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 876,030 () and a geographic area of . Wakayama Prefecture borders Osaka Prefecture to the north, and Mie Prefecture and Nara Prefecture to ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

to the south of

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

. In the strictest sense, ''Mount Kōya'' is the mountain name ( sangō) of Kongōbu-ji Temple, the ecclesiastical headquarters of the Kōyasan sect of Shingon Buddhism.

History

First settled in 819 by the monk

Kūkai , born posthumously called , was a Japanese Buddhist monk, calligrapher, and poet who founded the Vajrayana, esoteric Shingon Buddhism, Shingon school of Buddhism. He travelled to China, where he studied Tangmi (Chinese Vajrayana Buddhism) und ...

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

Shingon is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asian Buddhism. It is a form of Japanese Esoteric Buddhism and is sometimes called "Tōmitsu" (東密 lit. "Esoteric uddhismof Tō- ...

sect of

Japanese Buddhism Buddhism was first established in Japan in the 6th century CE. Most of the Japanese Buddhists belong to new schools of Buddhism which were established in the Kamakura period (1185－1333). During the Edo period (1603–1868), Buddhism was cont ...

. 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 Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

has grown into the town of Kōya. Koya features 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.

Sites

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, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods and regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: ...

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

mandala A mandala (, ) 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 establishing a sacred space and as an aid ...

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. It took ten years to build and is architecturally representative of the Edo Period. First Edo shōgun Ieyasu is enshrined on the right and the second shōgun Hidetada on the left. The structure is decorated with carvings and brass fittings. * It also houses a replica of the Nestorian stele. In 2004,

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

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

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

" Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range". 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. Within the cemetery are several memorials valorizing the brutal wartime aggression of Japan in East Asia.

Access

Kōya-san is accessible primarily by the Nankai Electric Railway 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 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''.Takano Marine Liner on Wakayama-Kanko.jp

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 (, "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. rel. dict., ...

(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 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 Kōya Kūkai Koya Kōyasan