Hillside Sightseeing Spots in Nishinomiya

Mondo Yakujin is a Buddhist temple belonging to the Koyasan Shingon Sect and is officially known as Shotaizan Tokoji. The temple was founded by Kobo Daishi or Kukai and is known for the effectiveness of its protective charms and prayers for good health. In 829, the Emperor Saga, at the 'yaku-doshi' (unlucky age) of 41, dreamed of the Yakujin deity or the union of the Aizen deity and Fudo deity to drive away all the 'yaku' (misfortune), and he told Kukai of this dream. Upon hearing of the dream, Kukai carved images of Yakujin for prayer and offered them to the Kongobuji Temple of Mt. Koya, Iwashimizu Hachimangu Shrine of Kyoto and Mondo Yakujin Temple for a protective charm, but of those images only the one offered to Mondo Yakujin remains.
On the 19th of every month, a ceremony is performed as a festival day for the Yakujin deity. Every year, hundreds of thousands of bustling people from all over Japan visit the temple for the large festival held on January 18th and 19th as well as for the "Star Festival (setsubun)" held on February 3rd. To offer prayers for the protection against evil, male visitors climb the side of the temple with 42 steps representing the misfortunes for men while female visitors ascend the side with 33 steps for women. Also, every year in the middle of November, the thoughts of people contained in dolls are purified, and there is a Buddhist memorial ceremony for the dolls to separate the spirit from the dolls. There is also an event featuring Doraemon, and a mini Hankyu train along with an exhibition of various dolls.

This shrine appears in an old Japanese book called "Nihon-Shoki" and is one of the oldest temples in Hyogo Prefecture. During the triumphant return from a campaign to Silla (the ancient dynasty in Korean Peninsula), Empress Jingu received a divine message from the sun goddess Amaterasu, resulting in the construction of Hirota Shrine along with construction Ikuta Shrine, Nagata Shrine, Sumiyoshi Shrine beginning in 210. The main festival god of Hirota Shrine is Amaterasu, the goddess of sports, schoolwork and exams who reportedly grants divine favor to worshippers at the shrine. It is widely known that even the Hanshin Tigers, a Japanese professional baseball team, visit the shrine every year.
Every year in May, there is a Shinto ritual for rice planting dating back nearly 500 years ago. After the shrine rituals, a procession of people wearing ancient attire starts toward the 'miketa' or a rice field for making offferings to the gods that is located about 1 km from the shrine. At the miketa, rice seedlings are planted by hand in the midst of entertainment provided by traditional performance arts such traditional folk dances and wind-instrument music.
Famous for its azaleas, the shrine has 20,000 Kobanomitsuba azalea plants growing on its grounds with the oldest azaleas said to have been planted over 150 years ago. The azaleas at Hirota Shrine have been designated as a precious natural object of Hyogo Prefecture.

When you go down the inclined road from Mt. Kabuto, you will come across the Shukugawa River flowing along side Hankyu Koyoen line. The 4.4 kilometer-long riverside serves as a public park and is filled with various flowers in four seasons, such as 250 rose plants near Hankyu Kurakuen-guchi Station, irises, and lotus flowers. From the end of March till the beginning of April the park is especially known for about 2,300 cherry trees which can be seen beautifully lined in an arch on both sides of the river extending 2.7 km from Hankyu Kurakuen-guchi Station to the Hanshin Koroen Station. The park is a famous cherry blossom viewing spot and was selected in the top 100 cherry viewing places of Japan in 1990.
All throughout major cities in Japan you can often see Somei-yoshino, however, along the Shukugawa River you can enjoy viewing a variety of cherry trees ranging from mountain cherry trees, Kanzan cherry trees and Ukon cherry trees to mention a few. Every year during the cherry blossom season, there are a various events held as part of the Nishinomiya Cherry Blossom Festival including tea ceremonies, lotteries, walking tours, and competitions for sketching and photography.

