1-2 倶利迦羅不動寺：山頂本堂 Kurikara-Fudo Temple： Mountaintop main hall
＜倶利伽羅不動寺 山頂本堂＞ The mountaintop main hall of Kurikara-Fudo Temple
義仲の大勝利から約830年を経た現在、倶利伽羅峠の古戦場は、倶利迦羅不動寺を中心とした祈りと憩いのエリアとして多くの人々に親しまれている。倶利迦羅不動寺は、養老2年（７１８）、元正天皇の勅願により、インドの高僧がこの地で国土安穏（あんおん）の祈願をしたのが起こりであると伝えら れている。「倶利迦羅」とは「福徳円満の黒い龍」を意味するインドの言葉であるとされている。倶利迦羅不動寺は源平の合戦で焼失したが、その後、源頼朝の寄進によって 再興され、今日まで法灯を受け継いできた。日本三不動の１つとして、今も多くの人々の崇敬を集め、様々な願い事を胸に 秘めた人々の参詣が絶えない。
Today, about 830 years after Yoshinaka’s great victory, the old battlefield of Kurikara Pass is loved by many people as an area of prayer and relaxation with Kurikara-Fudo Temple at its center. Kurikara-Fudo Temple is said to have originated in 718, when a high priest from India prayed for peace and tranquility in this area at the request of Emperor Gensho. It is said that the word “Kurikara” is an Indian word meaning “black dragon of good fortune and happiness. The temple was destroyed by fire during the Genpei War, but was later rebuilt with donations from Minamoto no Yoritomo, and has continued to carry on the Dharma light to this day. As one of the three fudos in Japan, the temple is still revered by many people and is constantly visited by those who have various wishes in their hearts.
よもやま話：俱利伽羅峠の不思議な言い伝え
古来より越中国と能州･加賀国との越境交通の要所であった倶利伽羅峠の「猿ケ馬場」には、不思議な言い伝えがあります。
その昔、峠を往来する旅人の前に猿の群れが立ちはだかり、悪さばかりしていたそうです。そんな猿であっても殺生はできず、ほどほど困り果てていた旅人たちの姿に、時の和尚がご本尊のお不動さまに日夜ご祈祷をされました。すると、ある夜の夢枕に「念仏を唱えながら餅をつき、赤く染めて猿に与えよ」とのお告げがありました。和尚は得心し、お告げのとおりに餅をつけて、猿の出るところに置きました。猿たちはおいしそうにそれを食べるとやがて姿を消し、それからは旅人たちに悪さをしなくなりました。以来、お餅は「霊験あらたかなお餅」とされて、今日に受け継がれています。
峠一帯の八重桜が花咲く頃、4月28日から5月5日にかけて、倶利迦羅さん八重桜まつりが開催され、期間中の4月28日、29日には倶利迦羅不動寺境内で「念仏赤餅つき」が行われます。「赤」は、赤ん坊のように邪念のない純真な心を表す色とされ、私利私欲にとらわれずに正しい道を歩むことが災難を避ける第一の心がけであることを意味します。「きれいな心で無病息災に過ごせますように」念仏赤餅には、そんな願いが込められています。
Mysterious legend of the Kurikara Pass
There is a mysterious legend about the “Sarugababa” of the Kutugara Pass, which has been a strategic point for cross-border traffic between Ecchu and Noshu/Kaga Provinces since ancient times.
It is said that in the old days, a troop of monkeys used to stand in front of travelers coming and going on the pass and misbehave with them. The monks of the time prayed day and night to the main deity, O-fudo-sama, in response to the travelers’ distress. One night, in his dream pillow, he received a message to “make rice cakes while chanting the Buddhist prayer, dye them red, and give them to the monkeys. The monk was convinced, so he dipped the rice cakes and placed them where the monkeys would appear, just as he had been told. The monkeys ate the rice cakes with relish and soon disappeared, and from then they did not misbehave with travelers. Since then, the rice cakes have been regarded as “rice cakes with miraculous powers” and have been handed down to the present day.
When the double-flowered cherry trees around the pass are in bloom, the Kurikara-san Yaezakura Festival is held from April 28 to May 5, and the “Nenbutsu Aka Mochi-TSuki” is held on April 28 and 29 in the premises of Kurikara Fudo Temple during this period. The color red is said to represent a pure heart, free of evil thoughts like that of a baby, and means that the first thing to do to avoid misfortune is to follow the right path, free from self-interest and greed. Nenbutsu aka-mochi (red rice cake with Buddhist symbols) is a symbol of the wish for a clean heart and good health.
＜From the “Historic National Highway Hokuriku Road” Highlights Guide Map>
①倶利迦羅不動寺山頂本堂の入口階段 Entrance steps of the mountaintop main hall of Kurikara-Fudo Temple
②倶利迦羅不動寺山頂本堂並びに手向神社の入口階段 Both entrance steps of ”the mountaintop main hall of Kurikara-fudoji temple” and ”Tamuke shrine”
③石段の中にあるハートマークを探そう Let’s look for a certain heart mark in a stone stairway.
④山頂から見た倶利迦羅不動寺山頂本堂 The mountaintop main hall of Kurikara-fudo temple which I looked at from the mountaintop of Mt. Kurikara.
⑤正面から見た倶利迦羅不動寺山頂本堂 The mountaintop main hall of a Kurikara-fudo temple which I looked at from the front
⑥長楽寺（昔の倶利迦羅不動寺）の配置図 The Layout of Choraku Temple whichi was on the site of Kurikara-fudo temple
⑦手向神社 Tamuke shrine
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