Koyasan’s Okunoin Cemetery: Resting Place of Kukai

The two most sacred places in Koyasan are the Danjo Garan and Okunoin. The Danjo Garan for people to study and practice Buddhism and the Okunoin is its cemetery. While the Okunoin is a place of rest for many, it is not for one. Kukai passed away in 835 in the Okunoin, However, Shingon Buddhists believe that Kukai did not pass away but went into an eternal meditation, nyujyo.

Okunoin 

Okunoin is roughly 1o minutes from Okunoin-mae bus stop.  This route is very direct and will take you almost straight to the Okunoin. However, this way you will miss most of the cemetery. Our recommendation is to get off at the Ichinohashi-guchi bus stop and then walk to Okunoin. The entire trail is 2km but you can enjoy the sacred atmosphere of Koyasan. 

The entrance of Okunoin is right in front of the Ichinohashi-guchi bus stop. It looks like a dense forest, but path is completely straightforward, so you won’t get lost or even need a map.

Entrance of the Okunoin: You are now entering a different world!

Along the path, there are many tall centuries old cedar trees. There are also tens of thousands of graves, hoping to rest in peace near Kukai. You even can find a number of gravestones of famous people, including some famous samurai and warlords from the Sengoku Period.

However, many of those gravestones are memorial towers, meaning their body is not buried here. 

It is really nice to walk in the forest!
There are so many gravestones
ojizo-san

The gravestones in Okunoin are gorinto, or five-ringed tower, commonly seen in Shingon Buddhism. 

Each component of the tower represents five elements of Buddhism, namely sky (jewel-shape), air (hemisphere-shape), fire (pyramid-shape), water (round-shape), and earth (box-shape).  

 

Grave markers for the Moori clan in the Okunoin in Koyasan
Graves Moori clan: One of the biggest clans who conquered the Chugoku and Sanyo Region
Mausoleum of Uesugi Kenshin:
Mausoleum of Uesugi Kenshin: a famous and wealthy warlord from the Sengoku Period. Only warlord to have a mausoleum in the Okunoin.
Memorial dedicated to Tokugawa Hidetada’s wife, Sugenin at Koyasan okunoin cemetery
Memorial dedicated to Tokugawa Hidetada’s wife, Sugenin. This is the biggest memorial in Koyasan
Memorial for Oda Nobunaga. at the okunoin cemetery
Memorial for Oda Nobunaga.

At the end of Nakanoshi Bridge, there is a well called Sugatami no Ido [姿見の井戸]. If you can’t see your reflection in the well, you will die in three years.

nakanohashi in koyasan's okunoin
Nakanohashi

When you see Kakuban-zaka slope, you are almost half way! What is scary, is that if you slip on this slope, people believe that you will die in three years.

Kakuban-zaka slope at Okunoin in Koyasan
Kakuban-zaka

Kakuban was a monk who once practiced at Koyasan.

Former Mitsugen-do: Former site of Mitsugen Temple built by Kakuban

In this area used to be a temple called Mitsugen-do created by Kakuban, but now only this small temple commemorates it. For more on him see our post about Negoro-ji Temple!   

There are also literally hundreds, maybe even thousands of jizo in the Okunoin. 

make-up jizo at okunoin
“Make-up” Jizo

I wasn’t exaggerating.

Crossing the Tamagawa

After a while, you will be a little temple called Gokusho, where you can get a shuin. (There are bathrooms too.) During a day, there are so many people, especially tour groups. The Okunoin-mae bus stop is only a five minute walk from here.

Once you cross the small Tamagawa River, the area becomes a most scared place where Kukai is in practice. Unfortunately, you are not allowed to take any pictures beyond this point because it is a serious religious site.


Tamagawa river at the Okunoin
Tamagawa: back in ancient times, people purified themselves in this river before proceeding

At the end of the path is the Toro-do, a buildings with hundreds of lanterns hung from the ceiling and a fire, kept burning for a thousand years. It is hard to describe what it looks like in words, but surely, it is gorgeous. After visiting the Toro-do, makes sure to go around the building so that you can get as close to the grave of Kukai as possible!  

 

 

Since it is a cemetery, it may seem scary to be in the Okunoin at night, but it is very pretty. Bus service from Okunoin is available till 9 o’clock, you can walk around and take a bus to Koyasan Station.

Information: Okunoin

Address

 

 

Website

 

 

Getting To

From Koyasan station of cable car, take a bus to the Okunoin-mae bus stop.

 

Hours

365 days

 

Admission

Free

 

 

Note

 

 

 

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