sent a questionnaire to the Fujisawa city disaster section to confirm tsunami evacuation procedures. The original Q (nursery management) & A (Fujisawa disaster section officials) note is reproduced below (English translation provided by the author) to give an idea how disaster officials communicate information: Q: When will a new, updated tsunami disaster manual be completed and distributed? A: After the central and prefectural governments have issued the new guidelines.

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Q: In case of an emergency will the city inform residents via loudspeakers in what emergency shelter their children have taken refuge to confirm their safety? A: This cannot be done (speakers may break down, shortage of electric supply may occur, privacy protection of children has priority). Please confirm the physical safety of your children by yourself by contacting the local emergency shelter committee that manages the shelter facility and maintains a resident name list. Q: Do nurseries get financial support by the city for buying or stocking additional emergency supplies? A: No. Do use your own budget to secure supplies (for a recommended period of three days). The evasive way of answering questions and reluctance to commit to anything or offer concrete assistance is a repetitive pattern. Unless given instructions from above, city officials will not be inclined to take the initiative.

Public expenditures and urban planning Local city planning affects tsunami mitigation in the long term in several ways. Budgetary priorities show the importance of tsunami mitigation policies in comparison to other budget expenditures (table 3-4). Tourism is an appropriate benchmark indicator for comparative purposes because tourism income is very important for coastal cities. In Fujisawa 6 Million US Dollar (480 Million Yen) have been allocated for tourism development in 2011. By contrast the budget for tsunami protection measures has been set at about 1.1 Million US Dollar (93 Million Yen). In 2010, the tsunami mitigation budget was zero yen. The head of the disaster section who provided the budget figures did not know why the budget numbers went up and down over the past years and what the long term budgetary tsunami mitigation planning looked like. Year Total (in JPY) Major expense account

2008 2009 2010 1,869,500 982,450 0 hazard map evacuation drill

2011 93,486,450 wireless warning system

Table 3-4: Tsunami budget figures for Fujisawa city (in JPY) Another priority has been given to urban settlement and land development. Fujisawa is one of the few cities which has not suffered from depopulation in recent decades. The population of the Katase ward

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for example has been steadily increasing; from 6,500 in 1910 to 20,000 residents in 2010 (figure 3-5).

Fig. 3-5: Population changes in the Katase ward of Fujisawa city. Source: own data compiled from city census

At the same time the city has been aggressively pushing for urban development. Intensified urban density and landscape changes have led to a decrease in the commons, farmlands and public recreation areas. The vulnerability of urban population has been increased by new or accelerated human intervention in the form of population growth, urbanization, economic development and transformations of landscapes.

Training and Education Training and education matters are centrally managed and supervised by the Ministry of Education. Teachers nationwide have been advised to watch a 15 minute tsunami education DVD distributed by the Fire and Disaster Management Agency (FDMA). The 2010 DVD with the title Tsunami kara ikinobiru tame ni. Chishiki to Koudou (English: How to survive a tsunami: knowledge and behavior) gives visual instructions on how to take refuge in an emergency. In addition, the Education Ministry has instructed public schools to create or revise tsunami education and evacuation manuals. Updated national tsunami disaster manual guidelines have been issued to this effect to all 50,000 public schools in March 2012. Many public schools such as the public schools of Kamai town have excellent tsunami education and evacuation manuals but others have failed to do so. As a result local public schools in danger zones feel the pressure to revise and improve tsunami emergency procedures. The Katase ward elementary school for example was established 150 years ago and is

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located near a potential inundation danger zone: the direct aerial distance to the sea is more than 1.5 km but the nearest river it is only 300 meters away. The school ground is 9 meters above sea level and the upper floors of the building are 20 meters above sea level. To respond to the growing concerns of the parents, the principal announced its tsunami evacuation policy on the school webpage. In principle, evacuation will be secured by heading to the roof top and upper floors to accommodate the 900 children and teachers. Even though the principal is a top civil servant himself, he maintains serious doubts about the effectiveness of current tsunami mitigation policies when he writes: “Kanagawa ken to Fujisawa shi mo tsunami taisaku wa soukyuu no minaoshi ga hitsuyo toshite imasu” (English: There is an urgent need for Kanagawa prefecture and Fujisawa city to urgently review the tsunami countermeasures, translation PH) (Source: http://www1.fujisawa-kng.ed.jp/ekata/index.cfm/1,1640,8,html). Community disaster drills have a long history in Japan. On the surface the local disaster drill which takes place every year on September 1, the Great Kanto earthquake commemorative disaster day, on the Katase local elementary school ground looks very well organized and professional. Ward residents led by the neighborhood association gather in small groups in a parking lot to confirm the safety and identity of each member before taking the 15 minute walk to Katase School. After arrival, they line up to listen to the crisis management headquarters instructions and participate in various disaster activities: quake simulator, fire extinguisher training, first aid, emergency toilet set up, purification of dirty water, smoke simulation, self-generating electricity compressor operation, and emergency toilet set up. A military-like hose drill by the local volunteer fire brigade completes the event. The question that remains is if these drills will be effective and useful in the event of a large scale tsunami hazard. Will it for example make sense in a tsunami emergency to waste precious time by gathering first in a parking lot? Will residents, tourists, beachcombers, surfers, elderly and school children know what to do and how to respond in a crisis situation? On July 7, 2012 the first ever voluntary tsunami mass evacuation drill was conducted in the Enoshima area. At 9:00 o’clock sirens issued a tsunami alarm to a total estimated 130,000 residents and tourists. For the drill it was simulated that an 8.5 magnitude quake had triggered a first tsunami wave of about 3 meters that would hit the beaches 10 minutes after the siren alarm, followed by a 10 meter wave after an interval of 70 minutes. The drill was a joint exercise with the participation of rescue services, city officials, school officials, life saver volunteers and neighborhood associations. On the beach, volunteers of the ‘Life Savers’

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Association of Japan’ directed surfers and beachcombers to the new tsunami tower, whereas ward residents took refuge in nearby high rise buildings or evacuation shelters. A police helicopter monitored the evacuation from above. The city distributed questionnaires to evaluate the drill outcome and evaluate the results for further improvements. Results were reported by the city office in October 2012. A total of 6,140 questionnaires was collected. This number is far below the initially estimated number of 130,000 participants. The participation ratio was less than 5%. The most important result was that 3,440 out of 5,301 respondents mentioned that they had reached the nearest prescribed evacuation building within 10 minutes on foot. For the rest it took more than 10 minutes. This result suggests that most residents were able to evacuate quickly. Out of 4,360 responses the majority (1,858) evacuated to buildings that were between 5 and 10 meters high. Another 1,166 residents took refuge in buildings between 10 and 15 meters. This result confirms that residents are aware of the location of high rise buildings in their area and actually made their way there. It remains though to be seen if the buildings will be high enough to withstand the simulated worst case tsunami of 10.9 meters. 54% of the respondents felt that their disaster awareness had been increased by the disaster drill. This result indicates that the evacuation drill has been perceived as an important and useful experience by the majority. Another 36% perceived the drill as mediocre, whereas 10% did not find the drill useful. It has to be mentioned that most of the participants in the drill were local residents who know the area well and have been living there for a long time. (Source: http://www.city. fujisawa.kanagawa.jp/bousai/page100070.shtml). Tsunami education plays a key role in providing residents with the knowledge, skills and behaviors needed to increase resilience. The efforts undertaken by the local Board of Education of Kamai to raise tsunami awareness among school children are in this regard noteworthy. The town has issued a 99-page, very comprehensive tsunami education manual for all the 14 elementary and junior high schools and has allocated about 10 lesson hours per year for disaster education. The curriculum encompasses real life, hands on school disaster drills conducted on a regular basis, tsunami velocity calculation methods taught in the mathematics class, the discussion of past tsunami experiences in ethics lessons, the distribution of tsunami literature and books in the school library and the joint annual cleaning of the tsunami memorial stone. For example, teaching principles for the elementary 3rd and 4th grade class stress the importance of independent human judgment when facing natural disaster risk. The lesson plan reads: “There are many facilities/constructions to protect people from

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tsunami, but if one doesn’t evacuate by oneself in the first place there is no chance to be helped” (Board of Education, 2011). By contrast, tsunami education in Katase School is limited to a short briefing on local tsunami history and the annual standard evacuation drill.

