Hiraizumi Customized Half-Day Tour — Guide Hitoshi

Title: What's a Private Historical Tour of Hiraizumi Like? A Licensed Guide's Report on Chuson-ji, Takkoku-no-Iwaya, and Motsu-ji

The guest came to Japan to visit various parts of the country and experience its history and culture firsthand. At Chuson-ji, the Chuson-ji lotus — which first bloomed in 1998 after 800 years — happened to be in flower, which delighted the guest greatly. In the Sankozo treasure hall, the guest looked with great interest at the sutras written in gold and silver on indigo paper, the keman ornaments, and the mother-of-pearl inlay work. At the Konjikido (Golden Hall), the guest seemed astonished to learn that the mummified remains of four generations of the Northern Fujiwara clan are enshrined beneath the altar platform. The guest also seemed to know the theory that it is said to be the palace of Zipangu that appears in Marco Polo's "The Travels," and listened again with renewed interest. Entering the old covered hall that had protected the Konjikido for nearly 700 years, the guest savored the atmosphere at length. At the eastern lookout, while gazing down at the site of the old battlefield, the guest listened intently to how, after the Zenkunen and Gosannen Wars, the first lord Kiyohira advanced to Hiraizumi by way of Esashi in Oshu. At Takkoku-no-Iwaya, the guest quickly sensed the serene atmosphere of the Bishamon-do hall and placed their hands together in prayer before the statue of Bishamonten. The guest looked up at the cliff-carved Buddha with interest and prayed at the Benten-do hall by the pond. Here I received a question about ema votive tablets. At the water channel near the exit, the guest spotted a frog and observed it until the taxi arrived, mentioning that they liked frogs. At Motsu-ji, the guest walked over the grounds of the temple once said to be unrivaled in the land and became deeply moved. The guest seemed interested in the elegant poetry banquet held along the winding stream. The guest appeared to have a considerable amount of background knowledge before this tour. They were also highly proficient in Japanese, with a command of the language strong enough to understand difficult vocabulary. It was a hot day, but by using a taxi to visit the three desired locations, the guest seemed very satisfied.

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Tour Report by Hitoshi

My name is Hitoshi Ohata. I’ve been an interpreter and guide for about six years since I retired. I live in Takizawa City which is at the foot of Mt. Iwate, the highest mountain in Iwate Prefecture. My hobby is playing table tennis once a week. I’m not a competitive player, I’m just having fun. I also play go, a board game. The main guides are a guide to Hiraizumi’s cultural heritage and a guide to cruise ship tours in Aomori and Iwate Prefecture. I’ve experienced the Great East Japan Earthquake, so I can talk about things like that. I try to convey Japanese culture and society to people overseas in an easy-to-understand way as much as possible.