Chapter 6 Pilgrimage Day 11

Diary of the White Bush Clover

Day 11 (16 October) Gamagori to Toyohashi

While the people in the hotel were still sleeping, I went out for a walk by the sea. It was very calm and I breathed deeply. Far away I saw fishing boats coming back to shore. I thought I had gotten up early but I realized that someone had risen even earlier and had already finished their work for the day.

Today I walked to Toyohashi, arriving a day earlier than I had originally planned. On the way I stood at the bottom of a hill and prayed to Kobo Daishi’s statue, which stood at the top of Kobo-san. Kūkai, known after death as Kobo Daishi, brought the teachings of Buddhism back from China and he studied at Heian temple, then went on to found Koyasan and the tantric Shingon sect. The statue faced Mikawa Bay and the far horizon. Traveling by shinkansen you could only see the back of the statue but on my walk I was able to see his face.

I worried about the amount of traffic. In the distant past the road was originally built for people walking but now the emphasis was on the importance of cars and pedestrians are forced to walk on the side of the road. It is especially dangerous for old people and children. It is a pity. Three men offered me a ride. One was a young truck driver, one was a middle-aged businessman and one was an older man. Thanking each of them, I refused and continued walking.

I wanted to post my letters in the town of Maeshiba, so I entered the post office beside the road. As soon as I opened the door three young women working in the post office said “Konichiwa” in unison. I was surprised and looked around but I was the only customer there. I said “Good afternoon” in return to them. I could not believe that all three of them would greet one person. Usually officials have a reputation of not being so polite. If all public officials were like these women, people would feel more at ease.

I entered Toyohashi without having had anything to eat from morning until 1:30 in the afternoon. I could walk all day without eating. People can work without food for one or two days. I had lunch at a roadside restaurant. Next door was a service station. I asked for a memento stamp for my diary. Two men working in greasy clothes were surprised to see my notebook. “Good luck on your journey and take care,” they said and waved goodbye. I telephoned the next temple. I thought perhaps it was nearby but it was on the other side of the town so I felt disappointed and tired. If I rested I would arrive too late so I started walking with determination.

After awhile I reached the suburb on the outskirts of Toyohashi and found the temple. The priest of the sub-temple of Honmyo-ji welcomed me warmly. The priest’s mother was ama-san, a Buddhist nun. She said to me, “Let’s go to the sentō together. You need to relax and refresh yourself after your hard walk.” It had been a long time since I had been to a public bath. In the bath I looked around at the many women, all strangers to me. But everybody was naked together in the bath and some were talking to each other. It is a very special Japanese way. I had never thought about the sentō in this way before. Without saying anything we could trust each other and feel connected. That night I slept easily, feeling completely at home.

Chapter 6 Pilgrimage Day 10

Diary of the White Bush Clover

Day 10 (15 October) Abazaki to Gamagori

Last night I enjoyed talking with the Abe family until 1 o’clock in the morning. In the morning they came with me to the sub-temple of Kenkoku-ji to pray over the notebook.

At 8 o’clock I started walking along Route 247. After a little while it became a country road. Running beside the road was the Tōkaidō railway. In some of the train carriages I could see school children on an excursion. They waved at me as the trains passed going west and east. I remembered when I was a school girl going on field trips by train many, many years ago. I also had talked with my friends and waved to people on the road.

While I walked I ate onigiri, rice balls wrapped in seaweed. It was not good manners to eat and walk but I did not have much time. It was a very simple road. I walked for six hours, step by step. Sometimes I stopped to look at the map to make sure of where I was. The map was completely boro boro after being opened and closed so many times. I repaired it with many pieces of cellophane tape.

At last I could see the sea. I had not seen it for a long time. The sun was setting against the horizon and the silver waves were shining in the sunset. I arrived at a city. On my right side I could see Takeshima, an island that held a special honzon of Benten, the Shinto water goddess. Today was the Benten festival and many stalls had been set up. I went to Takeshima to pray to Benten and came back to the mainland.

Finally I reached Takeshima Hotel. My room had an ocean view. The sea breeze softly brushed my cheek. I saw someone fishing. Everywhere the sky and the sea were turning red in the sunset. I took a bath and then went for a walk along the seashore. It was hard to walk on the sand and my legs were very tired but after soaking in the hot water of the o-furo I needed to stretch my legs. The fish I had for dinner was delicious. After dinner I wrote in my diary.

The son of the hotel owner came into my room and I talked with him about my diary. “You walked from Kyōto?” he asked, surprised. I said, “Please do not forget the many people who lost their lives in the war.” He was a young man but he cried listening to my story. Nowadays many young people say, “Why didn’t they refuse to go to the war?” Or they say, “It’s nonsense to die for one’s country.” But this young boy had a gentle, pure mind, so he could understand. I try not to push my ideas on young people. I just talk to them and some day they may understand the real meaning of the preciousness of life.