‹
茨城県
Toku
[ No photos yet ]
Be the first to share one
Howa-en (Kaiten Jinja & Keigan-ji)
茨城県
A garden loved by Tokugawa Mitsukuni, home to Kaiten Shrine enshrining 874 Tengu-to loyalists and the Keigan-ji temple revered for safe childbirth
Founded
1694
Type
Temple
Visited
Want to go
Access
15 min by bus from JR Mito Station
13-19 Matsumoto-cho, Mito, Ibaraki
Open in Google Maps ↗
Info
Temple
Founded 1694
332 years
Enshrined Deity
聖観世音菩薩
Buddhist Sect
Shingon
→
Overview
A Japanese garden in Mito encompassing the adjacent Keigan-ji temple and Kaiten Shrine as a historical landscape. Howa-en was a garden loved by Tokugawa Mitsukuni, famous for about 6,000 hydrangeas of 100 varieties. The June Hydrangea Festival draws about 100,000 visitors, coloring Mito's early summer. Keigan-ji is a Shingon temple whose principal Sho Kannon is known for safe childbirth blessings.…
Read more
Origins
Keigan-ji was founded in 1694 by Tokugawa Mitsukuni's order as a Shingon temple. Mitsukuni loved this location's scenery and devoted efforts to garden development. The name Howa-en derives from 'howa' (preserving harmony), reflecting Mitsukuni's ideals. Hydrangea planting started in the 1950s and gr…
Read more
Divine Benefits
Healing & Longevity
Matchmaking
Safe Childbirth & Fertility
Warding Off Evil
Recovery from illness, bodily wellness, peace of mind. Especially efficacious at Yakushi and Kannon temples.
Derived from the enshrined deity "聖観世音菩薩"
Posts
0
＋
No posts yet
Goshuin
No goshuin posts yet
Also Worth Visiting
別
Betsurai Kotaijin
A shrine founded in the reign of Emperor Tenmu with a divided spirit from Kamigamo Shrine — revered for lightning protection and bountiful harvests under Mito domain patronage
1.4km
→
弘
Kodokan Kashima Jinja
A Kashima shrine established by Nariaki within the Kodokan domain school as its guardian — a martial deity embodying the spirit of literary and martial excellence
2.7km
→
Mito Hachimangu
Main hall built in 1573 is a National Important Cultural Property; the 800-year-old Ohatsuki Ginkgo with fruit on its leaves is a National Natural Monument
622m
→
常
Hitachi-Omiya Hachimangu
Distinguished chief Hachiman shrine of Hitachiomiya, protecting Naka River agriculture and fishing since the Heian period
639m
→
水
Mito Domain Yaku-i-mon Gate
One of the few surviving structures of Mito Castle, having outlasted the castle-abolition order and wartime air raids — the last echo of Edo-period Mito Castle
3.3km
→
常
Tokiwa Shrine
Founded in 1873 adjacent to Kairakuen — a Meiji-era shrine honoring Mitsukuni and Nariaki, the hub of Mito's celebrated spring plum festival
1.9km
→
Ibaraki Gokoku Shrine
Founded 1874 and enshrining about 77,000 heroic spirits from Ibaraki, from Tengu-to loyalists to those who fell in the Pacific War
2.0km
→
Kodokan
One of Japan's largest domain schools, founded by Nariaki in 1841 and designated a Special National Historic Site; bullet holes from the 1864 Tengu-to Uprising still mark its walls
2.7km
→
記
Suggest an update
Suggest fixes to the location, history, visiting hours, access, facilities, notes and more
›
Report incorrect info ›
Get the app for a better experience
Auto stamp via GPS, offline access, and favorites tracking
View in app
＋
Explore pilgrimage with the app
View in app
✕