The Izumi and Kongo mountain ranges that separate Osaka from Wakayama and Nara prefectures are collectively known as Katsuragi. Worshiped for millennia, these peaks are considered the birthplace of Shugendo, the syncretic tradition of mountain asceticism founded by the seventh-century mystic En no Gyoja.
According to legend, En no Gyoja buried each of the 28 chapters of the Lotus Sutra, the Buddhist text on which he based his teachings, in mounds across Katsuragi. The pilgrimage that consists of visiting these 28 sites, including temples and shrines as well as natural features such as waterfalls and giant rocks, is called Katsuragi Shugen.
Most of the mountains in Katsuragi are relatively small, making the Katsuragi Shugen accessible even to those without mountaineering experience. Do note, however, that officially completing the pilgrimage requires performing feats such as meditating under a waterfall and leaning out over a cliff during the one-day Shugendo training experience undertaken at Shipporyuji Temple.
It’s of course possible to eschew these commitments and only hike the pilgrimage trail, along which you’re likely to pass Shugendo pilgrims in their colourful robes, some blowing on horagai shell trumpets as they make their way to the next sacred site.