Less well-known tourist spots in Japan.　Sakamoto, Shiga Prefecture.

2025年4月18日2025年4月23日

After getting off the train, you walk along the slightly uphill approach to Hiyoshi Taisha Shrine and arrive in the town of Sakamoto. The center of the approach is paved, with cars driving along it. It may be an ordinary modern scene, but on both sides of the road are stone walls and cobblestones, retaining traces of medieval Japan. There is a three-meter-wide patch of grass between the road and the sidewalk, where an old stone lantern stands in the short grass and large cherry and maple trees spread their branches. In spring the cherry blossoms will be in full bloom, and in autumn the maples will turn bright red. The trunks of the trees are also covered in moss.

A town that retains traces of medieval Japan

There are stone walls everywhere in this town. Since ancient times, people who are good at building stone walls have lived in Anao Village near Sakamoto. They built sturdy stone walls using natural stones without processing them. They are called the Anou-shu, and they were active as a group of experts from the Muromachi period to the Sengoku period. There is similar to the masons, a guild in medieval Europe.

The stone walls they built were not only strong but also beautiful, so they gained a reputation for being called “Anou-shu-zumi" and were adopted for many castles and temples. Oda Nobunaga’s Azuchi Castle was also built using this style.

They also built the stone walls of the Satobo in Sakamoto. Satobo are residences for high-ranking monks who trained at Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei and who, when they grow old, come down from the mountain to live in retirement. The buildings and spacious gardens are surrounded by stone walls and hedges. They likely built them not just for work but out of faith. Satobo line both sides of the approach to Hiyoshi Taisha Shrine, forming a street. Walking along the narrow paths between the moss-covered stone walls, you are struck by a strange sensation that time has stopped. There is a silence not found in other tourist destinations.

Sakamoto is a city with a long history.

Sakamoto is a town built on an alluvial fan created by a river flowing out of Mount Hiei. It is located on the southern shore of Lake Biwa. Located to the east of Kyoto across Mt. Hiei and facing Lake Biwa, Sakamoto became an important port where goods from the eastern provinces and Hokuriku region gathered. It also developed as a temple town, with the location of Enryaku-ji Temple on Mt. Hiei, Hiyoshi Taisha Shrine, and Saiko-ji Temple.

During the Sengoku period, the 12th and 13th shoguns of the Muromachi shogunate, Ashikaga Yoshiharu and Hosokawa Harumoto, were defeated by Miyoshi Nagayoshi and fled here. During the Azuchi-Momoyama period, Akechi Mitsuhide built Sakamoto Castle, but after Mitsuhide was defeated in the Battle of Yamazaki following the Honnoji Incident, his senior vassal Akechi Hidemitsu set the castle on fire. Copper coins have also been minted in Sakamoto since ancient times. In the Edo period, circulating coins called Kyo-sen were minted. Dutch merchants called Kyo-sen “Sakamoto" and exported them to China and Southeast Asia.

It takes 16 minutes by train from the world-famous tourist destination Kyoto to Sakamoto.

This historic town is just a short distance from Kyoto, which is crowded with tourists. From JR Kyoto Station to Hieizan Sakamoto Station, it takes 16 minutes on the Kosei Line, and the fare is 320 yen. From the perspective of old Kyoto, Sakamoto was on the other side of Mount Hiei, and was a faraway place, but modern transportation has made it surprisingly close.

You can also get there by Keihan train. Take the Tozai subway line from Sanjo Keihan to Biwako Hamaotsu Station, then transfer to the Keihan Ishiyama Sakamoto Line, and you’ll be right at Sakamoto Hieizanguchi Station. This route takes about 35 minutes. It takes longer than JR because the Ishiyama Sakamoto Line is a local train. The small train stops at tourist spots such as Miidera, Anato, and Matsu no Baba. The fare is also higher at 570 yen, but if you want to enjoy your trip, this is the way to go.

You can also go from JR Kyoto Station to JR Otsukyo Station, walk about 5 minutes to Keihan Hamaotsu Station, transfer to the Ishiyama Sakamoto Line, and enjoy the railway line. From Sakamoto Hieizanguchi Station, you can reach Ishiyama-dera Temple, famous for Murasaki Shikibu, in about 30 minutes, so it would be fun to go and see Murasaki Shikibu while sightseeing in Sakamoto.

The streetscape of the Satobo temples – Former Chikurin-in temple is perfect for Instagram

There are more than 50 Satobo temples in Sakamoto. The gate faces the road, and is surrounded by stone walls, walls, and hedges made in the style of Anato-shu-zumi. Inside are gardens and buildings in secluded areas. These are the homes of high priests, even if they have completed their training. They have meditative names such as Shikan-in, Eko-in, and Ritsu-in.