Conclusion This field study has looked at the lessons that were learned from the deadly 2011 tsunami in northern Japan. Field research was conducted in early 2012 in the coastal area of Fujisawa in Kanagawa prefecture to assess the current state of tsunami mitigation policies and measures. It found that even though almost two years have passed since the 2011 disaster a local hazard map taking into account the worst case scenario of a mega-tsunami needs yet to be completed, approved and distributed to the public because of the time consuming revision of simulation data and the administrative top down approval process. Drawing from the selfevacuation experience of school children in Kamai town struck by the 2011 mega-tsunami the study looked at mass evacuation plans and preparations in the target study area. Observations made support the idea that there are two main reasons for shortcomings in preparing for a wellplanned mass evacuation. Firstly, the lack of local autonomy and independence from prefectural and national authorities explains why cities like Fujisawa have made little progress in evacuation planning compared to disaster experienced cities like Kamai town or Nishiki town, where mass evacuation has been firmly established as an overarching mitigation principle in local disaster management policies. The evidence presented suggests that local city officials in Fujisawa prefer to follow and implement prefectural and central guidelines rather than review existing procedures on their own, explore new approaches or question the dominant ‘protect first’ ideology. Despite noteworthy improvements in tsunami mitigation planning, such as implementation of local disaster drills, increase of the tsunami mitigation budget, placing of sea level signboards, building of an evacuation tower or designation of official tsunami evacuation buildings city officials in Fujisawa have failed to take bold steps to design a conceptual mass evacuation framework. Whereas a lot of time and resources have been invested in revising historic tsunami simulation data and upgrading information systems, less attention has been given to analyze how residents respond to information and how they will actually behave during a crisis. Secondly, the study pointed out that tsunami scientists differ and disagree on the urgency for mass evacuation. Whereas Kanagawa prefecture advisor Tomoya Shibayama prefers to

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address the tsunami hazard magnitude, i.e. a level 1 or a level 2 tsunami, to help determine if evacuation is needed, other scientists such as Toshitaka Katada warrant mass evacuation regardless of the tsunami threat level. The study also pointed out that national legal regulations have continued to give priority to protection. Overall, the present analysis revealed several obstacles to a smooth mass evacuation. One of the major challenges will be to evacuate the 50,000 residents and an undetermined number of tourists from the coastal high risk area to nearby temporary high rise buildings in the first phase and from there to safe evacuation shelters on high ground. It was found that the total available shelter capacity for 2,850 evacuees will be insufficient to meet actual needs during a crisis taking into account that 10 million tourists visit the area every year. Another challenge will be to raise evacuation awareness and a sense of evacuation urgency among residents and tourists. With 5% the participation rate for the first local tsunami evacuation drill in July 2012 was rather low. The study suggested that -rather than relying on unspecified siren warnings and sea level signboards- it might be more effective to raise evacuation awareness by teaching and practicing the three self-evacuation principles proposed by Katada. Finally, qualitative field interviews with local key stakeholders revealed that the tsunami mitigation policies of the city are perceived with mixed feelings. To conclude, persuasion will be needed to overcome vested interests and convince bureaucrats and tsunami scientists that mass evacuation is the best possible response in anticipation of a mega-tsunami. Future avenues for research exist for examining how people respond or fail to respond to hazard information- both before and during a crisis and how they actually behave during an emergency mass evacuation.

References Aldrich, David P. (2012). Building Resilience: Social Capital in PostDisaster Recovery. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Auf der Heide, E. (2004). Common Misconceptions about Disasters: Panic, the Disaster Syndrome, and Looting. In: O’Leary, M (Ed) The First 72 Hours: A Community Approach to Disaster Preparedness (pp 340-366). Lincoln, Neb: iUniverse Publishing. Bernard, E.N. et al. (2006). Tsunami: scientific frontiers, mitigation, forecasting and policy implications. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, 364, 1989-2007. Board of Education and Citizens Division of Kamai City. (2011). Kamai shi. Tsunami Bousai Kyoiku no tame no tetsuzuki (Manual for Tsunami

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Disaster Education in Kamai city). Retrieved February 1, 2012 from http://www.city.kamaishi.iwate.jp/index.cfm/10,17418,109,445,html Bosner, L. (2012). Japan’s response to a large-scale disaster: can it be improved? Retrieved March 24, 2012 from http://mansfieldfdn.org/blog/japans-response-to-a-large-scale-disastercan-it-be-improved/ Charnkol, T. & Tanaboriboon Y. (2006). Evacuee behaviors and factors affecting the tsunami trip generation model: A case study in Phangnga, Thailand. Journal of Advanced Transportation, Volume 40, Issue 3, 313–330. Cyranoski, D. (2012). After the deluge. Japan is rebuilding its coastal cities to protect people from the biggest tsunamis. Nature, 8 March 2012, Vol 483, 141-143. Eisner, R.K. (2005). Planning for tsunami: reducing future losses through mitigation. Natural Hazards 35, 155–162. FDMA Agency of Japan (Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications). (2010), Tsunami kara ikinobiru tame ni- shiru࣭ koudou suru, Educational DVD. Retrieved July 12, 2012 from http://www.fdma.go.jp/html/life/sinsai_taisaku/sinsai22_pv.html Fraser, S. et al. (2012). Tsunami evacuation: lessons from the Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami of March 11th, 2011. GNS Science Report 2012/17, pp. 89. Gaillard, J.C. et al. (2008). Ethnic groups’ response to the 26 December 2004 earthquake and tsunami in Aceh, Indonesia. National Hazards, 47, 17-38. Goto, K. et al. (2012). Putting geological records to use in preventing tsunami-related disasters – Current status of and issues in tsunami sedimentology. Japan Echo Web, No. 11, April-May edition. Hastrup, F. (2011). Weathering the world. Recovery in the wake of the tsunami in a Tamil fishing village. Berghahn: New York and Oxford. Katada, Y. (2012). Mina o mamoru. Inochi no jugyou. (Protect everyone. The lesson of life). Tokyo: NHK shuppan. Kawata, Y. (2011). Earthquake and tsunami. Countermeasures in Japan. A report from the technical committee. Retrieved May 30, 2012 from www.unescap.org/...Japan-Earthquake/Earthquake-and-Tsunamicountermeasures-in-Japan.pdf on January 5, 2012 Kingston,J. (2012). Natural disaster and nuclear crisis in Japan. Response and recovery after Japan's 3/11. Nissan Institute/Routledge Japanese Studies, London:Routledge.

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Kurowski Maciej J. et al. (2011). An assessment of educational tsunami evacuation map designs in Washington and Oregon. Natural Hazards 59, 1205-1223. Larsen, R.K. et al. (2008). Vulnerability in the context of post 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami recovery: Lessons for building more resilient coastal communities. SEI Risk, Livelihoods and Vulnerability Programme Working Paper, pp 40. Marin, A. et al. (2010). The 2010 tsunami in Chile: Devastation and survival of coastal small-scale fishing communities. Marine Policy, Volume 34, 1381-1384. Mori, N. et al. (2012). Nationwide post event survey and analysis of the Tohoku earthquake tsunami. Coastal Engineering Journal Vol. 54, No. 1. Retrieved January 5 2012 from http://www.worldscinet.com/ cej/54/5401/free-access/S0578563412500015.pdf Morris, J.F. (2012). Recovery in Tohoku. In: J. Kingston (Ed), Natural disaster and nuclear crisis in Japan: Response and recovery after Japan's 3/11 (pp. 33-50). Nissan Institute/Routledge Japanese Studies, London:Routledge. Murata, S. et al. (2009). Tsunami: To survive from tsunami. Advanced series on ocean engineering. No 32. World Scientific Publishers, pp. 316. Nakaseko, T. et al. (2008). Tsunami warning and evacuation system in Nishiki of central Japan. Paper presented at International Conference on Tsunami warning, Bali November 12-14, 2008. Noeggerath, J. et al. (2011). Fukushima: The myth of safety, the reality of geosciences. Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, 67(5) 37-46. Papathoma, M. & Dominey-Howes, D. (2003). Tsunami vulnerability assessment and its implications for coastal hazard analysis and disaster management planning, Gulf of Corinth, Greece. Natural Hazards and Earth System Science, 6, 733-744. Pardasani, M. (2006). Tsunami reconstruction and redevelopment in the Maldives: A case study of community participation and social action, Disaster Prevention and Management, Vol. 15(1), 79 – 91. Raskin, J. et al. (2011). An evacuation building project for Cascadia earthquakes and tsunamis. Obras y Proyectos 9, 11-22. Santha, Sunil D. (2011). Community-based adaptation to coastal hazards: A scoping study among traditional fishing communities in Kerala. In: A. P. Pradeepkumar et al. (Eds), Applied Disaster Research: Proceedings Disaster Risk and Vulnerability Conference 2011 (pp. 214-222). Greenlabsindia: Trivandrum.

