is a large temple settlement in

Wakayama Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Wakayama Prefecture has a population of 944,320 () and has a geographic area of . Wakayama Prefecture borders Osaka Prefecture to the north, and Mie Prefecture and Nara Prefecture ...

, Japan to the south of

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

. In the strictest sense, ''Mount Kōya'' is the mountain name ( sangō) of

Kongōbu-ji is the ecclesiastic head temple of Kōyasan Shingon Buddhism, located on , Wakayama Prefecture, Japan. Its name means ''Temple of the Diamond Mountain Peak''. It is part of the " Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range ...

Temple, the ecclesiastical headquarters of the Kōyasan sect of

Shingon Buddhism Shingon monks at Mount Koya is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asia, originally spread from India to China through traveling monks such as Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra. K ...

. First settled in 819 by the monk

Kūkai Kūkai (; 27 July 774 – 22 April 835Kūkai was born in 774, the 5th year of the Hōki era; his exact date of birth was designated as the fifteenth day of the sixth month of the Japanese lunar calendar, some 400 years later, by the Shingon sec ...

, Mount Kōya is primarily known as the world headquarters of the Kōyasan

Shingon file:Koyasan (Mount Koya) monks.jpg, Shingon monks at Mount Koya is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asia, originally spread from India to China through traveling monks suc ...

sect of

Japanese Buddhism Buddhism has been practiced in Japan since about the 6th century CE. Japanese Buddhism () created many new Buddhist schools, and some schools are original to Japan and some are derived from Chinese Buddhist schools. Japanese Buddhism has had ...

. Located on an 800-meter-high plain amid eight peaks of the mountain (which was the reason this location was selected, in that the terrain is supposed to resemble a lotus plant), the original

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

has grown into the town of Kōya, featuring a university dedicated to religious studies and 120 sub-temples, many of which offer lodging to pilgrims. Mount Kōya is also a common starting point to the associated with Kūkai. The mountain is home to the following famous sites: * , the head temple of the Kōyasan Shingon Buddhism. Located roughly in the middle of the sanctuary, Kongobuji is colloquially known as "Kōyasan-Issan", literally meaning "the mountain of Kōya". The temple was built by the warlord

Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: Military Innovations that Changed the Cour ...

for the benefit of his mother when she died. Originally named Seigan-ji, it was later renamed Kongōbu-ji in the Meiji Era. * , at the heartland of the Mount Kōya settlement. ''Garan'' is a name for an area that has the main sacred buildings: a main hall, several pagodas, a scripture storage, a bell tower, a lecture hall, and other halls dedicated to important deities. There is also a shrine dedicated to the Shintō gods of that mountain area and in front of it an assembly hall (Sannō-dō). Danjō Garan is one of the two sacred spots around Mount Kōya. * , the "Basic Great

Pagoda A pagoda is an Asian tiered tower with multiple eaves common to Nepal, India, China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most often Buddhist but sometimes Taoist, ...

" that according to Shingon Buddhist doctrine represents the central point of a

mandala A mandala ( sa, मण्डल, maṇḍala, circle, ) is a geometric configuration of symbols. In various spiritual traditions, mandalas may be employed for focusing attention of practitioners and adepts, as a spiritual guidance tool, for e ...

covering all of Japan. Standing at 48.5 meters tall and situated right in the middle of Kōyasan, this pagoda was built as a seminary for the esoteric practices of Shingon Buddhism. This pagoda and the Okunoin Temple form a large sanctuary. * , an assembly hall for special ceremonies dedicated to the Shintō gods guarding the area * , the mausoleum of

, surrounded by an immense graveyard (the largest in Japan) * , the traditional route up the mountain with stone markers (''ishi'') every 109 meters (''chō'') * , the main gate for Mount Kōya. This mammoth gate stands as the main entrance to Kōyasan. It is flanked on each side by Kongo warriors who guard the mountain. *Tokugawa Family Tomb. This mausoleum was built by the third shōgun

Iemitsu Tokugawa Tokugawa Iemitsu (徳川家光, August 12, 1604 – June 8, 1651) was the third ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa dynasty. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Hidetada with Oeyo, and the grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Lady Kasuga was his wet nurse, who a ...

. It took ten years to build and is architecturally representative of the Edo Period. First Edo shōgun

Ieyasu was the founder and first '' shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and f ...

is enshrined on the right and the second shōgun

Hidetada was the second ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa dynasty, who ruled from 1605 until his abdication in 1623. He was the third son of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate. Early life (1579–1593) Tokugawa Hidetada was bo ...

on the left. The structure is decorated with carvings and brass fittings. * It also houses a replica of the

Nestorian stele The Xi'an Stele or the Jingjiao Stele ( zh, c=景教碑, p= Jǐngjiào bēi), sometimes translated as the "Nestorian Stele," is a Tang Chinese stele erected in 781 that documents 150 years of early Christianity in China. It is a limestone block ...

. In 2004,

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

designated Kongõbu-ji on Mount Kōya, as part of the

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located on the Kii Peninsula in Japan. Selection criteria The locations and paths for this heritage site were based on their historical and modern imp ...