The origin of the Japanese word 'orugoru' comes from the Dutch word 'orgel', meaning a hand-cranked organ. At the Horie Orgel Museum, there are approximately 330 items on public display of valuable antique music boxes collected from around the world by Mitsuo Horie as part of his individual collection. The cylinders used in the music boxes were all hand-made and took one year's work of a skilled craftsman to create just one cylinder.
Even when looking from an international perspective, there are many music boxes on display such as the music box given to the last czar of imperial Russia Nicholas II on his 10th birthday by father. It is the only one of its kind in the world. There is also a disk music box belonging to the czar's wife Alexandra.
Tens of music boxes are played three times a day for approximately one hour; people visiting here have their spirits renewed by the melodies resounding through the museum and exceeding time. Even individual visitors and not just group tours can receive a guided tour through the museum explaining the exhibits.

Koshiki-iwa Shrine is located the hilly section of Nishinomiya City at the foot of the eastern side of the mountain range of Mt. Rokko and is surrounded by a forest that has been designated as a precious natural object. It has been a place for worshippers since ancient times. Details regarding the establishment of the shrine are unknown but it is listed in the Engishiki Shrine Directory edited over a thousand years ago. On the hill at the back of the shrine is a gigantic rock with a height of 10m and a circumference of 40m. Named Koshiki-iwa, it gets its name from it resemblance to a 'koshiki', a device used from ancient times for steaming rice and beans and is used in the process of making Japanese sake.

Also, when Toyotomi Hideyoshi was building Osaka Castle, there was a plan to carve the rock for use as part of the stone wall and when it was about to be cut, steam began rising and masons fell one after another. Because of this, the plan was abandoned. This gigantic rock is known around Japan for accommodating the god of pregnancy and safe deliveries. It is also considered significant by researchers for being an object of worship and has been the focus of a folk song sung from ancient times. It is revered as the local guardian god of hilly tract of Nishinomiya City including Koshiki-iwa, Kurakuen, Shukugawa, Jurinji, and Kayando.
The main hall of the shrine was reconstructed in 1644, and in 1656 the high priest Kyojun of Enmanji Temple prayed for the patronage of the god Ebisu or the god of fortune. Then, the Shrine became a branch shrine of Nishinomiya Shrine or the nationwide headquarters of the god Ebisu. After being restored several times, the stately main hall exists today as restored in 1936, and a hall of worship was added in 1983.

The Mt. Kabuto Forest Park (Kabutoyama Shinrin Koen) at the foot of the 309-meter high Mt. Kabuto, which stands to the east of the Rokko mountain range, was opened in 1970 to commemorate 100 years of the Hyogo Prefecture government. It is a vast park with an area of 770,000m2 and a observation platform in this corner looking over Nishinomiya City, making it a popular spot for its beautiful night view. Here people can be content with the beauty of nature in each season with cherry blossoms in the spring (a particularly beautiful scenic view featuring 600 cherry trees that bloom in the spring), azaleas in the beginning of summer, and vivid red-tinted leaves in the autumn.
Near the large fountain in the middle of the park are sculptures aligned in a row and made from marble collected from each country of the world that give visitors a chance to be exposed to art while taking a walk through a forest with autumn leaves. Bird watching with binoculars and field athletics are some of the various activities possible in the ideal weather for an outing of autumn, and you will see many families and groups under the beautiful autumn leaves with picnic lunches spread before them.

