Tucked away in the misty mountains of sacred Mount Kōya lies Okunoin Cemetery — Japan’s largest and most revered burial ground, where towering cedars, moss-covered gravestones and over a thousand years of history create an atmosphere unlike anywhere else. Visiting feels both humbling and serene, as if time moves differently among these ancient trees and silent memorials.
Okunoin Cemetery at Mount Koya Japan | Cimetière Okunoin au mont Koya Japon | Okunoin-begraafplaats op de berg Koya Japan | Friedhof Okunoin am Berg Koya Japan | Cementerio Okunoin en el monte Koya Japón | Cmentarz Okunoin na górze Kōya Japonia | Cimitero di Okunoin sul monte Koya Giappone | Кладбище Окуноин на горе Коя Япония | 高野山奥の院墓地 | 일본 고야산 오쿠노인 묘지 | 日本高野山奥之院墓地 | Japonya Kōya Dağı’ndaki Okunoin Mezarlığı
When traveling in Japan, visiting Shinto and Buddhist temples can be confusing for someone from a different cultural and religious background due to the language barrier and the difficulty in understanding the artifacts and rituals. When I decided to take a trip to Japan, my knowledge of this country was limited. As the trip was organized by two colleagues of mine, one of which was a graduate in Japanese culture, I entirely relied on them. Only after coming back home, having in mind the observations and hundreds of photos I made in Japan, I started to dig the internet on additional information. Today, a bit longer than a year after we came back, with more than twenty posts on Japan, I finally got to the memories and pictures from Koyasan, and the Okunoin cemetery. While on the spot, I knew only we are on some kind of a sanctuary mountain and came there to spend a night in a temple.
Koyasan is all about the Okunoin Temple, that in fact, is the mausoleum of Kōbō-Daishi, also known as Kūkai (774–835), the revered Japanese monk and founder of the Shingon sect. Kōbō-Daishi, or Kukai, played a pivotal role in the establishment of Shingon Buddhism. Born 774 in what is now Zentsuji City, Kagawa Prefecture, in 804, at the age of 30, he embarked on a journey to China to study Buddhism and esoteric practices. Upon his return to Japan in 806, Kōbō Daishi introduced the profound teachings of esoteric Shingon Buddhism. He founded the first Shingon monastery at Toji in Kyoto, which soon became the epicentre for the propagation of Shingon Buddhism throughout Japan. In 816, Kōbō Daishi chose Mount Koya to established there a mountain retreat of Koyasan (Mount Koya) as the headquarters of the Shingon sect.
For over a millennium, individuals from all corners of Japan have selected the vicinity of Kōbō-Daishi’s mausoleum as their final resting place. A mountain retreat of the Shingon Buddhism with the Okunoin temple evolved into a temple complex amidst the Okunoin cemetery. There are memorials for various historical figures, including feudal lords, samurai, and prominent monks. Today, with more than 200,000 graves and tombstones, it stands as the largest cemetery in Japan, covering approximately 2 kilometers in length. The sacred ground of the Kūkai mausoleum is indeed hidden silently deep inside the cemetery (in facti its its end). The cemetery is considered one of the most sacred places in Japan and is a major pilgrimage site for Buddhists.
We took one of the entrances to the cemetery. The path to the mausoleum, Okunoin Torōdō (the Lantern Path), is lined with tens of thousands of stone lanterns — most enchanting when lit at night. What you see here is a morning photo, so sadly that magic isn’t visible, but in the evening it truly comes alive. We’d seen it the night before, though without tripods I couldn’t capture the moment.
Going at a slow pace, taking short rounds, and making photos took us around forty minutes to reach the mausoleum. If you go directly, you can complete the one km route more quickly. However, it’s recommended to allow extra time to explore the cemetery. On our way, we met monks dressed in the traditional way that was, of course, not that unusual in the whole Koyasan area, for there are more than two hundred small temples located on the mountain.
On the way to the mausoleum, we crossed some newer parts of the cemetery with tombs often decorated with names of famous Japanese corporations. Because of the language barrier, I did not understand whether this was tombs of people important to those companies or the tombs played some other role. Maybe the companies simply sponsored the graves. Still, from the European perspective, it was a bit unusual.
Sometime later, we got to the older parts of the cemetery. The most tombstones and graveyards were left as they were for years (or hundred years) with moss all around them. The views are complemented by the very tall and imposing old cedar trees.
Some statues were covered with vermilion (red/orange) clothing to protect them and the dead. The act of clothing statues, especially those in sacred places like Okunoin Cemetery, is a gesture of respect and reverence. It reflects the belief that these statues embody spiritual entities or deities and should be treated with care and dignity. Bottles of water or soda cans to provide for the dead were left on some graves, as well. By leaving bottles of water, individuals may symbolically provide refreshment for the spirits of the deceased, acknowledging their journey in the afterlife. While water is a symbol of purity, these drinks may serve as a modern way to provide sustenance or comfort to the spirits. It’s a symbolic gesture of hospitality and care for the departed.
Below some photo impressions from the Okunoin cemetery oldest parts.
And finally, we got to a place with plenty of statues and water sinks where you can perform the purifying rituals. From this place on, behind a small bridge, and photography was forbidden. We were supposed to enter the sacred ground of the Kūkai mausoleum. Kukai is believed to be in eternal meditation in the Okunoin Mausoleum, awaiting the arrival of Maitreya, the future Buddha. The Gobyobashi Bridge, also known as the Bridge to Nirvana, is said to lead the deceased across the boundary between the living and the dead.
This was not the first time for us as in a Buddhist sanctuary, we had to obey strict rules. In fact, in all cores of a Buddhist temple, the photography is forbidden. So I can rely only on my memory. The interior of the wooden structure was ery impressive, delighting with both its appearance and the history it concealed. Divided into two main parts, the part serving as a mausoleum and an equally large section where pilgrims could walk alongside the mausoleum and stand down to pray and contemplate.
Besides of candlelight, it was dark inside. In fact, you saw it when each time somebody opened the entrance doors. You felt incense. The interior was full of figures, some of them were golden ones. There were many flowers all around. And a couple of monks were either tidying up or performing rituals. When we visited Koyasan, it turned out that we were there outside the pilgrimage season, which allowed us to experience this exceptional place in peace, in a small group, further enhancing the solemnity of the situation and allowing us to focus on the beauty surrounding us and the spiritual significance of this symbolic place. And all around us was silence.
