Dewa Jinja

Dewa Jinja is enshrined on Mount Haguro in Tsuruoka City, Yamagata Prefecture, and is known as one of the three shrines of Dewa Sanzan. The three mountains of Dewa Sanzan—Mount Haguro, Mount Gassan, and Mount Yudono—have flourished since ancient times as sacred sites of the Shugendo mountain ascetic tradition, and as the "journey of rebirth," countless pilgrims have visited these sacred peaks. The Dewa Jinja on Mount Haguro is venerated as a deity granting worldly benefits, and is particularly famous for its 2,446 stone steps. Climbing these steps is considered part of spiritual practice and serves to purify body and mind. With numerous points of interest including a five-story pagoda and the Great Cypress, a tree over 1,000 years old, this is truly a shrine of miraculous efficacy that fills the hearts of visitors with reverence.