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Shaw, R. & Takeuchi, Y. (2012). East Japan earthquake and tsunami evacuation. Communication, education and volunteerism, Singapore: Research Publishing, pp 288. Shizuoka Prefecture. (2010). Tokai earthquake preparedness in Shizuoka prefecture, Japan. Retrieved March 2, 2012 from http://www.equakes.pref.shizuoka.jp/center/guidebook/pdf/earthquakepreparedness _in_shizuoka2010.pdf#search='Tokai%20Earthquake%20Preparedness %20in%20Shizuoka%20Prefecture' Sinaga, T.P.T. et al. (2011). GIS mapping of tsunami vulnerability: Case study of the Jembrana regency in Bali, Indonesia. KSCE Journal of Civil Engineering, Volume 15 (3), 537-543. Tossani, R.(2012) Thousand-year event: towards reconstructing communities. In: J. Kingston (Ed), Natural disaster and nuclear crisis in Japan: response and recovery after Japan's 3/11 (pp. 255-277). Nissan Institute/Routledge Japanese Studies, London:Routledge. Tsubokawa, H. et al. (2008). Study of risk communication using disaster risk scenarios. Case study of an earthquake disaster risk scenario conducted with the participation of Fujisawa city residents, Disaster research report No 72, 1:24. Retrieved February 25, 2012 from dil.bosai.go.jp/publication/nied_report/PDF/72/72-1tsubokawa.pdf UNESCO Tsunami Glossary (2007). Retrieved January 10, 2012 from at http://portal.unesco.org/geography/en/ev.phpURL_ID=9597&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html Yalciner, A. C. et al. (2012). Field survey on the coastal impacts of March 11, 2011 Great East Japan tsunami. Geophysical Research Abstracts, Vol. 14, EGU General Assembly 2012. Retrieved January 15, 2012 from http://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU2012/EGU201211588-1.pdf

CHAPTER FOUR THE LEGACY OF NICHIREN IN ENOSHIMA

The present article expands its focus beyond purely doctrinal studies or scholarship exploring the personality and stereotypes associated with Nichiren and seeks to shed light on the followers, their social identity and their motivations. What is the source of their religious zeal and unbroken faith in the person and teachings of Nichiren? How does Nichirenism as a value system or practice help them to find meaning in their lives? The aim of this study is to investigate Nichiren Buddhists’ experiences of personal transformation and to explore any common themes present in these experiences by applying the concept of “self-cultivation of the individual” proposed by Hardacre. Within Nichiren Buddhism personal transformation is referred to as realization of Buddhahood in one’s body, which can be described as an accelerated and profound change within the individual's life.

Kamakura Buddhism In the 6th century, Buddhism was welcomed in Japan, and protected by the ruling class as another aspect of civilization drawn from their contact with China. In its early development in Japan Buddhism was a religion of the elite, the scholars and the ruling class (Ellwood, 2007; Matsunami, 1976 & 2004). During the early days Buddhism had been closely connected to, and controlled by the state. Buddhist monks were directly ordained at specific imperial kaidans (platforms for ordination) and acted as government officials. A monk was supposed to study all the various doctrines to become well versed in the whole of Buddhist teachings. Towards the end of the Heian period (794 to 1185), the dissemination of more simple forms of Buddhism began. The audience shifted more and more from the cultivated noble intellectual elite to lower classes with a limited education. At the same time the power shifted from the Court nobles in Kyoto to the warriors in the Kamakura military government (1185-1333). New forms of Buddhism really began to become popular during the 12th century and between the 12 and 13th centuries when three

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schools became firmly established—Pure Land Buddhism, Nichiren Buddhism, and Zen. Whereas the old schools were supported mainly by the nobles and geared toward the protection of the state, the new Buddhism addressed itself to the individual need for salvation and was driven by lay organizations and commoners. They chose, each in its own way, a specific motive from among the wide variety of Buddhist teachings and made it the sole basis of their practices, rejecting all other teachings. The first of the three great traditions of Kamakura Buddhism, the doctrine of the Pure Land, maintained that enlightenment was no longer achievable by the strength of man alone and could only be achieved by surrendering to Buddha Amida and that nothing depended on jiriki (man’s own power). Amida is the principal Buddha in the Pure Land sect but not in other sects such as Nichiren who refer to their Buddha as Shakyamuni instead.The most important theme was that the cosmic Buddha Amida had already, in effect, saved all beings by his infinite compassion and mercy. The second theme followed directly from this: human beings need only call on Amida in faith to bring about the salvation he has already won for them. This calling is namu-Amida-butsu (praise to Amida Buddha), also called the nembutsu, and is the central practice of most Pure Land sects. Good deeds were not necessary to achieve enlightenment according to Pure Land believers. They later went so far to say that it is precisely the bad man who can be assured of rebirth in Amida’s paradise if he wholeheartedly appeals to Amida. The Nichiren, Pure Land and Zen schools initially emphasized different facets of Tendai teachings. As a result of schisms in the Tendai sect that lost its focus on the Lotus Sutra, sects that relied on Buddha's preliminary sutras dominated Buddhism in Japan. Some required adherence to strict rules of proper behavior and correct eating habits; some developed meditation practices based on Buddha's earlier sutras; others believed in esoteric spells to attain the Way; and some such as Pure Land encouraged worship of Amida Buddha, who was said to be more powerful than Shakyamuni. Nichiren disciples rejected this view. According to them Amida Buddha is the Buddha for the next world, not for this world where we are now living. So, in their view Amida Buddha cannot save humanity here in this world. Nichiren said that people who believed in Amida Buddha were perverted people. Although a great number of texts were produced and codified in the course of Buddhist history, they did not always possess the status of a canon and each Buddhist school could select certain texts and declare them authoritative for their doctrine. Thus, the Pure Land sect replaced the Lotus Sutra with the Three Pure Land Lotus Sutras and the Zen schools

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further elaborated the Lotus Sutra and finally insisted on a direct transmission of the Buddha’s Law outside the scriptures while Nichirenism was convinced that the Lotus Sutra is true and correct in both word and principle and represented the ultimate reality. Sectarian disagreements erupted also over the role of human agency. While Pure Land beliefs proceed from the strength and dependence on the ‘other power’ of Amida Buddha, Zen Buddhism teaches that man can come to enlightenment only from his own strength (jiriki). Differences on the impact and relevance of man’s own power are also reflected in Buddhist theories such as the one on the three divisions of time following Buddha's passing. The concept of decline, dissension and schism within the Dharma (cosmic order) after the passing of the Buddha is a general teaching of Buddhism. During the degenerate third age called Mappo (also known as the Latter Day of the Law or the ‘End Times’), it is believed that people would be unable to attain enlightenment through the word of Buddha, and society would become morally corrupt. In Buddhist thought, during the Age of Dharma decline the teachings of the Buddha would still be correct, but people would no longer be capable of following them. The social situation in the Kamakura period coincided with the onset of the Mappo decay. It was believed that Buddhist disciples would enter a period of decadence around the middle of the eleventh century. Expectations at that time seemed to be confirmed by the declining power of the Court, social unrest, attacks by foreign enemies and natural disasters. Whereas Pure Land and Nichiren advocated the theory of Mappo, Zen refuted this theory, because it suggests that few or perhaps even no one is capable of self-realization which is contrary to the teachings of Zen. The Zen sect, widely embraced by the warrior class, maintained that enlightenment was not to be found in any of the sutras, but rather in the direct perception of one's mind through meditation. Besides Pure Land and Zen, Nichiren Buddhism was a sect devoted to the idea of salvation by faith. It was a school founded by a monk called Nichiren who was seen by some as a charismatic leader, whereas by others he was regarded as a fanatic rebel. He believed that he was a reincarnation of one of the bodhisattvas in the Lotus sutra and therefore he alone could impart the true meaning of the sutra. He felt that all other schools of Buddhism were completely evil and heretical and that the only true way was the worship of the lotus sutra as he expounded it. Nichiren’s followers repeated the name of the Lotus sutra – namu-myoho-renge-kyo (Praise to the mystic Law of the Lotus Sutra)–homage to the lotus sutra with a belief in its effectiveness in assuring material prosperity, earthly happiness and eventually salvation for all. Nichirenism has always been a religion for the

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lower classes that requires no wisdom or study to find enlightenment, but only a pure-hearted devotion to the all-encompassing importance of ‘namyo-ho-renge-kyo’ chanted endlessly so that all one's wishes can come true. Nichiren’s aim was to transform all of Japan into a pure land on earth. Not only was the object of faith and the character of the practice from Pure Land different, but also the content of salvation was more clearly a mode of realization in this life than one of rebirth in the next.