". Kōya Sankeimichi, the traditional pilgrimage route to Mount Kōya was also inscribed as part of the World Heritage Site. The complex includes a memorial hall and cemetery honoring Japanese who were imprisoned or executed for committing atrocities during World War II.

Access

Kōya-san is accessible primarily by the

Nankai Electric Railway is a private railway in Japan, founded in 1884. The name ''Nankai'' (which means "South Sea") comes from the company's routes along the Nankaidō, the old highway that ran south from the old capital, Kyoto, along the sea coast. Nankai predates a ...

from Namba Station (in Osaka) to Gokurakubashi Station at the base of the mountain. A cable car from Gokurakubashi ("Paradise Bridge") then whisks visitors to the top in 5 minutes. The entire trip takes about 1.5 hours on an express train or 2 hours by non-express. Local automobile traffic can be very heavy on weekends until well into the evening. On weekdays, however, the mountain offers a pleasant drive followed by the excitement of reaching the monasteries lining the summit. Many Buddhist monasteries on the mountain function as hotels for visitors providing traditional accommodation with an evening meal and breakfast. Guest are also invited to participate in the morning services.

Buses

*There is a bus which runs non-stop from

Kansai Airport Kansai International Airport ( ja, 関西国際空港, Kansai Kokusai Kūkō) commonly known as is the primary international airport in the Greater Osaka Area of Japan and the closest international airport to the cities of Osaka, Kyoto, and ...

to Mount Kōya, and it costs 2,000 yen (adult). The bus is operated by Kansai Airport Transportion and Willer Express. *The ''Koyasan Marine Liner'' bus runs from Wakayamakō Station to Okunoin Bus stop on Mount Kōya, and it costs 2250 yen (adult). The bus is operated by Daijū Bus - ''大十バス''.Detail
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Climate

Gallery

File:Kongobuji-Koyasan-Portal.JPG, Entrance to Kōya-san with two pillars showing the temple name Kongōbu-ji (Kongōbu Temple) and its mountain name Kōya-san File:Danjogaran Koyasan02s5s3200.jpg, Main Hall (Kondō) of Kongōbu Temple (Danjōgaran) File:Danjogaran Koyasan08n4272.jpg, Saitō, West Pagoda (Danjōgaran) File:Danjogaran Koyasan23n3200.jpg, Tōtō, East Pagoda(Danjōgaran) File:Danjogaran Koyasan18n3200.jpg, Fudōdo, the hall dedicated to

Fudō Myōō or Achala ( sa, अचल, "The Immovable", ), also known as (, "Immovable Lord") or (, "Noble Immovable Lord"), is a wrathful deity and ''dharmapala'' (protector of the Dharma) prominent in Vajrayana Buddhism and East Asian Buddhism., Jp. re ...

(National Treasure) File:Danjogaran Koyasan05s5s4272.jpg, Sanō-in, Hall of the "Mountain King", the local Shintō deity (Danjōgaran) File:Kongobuji Temple, Koyasan, Japan - front facade.JPG, Kongōbu-Temple File:Kongobuji Temple, Koyasan, Japan - Banryutei rock garden.JPG, Banryūtei, a rock garden in Kongōbu-Temple File:Kongosanmaiin Tahoto.JPG, Pagoda of Kongōsanmai-Temple (Kongōsanmai-in), the second oldest "treasure pagoda" in Japan (National Treasure) File:Mt Koya monks.jpg, Shingon Buddhist monks, Mount Kōya, 2004 File:KoyaSatsumaShimazuKeNoHaka.jpg,

Shimazu clan The were the ''daimyō'' of the Satsuma han, which spread over Satsuma, Ōsumi and Hyūga provinces in Japan. The Shimazu were identified as one of the '' tozama'' or outsider ''daimyō'' familiesAppert, Georges ''et al.'' (1888). in cont ...

graves File:Okunoin-Cemetery.jpg, Okunoin Cemetery File:Okunoin cemetery.jpg, Graves in Okunoin Cemetery File:Mount Koya.jpg, Okunoin Cemetery File:A statue in Okunoin cemetery.jpg, A statue of a deceased pilgrim at his grave site in Okunoin Cemetery File:Another statue in Okunoin cemetery.jpg, A Kannon-statue in Okunoin Cemetery File:Okunoin, Koyasan - figure d.JPG, Two Kṣitigarbha-statues (Jizō bosatsu), Okunoin Cemetery File:Okunoin Cemetery, Koyasan, Japan.JPG, Okunoin Cemetery File:Okunoin_Cemetery,_Koya-san,_Japan_2009.jpg, A Path in Okunoin Cemetery File:Tokugawa Mausoleums, Koyasan, Japan.JPG, Tokugawa Mausoleum

Notes

External links

Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range (UNESCO)
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JAPAN: the Official Guide
Koyasan Tourist AssociationPhoto set of the Okunoin cemetery of Koyasan
(photos under Creative Commons license) {{DEFAULTSORT:Mount Koya Koya Buddhist temples in Wakayama Prefecture Shingon Buddhism World Heritage Sites in Japan Sacred mountains of Japan Kūkai Koya