Togakushi Nagano City,
Nagano Prefecture
Togakure-ryu Ninja
En no Ozuno opened a Shugendo hall on Mt.
Togakushi, and many monks engaged in austere disciplines.
Before serving Kiso Yoshinaka, ninjas practiced Shugendo in Togakushi.
When Kiso Yoshinaka fought a war against the Taira clan nearby Togakushi,
ninjas were said to have occupied a cave by the upper stream of Kita-Shinano Susobana River, and taken command.
After Kiso Yoshinaka died in the battle, Nishina Daisuke,
who fought in the battle, fled to Iga and learned Iga school of ninja arts.
It is said that Nishina Daisuke completed the Togakushi school of ninja arts by incorporating the Iga school of ninja arts.
大阪からのアクセス
Togakure-ryu Ninja Museum
Ninja Trick Mansion
Togakushi Folk Museum
Togakushi Ninja Museum displays various ninja-related materials, including 500 ninja tools, commentaries on the Togakushi school, and 200 photo panels of Togakushi School ninja techniques. Ninja Trick Mansion is a maze that visitors must escape from on their own. The museum also boasts a beautiful scenery with a waterwheel hut within its grounds, which is rare to find. At the Togakushi Folk Museum, folk art bamboo ware and antique items are displayed in a building built in mid-Edo period (around 1690-1780).
Tour of Five Shrines
Togakushi Jinja is consisted of five shrines that enshrine different deities closely connected to Japanese myths, and many visit from across the country to receive various blessings from them. The five shrines that comprise Togakushi Jinja located at the foot of sacred Mt. Togakushi are Hokosha, Hinomikosha, Chusha, Okusha, and Kuzuryusha. Visitors make a pilgrimage to these five shrines. The shrine gives away a “five-shrine pilgrimage commemorative bookmark” to those who collect a goshuin calligraphy/stamp at all five shrines.
Nature of Togakushi
Faith in Kuzuryu
It has been worshipped as a place where Kuzuryu, the God of Water, dwells. There still remain old Togakushi trails, Togakushi Shrine, and temple lodgings, where Kuzuryu is worshipped. Many devout worshippers visit here from across the country every year, and numerous traditional kagura performances and festivals that have been passed on for generations are held.
Myoko-Togakushi Renzan National Park
The Togakushi district is designated as a national park. It is highly popular as a mountain climbing field to various types of mountains, from ones suitable for entry-level climbers to ones for the experienced. The park offers stunning “hitome gozan” views, which means “five mountains in a single glance” (but five is used to signify many).