Nichiren, the radical thinker and activist Unlike other Buddhist sects imported from abroad Nichirenism is the only native Japanese Buddhist faith. It has been deeply embedded in the culture, politics, economics and social relations of Japan and has left a strong imprint on Japanese society as a whole. Nichiren, the founder, was born in Kominato (Chiba) on February 16, 1222. His father was a common fisherman. At age twelve, he entered a Tendai Buddhist temple and, at sixteen, he was ordained a priest. After being trained at Mount Hiei, Nichiren sought a simpler path than Tendai and set out to reform it from within. Following the lead of the Tendai tradition, which had already given much attention to the Lotus Sutra, Nichiren asserted that it was the embodiment of all religious teaching. Eventually, after studying Buddhism for a total of twenty years at numerous temples throughout Japan, he reached the conclusion that the Lotus Sutra was supreme among all of Buddha’s sutras. Nichiren believed that the Lotus Sutra contained the essence of the Buddha’s teaching and that the truth contained in the Sutra had been misunderstood by the other Buddhist sects in Japan at the time (Christensen, 2001). Amongst Nichiren’s teaching was the idea that the historical Buddha was identical with the original eternal Buddha. He went so far as to say that the Lotus Sutra was the verbal expression of the supreme philosophy of the historical Buddha, and maintained that anyone committing themselves to the Sutra would be granted moral and material benefits and, eventually, Buddhahood. Nichiren not only disagreed with the teaching of other Buddhist schools but also vehemently criticized both them and the government supporting them. He attributed the social unrest at the time to the misguided religiosity of the Japanese people whose salvation he claimed depended on an attitude of devotion to the truth of the Lotus Sutra. Because he did not separate religion from worldly affairs he tried to persuade the government and rulers also to be blessed and ruled by his teachings. He came to the conclusion that a stable, peaceful nation could only come about after the correct Buddhist teachings had been totally accepted. This process could be started with the accession of an

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ideal, wise ruler inspired by the teachings of Buddha who would lead the country to faith. Even though he requested his followers to strictly adhere to the principles of filial loyalty to one’s parents, teachers and rulers he added: “One should of course obey his parents as well as his sovereign and teacher, but should they commit evil, admonishing them is in fact being loyal to them” (Watson, p. 244).

In his view the morality of a nation depended on the morality of the ruler. He was exiled twice by the government and some of his disciples were executed. He refused to compromise his principles and continued to challenge the established schools of Buddhism. As a result of his active propagation activities in Kamakura for nearly twenty years and his submission of the Rissho Ankoku Ron (Treatise on Spreading Peace throughout the Country by Establishing the True Dharma) to the government, Nichiren came under persecution from the authorities as well as other Buddhist Schools. He was sentenced to exile in Ito Village on Izu Peninsula on 12th May 1261; and on 12th September 1271 he was taken to Tatsunokuchi (Dragon’s Mouth) - an execution ground where he was to be beheaded but he escaped death narrowly due to a miraculous occurrence. During his second exile on Sado Island he wrote letters of encouragement to his disciples which later formed some of his most important works. In 1274, he was freed and the government cleared him of any wrongdoing. He died on October 13 1282, surrounded by his closest disciples. Nichiren Buddhism has produced several branches. Among the most important are Nichiren-Shu (Nichiren Sect), Nichiren Sho-Shu (True Nichiren Sect) and Soka Gakkai. The Nichiren sect treats its founder as a Buddhist saint. The Nichiren Sho-Shu elevates Nichiren to the role of of a reincarnation of the Buddha. The Sokai Gakkai was formerly a lay arm of Nichiren Sho-Shu that split off in 1991. Nichiren Buddhism was very little known outside Japan until World War II.

Literature review There is a plethora of serious studies available in English and Japanese focusing on the teachings and the person of Nichiren (see Habito, 1999 for a bibliography). The classic study on Nichiren is the book ‘Japan and the Japanese’ by Uchimura Kanzo (2010). In this book Uchimura praised Nichiren for his ability to stand up for his beliefs even at the hands of state

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persecution and hailed his bravery. According to Uchimura, Nichiren understood the meaning giving role of religion when he wrote that: “A man's religion is his own explanation of life; and some explanation of it is an absolute necessity for his well-being in this world of strife’s” (p. 107).

He saw Nichiren’s contribution in his reform to Japanize Buddhism in his effort both to turn it from a pessimistic religious faith into a positive and practical one and to move it away from the domination of the priesthood and noble class to a more secular, functional religious practice open to the populace. In conclusion, Uchimura noticed that Nichiren by his originality and independence made Buddhism a Japanese religion. It is perhaps towards Helen Hardacre's work that one might look to define the latest trends in research by non-Japanese on the religious movements in Japan. Helen Hardacre has produced two works on two different religious groups, namely, the Nichiren Buddhist-derived sect Reiyukai in ‘Lay Buddhism in Contemporary Japan’, and Kurozumikyo, a Shinto religion founded in rural Japan in 1814, in ‘Kurozumikyo and the New Religions of Japan’ (1986). One of the most seminal studies on the topic of Buddhist lay activism is the book on Reiyukai published in1984. In this book she discusses the theory brought forward that new religions “allow people to make an immediate, emotional response to the problems of the crisis, but are not, realistically speaking, appreciably effective in solving those problems” (Hardacre, 1984, p.31). She rejects earlier notions of religions as reactions to social crises (“crisis religion” concept) and develops the argument that Nichiren lay groups offer a coherent set of beliefs and values to its members and supporters. Not only does Hardacre criticize and challenge the social crisis theory put forward by various writers since the 1960s-especially by Neil McFarland's The Rush Hour of the Gods (1967)-but she puts forward a theory to replace it, which seeks to explain the Japanese religions in terms of a common world view: “This study has identified a vitalist, spiritualist world view as the most fundamental factor unifying the new religions. Whereas prior studies have recognized a rather standardized list of traits as shared by a number of the new religions, this study has tried to show how those traits are unified in originating from a particular conceptualization of self in relation to other levels of existence coupled with regular patterns of thought, action and emotion. The kingpin of the system is the idea that the self-cultivation of the individual determines destiny.” (Hardacre, 1986, p.188).

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According to Covell the above mentioned notion of vitalism is the key to understanding modern Japanese religion (2009, p.156). It comprises common moral values developed during the 18th century such as sincerity, thankfulness and frugality. Individual self-cultivation depends on nurturing those values. The concept may be better understood by contrasting it with recent doomsday cults such as the former Aum sect. Covell has argued that the ‘new new religions’ concentrate on individual practice rather than on communities or groups (p.158). This author contends the exact opposite: the ‘new new’ religious sects negate the individual self and submit followers to a system of rigid group conformity. How could it be possible that mostly highly educated members of society, among them many academics and scientists, engaged in extremely irrational, bizarre and thoughtless practices? Maekawa (2001) has examined the conditioning processes that turned individuals into a mass of blind followers with uniform thoughts and behaviors. The de-humanization and brainwashing made it possible for the cult to achieve a high level of mind control and obedience. According to Maekawa all living creatures were regarded as nothing but “energy bodies indistinct of personal characteristics from each other” (p.21). In retrospective the Aum problem reflects also on a society that created the conditions for such an evil cult to spread. There is a clear difference between the focus on the individual embraced by Buddhism and the suppression of the individual by occult religious cults. Whereas Nichiren followers have a strong, individualistic and positive, non-violent worldview of salvation, Aum has manifested itself as collectivist movement that has been unconscious of others from the start. Hardacre is not the first to have put forward the argument of individual self-cultivation. According to Yukio Mishima it has been central to the Samurai warrior class. The prolific, famed writer, who was nominated three times for the Literature Nobel Prize, criticizes modern society for concentrating its energies too much on technical skills in his book ‘The Samurai Ethic and Modern Japan’. In it he claims that the industrialization of Japanese society has turned people from “total human beings” (p. 72) into thoughtless machines. He laments that human beings occupy nowadays mere functional roles and that the appreciation for the whole person has been lost as society has been engulfed in pursuing economic affluence and technical progress. He wants readers to reflect on Samurai values of the past that focus on individual self-betterment instead of reducing people to specialized skills needed by society and suggests that: “Today, baseball players and television stars are lionized. Those who specialize in skills that will fascinate an audience tend to abandon their existence as total human personalities and be reduced to a kind of skilled

