Kasagami no Mojiiwa - Kasagami no Mojiiwa

Japanese: 笠神の文字岩 - かさがみのもじいわ

<br /> A rock monument in Bitchu-cho, Takahashi City, Okayama Prefecture. It is located downstream of the Shin -Nariwa River Dam upstream of the Nariwa River. Usually hidden underwater and only appearing during dry seasons, the Mojiiwa is a monument to the excavation of more than ten difficult spots up and down the Nariwa River, centered on the Ryuzu rapids. The rock is 19 meters in circumference and 6 meters high, and is engraved with the details of the difficult construction work, which took place in 1307 (Tokuji 2) during the Kamakura period, when a shipping route was excavated at the Kasagami Ryuzu rapids upstream of the Nariwa River, an unparalleled difficult spot in Japan, with the protection of Buddha. This work to excavate the shipping route significantly reduced transportation time and labor. The central figure in the construction was Sonkai , a monk from Zenyo-ji Temple in Nariwa, the construction commissioner was Jissen from Saidai-ji Temple in Nara, and the head of the stonemasons was Inoyukitsune . Iyukitsune is said to have been a stonemason from the I clan of Song China who was involved in the reconstruction of Todaiji Temple in Nara, and is said to have carved the letter rock. It was designated a national historic site in 1941 (Showa 16) as a valuable document in the history of river excavation in Japan. Just below the rock is a stone with a poem engraved on it, written by magistrate Hayakawa Hachirozaemon in 1797 (Kansei 9) when he saw the letter rock. It is about a 40-minute drive from Bitchu-Takahashi Station on the JR Hakubi Line.

Source: Kodansha National Historic Site Guide Information

Japanese:

岡山県高梁市備中町にある岩石碑。成羽(なりわ)川上流の新成羽川ダムの下流に位置する。いつもは水中に隠れ、渇水期にしか現れないが、文字岩は、成羽川の龍頭(りゅうず)の瀬を中心にして上下十余ヵ所の難所を開削した記念碑である。周囲19m、高さ6mの巨岩で、鎌倉時代の1307年（徳治2）、日本でも無類の難所であった成羽川上流の笠神龍頭の瀬を仏の加護によって船路開削した、という難工事の経緯が刻まれている。この船路開削工事で、運送時間と労力が大幅に短縮された。工事の中心となったのは、成羽の善養寺の僧尊海(そんかい)で、工事奉行は奈良西大寺の実専(じっせん)、石工の頭領は伊行経(いのゆきつね)であった。伊行経は奈良の東大寺の再建にあたった宋の伊一族の石工といわれ、文字岩を刻んだとされる。わが国の河川開削史上の貴重な資料として、1941年（昭和16）に国の史跡に指定された。すぐ下手に、1797年（寛政9）、文字岩を見た代官早川八郎左衛門が詠んだ歌を刻んだ歌石がある。JR伯備線備中高梁駅から車で約40分。

出典　講談社国指定史跡ガイドについて　情報

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