Chubu– category –

Natadera temple used to be a holy place to worship gods in ancient times. Nachidera's shukubo "Ikumo" is located at the top of Mount Engyo, with an altitude of 470 meters. The experience menu includes musical meditation and shakyo (copying sutra by hand).

This is a shukubo of Minobusan Kuon-ji temple. The rooms are separated by sliding doors, but are spacious and comfortable. The religious services at Kubono-bo are conducted from 17:00. Also, a "Seizakai" is held from 14:00 to 16:00 on the second and the fourth Sunday every month.

This is a shukubo of Minobusan Kuon-ji temple. The shukubo people were very kind and they served good food. Also, the Japanese garden of Minobu Town, which is designated as a cultural asset, is very beautiful. It is a must see. I felt as if my mind had been purified while I was leisurely watching the scenery.

This is a shukubo of the Togakushi Shrine. It used to be called Enmei-in in ancient times. Inside the building is a Shinto altar dedicated to Kuzuryu-no-Okami, Togakushi-no-Okami, ujigami and Fudomyo-o (Cetaka). Prayers are taken place in this place and it is open to general public to come and pray.

It is mandatory for guests staying at this shukubo to participate in chanting sutra, zazen and breakfast (rice porridge) in the morning. Reservations are required for shojin (vegetarian) course dishes. They also have a shojin cafe, where a steamed laver plate (steamed laver, black bean tea and pickles) is served.

This shukubo is located at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the Hokosha of Togakushi shrine. It has a beautiful thatched roof matching the well maintained garden. There was a morning service in which I participated. Their specialty, which is of course “soba” (buckwheat noodles), is nothing but delicious.

This is the shukubo where Shingen Takeda (1521-1573), a great feudal load and warrior prayed for victory. I had Togakushi soba (buckwheat noodles) for dinner (on an all-you-can-eat soba plan). They served fresh soba noodles using soba harvested in their own fields.

Daizenji Temple introduced grapes to Katsunuma for the first time; Katsunuma is now a grape production site. main hall (Yakushido), a national treasure is a typical main hall of esoteric Buddhism that represents the Kamakura period (1185 to 1333). In this hall, I received zazen instruction.

Konokon-bo is the oldest and highest among the many temple lodgings of Zenko-ji temple. Its special shojin vegetable dish, "Muryojyu" is very popular among guests. In the morning, you can observe the morning services held in Zenko-ji temple. The guest rooms are comfortable Japanese style room.

I stayed here at the time when the principal image of Zenkoji-temple was open to the general public (this is only held once every seven years). I was able to attend the morning services and the kaidan tour as well as the guided tour of the precinct of Zenko-ji temple.