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He continues by arguing that “(…) a total person does not need a skill. He represents spirit, he represents action, and he represents the ideal principles on which his realm is founded” (p. 73). The conceptualization of holistic personhood proposed by Mishima offers certain analogies to the teachings and thoughts of Nichiren. This might not be a coincidence as most of the followers of Nichiren were similar lower class Samurai warriors to those that inspired Mishima. In agreement with Mishima, Nichiren believed that individual self-cultivation was more important than good deeds. In his view people who commit evil deeds can still attain Buddhahood if they have faith in the Lotus Sutra when he says that “Buddahood does not depend on whether their sins (of evil persons PH) are light or heavy but rests solely upon whether they have faith in this sutra” (cited in Stone, 2012, p.141). In addition, Nichiren wrote in one of his letters that evil doings have their origin in thoughtlessness as the cause of evil deeds is rooted in the inability to think and he insisted that “The wise may be called human, but the thoughtless are no more than animals” (cited in Watson, p. 337). Stone maintains that it was more important for Nichiren to have the right attitude than to demonstrate the right behavior. Hence, she argues that: “No direct causal connection is drawn in Nichiren’s thought between good deeds or the cultivation of virtue and the realization of enlightenment” (Stone, 1999, p.297).

Despite a significant scholarship on Nichiren’s life and teachings English studies on the social composition and social background of the followers of the two oldest Nichiren sects: Nichiren Shu and Nichiren Sho-Shu remain scant. One reason for this may be the fact that both sects have their strongholds in rural areas and have kept a rather low profile compared to the splinter Soka Gakkai movement which has engaged in secular political activism and developed strong ties with people from widely divergent cultures across the globe (Stone, 2003).

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Nichiren Shu: the oldest and original Nichiren sect Nichiren Shu is the oldest of the Nichiren Buddhism sects. Nichiren Shu is still seen as being the most mainstream of the Nichiren sects. This is because followers of Nichiren Shu have maintained links with nonNichiren Buddhist traditions. Believers are allowed to take part in other Buddhist spiritual practices, such as silent meditation. Nichiren Shu is the largest of the traditional Nichiren schools with 4,364 temples, and 3,852,911 members according to statistics from 2003 (Matsunami, 2004, p. 170) According to Nichiren Shu headquarters Nichiren Shu has 5,179 temples and 8,277 priests. The temples that are part of the Nichiren Shu confederation of lineages include Kuon-ji on Mount Minobu (the only temple established by Nichiren himself), Ikegami Honmon-ji (where Nichiren passed away and the current location of Nichiren Shu’s administrative headquarters), Seicho-ji (the temple where Nichiren trained a child), and Nakayama Hokekyo-ji (a temple famed for its 100 day winter ascetic practice, it was founded by Nichiren’s important lay follower Toki Jonin who ordained himself after the founder’s passing and collected many of Nichiren’s writings for safekeeping). The dispute between Nichiren Sho-Shu and Nichiren Shu hinges on the interpretation of documents dealing with succession. These documents state that Nikko (1246-1333) is the successor of Nichiren, the founder of Nichiren Buddhism. Nichirin Shu adepts do not accept the Nichiren ShoShu teaching that Nikko was the sole successor of Nichiren, the founder of Nichiren Buddhism. Moreover, unlike Nichiren Sho-Shu, Nichiren Shu teaches that Nichiren was not a Buddha but a priest. This is the main doctrinal difference between these two schools of Buddhism. Furthermore, Nichiren Shu does not refer to Nichiren as Daishonin (Great Sage) but only as Nichiren Shonin (Sage). Only Nichiren Sho-Shu and Soka Gakkai call him Nichiren ‘Daishonin’. As the oldest Nichiren tradition, Nichiren Shu has access to Mount Minobu where Nichiren lived in seclusion and was buried. The Nichiren Shu also owns some of the founder's most important personal possessions. Unlike the Soka Gakkai, followers of the Nichiren Shu have not actively evangelised in the West. Even though it might look as if Buddhism has lost ground on the surface in Japan, it remains to be seen if this is a real crisis as some scholars have claimed (Reader, 2011).

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The miracle of Tatsunokuchi The Ryuko-ji Temple (figure 4-1) was founded in 1337 by Priest Nippo (1259–1341), a follower of Nichiren. This site is also known as an execution ground for criminals during the Kamakura Period. Commemorative monuments can be seen at the left-hand side of the temple’s outer gate. The crossing in front of the temple (figures 4-2 and 43) is very crowded during the annual Honan persecution festival.

Fig. 4-1 The Honan festival is held at the Ryuko-ji temple.

From early 1271 Japan had been suffering a drought, and the Shogunate ordered the priest Ryokan of Gokuraku-ji temple in Kamakura to pray for rain. Ryokan (1217-1303), also called Ninsho, was a Shingon priest during the Kamakura period. He was instrumental in reviving Ritsu Buddhism during this period, as well as establishing facilities to care for invalids. He had close ties with the ruling Hojo clan and was admired by the upper noble classes. The Hojo clan was a family who controlled the hereditary title of shikken (officially just a regent) of the Kamakura Shogunate. The Emperor in Kyoto delegated the power to the Shogun in Kamakura, who himself was ruled by a member from the Hojo clan. Their

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regime lasted for nearly 110 years from 1219 to 1333. The Hojos themselves were firm adherents of Zen Buddhism. Nichiren challenged him, stating that if Ryokan's prayers could produce rain in seven days he would become Ryokan's disciple, but if Ryokan failed he should become Nichiren's disciple. Ryokan accepted the challenge, but failed to produce rain. Humiliated, he ignored his promise and began using his influence among the wives and widows of top Shogunate officials to make accusations against Nichiren. As a result, Nichiren was summoned for interrogation by the deputy chief of the Office of Military and Police Affairs, Hei no Sae-mon, who was a fervent believer of Amida Buddha and an archenemy of Nichiren. Nichiren took the opportunity to predict the outbreak of internal strife and foreign invasion if the rulers punished him unlawfully. Two days later, Hei no Sae-mon and a group of warriors rushed to Nichiren's dwelling, arrested him and decided on their own to have him executed. Around midnight, Nichiren was taken to the execution grounds on the beach near Tatsunokuchi.

Fig. 4-2 A street view of the crossing in front of Ryuko-ji in 1954.

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Fig. 4-3 A street view of the same crossing in 2014.

As the party passed the shrine of the warrior god Hachiman, Nichiren requested that he be given a moment. His request was granted, and he turned to address the deity of the shrine. Nichiren reprimanded Hachiman for failing to protect him, saying that he was the votary of the Lotus Sutra, whom Hachiman had vowed to protect in the presence of Shakyamuni Buddha. He also sent a messenger to Shijo Kingo, a samurai who was a staunch believer and supporter of Nichiren; Kingo hurried to Nichiren's side, determined to die with him. On September 12, 1271, Nichiren Shonin was brought to the execution ground. The devout gathered here anxious to see him, expecting it would certainly be the last chance, and were in a sorrow of parting. Suddenly appeared before him nun Nichiei, an ardent devotee of Nichirenism, and presented botamochi, or round rice-cake dumplings covered with sesame paste. She believed that he would survive with his messianic charisma. The treat gets its name from botan, Chinese peonies which bloom in the spring time. Botamochi have been traditionally offered for the repose of departed souls. During the week of spring equinox, families visit cemeteries to clean and maintain graves. Spring equinox usually falls around March 20th. In Buddhism, the week including the three days before and after the vernal equinox is called Spring Higan. During these seven days, families worship their ancestors and pay respect at their family graves. They also pray for their loved ones,

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burn incense and offer them flowers and food. The spirits are known to prefer round food, so botamochi are eaten on this day. After being presented with botamochi, it was obvious to everybody that Nichiren would be executed within hours. However, at the moment an executioner was about to strike his neck with a sword, asserts the legend, a tremendous clap of thunder roared throughout the sky accompanied by a wild streak of lightning. Back then, lightning was thought one of the most feared super-natural powers or a divine act. Aghast and petrified, the executioner was unable to behead Nichiren as he thought a miracle had been wrought. The followers believed that the botamochi nun Nichiei gave to Nichiren must have saved his life. Messengers were sent to the Shogunate office to tell them what happened. When they came up to a stream called the Yukiai River, roughly two kilometers east of the Temple, they met with messengers who had been dispatched by Hojo Tokimune (1251-1284), the 8th Regent. The Regent's messengers were on the way to tell them not to execute Nichiren. Since the two groups met here by accident, the river was thus named the Yukiai River. Nichiren was then placed in a nearby village in custody for about one month before being sent into exile on Sado Island in Niigata prefecture. Sixty-six years later on this historic spot, a priest named Nippo (1259– 1341) established a hermitage in dedication of Nichiren, where he enshrined a statue of Nichiren which he had carved. From then on, the temple gained momentum with the support of the devout and expanded its structures. The Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923 destroyed nearly all of the temple structures except for the main hall and the five-story pagoda. All others were rebuilt afterward. The Temple ranks among the 44 head temples of Nichiren order.

