Enmanji, in Bessho, Kainan, Wakayama, is a temple of the Koyasan Shingon school nestled in the mountains of the western Kii Peninsula — a quiet sanctuary of ancient devotion. Its principal images are Dainichi Nyorai and the Eleven-Headed Kannon. Tradition holds that Kukai (Kobo Daishi) founded the temple while traveling to establish Mount Koya, making it a place of prayer along the Kii pilgrimage …

According to temple tradition, Enmanji was founded in the early 9th century by Kukai (Kobo Daishi) during his travels along the Kii pilgrim route around the time of his establishment of Mount Koya. From antiquity through the medieval period, the temple maintained close ties with Mount Koya and funct…