A torii gate leads to Mt. Benten shrine, which venerates goddess Benzai-ten, at Koyasan (Mt Koya), Wakayama Prefecture, Honshu, Japan.

A torii gate leads to Mt. Benten shrine, which venerates goddess Benzai-ten, at Koyasan (Mt Koya), Wakayama Prefecture, Honshu, Japan. Benzai-ten is a Buddhist deity derived from Hindu goddess Saraswati. Koyasan is the center of Shingon Buddhism, introduced to Japan in 805 AD by Kobo Daishi (aka Kukai). Modern pilgrims emulate old by trekking here for basic temple lodgings to experience prayers and breakfast with the monks. Via Mount Benten, I walked
2 miles of the Nyonin Michi (Women's Pilgrimage Route), which circles Koyasan’s sacred precinct. Until 1872, women were not permitted within, so their pilgrimage went around, for prayer at the entrances. Now all are welcome to town, reached 3 hours south of Osaka by fast train > mountain train > funicular > bus, on the Kii Peninsula of Honshu, Japan's main island.

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Contained in galleries: Kii Peninsula: Koyasan / Mt. Koya, 2024 Oct: JAPAN all

A torii gate leads to Mt. Benten shrine, which venerates goddess Benzai-ten, at Koyasan (Mt Koya), Wakayama Prefecture, Honshu, Japan. Benzai-ten is a Buddhist deity derived from Hindu goddess Saraswati. Koyasan is the center of Shingon Buddhism, introduced to Japan in 805 AD by Kobo Daishi (aka Kukai). Modern pilgrims emulate old by trekking here for basic temple lodgings to experience prayers and breakfast with the monks. Via Mount Benten, I walked <br />
2 miles of the Nyonin Michi (Women's Pilgrimage Route), which circles Koyasan’s sacred precinct. Until 1872, women were not permitted within, so their pilgrimage went around, for prayer at the entrances. Now all are welcome to town, reached 3 hours south of Osaka by fast train > mountain train > funicular > bus, on the Kii Peninsula of Honshu, Japan's main island.