When you precede straight 1km on the prefectural road accessing Jurinji Temple from the Arima Onsen, there is an entrance to the Kitayama Park and Kitayama Botanical Garden (no admittance charge). Within the garden, there is a flower garden centered on perennial plants, a grassy field, and a greenhouse along with a path where people can walks. There is also a corner where you can comfortably consult specialists concerning gardening and many kinds of seasonal potted plants such as foliage plants that are available for purchase. The Kitayama Mountain Villa, opened to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the incorporation of Nishinomiya City, is opened to the general public and shows Japanese architecture through an elegant Sukiya style building with a splendid Japanese garden containing Kitayama Japanese cedars and trees with leaves that turn a red tint in autumn. Also, "Kitayama Bokkatei Villa" and "Shorantei Villa" recreated in the exact image of a famous place in Shaoxing City, Zhejiang, China, are not to be overlooked. In autumn, the colorful leaves of many tree varieties, including the Quercus serrata which changes colors to orange, can be enjoyed as they paint a lovely palette in the garden surrounded by immense nature.

The Kitayama Park is a vast green area with a general 55,000m2 that continues north about 1km of the botanical garden as if encircling the garden. Here, because broadleaf trees grow in a thick forest, hikers can enjoy taking long walks while looking at the red tint of the autumn leaves. Plus, the numerous megaliths seen in the park make the park a spot highly recommended for aficionados of bouldering, a type of rock climbing that does not use rope.

Located on the site of the Koto Civic Center, the Koto Plum Grove has a large number of plum trees planted between the ages of 80 and 130 years old and is one of only a few places famous for plum trees in the area between Osaka and Kobe. Beginning with "Tobi-ume tree" said to be associated with Sugawara Michizane and presented by the Dazaifu Shrine in Fukuoka Prefecture, there are approximately 200 trees from 39 varieties such as weeping plum, white blossom plum and red blossom plum adorn the grove. With an assortment of plum trees collected from each region of Japan, colorful petals of white, pink, crimson colors in single and double flowering blossoms can be seen and enjoyed. Early blossom begin in January with late blooming flowers beginning in March allowing a relatively long season for enjoying the beautiful blossoming plum and the lovely scent of its blossoms.
In an ordinary year, the middle of February to the beginning of March is the best time for plum blossoms and "plum blossom gatherings" are held. Centered on the weekends within the Civic Center, a variety of events are held such as dances, tea ceremonies, T'ai-chi (Soft-style Chinese Martial Arts). Since there are booths selling refreshments such as 'amazake' (a sweet drink made from fermented rice), the plum grove has a feeling of early spring floating about it and is very lively on Saturday and Sunday with many visitors.

Founded in 1889 by Reverend W. R. Lambuth, M.D. of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, Kwansei Gakuin University began in a suburb of Kobe City called Harada Village (currently the area of Oji Park in Kobe). In the 40th year of its founding in 1929, the campus was moved to Koto Village, a suburb of Nishinomiya (currently Uegahara-cho, Nishinomiya). From the Hankyu Kotoen Station, it about a 12-minute walk or a 5-minute bus ride to the main gate of the Uegahara campus.
Located in a tranquil residential area, the road leading to the main gate of Kwansei Gakuin called Gakuen Hana-dori Street is lined with majestic cherry trees. When you enter the gate, a vast grass lawn lies before you with a clock tower and Mt. Kabuto in the background. The clock tower was built as a library when the campus was moved to Uegahara and the school motto of "Mastery for Service" is carved into the wall. W. M. Vories, a modern architect from the United States, not only designed each school building, but also was responsible for the overall campus design as well. In arriving at the details concerning the clock tower and Lambuth Memorial Chapel, he exquisitely expresses his sense of beauty, and the buildings are highly regarded. In May 2007, these buildings were designated as important architectural designs for scenic harmony in Hyogo Prefecture.

The architecture style is superbly integrated in a Spanish mission style featuring red tiled roofs, cream-colored stucco walls, and continuous arches for the house of the foreign missionary and the classroom buildings located on the grounds covering a total area of 250,000 square meters. The Sanda campus opened in Culture Town in Kobe Sanda International Garden City. Here classroom buildings such as School of Policy Studies and School of Science and Technology were established on the grounds of 350,000 square meters maintaining the tradition of Spanish mission style integration.

