“A red-light district
Just ten steps away
Autumn breeze”

This is a haiku poem composed by Shiki Masaoka when he visited Dogo with Soseki Natsume, both famous Japanese authors. As the poem suggests, there was a time when a red-light district was adjacent to Hogon-ji Temple.

Hogon-ji is also where the famous Japanese monk, Ippen, was born and raised. Ippen was a descendent of the revered Kono Clan who once ruled over this area. However, due to the Mongol invasions of Japan and the general chaos of the world, Ippen threw all of this away and devoted himself to reciting the sutras while dancing. This came to be known as “Shasei,” or “odori-nembutsu,” and he traveled the country gaining respect around the nation. This became the precursor to the modern day “Bon-Odori” dance.

Shiki Masaoka, who was also originally from Matsuyama, referred to Ippen as the true hero of Matsuyama. We wonder what kind of discussions he had here with Natsume Soseki.