Seiganto-ji

Seiganto-ji stands on the Nachi hillside right beside Kumano Nachi Taisha, and until the separation of Buddhism and Shinto in the Meiji era the two shared a single sacred precinct. A Tendai temple whose origins are tied to the worship of Nachi Falls, it is the first of the thirty-three temples of the Saikoku Kannon pilgrimage and draws pilgrims from across western Japan. Just below the main hall rises a reconstructed vermilion three-storied pagoda, and the view from beside it, the red pagoda in the foreground with the 133-metre thread of Nachi Falls behind, is the single most photographed scene in the Kumano region. A visit naturally combines the temple, the adjoining Kumano Nachi Taisha and the sacred waterfall itself, all a short walk apart at the head of the Kumano Kodo Nakahechi route.