Yahiko Jinja Shrine

About this sight

Located at the sacred 634-meter tall Mount Yahiko in the middle of the Sado Yahiko Quasi-National Park, this Shinto shrine was built about 1300 years ago. Various cultural artifacts, including swords and calligraphy, are exhibited in its treasury. The deity Ame-no-Kagoyama-no-Mikoto, a great-grandson of the sun goddess Amaterasu Omikami, is enshrined here. He is said to have given people the knowledge of producing salt from seawater. The precincts of the shrine cover about 13 hectares and are surrounded by ancient cedar and keyaki trees that are 400 to 500 years old. Inside and outside of the precincts stand various auxiliary and subsidiary shrines dedicated to Umashi-Hoya-Hime-no-Mikoto and other deities. The ancient Tamanohashi Bridge, or "bridge for the gods", is located halfway along the approach to the shrine. Next to the former pavilion, visitors can find a large sacred chinquapin tree surrounded by a stone fence.

Other spots in Yahiko Shrine:
- Cedar Avenue of Yahiko Shrine
- Manyo Road

Other spots accessible from Yahiko Shrine grounds:
- Mount Yahiko
- Yahiko-yama Ropeway