81 Shiromine-ji

Shiromine-ji is the 81st temple on the Shikoku Pilgrimage, a circuit of 88 Shingon Buddhist sanctuaries that draws tens of thousands of pilgrims — known as o-henro — across the island each year. Situated mid-slope on Mount Shiromine near Sakaide, the temple was founded in 860 during the Heian period and is designated an Important Cultural Property of Japan. It belongs to the Shingon school of Buddhism, whose traditions trace back to the monk Kūkai (Kōbō Daishi), the semi-legendary figure credited with establishing the entire pilgrimage route in the 9th century. Pilgrims on foot reach the temple after a climb through dense mountain forest that reinforces the sense of sacred separation from everyday life. Even outside the formal pilgrimage context, the temple compound rewards a visit with incense smoke, moss-covered stone lanterns, and near-complete mountain quiet.