The Honan-e (persecution festival) of Enoshima Every year on September 11 and 12 the Ryuko-ji Temple in KataseEnoshima holds the Honan-e to mark the anniversary of Nichiren’s rescue at the Tatsunokuchi execution site. During this festival Nichiren Shu parishioners and followers walk in a procession chanting and reciting the monotonous namu-myoho-renge-kyo (‘Praise to the mystic Law of the Lotus Sutra’) and wielding gonfalons (firemen’s standards) in a sort of trance. The religious zeal, the radical expression of faith and devotion that become manifest in this festival have been historically strengthened by the repeated persecutions Nichiren and his disciples have suffered, in accordance with the martyrdom theory of honan. During the annual

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festival worshippers gather for two days in the temple precincts to commemorate the rescue of Nichiren at Tatsunokuchi (figure 4-4).

Fig.4-4 A girl parading the streets with a fireman’s standard.

The amount of spirit, joy and enthusiasm in the air is infectious and contagious. The events involve a group of performers making their way towards the entrance of the temple and performing a dance along with a firemen’s standard and lots of music from supporting members using various drums. At the same time the devout cook botamochi and distribute them to visitors after offering them to the altar in honor of Nichiren during

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a memorial service. The religious rituals function as a confidence amplifier whereby they increase resilience, courage, hope and a sense of compassion for the practitioners. In other words, Nichiren religious activism provides emotional, individual well-being, and a stable social identity for social classes who belong to the lower echelons of society and who have been They are, in many senses of the term, marginalized from the world economic system and the mainstream quest for global prosperity.

The punishment of Mongol emissaries in Enoshima Nichiren believed that all Japan must accept the Lotus Sutra. If the nation rejected the Lotus Sutra, many disasters would befall it. He predicted that Japan would be invaded from outside and claimed to have been right when the Mongols attacked Japan. Nichiren not only believed that the Mongol invasion was a necessary evil to convert Japan but added that the Japanese nation as a whole was to be made responsible for the Mongol attacks. In one of his letters he claimed that the other Buddhist sects had weakened the spirit of the Japanese nation: “If the Mongols attack our country, none of the people will have the courage to fight them. (…) This is all because the nation has allowed the priests of the Shingon, Nembutsu, Ritsu and other sects to hate Nichiren, who is the votary of the Lotus Sutra and an emissary of Shakyamuni Buddha, and thereby brought harm upon itself” (cited in Watson, p. 314).

According to the Nichiren scholar Masaharu Anesaki “Nichiren had always seemed to hail the Mongols as an instrument to awaken the nation” (p.126) but he “may have been mistaken, if he thought that the success of an invasion by the Mongols would prove the truth of his predictions” (p.127). From 1266 onwards, emissaries from the court of the Mongol ruler Kublai Khan began arriving in Japan demanding tribute and that Japan acknowledge Mongol sovereignty in return for peace. The message reached the newly installed 18 year old regent Hojo Tokimune in 1268, who was angry at the insulting tone of Kublai’s message, so defense preparations were begun immediately in Kyushu and offshore islands. During the Mongol invasion of 1273/1274 the Samurai warriors got the worst of it at the hands of Mongol forces which employed coordinated mass cavalry tactics and explosive missiles. The evening of the initial landing however, a huge storm arrived to save the situation and the Mongol forces returned to Korea.

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Whilst Nichiren narrowly escaped the death sentence at Enoshima in 1271, a delegation of Mongolian messengers was executed on the spot at the same Tatsunokuchi execution ground in 1275. Joryu-ji Temple in Katase-Enoshima is known as the burial ground for the five messengers who were sent from the Mongol empire. Every year the Mongolian Sumo players and the Mongolian ambassador visit their tombs to pay their respects. The messengers had come to Japan in 1275 carrying a message from Kublai Khan demanding surrender. Hojo Tokimune rejected the demand and had the five messengers beheaded. The second invasion in 1281 was the largest naval invasion in history prior to modern times with 150,000 Mongol, Chinese and Korean invaders. This time the Japanese were better prepared, held their own, until another kamikaze “divine wind” arrived to turn back the invaders.

Nichiren’s legacy at the Honren-ji Temple  Honren-ji (figure 4-5) is believed to be the oldest building in the Katase-Enoshima geographic area. The temple belongs to the Nichiren Shu sect and was founded in 595 by Gigen. He was a disciple of Eji who, in 595, came from Korea and gave religious instruction to Shotoku Taishi (574-622). Thereafter, such celebrated priests as Taicho, Kukai (774-835), and Jikaku (794-864), are said to have stayed here. Nisshu converted the temple to the Nichiren sect in 1271. He had been greatly impressed by Nichiren, who, while staying here after his pardon at Tatsunokuchi, brought about a miraculously easy childbirth for the wife of a wealthy man in this area. Honren-ji is also associated with a local Nichiren monk who dedicated his life to the worship of Nichiren and to education. His name is Kiyota Yoshiaki (1916-1996). Born in a small village of Kanagawa prefecture he was ordained as Buddhist priest when he was twelve years old. He took the temple over and became the head priest in the 23rd generation. He has been well known as teacher and educator and respected by many residents and co-workers. He taught social studies for 38 years at various public junior high school and senior high schools. He later became a principal of the famous elite Shonan Koko (Shonan Senior High School). His was deeply dedicated to the teachings of Nichiren in his words and deeds as well. He practiced what he was preaching. For example, he once allowed a poor, unmarried teacher from his school to live in the temple precincts for seven years. He had three children, one daughter and two sons. His eldest

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Fig 4-5 View of the Honren-ji temple. The three stone carved Chinese characters for Honren-ji (seen on the lower right side) are written from the right to the left.

son choose not to succeed to his father and became instead a professor of literature whereas his second son took over the temple and became jushoku (chief temple priest). The temple derives its tax free income from funeral rites and land ownership rent. All the private homes around the temple precincts are built on land owned by the Honren-ji temple. The chief priest leases the land for a period of one hundred years to private users who are obliged to pay an annual rent to the temple. The benefits for the temple owners and private residents are mutual: on one hand residential zones are kept free from commercial real estate activities and residents do not need to pay inheritance taxes or expensive land ownership taxes. On the other hand private residents pay their annual dues to the temple and respect building restrictions such as the restriction to build only wooden structures.

The Enoshima mysticism of Eiji Yoshikawa The great Japanese author Eiji Yoshikawa (1892-1962) wrote in 1914 the award winning essay Enoshima Monogatari (Tale of Enoshima), a story that has never been translated into English. He was mainly

