Ōminesan-ji
Ōminesan-ji (大峯山寺, Ōminesan-ji) is an important temple of the Shugendō religion in Yoshino district, Nara prefecture, Japan. It is located at the peak of Mount Ōmine, or Sanjōgatake. According to tradition, it was founded by En no Ozunu, the founder of Shugendō, a form of mountain asceticism drawing from Buddhist and Shinto beliefs. Along with Kinpusen-ji Temple, it is considered the most important temple in Shugendō.[1]
You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in Japanese. (August 2022) Click [show] for important translation instructions.
|
The sanctuary around the Sanjōgatake peak (山上ヶ岳) has long been considered sacred in Shugendō,[2] and women are not allowed in the area[3][4] beyond four "gates" on the route to the peak.[5] On the neighboring Inamuragatake peak (稲村ヶ岳), altitude 1,726 m, it has been opened as a place of training for female believers since 1959, thus called "Women's Ōmine" (女人大峯, Nyonin Ōmine).
In 2004, Ōminesan-ji was designated as part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site under the name Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range.