Time required: 1 hour

Matsushima's hidden sacred place "Ojima"

It is said that in the olden days there were 108 rock caves on the island, and the ruins of about 50 remain today.
You can see the remains of many carved sotoba statues on the walls of the rock cave, which tell us that the monks of the time practiced ascetic practices while listening to the sound of the waves. From the island covered in green pine trees, you can see the entire coastline or Godaido Island, Futago Island, and Fukuura Island floating in the bay. After crossing the bridge, turn left and go through a short tunnel, you will see cliffs with rock caves and a small amount of flat land on all sides.
This is the site of Kenbutsu Hall, where Kenbutsu Shonin read through the 60,000 copies of the Lotus teachings, and is known as the inner temple. The area is densely covered with trees and is dark even today, but it must have been a very lonely place in the past.
When we think of the fact that Kenbutsu Shonin lived here for a long time of 12 years, we are reminded that his training was extraordinary.

name	Oshima
address	6 minutes walk from Matsushima Kaigan Station on the JR Senseki Line.
guide	The Matsu Island Secretariat (Akama)