The ancient 500-year-old tree is what brought us to Chokoku-ji Temple in Hakuba. Hakuba is a small and warm village in the Japanese Alps in the prefecture of Nagano. Hakuba hosted events for the 1998 winter Olympics and now attracts millions of visitors per year.
In those millions of visitors, only a handful get to visit Chokoku-ji Temple because most are there to snowboard and ski. For the lucky ones that do, the ancient trees that live there are quite a sight for any spectator.
The Giants Among Us
When we arrived at the temple I instantly noticed the large amounts of snow trapped between the beautiful statues. As I walked around the temples main buildings, the trapped snow gave us a unique winter landscape. The doors of the temple were closed so I was only able to observe the artistic exterior design.
I followed my nephew down the temple’s path that led to the giants among us.
Right away you can feel the presence of the magnificent trees that live on the holy land. The youngest trees along the path seem to be only a couple hundred years old if compared to the 600-year-old tree we were there to see.
There are two ancient trees that live at Chokoku-ji Temple. One of them is 500 years old and the other is 600 years old. When we arrived I was only expecting to see one 500-year-old tree so you can imagine my surprise as we ran across this couple.
The experience with these ancient trees reminded me of mythical stories about couples reincarnating together as trees. Their spirits living together with love in a form that can live much longer than in human form. I enjoyed the experience in their presence so much that I made my nephew hug and both of these magnificent trees.
Landmarks of the Temple
We walked around to the temple’s bell to check out its craftsmanship after spending long moments with our new tree friends. It had a wooden gong that was perfectly crafted to fit its artistic design.
The bell's base was also perfectly crafted from what seemed like beautiful large pieces of wood.
Below the front entrance of the bell was a walkway decorated with numerous statues. Each statue seems to tell a story. There were smaller ones lined up in rows and complemented the group of giant trees behind them.
On the opposite side of the bell were bigger statues often seen along with Buddhist teachings. I spent long moments capturing images of these statues. I felt at peace honoring the spirituality of this beautiful town of 9000 people.
The Spirit of Hakuba
Most of the people that visit Hakuba are vibrant and full of excitement from their adventures snowboarding and skiing. The spirit of Hakuba is always a warm and friendly one so I’m grateful to get the opportunity to visit year after year. This was my first time visiting Chokoku-ji Temple and I will surely revisit my new tree friends, year after year.
Authored & Photographed by:
@stewsak
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