The touching true story of Hanazono Inari Shrine: The fox dwelling dug by Abbot Tenkai

Did you know that in the very heart of Ueno Park in Tokyo, there’s a surprisingly serious Edo-period legend about a fox directly appealing to the monk Tenkai?

That’s the Hanazono Inari Shrine (formerly Shinobuoka Inari/Ana Inari), which we’ll introduce today. While it appears to be a quiet Inari shrine on the surface, the atmosphere changes dramatically once you enter the “O-ana-sama” (the cave) at the back of the grounds. A dimly lit, cave-like space, red lanterns, and a round hole about 30cm in diameter… it’s said that the fox Yazaemon and his family still live here.

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In 1625, during the construction of Kan’ei-ji Temple, the foxes living on the land faced a crisis. A clever fox, Yazaemon Fox, appeared on their behalf and appealed to Abbot Tenkai. Tenkai, feeling pity for the foxes losing their homes, dug a specially large cave and built a shrine to protect them. This story is a genuine episode, clearly recorded in ancient texts as “Yazaemon Fox.”

Upon visiting, a shiver runs down your spine the moment you open the iron gate. The heavy atmosphere and the silently seated guardian foxes create a space where photography is prohibited. It’s a place to forget the hustle and bustle of the city and confront your own wishes.

The blessings offered include business prosperity and family safety, and in recent years, it has also become popular as a power spot for matchmaking. Many women pray for success in love using the “white feather arrow” that has been passed down since the Edo period. Yazaemon Fox is the leader of the foxes, known for his intelligence and compassion. Therefore, it is said that he will respond sincerely to your prayers.

Its convenient location, just a 5-minute walk from Ueno Station, is also a major draw. Many first-time visitors say things like, “The air feels different,” or “My wish came true.”

Hanazono Inari Shrine offers a chance to experience genuine history and mystery even in the heart of the city. Perhaps the Yazaemon fox is still watching over us.

Peacemaker Tenkai (Gentosha Bunko) by Sei Hatano Tenkai, a Buddhist monk who also served as a strategist for Ieyasu, skillfully used both his identities to manipulate the imperial court with emotion and control temples and shrines with profit. He even used faith to control people, secretly working to concentrate power in the Edo shogunate. The ambition of this man, who dedicated his life to building the city of Edo that continues to this day, was singular: to end the turbulent times and create an era of peace. What was the ideal form of shogunate (organization) he aimed for?

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Tenkai (Paperback) by Makoto Mita A mysterious monk-like military strategist who supported the three Tokugawa shoguns (Ieyasu, Hidetada, and Iemitsu) and laid the foundation for Edo’s prosperity! A grand historical epic of the Warring States period, following the unparalleled genius who skillfully survived the turbulent Sengoku era, from the burning of Mount Hiei to the Battle of Mikatagahara, the Honnoji Incident, the Battle of Komaki-Nagakute, and the Battle of Sekigahara, until the age of 108, and built 260 years of peace in Edo.

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Edo’s Onmyoji: Tenkai’s Landscape Design by Kenji Miyamoto

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Takatora and Tenkai by Shun Hayami Todo Takatora — Although an outside daimyo who served Asai Nagamasa, Toyotomi Hidenaga, and Hideyoshi, he received the absolute trust of Tokugawa Ieyasu, and after Ieyasu’s death, he served the second shogun, Hidetada. A giant of a warrior, 6 feet 2 inches (approximately 190 cm) tall, with 99 scars all over his body, he is considered one of the three greatest castle builders of the Sengoku period, alongside Kato Kiyomasa and Kuroda Josui. He devised the layered tower style castle tower, which became the mainstream of modern castle towers, and built castles such as Iga Ueno Castle and Tanba Kameyama Castle. Lord of the Iyo Imabari Domain and Ise Tsu Domain.

Nankobo Tenkai — A high-ranking priest of the Tendai sect. He served three generations of the Tokugawa shogunate: Ieyasu, Hidetada, and Iemitsu. He decided on Ieyasu’s divine title, “Tōshō Daigongen,” and, following the example of Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei, founded Tōeizan Kan’ei-ji Temple in Ueno, the northeast corner of Edo Castle. He planned the protection of Edo based on Onmyōdō (Japanese esoteric cosmology) and Feng Shui. He is rumored to be the surviving form of Akechi Mitsuhide after the Battle of Yamazaki. He died in 1643 at the age of 108.

Takatora, who recognized Tokugawa Ieyasu as the ruler of Japan and decided to serve him as a retainer, aimed for peace and stability throughout the land together with Tenkai, a monk of Kita-in Temple whose vast knowledge and abilities were recognized by Ieyasu at the victory celebration of the Battle of Sekigahara. This full-length historical novel depicts the machinations of Ishida Mitsunari’s retainer, Shima Sakon, the espionage battle between the Fuma clan’s ninja and the Iga clan, the intrigues and machinations surrounding Toyotomi Hideyori’s appointment as regent, the Hokoji Temple incident known for the bell inscription “National Peace and Prosperity, and the Joy of Ruler and Subject,” and the Siege of Osaka, which aimed to destroy the Toyotomi family.

Takatora and Tenkai, who enjoyed such deep trust that Ieyasu, on his deathbed, said, “I want to sleep with Tenkai and Takatora after death,” and who played a vital role in the founding of the Tokugawa shogunate and laid the foundation for an era of peace, are portrayed in this newly written historical novel.

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Political Monk Tenkai and Suden by Kazuhiko Kawamura

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