Tateri Kojin is one of Japan’s three great Kojin shrines, located at the summit of Kojin-dake (elevation 1,260 m) in the center of Nosegawa Village.
This shrine is associated with Kobo Daishi Kukai, who founded Mt. Koya approximately 1,200 years ago.
The stone steps leading to the main hall are lined with a series of rare “white wooden torii gates.”
Climbing up the mountain path, you’ll find a parking lot just before the shrine.
If you enter Nosegawa Village via the “Old Koya-Ryujin Skyline” (now a general national road) from Mt. Koya, the journey is relatively easy.
The view from the parking lot is stunning.
Passing through the torii gates, I head toward the shrine.
The phrase “You Omairi” conveys a warm welcome, meaning “Thank you for coming all this way.”
In the era before cars, one can imagine how challenging it must have been to visit this shrine deep in the mountains.
This is the purification fountain (Chozuya).
Starting to climb the approach path.
The white wooden torii gates have come into view ahead.
Passing through the torii gates, I head toward the main hall at the summit.
The white wooden torii gates are lined up at fairly close intervals.
Looking back, you can see the torii gates lined up like this.
Both new and old torii gates stand intermixed.
I’ve walked quite a distance, but the torii gates along the approach path still continue higher up.
Looking down from above at the path I just walked, you can clearly see the rows of torii gates lining the approach.
Finally, I have reached the summit.
The main shrine building is here.
This is the main shrine building.
Looking at the eaves of the main hall, a cedar tree passes right through them.
It seems the main hall was renovated without cutting down the cedar tree.
In front of the main shrine, they created a hole to protect the cedar tree without cutting it down.
The view of the mountains as seen from the main shrine.
The autumn foliage of Nosegawa Village.
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