Mitaki-dera Temple, Buddhist temple in Nishi-ku, Japan
Mitaki-dera is a temple of the Koyasan Shingon school on the slope of Mount Mitaki. Its grounds hold three waterfalls with different flows, named Komagatake, Bonsho and Yumei. The vermilion tahoto, a two-storey pagoda with a tall weathered spire, was moved here in 1951 from Hiro-Hachiman Shrine in Wakayama.
Founded in 809 by the monk Kukai, the temple is the 13th stop on the Chugoku 33 Kannon Pilgrimage. Its valley setting left it almost undamaged by the 1945 atomic bomb, about 3.18 km from the hypocenter, and it served as an emergency aid station. In 1951 the vermilion tahoto was moved here from Hiro-Hachiman-jinja in Hirogawa, Wakayama, as a memorial to the bomb victims.
The temple holds the position of the thirteenth stop on the Chugoku 33 Kannon Pilgrimage route, where visitors come to pay respects and seek blessings from the Goddess of Mercy.
The grounds are spread across different elevations, so expect some walking, especially if you want to see all three waterfalls. Wearing comfortable shoes is helpful as the pathways can be uneven in places.
The temple sits at the bottom of a valley cut into Mount Mitaki, about 3.18 km from the hypocenter, and survived the 1945 atomic bombing almost intact; it then served as a temporary relief station. Its three waterfalls, Komagatake, Bonsho and Yumei, have different flows, and their water is offered at the annual Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony.
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