Kotohira-gū

Kotohira-gū is a Shinto shrine located in the town of Kotohira that is devoted to the protector of sea transportation and sailors. To reach the shrine, visitors must climb a path of 785 steps to the main shrine and a total of 1368 steps to the inner shrine. The shrine is situated on Mount Zōzu at an elevation of 521 meters.

Since the Muromachi period, Kotohira-gū has been a popular destination for pilgrims, attracting hundreds of visitors every day who climb the steps of Mount Zōzu. Along the way, there is a sake museum, stores, and stones bearing the names of donors inscribed in kanji.

Before the Meiji era, the shrine was also a Buddhist site. Its main deity, Ōmononushi-no-mikoto, is a spirit connected to seafaring and is known as the Buddhist deity Konpira. In 1165, the spirit of Emperor Sutoku was enshrined at the shrine.

Kotohira-gū boasts several Important Cultural Properties, including a statue of the eleven-faced Kannon Bosatsu from the Heian period and four ink paintings by Maruyama Ōkyo.