Honjo Matsuzakacho Park and the 47 Ronin 👹🍣🎎 Wonderful Japan

Japan is truly a fascinating country, and the longer you live here, the deeper you immerse yourself in its turbulent past. A past that is rich in stories and legends and that can quickly cast a spell over you even in this day and age. There is more than enough material and actors for these stories and legends, and countless books could be written about the samurai alone. Although of course countless books have already been written about them so.far.

But it is not only in words and writing that this turbulent past has made it into our present; fortunately, many of the places associated with this past have survived in modern Japan. At first glance, you might not believe it, but even in super-modern, fast-paced Tokyo, a whole host of places and sites have been preserved that are reminiscent of the various events of this great city.

And for this reason, it was not entirely by chance that on our last visit to Tokyo we passed Honjo Matsuzakacho Park. We were actually following in the footsteps of the painter Hokusai, but our search had led us to this very place, which is reminiscent of a story well known to most Japanese.

It is about the attack of the 47 Ronin, also known as the Ako Incident

This incident is one of Japan's most famous stories and is considered a symbol of loyalty, honor and sacrifice. In 1701, the daimyo Asano Naganori, the feudal lord of the Ako region, was repeatedly insulted by the court official Kira Yoshinaka. Asano finally lost his temper and attacked Kira in the shogunate palace - a serious offense that would cost him his life. By order of the shogunate, he was forced to commit seppuku, or ritual suicide, and his fiefdom was subsequently dissolved and his samurai became masterless - so-called ronin.

47 of these ronin, led by Ōishi Yoshio, then decided to avenge the death of their lord. They carefully planned an attack over the course of two years. On the night of December 14, 1702 (according to the calendar of the time), they stormed Kira's residence in Edo, killed him and brought his head to their lord's tomb in the Sengaku Temple.

Although their actions were admired by many other samurai across the country at the time, the law demanded that they be punished. 46 of them committed ritual suicide. Only one escaped this punishment, presumably due to his age or other unknown circumstances.

Honjo Matsuzakacho Park now marks the site of the former residence of Kira Yoshinaka, and is a significant historical landmark that preserves the events surrounding the 47 Ronin's act of revenge.

The original Kira residence covered approximately 8,400 square meters, but was replaced by private residences over time. In 1934, local residents purchased a small piece of the land and donated it to Tokyo City to preserve the historic site. Today, the park covers about 98 m², which is less than 1/80 of its original size.

But there is still a hint of the past: the preserved Namako walls and the black lacquered gates around the former residence are reminders of the high-ranking family's former status.

There is also a seated statue of Kira Kozukenosuke on the grounds themselves. It was modeled on a figure that Kira himself had made around 1690 at the age of 50 in the Kageyama Temple, his family temple in Kiracho in present-day Aichi Prefecture.

In a corner of Honjo Matsuzakacho Park, there is also a small Shintō shrine known as Matsuzaka Inari. This shrine was established in 1935 by merging two older Inari shrines - Ueno Inari and Kaneharu Inari. The Ueno Inari Shrine had been in the area for some time, while the Kaneharu Inari Shrine was probably established to pray for the purification of the area after the attack by the 47 Ronin.

Well, the times of the samurai and blood feuds have been over for a while now and we probably don't have to be too sad about it. But it's always a great experience to occasionally immerse yourself in these times and get a feel for this bygone era. A good understanding of our own history is often quite helpful in appreciating and accepting the present around us.

And it is precisely for this reason that I will continue to take detours that take me to places like this one. Here, the past suddenly comes to life and this feeling makes it even more fun to walk through the streets of Tokyo. Anyone who has already been to this wonderful should understand what I'm talking about....