Dewa Sanzan Shrine

History and Divine Virtue

Dewa Sanzan Shrine venerates the deities of the three sacred mountains known collectively as the Dewa Sanzan: Mount Haguro, Mount Gassan, and Mount Yudono. Its founding is attributed to Prince Hachiko, son of Emperor Sushun, and with a history of more than fourteen hundred years it stands as the foremost site of Shugendo mountain asceticism in northeastern Japan. Mount Haguro is the mountain of the present, where one prays for happiness in this life; Gassan, where the ancestral spirits rest, is the mountain of the past; and Yudono, symbolizing the birth of new life, is the mountain of the future. To walk the three in sequence has long been called the journey of rebirth. The Sanjin Gosaiden atop Mount Haguro — a great thatched sanctuary enshrining the deities of all three mountains under one roof — is an Important Cultural Property. Along the cedar-lined stone stairway of 2,446 steps stands the Five-Storied Pagoda of Mount Haguro, a National Treasure said to be the oldest pagoda in the Tohoku region. Yamabushi ascetic training continues to this day, keeping alive the culture of white-robed practitioners who run the mountains. For a thousand years, the great cedars have received the prayers of those who come to shed misfortune, rebuild body and spirit, and begin again.

Visiting Notes

• From the Zuishinmon gate to the summit runs a cedar-lined stairway of 2,446 stone steps; the National Treasure Five-Storied Pagoda along the way is essential viewing.
• Gassan and Yudono are open only in summer, but even in winter the deities of all three mountains can be worshipped at the Sanjin Gosaiden on Mount Haguro.
• Custom holds that the journey of rebirth is made in the order Haguro, then Gassan, then Yudono.

Deities and Location

Enshrined Deities

Ideha Shrine (Mount Haguro), Gassan Shrine (Mount Gassan), Yudonosan Shrine (Mount Yudono)

Location

山形県鶴岡市羽黒町手向 (Yamagata)

Access

About 50 minutes by bus from JR Tsuruoka Station (to the Zuishinmon gate)

Lineage

Purification & Renewal, Moto-Ise & Mythology

Visiting hours, goshuin (shrine stamps), and festival dates change; please confirm the latest information through each shrine's official announcements. If you find an error in this entry, we would be grateful if you let us know.