34 Tanema-ji

Tanema-ji is the 34th temple on the Shikoku Pilgrimage, an ancient 1,200-kilometre circuit linking 88 Buddhist temples across the island of Shikoku. It belongs to the Buzan branch of Shingon Buddhism, an esoteric tradition founded in the early 9th century by the monk Kūkai, revered posthumously as Kōbō Daishi. Set in Haruno in Kōchi Prefecture, the temple bears the mountain name Motoozan and the cloister name Suzakuin. Pilgrims who walk the full circuit — dressed in white as a symbol of readiness for death — typically spend 30 to 60 days completing the route. The temple receives both devout henro pilgrims and secular visitors drawn to the contemplative forest setting and the characteristic stone-and-timber Shingon temple architecture.