Sekiyama Shrine

"A magnificent shrine ⛩️
There were no visitors, but the silence and the quiet power of the stately worship hall made me feel like "Gods must be here 🤔" 🙏
I received a written goshuin."

刈部測詠

"Sekiyama Shrine
Shrine and palace: Nationally registered tangible cultural property

[Shrine] Sekiyama Shrine main hall, offering hall, worship hall
[Palace] Sekiyama Shrine palace

From the information board below)
Until the Edo period, Sekiyama Shrine was known as the sanctuary of the Sekiyama Sansha Gonchi, and was highly revered as the guardian deity of Mt. Choko and the surrounding Yamama region.
The history of worship of the mountain is long, and in the Heian period, a training hall for the mountain chief's successor was formed as a place of syncretism with the deity, and in the Middle Ages, Miyazoin appeared as the head priest in charge of the festivals of Sekiyama Gongen, and exerted great power as the lord who governed Mt. Myoko. The prosperity of Sekiyama during this period is described in later documents as "Seven halls of wealth" and "Seventy-two monks' quarters."
Sekiyama Gongen and its head temple, Hozo-in, fell into great decline after being burned down by the forces of Oda Nagatomo in 1582, but in the Edo period, Hozo-in was restored as a branch temple of Toeizan Kan'ei-ji (Tendai sect) and the festival of Sekiyama Gongen was revived. At the Sekiyama Shrine Grand Festival (commonly known as the Fire Festival) which continues to this day, some of the Buddhist rituals from this time are passed down as folk performing arts such as "temporary mountain ascetic stick handling" and "pine pulling."

・The current shrine building of Sekiyama Shrine is a gabled, raftered building made of high-quality zelkova wood. Reconstruction began in 1809 and was completed in 1818. The main hall, sanctuary and worship hall are integrated into one structure, and there are many carvings on each part. The palace, located at the innermost part of the shrine, is a Gokansha Nagare-zukuri (a style of building made of wood with a shingle roof) and was built in 1790, prior to the rebuilding of the shrine. The tips of the eaves are painted in alternating red and white, and the design is gorgeous in the details.

These buildings, built in the late Edo period, were registered as tangible cultural properties of Japan in March 2018.

Myoko City Board of Education"

A Coyaya

"This is a local shrine on Mt. Myoko, said to have been founded by the monk Hadakō in 708 during the Nara period. The Sekiyama Shrine Palace was designated a National Registered Tangible Cultural Property (architecture) on March 27, 2018. The Sekiyama Shrine's dragon flag, said to have been bestowed by Uesugi Kenshin, is 72cm tall and 53cm wide, featuring ascending and descending blue dragons embroidered in gold and silver thread on a red cloth background. The shrine grounds are home to the former Sekiyama Hozō-in Garden, a nationally designated cultural property. Every July, the "Fire Festival," a tradition of Shugendō, is held, and is designated a prefectural intangible cultural property. The atmosphere of the grounds is different when you park your car and exit. Is this a place of mountain worship or Shugendō training? When you enter the worship hall, you'll see a photo of the Bodhisattva Kannon. Huh? For a moment, I'm confused. Is this a temple? It feels strange. A written goshuin (temple seal) was left in the worship hall. Sekiyama Shrine has other attractions too, so if you're in the area, I recommend stopping by to pray.👍️"

杉本海（カイ）