Take the Hanshin bus for the Jurinji from the Hanshin Nishinomiya Station and get off at Kabutoyama Daishi bus stop. The main gate to Kannoji Temple is nearby. There are many stories about the origin of the name for the Kabutoyama or Mt. Kabuto. One story tells that Empress Jingu prayed here for national peace and valuable items like golden armor and a sacred sword are buried here while another explanation makes reference to the fact that the mountain resembles a 'kabuto' or Japanese helmet. Built in 831, Kannoji Temple is associated with Kobo Daishi or Kukai, the founder of Shingon Buddhism, and is located to the east of Kitayama Dam on the foot of Mt. Kabuto. The temple's name was originally read as "Jinju-ji" meaning a temple of mantra or true words of the Buddha but evolved to be "Kannoji" later. Generally speaking, it is referred to fondly as "Kabutoyama Daishi" signifying Great Teacher of Mt. Kabuto. The temple is dedicated to Nyoirin Kannon or Merciful Goddess. The principle image of the holy Kannon is a colorful cherry wood statue modeled after the founder Nyoini, which was carved by Kukai in 830. There is a ceremony every year on May 18 to exhibit the image that is not usually shown to the public.
The breath-taking scenery of seeing the scores of cherry blossom trees in the compound alongside the steep steps with 99 steps from the main gate to the temple will move visitors. About 10,000 wild cherry trees stand beautifully on the hillside alongside the temple and Mt. Kabuto Forest Park.

Take the bus bound for Kabutoyama from Hankyu Nishinomiya-kitaguchi Station and get off Jurinji bus stop. Bantaki Tunnel is found when you travel from Arima Onsen toward the urban area of Nishinomiya via the Nishinomiya-Kita Toll Road (250 yen). Passing through this tunnel, you will see the Jurinji Temple on the right after the third traffic signal. The temple was established in 833 by Kobo Daishi or Kukai as part of the Mt. Koya Shingon Sect and has been adored by local citizens since ancient times as a place for offering prayers to Kannon or Merciful Goddess for preventing throat illnesses. Below the hall dedicated to the Kannon is a 7-storied pagoda featuring stonework, the oldest in Nishinomiya City, which is reported as the tomb of Takeda Shingen, a feudal lord in 16th century.
Within these grounds there are several hundreds of trees with leaves that change colors, and many tourists come to see them every autumn. The area features the red-tinted mountain trees of autumn as well as maple, beech, Rhus javanica, and ginkgo trees. Every year "Autumn Leaves Festival" is celebrated and the scenery of autumn leaves within the grounds are lit up from 18:00 to 22:00 starting in mid-November, and the autumn leaves bobbing in the light against the night is spectacular.

To access Horai-kyo Gorge, take the Hankyu bus from either the Hankyu or JR Takarazuka Station bound for the Yamaguchi Eigyosho-mae and get off at either Shirube-iwa or Zato-tani, and walk ten minutes. When traveling by car from Arima Onsen on the Prefectural Road #51 (formerly known as Arima Road) toward Namaze Station on the JR Fukuchiyama Line, a rock wall extends to the banks facing the Otatagawa River and is cut in a remarkable shape like a folding screen. This place is a famous scenic spot on the backside of Mt. Rokko and is called Horai-kyo Gorge because it resembles the landscape of Mt. Horai (original name is Mt. Kumgang) in North Korea.
As a result of the weathering and erosion occurring over 1 million years, the white exposed granite rock surface has complex and mysterious shapes cut into its rock surface where vertical rock formations of various sizes can be seen. The area overflows with various small and large shaped rocks going by such names as large sword, dagger, and folding screen, as if a saw had been used in shaping the weathered rock mountain in the existing sharp landform. The gorge has been used as a location for movies and dramas because of its brutal scenery expressing a surrealistic atmosphere and is particularly well known as a backdrop for the Kurosawa's masterpiece "The Hidden Fortress (released in 1958)."