はじめにINTRODUCTION

Doukutsu Kannon FounderTokuzo Yamada (1885 – 1964)

He was born in Niigata Prefecture, and his ancestors were rice merchants who were commissioned as the supplier for the ruling clan of Takasaki Domain, so in winter, when the fields were covered in snow, he would go out to the Kanto region every year to make money. Carrying Niigata-made “chijimifu” cloth on his back, he walked towards Edo, selling the cloth along the way. However, rather than just selling the cloth, Tokuzo took the materials they bought and worked with them himself, turning them into high value-added products, creating a very lucrative business. At the time, the city of Takasaki in Gunma was a trading hub for the Kanto area, and the Tamachi district of Takasaki, the city’s business center, was so prosperous that there was a saying in Japan that translates to “If you want to see Edo, go to Tamachi in Takasaki.” Takasaki wrote down his first impression of Takasaki: “In Niigata, when you buy a kimono, you pass it down to your son and even your grandson, and use it until nothing more than a scrap of cloth remains, but here they wear a different new kimono every day. One day, I’ll be able to do that too!” With his characteristic vitality, Tokuzo gained a lot of regular customers in this affluent neighborhood, moved to Takasaki, and founded the Yamatoku Kimono Store. Later, during the peak of the Taisho era（1912～1926）, he also expanded his business to the Chinese city of Qingdao, and established branch stores in Tokyo and Niigata. He built business relationships around Japan, and became friends with the political and financial leaders of the era.

The origin of Doukutsu KannonThe dreams that have been
passed down for 130 years.

Doukutsu Kannon is a tourism and pilgrimage site that was created approximately 130 years ago by Tokuzo Yamada, a kimono producer from Tamachi, Takasaki who spent his own money to build it. The goal of the project was to encourage tourism in Takasaki by attracting tourists from around the world, and make it so that if one walked through Doukutsu Kannon, they would receive the same blessings as the act of making a pilgrimage through the 33 shrines. Tokuzo amassed a large fortune as a merchant at a young age, but he lived a frugal lifestyle, didn’t boss people around or boast of his achievements, and avoided public appearances.

Doukutsu Kannon Details Welcome! You will be
warmly greeted by our staff.

In accordance with Tokuzo’s philosophy of sharing his wealth, the facility was not established as a religious corporation, but rather as a public interest incorporated foundation. Its purpose is different from the so-called “new religious movements” that are seen today. It was created by a merchant, so visitors will be greeted by the staff members’ shouts of “Welcome!”

Doukutsu Kannon and
Takasaki Byakue Daikannon Built by one person:
Doukutsu Kannon

When you hear “Bring Kannon to the cave!”, it sounds a bit suspicious, but when I researched the reason he said that, it’s apparently because Tokuzo, who had personally experienced war, believed that the safest place to pray to Kannon would be in a cave.
Near Doukutsu Kannon is the famous 41 meter high Takasaki Byakue Daikannon, which was actually built around the same time.
Takasaki Byakue Daikannon was a massive project involving the entire city of Takasaki. However, Doukutsu Kannon was the solo project of one man: Tokuzo Yamada. Furthermore, it was widely believed, not only by locals but even by his own family, that a project of this scale couldn’t be done by human hands, and Tokuzo was considered to be quite eccentric.