The streetscape includes halls, main halls, lanterns, torii gates, signposts, trees, and small waterways, creating a rich historical landscape of a temple town. The Satobo temples and temple town of Sakamoto are designated as Important Preservation Districts for Groups of Traditional Buildings by the Agency for Cultural Affairs.

The Satobo temple gardens are spacious and wonderful. Ten of them have been designated as national scenic spots. The garden of the former Chikurin-in temple covers an area of ​​3,300 square meters, and is built with a hill as a backdrop to Mount Hachioji, and water from the Omiya River is drawn in to create a meandering stream and waterfalls. You can enjoy the scenery of each season: cherry blossoms in spring, greenery in early summer, and autumn leaves in fall.

The quiet atmosphere is soothing no matter when you visit, but recently it has also become popular as an Instagram spot. Apparently the view of the garden reflected in the low table in the main house is Instagram-worthy. It might be a good idea to look for Instagram spots of medieval Japan in the Satobo and temple towns.

Saikyouji Temple and Hiyoshi Taisha

In addition to Satobo and the temple town, there are many other places to see. Hiyoshi Taisha is the head shrine of the Sanno-san, which has more than 3,800 shrines nationwide. The grounds are spacious, with a clear stream running through them, and there are few people around, creating a mysterious atmosphere. Among them are the main halls of the national treasures Higashi-Hongu and Nishi-Hongu, the Hiyoshi Mitsubashi Bridge, said to be the oldest stone bridge in Japan, and the Saruishi, which resembles a sitting monkey.

The shrine is located in the front demon-gate of Heian-kyo, and since the Heian-kyo period, it has been worshipped as the guardian deity of Kyoto and the guardian deity of Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei. Here, monkeys are messengers of the gods. Monkeys are considered symbols of warding off evil, as they are associated with “going away evil" and “being victorious." A wooden carving of a monkey is placed at the demon-gate of the wall of the Kyoto Imperial Palace. This place is also famous as a spot to see maple leaves, and in autumn the leaves are lit up at night. The fresh greenery in early summer is also beautiful.

Saikyo-ji Temple is the head temple of the Tendai Shinsei sect. It is said to have been founded by Prince Shotoku. During the Muromachi period, the temple was restored from ruins by the priest Jie Daishi Ryogen. Later, the priest Shinsei restored the temple’s buildings and teachings, and it became a training center for precepts and nembutsu. The main hall is a stately structure made entirely of keyaki wood, and houses a 18-foot-tall Amida Buddha, an Important Cultural Property.

The guest hall was relocated from the palace of Fushimi Momoyama Castle, and features Kano school paintings of people and birds on the sliding doors. There are four gardens, including the guest hall garden designed by Kobori Enshu, which makes clever use of the slope of the mountain behind the temple, and you can enjoy the changing nature of the seasons, such as fresh greenery and autumn leaves.

This temple is also associated with Akechi Mitsuhide. Mitsuhide worked hard to restore the temple, which was burned down when Nobunaga burned down Mount Hiei, and the graves of Mitsuhide’s wife, Hiroko, and his family are located within the temple grounds. I wonder if Mitsuhide also looked out over Lake Biwa from the mountain gate. It is a beautiful sight.

Shigain Monzeki

Shigain Monzeki was relocated from Hossho-ji Temple in Kitashirakawa, Kyoto, by Tenkai Daisojo, a secret advisor to Tokugawa Ieyasu. The temple boasts a high status, with a member of the imperial family serving as the head priest of Tendai until the end of the Edo period. The vast grounds are surrounded by stone walls built by the Anatoshu, and include a shoin study with Kano school screen paintings from the early Edo period, and a wonderful garden with stonework, plantings, a waterfall and a stone bridge, said to have been created by Kobori Enshu. You can enjoy the garden at your leisure from the veranda of the Shinden.

As an aside, there is a theory that Tenkai Sojo is Akechi Mitsuhide, who is thought to be dead. This is based on the fact that his handwriting is similar and that he uses the bellflower crest. Tenkai Sojo supports Sakamoto, where Akechi Mitsuhide’s castle was located. It’s fun to imagine why. There are many other sights to see, such as Hiyoshi Toshogu Shrine, Ritsuin Temple, and Jigen-do Temple. If you have time, it is also a good idea to take the Sakamoto Cable Car up Mount Hiei and visit Enryaku-ji Temple.

Kyoto has many wonderful tourist sites, but they are all swarmed with people, so if you feel like you can’t quite relax, it’s a good idea to take a trip to Sakamoto and immerse yourself in silence. With cherry blossoms in spring, greenery in summer, autumn leaves in fall, and white snow in winter, spending half a day in this medieval town that changes its appearance with the seasons is a great way to relax. If you get hungry after walking, have the perfect lunch of tempura soba at Tsuruki, a 300-year-old soba restaurant.