Mt. Haguro

Mt. Haguro, located on the outskirts of Tsuruoka City, Yamagata Prefecture, is sacred to shugendo, a belief system which is perhaps best described as an amalgam of Buddhism, Shinto, and ancient Japanese beliefs. Practitioners, or yamabushi, believe in the restorative and regenerative power of nature and of mountains in particular. Mt. Gassan and Mt. Yudono, both nearby, form a holy mountain trinity with Haguro known collectively as Dewa Sanzan, the three mountains of Dewa, the old provincial name of the prefecture. Pilgrimages undertaken to the area to experience renewal and rebirth- 生まれかわりの旅, as a sign above the entrance to the local culture museum puts it- begin at Haguro, which represents one's present life. The next stop on the pilgrimage route is Mt. Gassan, the highest of the group, signifying the past, with Mt. Yudono (the future) the last.

Sanjingosaiden Shrine, Mt. Haguro, and the largest thatch roof in Japan