Osorezan Bodaiji Temple

According to temple legend, Ennin, a priest of the Tendai sect of Buddhism, visited this area and built a temple and enshrined Jizoson in 862.

Osorezan is famous as one of the three most sacred places in Japan, along with Mount Hieizan and Mount Koya.
Osorezan is believed to be a place where the spirits of the dead gather.

During the Osorezan Grand Festival, a shrine maiden called an itako (a kind of Japanese word for shrine maiden) performs kuchiyose, a ritual in which she invites the spirits of the dead to come to this world, allowing visitors to talk with the deceased as if they were actually meeting with him or her.

In the Jizo Hall, the main deity, Enmei Jizo Bosatsu, is enshrined.

There are fumaroles and hot springs near Lake Uzoriyama in the temple grounds, which are called Sainokawara and Gokuraku-hama.
There are four hot springs within the precincts of the temple, which are used as public bathhouses.

Volcanic gases (sulfurous acid gas) fill the area near the “hell” of Osorezan, releasing a sulfurous odor.
Because of the volcanic gases, grass and trees do not grow and animals are rare, and these have come to be equated with hell and sacred places.

Visitors to Osorezan may experience headaches, fatigue, and other mild symptoms of poisoning from the toxic gases.