Kumano Kodo is a network of ancient roads and paths stretching across the mountains of Kumano. The entire Kumano region is a designated World Heritage site. For more than 1000 years, pilgrims made the pilgrimage to Kumano from all over Japan, including people from all levels of society, all ages, and regardless of sex. They believed that they would die by entering the Kumano area, purify their souls, and then re-enter this world.
One of the three great shrines of Kumano, Hayatama Shrine, is a place to purify the soul. The shrine is right in front of Kumano River, and sits close to the coast of the Kumano-nada Sea. It means the shrine is continuously purified by a ceaseless flow of water. It makes sense, doesn’t it? Walking west for 30 minutes, I reached the inner shrine of Hayatama Shrine's smaller Kamikura Shrine, where a giant holy rock is enshrined on the top of the hill. To reach it, I had to conquer 538 really steep stone steps. It was so steep! But eventually, I got there with the help of a wooden walking stick. Whew! The giant rock, Gotobiki Rock, is there and seemed like it would start rolling down the cliff at any second. But as you know, this never happens. The view from the small shrine attached to the rock was stunning. My exertion had not been in vain!
