Zeze Shrine is said to have been established in the Nara period (710-794 CE), and is where the deity Toyokebimeno-kami is enshrined. During the middle ages, a period in which religious faith among military commanders was quite strong, there are…

Central

Tenson Shrine is also sometimes known as Shinomiya Shrine (“Shrine of the Fourth”) because the important deities Hikohohodemi no Mikoto, Kuninotokotachi no Mikoto, Onamuchi no Mikoto, and Emperor Chuai are enshrined here in Tenson Shrine, and according to the legend…

Central

Gesshin-ji was formerly the villa of Taisho and Showa era painter Kansetsu Hashimoto (1883-1945). During the Edo period, it was a tea house that travelers of the Tokaido road would frequent, and possessed a water well referred to as the…

Central

Nagara Shrine’s beginnings can be traced back to Emperor Tenji, who enshrined the ancient Shinto god Susanoo no Mikoto in a tomb cave on Mt. Nagara in order to protect the city of Otsu-Kyo. In 860, it is said that…

Central

Mio Shrine is located along the Lake Biwa Canal near the entry point of Mount Nagara. Its main building is said to have been restored in 1426 by Shogun Ashikaga, and was moved to its current location in 1876. The…

Central

Enman-in Monzeki Temple was founded in the latter half of the Heian period. Its Shoin-zukuri style imperial hall from the Momoyama period is an important cultural property, and the south side of the garden is a national historic site and scenic…

Central

This is supposedly where the great Buddhist monk Saicho was born, and where the water well used for his “ubuyu” (first bath as a newborn) is located. The main object of worship is the eleven-faced Avalokitesvara statue that is said…

Northern / North central

Ono Takamura Shrine’s main shrine resides with the grounds of Ono Shrine. The enshrined deity is the Heian period (794-1185) poet (of tanka poems) and government official, Ono Takamura (802-852). The main shrine is said to have been constructed around…

Northern

Shinodzu Shrine resides along the path of the former Tokaido road in Zeze. While the exact date the shrine was constructed is unknown, the discovery of a construction sign inscribed with the year 1456 suggests that the shrine originates from…

Central

Susanoo no Mikoto is the enshrined deity of Tenno Shrine. According to the shrine’s legend, it was founded in 966 (the 3rd year of the Koho era) after the ceremonial transferring of the deity “Gozu Tenno” from Yasaka Shrine in…

Northern

Otsu Branch Temple is a branch of the Shin Buddhist Higashi Hongan-ji Temple, and was constructed during the early Edo period by the priest Kyonyo, who was famous for his do-or-die resistance against Nobunaga Oda at Ishiyama Hongan-ji. The main…

Central

Koutoku-ji Temple is known for its connection to the Buddhist priest Rennyo and the famous story of “Katata Genbei’s Head.” It is said that long ago, when Rennyo visited Miidera Temple to retrieve a portrait of the sect’s founder, Shinran,…

North central