Mount Miwa, Sacred mountain in Sakurai, Japan
Mount Miwa is a sacred mountain near Sakurai in Nara Prefecture that rises about 467 meters above sea level. The slopes are covered with natural cedar forests, and several religious structures and shrines are distributed along the way.
The mountain's earliest recorded significance dates back to antiquity, when it was venerated as the residence of a deity. The base contains six keyhole-shaped burial mounds from the Kofun period, indicating royal connections.
The mountain is experienced by visitors today as a place of reverence where nature itself is treated as sacred. People enter it with respect and wear a white sash during the climb, which underscores this spiritual meaning.
Climbing the mountain requires advance permission from Sai Shrine, which can be obtained between 9 AM and 2 PM. Visitors should wear comfortable hiking shoes and allow enough time for the full route, as the forest path becomes quite steep toward the summit.
Unlike most Shinto temples, there is no separate shrine building here because the entire mountain formation itself is considered the physical body of the deity. This approach makes this one of the few remaining examples of this ancient form of Shinto belief.
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