ABOUT
About this spot
On the slope of Mt. Goken stands Yakuri-ji, Temple 85 of the Shikoku 88-temple pilgrimage. According to temple tradition, five swords fell from the sky here, hence the name Goken ("five swords"), which gave the temple its mountain name. A cable car runs from the foot of the mountain, so many visitors come as sightseers as well as pilgrims, and the temple is affectionately known as "Yakuri no Oshoten-san", visited for business success and good relationships.
Temple tradition says Kobo Daishi (Kukai) founded it in 829 after five swords fell from the sky while he practiced the Kokuzo Gumonji rite. It was first called Hakkoku-ji, but became Yakuri-ji ("eight chestnuts") when eight roasted chestnuts he planted all sprouted. After being burned in the Tensho wars, it was rebuilt by Muhen Shonin, and in 1642 the Takamatsu lord Matsudaira Yorishige rebuilt it again. After a great earthquake in 1706 brought down the east peak, the temple was moved to its present site.
It belongs to the Daikakuji branch of Shingon, and its principal image is Sho Kannon. The Nitenmon gate guards the approach, and the main hall opens its images for the first three days of the New Year; the pagoda, built in 1984, is also opened only then.
The Shoten-do beside the main hall enshrines Kangiten, once the personal Buddha of Tofukumon-in, brought here in 1677. It is shown only once every fifty years, with the next opening planned for 2027. The Goma-do honors Kangi Doji, and the Okunoin, dedicated to Chujobo, one of Sanuki's three great tengu, holds rites on the 1st and 16th of each month.
The grounds hold a prefecturally protected ginkgo and a bell inscribed with a poem by Aizu Yaichi. On the fourth peak is a cave where Kukai is said to have practiced, and a cliff carving of Dainichi.
From the cable-car base, which is about a 25-minute walk from Yakuri Station on the Kotoden Shido Line, the ride takes about four minutes and the temple is about a five-minute walk. Free parking (about 400 cars) is at the base. Allow about an hour. Temples 84, Yashima-ji, and 86, Shido-ji, come before and after it on the pilgrimage.
Last updated October 30, 2026