Sojiji Temple is a Koyasan Shingon Buddhist temple, known as the 22nd temple of the Thirty-three Kannon Temples of the Western Provinces. Its founder, Chunagon Fujiwara Yamakage, was a Heian period aristocrat known as the "founder of the art of the knife" and the "god of cooking." The temple was founded in 886 (the second year of the Ninna era) as a result of a miraculous event known as "The Turtle's Gratitude," in which Yamakage's life was saved by a giant turtle rescued by his father in the Yodo River as a child. The principal image is the Thousand-Armed Kannon Bodhisattva, standing on the back of a turtle. The "Yamakage-ryu Knife Ceremony," held every April 18th, involves chefs using knives and chopsticks to prepare fish without touching them with their hands. The temple's elegant knife skills are a highlight. Within the temple grounds, there is a knife mound, where unused knives are donated in hopes of improving one's cooking skills.