Tôshôdai-ji and Maruhoyama Kofun

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Tôshôdai-ji

   Toshodai-ji exists because a blind monk would not give up. Ganjin, a Chinese master of Buddhist law, was invited to Japan in the eighth century to teach proper monastic ordination, and he tried to cross the sea five times, defeated by storms, pirates and official obstruction, until he went blind. On the sixth attempt, in 753, he arrived in Japan, and in 759 he founded this temple in Nara. His own ordination hall still stands in the grounds, and a dry-lacquer statue of him, said to be a faithful likeness, is kept at the temple and shown only occasionally.

   Read the complete Tôshôdai-ji write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Tôshôdai-ji is where the day begins. Next is Ingyo-tenno-ryo Kofun.

2. 2. Ingyo-tenno-ryo Kofun

   The tomb attributed to Emperor Ingyo stands in Fujiidera, in the eastern suburbs of Osaka, and it belongs to the Furuichi group of kofun, the other half of the World Heritage site shared with Sakai's Mozu tombs. It is a large keyhole-shaped mound, wooded and surrounded by a moat, and like all imperial tombs it is managed by the Imperial Household Agency and closed to visitors. Scholars debate whether the attributions to specific emperors are accurate, since they were made long after the tombs were built, but the scale of the monuments speaks for itself. Nearby, the tomb attributed to Emperor Ojin, Kondagobyoyama, is the second largest in Japan by volume.

   Read the complete Ingyo-tenno-ryo Kofun write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Ingyo-tenno-ryo Kofun comes up about 25 km into the recorded legs. Next is Maruhoyama Kofun.

3. 3. Maruhoyama Kofun

   Look at a satellite photograph of the city of Sakai and you will see something odd. Among the grey grid of roofs lie dark green shapes, some shaped like keyholes, ringed by water, sitting between houses and rail lines as if the city were growing around them. These are the Mozu kofun, great burial mounds raised for the rulers of the Yamato kingdom in the fifth century, and they form the western half of the Mozu-Furuichi group that was inscribed as World Heritage in 2019. The largest, the Daisen Kofun, is traditionally attributed to Emperor Nintoku and is one of the biggest tombs in the world by area, about half a kilometre long.

   Read the complete Maruhoyama Kofun write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 39 km into the recorded legs you reach Maruhoyama Kofun. Next is back through Ingyo-tenno-ryo Kofun.

4. 4. back through Ingyo-tenno-ryo Kofun

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Ingyo-tenno-ryo Kofun write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Ingyo-tenno-ryo Kofun, late in the day. Next is Tôshôdai-ji.

5. 5. Tôshôdai-ji

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Tôshôdai-ji write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Back at Tôshôdai-ji. That is the ride.