Itsukushima Shrine
Miyajima-cho, Hatsukaichi, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan Shinto
UNESCO-listed sea shrine on sacred Miyajima, internationally famous for its offshore torii gate.
The World’s Sacred Places
Sacred Places
Discover a curated guide to significant sacred places, pilgrimage traditions, architecture, documented history and practical visitor information across cultures and faith traditions.
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Curated Discovery
Sacred Places
Browse Sacred Places selected for Templestan’s public collection.
Kinpusen-ji
Yoshinoyama, Yoshino, Yoshino District, Nara Prefecture, Japan Shugendo
Principal Shugendo temple on Mount Yoshino, famous for giant Zao Gongen images and mountain-ascetic pilgrimage.
Kumano Hongu Taisha
Hongu-cho, Tanabe, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan Shinto
One of the three Kumano Sanzan grand shrines and a central destination of the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage.
Okunoin
Koyasan, Koya, Ito District, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan Buddhism
One of Japan’s most sacred Buddhist pilgrimage sites, centered on the mausoleum of Kukai at Mount Koya.
Kongobu-ji
Koyasan, Koya, Ito District, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan Buddhism
Head temple of Shingon Buddhism at Mount Koya, the institutional heart of the Koyasan sacred complex.
Ise Jingu Naiku (Inner Shrine)
Uji, Ise, Mie Prefecture, Japan Shinto
Japan’s most sacred Shinto sanctuary, dedicated to Amaterasu Omikami and central to the Ise pilgrimage tradition.
Izumo Taisha
Taisha-cho Kizukihigashi, Izumo, Shimane Prefecture, Japan Shinto
One of Japan’s oldest and most important Shinto shrines, associated with Okuninushi and traditions of divine gathering and matchmaking.
Meiji Jingu
Shibuya, Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis, Japan Shinto
Tokyo’s major imperial Shinto shrine, set within a vast man-made forest beside Harajuku.
Fushimi Inari Taisha
Fushimi, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan Shinto
Head shrine of Inari worship, internationally famous for its thousands of vermilion torii gates on Mount Inari.
Senso-ji
Asakusa, Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis, Japan Buddhism
Tokyo’s oldest and most famous Buddhist temple, centered on devotion to Kannon in historic Asakusa.
Kiyomizu-dera
Higashiyama, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan Buddhism
UNESCO-listed Kyoto temple famous for its wooden stage, Kannon devotion and Otowa Waterfall.
Horyu-ji
Ikaruga, Ikoma District, Nara Prefecture, Japan Buddhism
One of the world’s oldest surviving wooden temple complexes and a foundational monument of Japanese Buddhism.