広島牛田新町郵便局 (Hiroshima Ushita Shinmachi Post Office) Fukeiin - Hiroshima-shi, Hiroshima

On this day, I wanted to go somewhere along the Astram Line in Hiroshima-shi. I sometimes use the Astram Line to go to the area near Kenchomae station or Hondori station, but this time I wanted to go north of Shin-Hakushima station. I checked post offices offering fukeiin along the Astram Line and decided to go to two: Hiroshima Ushita Shinmachi post office and Hiroshima Hakushima Naka post office. Let's start with the Hiroshima Ushita Shinmachi Post Office. 

Fudo-in

I got off at Fudoin-mae (不道院前) station on the Astram Line and immediately went to Aki Fudoin temple. It's located right near the station (only 150 m away), and there is a clear sign that leads you there, so you won't miss it. It's quite a large Buddhist temple complex, with a main hall and several other buildings. 

Built during the Muromachi period, Fudoin was the largest Buddhist temple in Hiroshima at that time. If you're familiar with Japanese history, there was a period when two opposing imperial courts and their respective claimants to the throne were engaged in conflict over the throne, called the Nanboku-cho Period (南北朝時代). To appease the spirits of the samurai who died during the conflict, Ashikaga Takauji and Tadayoshi established Ankokuji temples across Japan. Fudoin is the Ankokuji temple for Aki Country, now Hiroshima. 

The history of the temple itself is full of turmoil. It was burned down during the Sengoku period, and a monk named Eikei rebuilt it. He relocated the temple's main hall from Yamaguchi, and now it has become the Ankokuji main hall. At this time, the temple practiced Zen Buddhism, and the Ankokuji main hall is considered one of the best examples of Zen Buddhist architecture in Japan of that period and is now a national treasure. However, due to his affiliation with Toyotomi Hideyoshi and the Western Army during the Sekigahara War, Eikei was executed, and Fushima Masanori, the new lord of Hiroshima, appointed Yuchin, his own prayer monk, as the head priest there. Since Yuchin was a Shingon Buddhist monk, the temple's sect changed from Zen to Shingon, and the name was changed to Fudo-in. Seeing how tranquil it looked now, I was surprised to read that it had such a history. 

Hiroshima Ushita Shinmachi Post Office

From Fudoin, I walked towards the Hiroshima Ushita Shinmachi post office. It's only 300 m away (around 5 minutes' walk) from the Fudoin-mae station on the Astram Line. On this day, I planned to send one postcard to Singapore and another, in an envelope, to the UK. As usual, I took a photo at the mailbox before going inside. I bought some stamps and a plain postcard to write my own address on and requested the officer to put fukeiin on all postcards and envelopes.

 

Hiroshima Ushita Shinmachi Post Office Fukeiin

A few days later, my postcard with the fukeiin arrived. It includes images of the Fudo-in temple's main hall and the Genbaku memorial. From the Japan Post official website: "The fukeiin depicts the main hall of Fudoin temple and the atomic bomb memorial." The fukeiin was launched on April 1st, 1986.

I'm glad that I visited Fudo-in temple on that day. As a history lover, I really enjoy visiting the places featured in the fukeiin and learning about their history. Bonus point if the featured place is located near (read: within 15 minutes' walk) from the post office hahaha. I'm not an outdoorsy person. >< 

I'll see you all on my next fukeiin adventure!

Cheers,

Mulic