The National Treasure You Have to Earn

Halfway up a cliff on Mt. Mitoku in central Tottori, a small wooden hall stands wedged into a rock hollow ninety meters above the forest floor. Nobody is certain how the Nageiredo (“the thrown-in temple”) was built there in the Heian period — legend says the ascetic En no Gyoja hurled it into place with spiritual power. Japanese media routinely call it “the most dangerous national treasure in Japan,” because seeing it up close requires a genuine mountain-ascetic climb: tree roots as ladders, chain-assisted rock faces, and cliff-edge halls with no railings whatsoever.

How the Climb Actually Works

This is a religious practice, not a hike, and Sanbutsu-ji temple enforces the rules strictly:

  • Solo climbing is forbidden — you must register in pairs or more at the trailhead office
  • Footwear is inspected; smooth soles are rejected, and the temple sells traditional straw sandals (waraji), which locals swear grip the polished roots better than trail shoes
  • The route takes 1.5–2 hours round trip and closes in bad weather and winter
  • Wear the loaned pilgrim sash — the climb is officially a purification of the “six roots” of the senses

The reward sequence is extraordinary: the Monjudo hall, where you can (carefully) walk the railing-free veranda over the valley, then the bell you ring on a cliff edge, and finally the Nageiredo itself, viewed from a rock platform close enough to see the joinery. Those who prefer their treasures risk-free can see the hall through a telescope for free from the road below — no shame in it.

Misasa: The Radium Town at the Mountain’s Feet

The climb pairs with Misasa Onsen, ten minutes away — together they were named Japan Heritage site number one, under the wonderful framing “purify the six roots on the mountain, heal the six senses in the water.” Tradition says three mornings (mi-asa) in these waters cures what ails you.

Practical Notes

  • Access: bus or 20-minute taxi from Kurayoshi Station (San’in Line); pair with Misasa Onsen for the overnight
  • Reception hours: mornings to mid-afternoon; arrive early — entry closes to ensure everyone is down by dusk
  • Fitness: genuinely strenuous; gloves help, and anything in your hands must go in a pack
  • If closed: the valley’s lower halls and the telescope view still justify the detour

Japan has safer temples and easier treasures. It has nothing else like watching your own straw sandals grip a cliff root while a thousand-year-old building hangs in the rock above you.