114_Hikingat Mt. Shirataka_白鷹山登山

登山シーズンに入ってすっかり山への情熱が戻ってきたので、最近また山に登ってきました。登山中に興味深い話も聞いたので、今日は登山の感想と、登った山についての紹介をしていこうと思います。

今回登ったのは、白鷹山。山形県の南部にある、994mの低山です。登山道は7つあり、私が登ったルートの入り口には鳥居がありました。実は白鷹山はこの地域を代表する信仰の山で、福満大虚空蔵尊(ふくまんだいこくぞうそん)という菩薩が祀られているんです。この地域の歴代領主の信仰も厚く、名君上杉鷹山の名前はこの山によるものと言われています。

1時間ほど緩やかな山道を登ると、頂上に着きます。山頂には神社があり、隣には鷹山の「伝国の辞」があって、鷹山が家督を譲る、つまり自分が引退するときに示した教えが記されていました。ちなみに、その隣にはなんとケネディ元大統領の演説も書いてあるんですよ。ケネディ元大統領は、尊敬する人物として上杉鷹山の名前を挙げていたんですって。

1時間ほど頂上で休んでいると、山を管理している方が来て、山について説明してくれました。思いがけない登山者との交流も、登山の醍醐味のひとつですね。

During this mountain climbing season, my passion for the mountains has returned in full force, and I have recently climbed yet another mountain. I heard some interesting stories during the climb, so today I will share my climbing experience and introduce the mountain.

The mountain I climbed this time was Mt. Shirataka. It is a low mountain of 994 meters, located in the southern part of Yamagata Prefecture. There are seven trails on this mountain, and at the entrance of the route I climbed was a torii gate. Actually, Mt. Shirataka is a sacred mountain representing the regional beliefs, and a Bodhisattva, called Fukuman-daikokuzo-son, is enshrined here. It is said that the famous lord Uesugi Yozan, who was a great lord of the area, was named after this mountain. The same kanji is used for Shiratakayama and Yozan.

After climbing a gentle sloping mountain path for about an hour, I reached the summit. On the mountain top is a shrine, and next to the shrine is Yozan’s "Denkoku no Ji”, which contains the teachings that Yozan delivered when he handed over his governorship. By the way, there is also a speech by former President Kennedy written down next to it. It is said that President Kennedy mentioned Uesugi Yozan as a person whom he respected.

After resting at the top for an hour or so, a person who took care of the mountain came and explained to me about the mountain. Isn’t it one of the best parts of mountain climbing to interact unexpectedly with fellow climbers?