長谷觀音, Buddhist temple in Koga, Japan.
Hase Kannon (長谷觀音) is a Buddhist temple in the city of Koga, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan, home to a wooden statue of the Eleven-faced Kannon carved from joined pieces of wood. The complex centers on a main hall that houses the statue, set within a residential part of the city.
The temple was founded in 1493 when a statue was brought from Hase-dera in Kamakura to Koga, and a hall was built to enshrine it. Its founding was connected to a desire to protect Koga Castle, which stood nearby at the time.
The temple is one of the stops on the Katsushika Bandō Kannon pilgrimage, where it holds the status of bangai fudasho, an additional station outside the numbered route. Each temple on this circuit has its own goeika hymn, and at Hase Kannon it runs: "In every age, vowing to save the beings of the three lands — Hase Kannon." Pilgrims chant it as they worship, a practice held to bring the same merit as reciting sutras.
The temple is in a residential neighborhood and can be reached on foot from nearby train stations in Koga. Sturdy footwear is a good idea, and it is worth leaving some extra time to find the entrance since signage may be limited.
The temple is counted as one of the "Three Hase Kannons" alongside the Hase-dera of Yamato (Nara) and Kamakura, a grouping already recorded in the 1830 Koga-shi. Local tradition adds that all three Eleven-faced Kannon statues were carved from a single camphor tree. The Koga image itself measures 206.34 cm and is made in the joined-wood technique with crystal eyes.
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