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HAGURO-SAN |
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Regular buses from from Tsuruoka (17-19 daily; 40min; ¥660) serve
the village of HAGURO-MACHI at the beginning of the mountain trail; get
off at the Haguro Centre stop, just where the road kinks left to the
start of the path up the mountain. Before heading off along the track,
Ideha Bunka Kineikan (tel 0235/62-4727, fax 62-4729; daily except Tues
8.30am-5pm; ¥400), a little further along the main road, is worth a look
if you're interested in the yamabushi . This oddly high-tech museum
contains examples of yamabushi clothes and foodstuffs, as well as
holograms of various rituals. The Ideha centre also runs three-day
yamabushi -taster courses (¥26,000) for would-be yamabushi , in which
you get to stand under waterfalls, leap over fires and take part in a
pilgrimage - though not for the faint-hearted, these are a breeze
compared to the genuine nine-day initiation.
A weather-beaten, red-lacquered gate marks the start of the Haguro-san
trail (1.7km; roughly 1hr), which consists of three long staircases
built by a monk in the early seventeenth century. The first stretch is a
deceptively gentle amble beside a river, where pilgrims purify
themselves, among stately cedar trees. Most of these cedars are between
300 and 500 years old but the oldest, a massive tree girded by a sacred
rope, is reputed to be at least 1400 years old. After passing a
magnificent five-storey pagoda, which was last rebuilt in the fourteenth
century, it's uphill all the way, past a little teashop (late April to
early Nov daily 8.30am-5pm) with superb views, until a large red torii
indicates you've made it. If you're staying at the Saikan shukubo , it's
on the left at the end of a mossy path just before you duck under the
torii .
The shrine compound contains a collection of unmistakably Buddhist
buildings. At the centre stands a monumental vermilion hall, the
Gosaiden , where the mountain's three deities are enshrined behind
gilded doors under an immaculate thatch. In front of the hall, the
lily-covered Kagami-ike is said to mirror the spirits of the gods.
However, it's probably more famous for its treasure trove of more than
five hundred antique polished-metal hand mirrors; in the days before
women were allowed onto Dewa-san, their male relatives would consign one
of their mirrors into the pond. The best of these are now on display in
the shrine museum (daily 9am-4/4.30pm; ¥200). There's also a useful
relief map of Dewa-san here.
Follow the paved road exiting the compound's south side and you'll find
the Haguro-sancho bus stop among restaurants and souvenir shops. Buses
depart from here for Tsuruoka (6-12 daily; 50min) via Haguro-machi
(10min), and also to Gas-san Hachigome ; alternatively, it's a
forty-minute walk further south - take the footpath rather than the road
- to the Kyuka-mura stop beside Gas-san Visitor Centre, where you can
also pick up buses to Gas-san .
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