Wakayama: Walk the Kumano Kodo to Kumano Hongu Taisha

The Hosshinmon-oji Shrine, meaning “Gate of Awakening,” marks the traditional entrance to the sacred area of Kumano Hongu Taisha. Pilgrims who reached this point were said to have already undergone a spiritual transformation—awakening the heart to the divine. The shrine, surrounded by cedar forests and quiet hills, embodies the threshold between the human world and the realm of the gods. Standing here, travelers begin their final approach toward Kumano’s spiritual center. As part of the Kumano Kodo’s network of ninety-nine Oji shrines, Hosshinmon-oji is one of the most important, preserving the essence of the ancient belief that nature itself is sacred.

Mizunomi-oji takes its name from the act of “drinking water.” In the days of the pilgrimage, travelers would pause here to rest, purify, and quench their thirst before continuing the long walk to Hongu. The spot symbolizes both physical and spiritual renewal—reminding pilgrims that faith is sustained by nature’s gifts. The gentle murmur of nearby streams and the rustle of the trees make this small shrine a quiet sanctuary within the forest. As part of the sacred chain of Oji shrines, Mizunomi-oji reflects the deep reverence for water in the Kumano faith, seen as a medium of purification and rebirth.

At Fushiogami-oji, the path opens to a view of the distant Kumano Hongu Taisha. Legend says that pilgrims, overwhelmed with emotion upon seeing the great shrine for the first time, would kneel in gratitude and prayer—hence the name “to worship while kneeling.” The moment captures the essence of the Kumano pilgrimage: not triumph, but humility before the sacred. The surrounding landscape, where mountain and mist merge, conveys the otherworldly beauty that defines the Kumano Kodo. Even today, this place invites visitors to pause and feel the quiet joy of arrival within sight of their destination.

The Sangen-jaya site once hosted three teahouses that served weary pilgrims as they neared Hongu. It was a place of brief respite and human warmth—where travelers shared stories, laughter, and sometimes tears after days on the mountain road. Though the teahouses no longer stand, the site reminds visitors that the Kumano Kodo was not only a journey of faith, but also of community. Here, between sacred shrines, people connected through kindness and hospitality, carrying the spirit of compassion that remains part of Kumano’s living tradition.

The word “harai” means “to cleanse,” and here pilgrims performed symbolic acts to purify body and mind before their final prayers. The small shrine, embraced by forest and wind, marks the completion of the inner journey—the cleansing of worldly burdens before entering the sacred. In the Kumano faith, purity is not separation from the world but harmony with it; Harai-do-oji reminds visitors that true purification is the return to simplicity and gratitude.

The Kumano Hongu Taisha is the spiritual heart of the Kumano Sanzan, the three great shrines of Kumano. Once located at the riverside plain of Oyunohara, it was moved to its current forested site after a devastating flood in 1889. Today, its elegant wooden pavilions and solemn torii gates stand amid towering cedars, radiating calm and sanctity. The shrine enshrines the deities of rebirth and guidance, drawing pilgrims from all over Japan for over a millennium. Here, prayers are not for victory or wealth but for renewal of the spirit. To stand in its stillness after walking the ancient path is to feel the essence of the Kumano Kodo itself—a sacred conversation between humanity and the divine.