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influenced by classics such as The Tale of the Heike, Tale of Genji, Water Margin, and Romance of the Three Kingdoms, many of which he retold in his own style. As an example, the original manuscript of Taiko is 15 volumes; Yoshikawa took up to retell it in a more accessible tone, and reduced it to only two volumes. His other books also serve similar purposes and, although most of his novels are not original works, he created a huge amount of work and a renewed interest in the past. He was awarded the Cultural Order of Merit in 1960, the Order of the Sacred Treasure and the Mainichi Art Award just before his death from cancer in 1962. Yoshikawa was deeply inspired by Buddhist thinking. His epic historic novel Musashi is about a man who renounces his ambition to become a Samurai after being captured by a weaponless Buddhist monk. In 1914, at the beginning of his writing career, he entered a fiction writing contest sponsored by the magazine Kodan kurabu and won the first prize. Enoshima Monogatari was printed in the magazine and he received a cash award. The plot revolves around a vendetta and it includes love rivalries, fights and feuding Samurai and monks, and a variety of distinctive characters: superhuman Samurai, cruel villains, a beautiful maiden, and manipulative monks. At the beginning five key actors appear who do not know each other at the beginning but whose hidden connections become manifest as the story unfolds. The story starts with a fateful meeting between a certain Busaburo, who disguised as the fake Buddhist monk with the bame of Tabiso and wearing a sword, meets the real Buddhist monk Jikyu who has a palanquin on his back. We are told that Jikyu comes originally from the province of Nagano where he was raised as Buddhist monk since he was a child. It is said that Jikyu burnt down his own village because of the ill-talk of the villagers and fled to Kamakura to hide himself. At that time he was also told by a fortuneteller that he will be killed by a sword in the future and that every member of his family will also die. When the foretuneteller who had stayed with him in Nagano dies he inherits a palanquin from him. Inside is the God-Body of the goddess Benzaiten who is also known for having pacified a vicious dragon living in Enoshima in ancient times (for details of the story see the Kabuki play ‘Enoshima’ in Sieffert). On his escape he carries it with him. When he meets Tabiso alias Busaburo the two agree to exchange their possessions: Jikyu gives Busaburo the palanquin and receives the sword in exchange. At this stage appears a third actor in the story called Shiragikumaru, a beautiful young boy, son of a Samurai warrior from Kyoto. Shiragikumaru holds a grudge against his declared enemy Busaburo because this one had

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killed his father Ukiyo in the past. Ukiyo had discovered that Busaburo had had an affair with his wife Hanaji and asked him to leave. Busaburo and Ukiyo were cousins and Busaburo killed Ukiyo because he wanted him to separate from his wife Hanaji. Shiragikumaru feels a strong hatred against Busaburo, his relative, and wants to kill him. Similar to what happened to Jikyu, a fortuneteller has predicted that Shiragikumaru will die by drowning in the sea. In the next scene appears a beautiful young women called Ojosan. An ill-minded, lower level monk, called Kaiten, who happens to live in the same temple than Shiragikumaru, falls in love with her and becomes jealous of Shiragikumaru because he thinks Shiragikumaru loves Ojosan as well. Ojosan has indeed strong love feelings for Shiragikumaru. The abbot who supports Kaiten orders Shiragikumaru to leave the temple. In the meantime Jikyu gets acquainted with Ojosan and finds out that they are siblings. Shiragikumaru seeks the help of Jikyu to kill Busaburo. Overwhelmed by his feelings Jikyu falls in love with Shiragikumaru as well. Jikyu gives Shiragikumaru the sword he received from Busaburo and tells him that Busaburo is his brother, which is a lie. Shiragikumaru is so shocked about knowing the truth that he kills first Kaiten before drowning himself in the sea as predicted by the fortune teller. Learning about his tragic death Jikyu kills himself with the sword in presence of Ojosan who dies in a fire short after that. At the end of the story Busaburo goes to back to Kamakura. After having arrived, a white serpent approaches him and kills him. It is believed that the white serpent, a symbol of the goddess Benzaiten, carries the revenge spirit of Shiragikumaru. Yoshikawa once said that there are two types of art: art for the individual and art for the masses. He used the Buddhist allegory of the lesser vehicle and the greater vehicle to describe the art of the individual and the art of the masses respectively. Lesser vehicle connotes Hinayana Buddhism, in which individual salvation is attained through the individual struggle to achieve enlightenment. Greater vehicle refers to Mahayana Buddhism, in which the emphasis is on universal salvation. Yoshikawa’s implication is that while individual art brings fulfillment to the artist, mass art benefits greater numbers of people by taking their time to read the work. Enoshima Monogatari certainly reflects Yoshikawa’s identification with and concern for the people.

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References Anesaki, M. (2011). Nichiren, the Buddhist prophet. Charleston: Nabu Press. Christensen, J.A. (2001). Nichiren. Leader of Buddhist Reform in Japan. Fremont: Jain Publishers. Covell, S. (2009). Religious culture. In: Y. Sugimoto (Ed), The Cambridge companion to modern Japanese culture (pp.147-165). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Ellwood, Robert. (2007). Introducing Japanese Religion. London: Routledge. Habito, R. & and Stone, Jacqueline I. (Eds). (1999). Revisiting Nichiren. Special issue of the Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 26(3–4), 223-236. Hardacre, H. (1986). Kurozumikyo and the New Religions in Japan. Princeton: Princeton University Press. —. (1984). Lay Buddhism in contemporary Japan: Reiyukai Kyodan. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Maekawa, M. (2011). The dilemma of 'authentic self'. Ideology in contemporary Japan. International Journal of Japanese Sociology, 10 (1)16-28. Matsunami, K. (1976). Introducing Buddhism. Tokyo: Tuttle Publishing. —. (2004). Essentials of Japanese Buddhism. Tokyo: Omega-Com. Mishima, Y. (1984).The Samurai Ethic and Modern Japan. Tokyo: Charles E. Tuttle. Reader, I. (2011). Buddhism in crisis? Institutional decline in modern Japan. Buddhist Studies Review 28(2) 233-263. Sieffert, R. (1979) No et Kyogen. 2 vols. Paris: Publications Orientalistes de France. Stone, Jacqueline I. (1999). Original enlightenment and the transformation of medieval Japanese Buddhism. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. —. (2003). By Imperial edict and shogunal decree: politics and the issue of the ordination platform in modern lay Nichiren Buddhism. In: S. Heine & S. Charles Prebish (Eds), Buddhism in the modern world (pp.193219). New York: Oxford University Press. —. (2012). The sin of slandering the true dharma in Nichiren's thought. Retrieved February 1, 2014 from http://www.princeton.edu/~jstone/ Uchimura, K. (2010). Japan and the Japanese. Essays. London: The British Library.

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Watson, B. & Yampolsky P. (Eds). Letters of Nichiren. New York: Columbia University Press. Yoshikawa, E. (1977) Enoshima Monogatari. In: Collected Works, (pp.155-168).Tokyo: Kodansha.

FINAL THOUGHT

The present study has reflected on the social changes in Enoshima resulting from industrialization, globalization and urbanization. This study supported the opinion that the local residents of Enoshima have been torn between the extremes of modern mass tourism with its endless noise, traffic and pollution on one side and a self-sufficient, sustainable lifestyle with a strong sense of community on the other side. The essay on foreign visitors to Enoshima argued that the language of secular, scientific progress had been initially introduced by foreign visitors to Enoshima. Both Morse’s and Hearn’s appreciation of Japanese religious beliefs had been distorted by their rational and scientific worldview. Whereas Morse expressed complete indifference to religion in general, Hearn expressed disappointment with Shinto in particular. An interpretation of the research results also indicated that the transformation of Enoshima-once a closed and exclusive worship place of the Tokugawa family-into a public center of mass pilgrimage worsened social inequalities and relationships among local fishermen and business owners. The essay on tsunami mitigation measures in Enoshima made the point that planning for an emergency mass evacuation had been insufficient because local authorities put too much faith in central authorities and engineering experts and this dependence resulted in halfhearted efforts to ensure the design of a timely mass evacuation system. The essay on the religious zeal of Nichiren supporters in Enoshima highlighted the importance of pursuing a path of individual faith leading to salvation and suggested that self-cultivation rituals help to face the strains of modern society. The findings suggested that for Nichiren followers the right attitude is valued more than the right behavior. In addition, the ‘whole person’ approach of Nichiren (and Mishima) provided an illustration of the need for the ability to think and maintain an independent judgment in what Mishima described as the modern age “confinement of the individual into a single cog”. The essay on the Tenno-sai festival reiterated the symbolic importance of embracing strong community bonds among local communities. In conclusion, it can be said that individuals in Enoshima have been struggling to cultivate their selves and maintain a steady sense of purpose in their lives despite being affected by significant socio-economic and technological changes and

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despite living under conditions in which the Japanese state provides little moral guidance or support to the individual.

