The day began early, but later than I wanted to. Seems I can turn my alarm off in my sleep, even in another country! Tomorrow's much needed alarm is placed far away from the bed. However, the missed alarm did give me a chance to explore a nearby shopping mall (extremely nearby, as in the travel center) and more sleep. I got to Reigan-Do a bit later than anticipated, yet the only thing I missed because of it was a long wait (and possibly Aso-san, a volcano that lies about 1.5 hours away by train). My plans to visit Yaskawa-denki fell through, so I may just trip over there and take some photos of the outside tomorrow, before going back to Hakata and exploring/shopping.
Reigan-Do lies about a half-hour away from Kumamoto by bus, up in the beautiful mountains of Kyushu. On the trip there I met a frenchman, whose name escapes me at the moment, and we tripped together for the whole of the Reigan-Do excursion. I also met a Japanese sculptor, who speaks fluent Italian and left most of his work there. He and I conversed for most of the trip in a mix of broken English, Spanish/Italian, and Japanese - a fun experience to be sure.
Upon arriving at the Reigan-Do station, I saw miles of rice patties. The frenchman and myself had a kilometer long walk ahead of us. The surrounding country is intensely beautiful and I had to stop to take many pictures. My new friend didn't mind much, as I ran ahead to catch up and he also liked my shots enough to take the same for his own.
Finally, we arrived at Reigan-Do. For such an important site, it had very little fanfare about it. The little old lady at the front desk collected the 400 yen enterance fee (about $4) and we walked through an old and rusty electronic gate system. There is an extremely small exhibit of Musashi's personal effects just inside. This small group contains some of the most famous artifacts - several sumi-e paintings, his bokken used in most bouts after his with Saigo Takimori, and the bokken cut from an oar that he used against Saigo Takimori himself. Amazing stuff. The oar bokken is absolutely enormous, dwarfing a normal sword in both length and girth. Just past this small museum is a practicing Buddhist temple along with a Shinto shrine.
We walked deeper into the depths of Reigan-Do, and back in time. As we wound the old moss covered steps of broken rock and natural limestone, I was struck by just how remote this area was, as well as the power in the air. Around a corner lies a tall hill, with ancient Buddahs in niches set along the face. Each Buddah is unique, and there is an example of every Buddah in the Japanese system here. Some have broken, both on the face or lost the head completely. Some are so worn that it is impossible to make out their features. Yet each has its own personality and story - a minature play set in stone. At the end of the Buddahs lies the larger area set aside for the Vairochina (sp?), standing wise and absolute over the rest. The cave of Reigan-Do is set up and above, a high niche that in must have had to be climbed to enter in the days before concrete stairs were installed. It is not very large, only 10 foot by 15 foot or so, and has a beautiful view through the cedar pines towards the mountains. It is here that Miyamoto Musashi penned his famous work, Go Rin No Sho, or The Book of the Five Rings. While incorporating elements of both Buddhist and Bushido, Go Rin No Sho espouses a philosophy wholely Musashi's own - that of instantanious readiness and reaction, unconcerned with both the shade of emotion or the situation of yourself, while taking into account both. I can envision someone writing an all-encompassing work in a place like this - where nature itself surrounds everything.
After Reigan-Do, I returned to the hotel and relaxed a short while, before going out on the town. I spent about a half hour wandering the large arcade style shopping center here, before cutting down a small side alley. Set down some steps was a wonderful little sushi bar. It had all the elements of a great sushi place - friendly people, friendly company, excellent sushi, and lots of it for little money. I had a 16 piece sushi dish for about 1200 yen ($12) - a steal if you can find it. I then wandered around the arcade for a little while longer before settling in at an Internet cafe. After pounding out a few emails, I headed back out into the streets for a bit, then returned back to the hotel.