The “Hail Amida Buddha” Monument in Sone, Owase City, Mie Prefecture
This stone monument, inscribed with the standard invocation to Amida Buddha (阿弥陀如来) of the Western Pure Land, i.e. “Namu Amida Butsu” (南無阿弥陀仏), was established in 1718 on the grounds of what was then the location of Anjōji Temple (安定寺) by its head monk, Genkū Ryūshin (元空竜辰), in order to pray for the safety and well-being of pilgrims and travelers passing along the Kumano Roadway nearby.
Prior to that in the late 16th century during the Warring States period this was the site of one of a pair of checkpoints set up along the Kumano Roadway by Sasaki Uemon Masayoshi (佐々木宇右衛門正吉), a lesser known member of the Sasaki warrior clan of Ōmi Province who upon invitation settled down and built his castle in this area to maintain some level of civil order (changing his name to Sone Danjō (曽根弾正) to reflect his new role). When things settled down in the 1600′s the checkpoints were no longer necessary, and in 1661 the temple was built here instead with a monk from the Iga Ueno area brought in as founding abbot. The temple itself was moved to its current spot in 1828, leaving this monument behind.
Image from the Owase Tourism Association (尾鷲観光物産協会) providing event information for a walking tour (see source). Information adapted from the entry in the list of cultural properties on Owase’s official website under the heading 南無阿弥陀仏名号碑