APPENDIX A BRIEF CHRONOLOGY OF ENOSHIMA

4000 BC The ocean begins eroding parts of the island, which will result in the Iwaya caves. After 5800 years, they will look good enough to inspire the artist Hiroshige to feature them in one of his ukiyoe prints 552 C.E. A tutelary shrine is established on the island. Enoshima Shrine actually holds three smaller shrines, each dedicated to one of three Shinto seagoddesses. - Hentsu Shrine is dedicated to Princess Tagitsu, the Nakatsu Shrine is dedicated to Princess Ichikishima, and the Okutsu Shrine is dedicated to Princess Tagiri. These are the goddesses of land, sea transport and fisheries. Also, according to legend, 552 was the year in which, after a terrible earthquake and lights flashing in the sky, Enoshima island appeared in the sea, and a woman appeared in the sky. The woman was the water nymph Benzaiten - the goddess whose naked statue resides in Enoshima Shrine. It is said that Enoshima Island appeared to accept her footsteps as she descended from the sky. She came to stop a five-headed dragon from tormenting the local villagers. Late Edo period (ca 1780-1820) Hoitsu Sakai paints a turtle on the ceiling of Enoshima Shrine. July 17 - August 18, 1877 Edward S. Morse rents a hut on Enoshima Island in order to study the local brachiopods. He later publishes a memoir Japan Day by Bay which covers his stay there. A memorial to Morse is located next to the Enoshima end of the bridge between the island and Fujisawa city. A few weeks earlier Morse had founded Japanese archaeology by looking out of a train window. Riding through Tokyo's Setagaya neighborhood, he noticed large mounds of white shells. Upon subsequent investigation, they were found to be the remains of kitchen refuse piles used by some of the earliest

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inhabitants of the region. They are now known as the Omori Shell Mounds or Omori Kazuka. Morse also served as instructor in the faculty of science at the new University of Tokyo (then known as Tokyo Imperial University), and was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun in 1898. 1882 Samuel Cocking, an English merchant, opens his garden to the public. He had bought a lot of land on the island with money he had made in the herb trade after coming to Japan in 1868. On this land he created the largest European-style garden then in Japan, and he opened it to the public in this year. It later became the Enoshima Botanical Garden. Meiji Period 1868-1912 The Buddhist great temple of Enoshima is destroyed in accordance with the government policy to promote Shintoism at the expense of Buddhism 1918 Kodama Shrine is built to worship the soul of General Gentaro Kodama, who served during the Meiji Period. The dog-statues of the shrine are presents from the people of Taiwan. 1923 The Great Kanto Earthquake devastates the island as well as the rest of the Kanto area. 1964 The Olympics come to Japan. The yachting club on Enoshima Island hosts the sailing events for the games. 1993 The Shingon Buddhist sect rebuilds the Great Temple of Enoshima. It features the largest Nio, or temple guardian statues, in Japan. They are 6 meters tall. 1996 A large bell is erected on "Lovers Hill". I guess the island was running out of spots where tourists could take pictures of each other. This is supposed to have some relation to the legend of Benzaiten.

APPENDIX B ANNUAL LIST OF EVENTS IN ENOSHIMA

JANUARY Date Events 1st㹼 Hatsumode (First visit to the shrines and temples) Mid.

FEBRUARY Date Events Setsubun (the division of the seasons)

Beg.- Valentine Island Enoshima Mid. Beg. Feb. 㹼 Late Mar.

Every shrine and temple

Midwinter Mikoshi (Portable Shrine) Training Festival Katase-Kaigan (to celebrate becoming adults, 20-year-old people carry Higashihama portable shrines) Beach

㸵th New Years Walking to meet the History of Fujisawa 㹼31st (Shichifukujin-meguri/Pilgrimage to the Seven Lucky Gods)

3rd

Places

Fujisawa Enoshima Treasure Hunt

MARCH Date Events Late Shonan Enoshima Spring Festival

Fujisawa

Places Every shrine and temple Enoshima Enoshima

Places Enoshima/KataseKaigan

Appendix B

90 APRIL Date Events

Places

Ceremony of the First Serpent Day First Serpent Day of the Year

Enoshima-jinja (Shrine)

Bamboo Charcoal Festival

Endo Kenko no Mori

Mid.

21st㹼 Kaisan-ki (Anniversary of Ippen Monk's death) 24th

Yugyo-ji (Temple)

Late

Plants Festival

JA Sagami Plant Distribution Center

Late

Ishikawa Milk Vetch Festival

Nearby Ishikawa Pump Station

MAY Date Events

Places

5th

Children's Festival

Shonen no Mori (Boy's Forest)

Beg.

Miyahara Milk Vetch's Village Festival

Miyahara

Beg.

Memorial Competition for the establishment of Beach Volleyball Permanent Courts

KugenumaKaigan Beach Volleyball Permanent Courts

Beg.

Spring Greenery and Flowers Festival

Nagakubo Park

Mid.

Chogo Festival

Chogo Park

JUNE Date Events

Places

Mid.

Endo Hydrangeas Festival

Along the Koidegawa (River)

30th

Chinowa Kuguri (Reed-Ring Ceremony)

Enoshima-jinja (Shrine)

The Goddess and the Dragon JULY Date Events

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Places

1st

Beach Opening Ceremony

Katase-Kaigan

Mid.

Enoshima Tenno Festival

Enoshima㹼 Katase-Kaigan Higashihama Beach

15th Shirahata-jinja Annual Festival 㹼21st

Shirahata-jinja (Shrine)

Mid.

Shonan Enoshima Hand-made Boat Race

Katase-Kaigan Higashihama Beach

Mid.

Shonan Enoshima "Queen of Sea" & "Prince of Sea" Contest

Katase-Kaigan Nishihama Beach Stage

Mid.

Shonan Tatsunokuchi Toro Nagashi (lanterns offering on the water) and Fireworks

Mouth of Sakaigawa (River)

Late

"Umi-no-Hi (National Maritime Day)" Beach Volleyball KugenumaCompetition Kaigan Beach Volleyball Permanent Courts

Late

Fujisawa Staging Post, Yugyo no Bon Festival

Yugyo-ji (Temple)

AUGUST Date Events

Places

Enoshima Fireworks Festival First Tuesday

Katase-Kaigan Nishihama Beach

Beg.

Andon Monogatari (Lantern Tales) Festival

Across Fujisawa Station North Exit

Mid.

Beach Volleyball Shonan

KugenumaKaigan Beach Volleyball Permanent Courts

17th

Kodai-jingu's Ningyo Dashi (festival with doll floats) Kodai-jingu (Shrine)

Appendix B

92 Mid.

Fujisawa Fruit Fair

JA Sagami Head Office

Mid.

Shonan Nebuta (colorful lighted floats) Festival

Around MutsuaiNichidai-Mae Station

Late

Beach Volleyball Japan

KugenumaKaigan Beach Volleyball Permanent Courts

Late

Yugyo-ji Takigi-No (open-air No performances lighted up by the bonfire)

Yugyo-ji (Temple)

23th㹼 Suwa-jinja Annual Festival 27th

Katase Suwajinja (Shrine)

SEPTEMBER Date Events

Places

11th㹼 Ryuko-ji Honan-e Festival (to celebrate the miracle of Ryuko-ji Nichiren) (Temple) 13th 15th

Susuki Nenbutsu-e (prayer with Japanese plum grass decoration)

Yugyo-ji (Temple)

Third Utsumochi-jinja Annual Festival Sunday

Utsumochi-jinja (Shrine)

21st㹼 Kaisan-ki (Anniversary of Ippen Monk's death) 24th

Yugyo-ji (Temple)

Late

Fujisawa Citizen's Festival

Around Fujisawa Station, Akibadai Culture and Gymnastics Hall

The Goddess and the Dragon OCTOBER Date Events Beg.

Japan Lifesaving Championship

Ceremony of the First Wild Boar Day First Wild Boar Day of the Year

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Places Katase-Kaigan Nishihama Beach Enoshima-jinja (Shrine)

Mid.

Fujisawa Plant Fair

JA Sagami Plant Distribution Center

Mid.

Shonan Enoshima Autumn Festival

Enoshima

Mid.

Enoshima Dragon Boat Race

Mouth of Sakaigawa (River)

Late

Shonandai Fantasia

Around Shonandai Station

28th

Yudate-Kagura (prayer for sound health with sprinkling of hot water)

Shirahata-jinja (Shrine)

NOVEMBER Date Events

Places

Mid.

Harvest Sightseeing Walk Rally

Late

Fujisawa Gardening Festival, Agricultural Product Fair JA Sagami Head Office

Utsumochi Village Harvest Festival Last Sunday 27th

Fujisawa

Utsumochi-jinja (Shrine)

Yugyo-ji Hitotsubi (prayer for forgiveness of sins and a Yugyo-ji happy new year with lights) (Temple)

DECEMBER Date Events

Places

Mid. 㹼 Late

Illmination of Enoshima Observation Lighthouse

Enoshima

31st

Joya-no-Kane (Watch-Night Bell)

Every shrine and temple