Kannon Shrine in a Seaside Cave

2nd century emperor sees dragon-rider Kannon!

Oleh Takako Sakamoto

Community writer

Entrance to Tamagawa Cave Kannon Shrine on Echizen Beach

Torii gate of Tamagawa Cave Kannon standing at the foot of a hill

Paved pathway to the entrance to the cave

Inside the tunnel-like cave, 33 Kannon statues from the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage (33 Buddhist temples in Kansai Region) are collected. If you come here, you can make a pilgrimage to all 33 Kannon statues at once!

Serene face of a Kannon statue inside the cave

Visitors praying in front of the main altar at the end of the tunnel

Lit candles and sticks of incense in the dark cave

She's so beautiful, and looks compassionate!

Each statue has the name of the temple, and number of pilgrimage written on it

Main altar placed at the end of the cave

It's said that if you rub his head with your palm, then touch your body parts which needs healing, they would be healed. I touched my head first to prevent it from having an early stage of senile dementia, then rubbed down all over my body as it was aching from strenuous exploration!

White torii gate of Tamagawa Cave Kannon under the clear blue sky

When I visited Echizen Beach in mid October, I found a curious cave at the foot of a hill facing the beach. It was called 'Tamagawa Kannon Cave', and there were 33 Kannon statues collected from the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage (33 Buddhist temples in Kansai Region). The cave was actually a tunnel, and 33 statues were lined up on both sides of it. This shrine is said to be founded by Emperor Chuai, the 14th emperor of Japan, around the 2nd century. It enshrines the deity of sea. The legend is that when Emperor Chuai was passing by this cave, the sky suddenly became dark and the storm raged over the sea. Then Kannon, who was riding on the back of the dragon, materialized from the sea and miraculously quelled the storm. How interesting!

Echizen Beach Series 1. Echizen Beach in Early Autumn 2. Ebisu Shrine on Echizen Beach 3. Kannon Shrine in a Seaside Cave 4. Kocho Gate & Guano Rock 5. Daffodil Shrine at Echizen Beach 6. Echizen Cape Observation Deck