Shikoku 88 Temple Pilgrimage

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Four Prefectures, Four Dōjō

The 88-temple circuit is divided into four sections — one per prefecture — each with a distinct character and spiritual theme.

About the Route

Key Waypoints

1. Ryōzen-ji

   0km from start · 20m

   First temple of the Shikoku Henro and the starting point of 'Hosshin' — the awakening of the pilgrim's resolve. Legend holds that Kukai (Kobo Daishi), born as Saeki no Mao, trained in this region before crossing to Tang China. Upon his return he founded the temple in the image of India's sacred Vulture Peak. Pilgrims traditionally outfit themselves here with the white robe, sedge-grass hat, and staff — symbolizing readiness to walk 'with Daishi' as two companions. The Niomon gate, evoking an Indian aesthetic, marks the solemn threshold. Two stamps are collected: main hall and Daishi hall.

2. Dainichi-ji (Handa)

   67km from start · 70m

   Seated quietly among rice fields along the Yoshino River, this temple enshrines Dainichi Nyorai. A stone Yakushi Nyorai said to have been carved overnight by Kobo Daishi remains in the precinct. One of the smaller, more intimate stops on the Tokushima circuit. Two stamps.

3. Yakuō-ji

   164km from start · 60m

   Last temple of Tokushima and one of Japan's foremost sites for warding off misfortune. An ancient custom dating to the Edo period has visitors in their yakudoshi (unlucky years — ages 25 and 42 for men, 19 and 33 for women) place one-yen coins on each stone step as they ascend, symbolically shedding ill fortune with every step. The Yugitō five-story pagoda against a backdrop of the sea at dusk is the temple's iconic image. Kobo Daishi is said to have performed purification rites here personally, earning the temple's reverence as 'Yakuyoke Daishi'. Pilgrims completing the Tokushima circuit feel the weight of the province's mountains lifting as the ocean comes into view.

4. Kiyotaki-ji

   228km from start · 130m

   Named for the sacred waterfall on its grounds, this temple carries a living tradition of healing and purification rooted in the flowing waters that give it its identity. Climbing 110 stone steps, pilgrims are greeted by a towering 15-metre standing statue of Yakushi Nyorai, the healing Buddha, visible from well beyond the temple grounds. Two stamps.

5. Sairin-ji

   481km from start · 58m

   Legend holds that Kobo Daishi encountered a disabled man who had traveled from the distant province of Harima, and healed his legs using water drawn from a sacred well within the temple grounds. That well still flows today, and pilgrims with ailments of the knees and legs continue to drink from it in the hope of healing, earning the temple the nickname 'Iyo's Knees.' Two stamps.

6. Kongōfuku-ji

   531km from start · 80m

   The southernmost temple on all of Shikoku, perched on the dramatic cliffs of Cape Ashizuri where Kobo Daishi is said to have gazed out to sea contemplating the paradise of Fudaraku beyond the horizon. Ancient local fishermen believed that when whales surfaced near the cape, it was a sign of Daishi's divine messenger. The 85-kilometre stretch from Temple 37 is the longest temple-to-temple gap in the entire pilgrimage; pilgrims arriving here after days of coastal walking feel an immense release. Subtropical Livistona palms fill the precinct with a tropical mood. The principal image is a Three-Faced Thousand-Armed Kannon, and dawn worship is considered especially auspicious. Stamp at the temple office.

7. Shusshaka-ji

   602km from start · 235m

   According to tradition, Kobo Daishi came to this cliff at age seven and threw himself off, declaring that if the Buddha did not want him to pursue the dharma, he was ready to die. He was caught by celestial beings and Shakyamuni himself. The cliff where this happened — Shashin-ga-take — rises directly behind the main hall, and pilgrims who climb it stand at the exact point of a seven-year-old's absolute conviction.

8. Yashima-ji

   651km from start · 295m

   Yashima-ji stands on the plateau where the sea battle of Yashima was fought in 1185 — the battle where the young archer Nasu no Yoichi shot an arrow from a rocking boat and struck a fan mounted on the enemy's ship, one of Japanese literature's most celebrated feats of precision. The Seto Inland Sea spreads below unchanged. Here, Buddhist sanctuary and the memory of warfare occupy the same ground without apparent contradiction.

88 waypoints total · Sacred Trails app contains full detail for every waypoint.

Points of Interest

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