Kintoki-jinja Shrine

Located in the foothills of Mt. Kintoki, Kintoki-jinja Shrine is dedicated to the Late Heian period warrior Sakata no Kintoki, on whom the legendary hero Kintaro was based. Adjacent to the Shrine precinct, there is a three kilometer hiking trail; the summit of Mt. Kintoki can be reached in around 90 minutes’ walk. On the path up to the summit, visitors pass by the Oku-no-in (Inner Shrine), a hokora (small shrine) dedicated to a hatchet that, according to tradition, was used by Kintaro, and a stone under which Kintaro is said to have taken shelter. Every year, a Kintoki Festival is held on Children’s Day (May 5th), and the Yudate-no-Shishi-mai lion dance (which has been designated as a National Intangible Folk Cultural Property) is performed.