The very picturesque Nosaka-ji Chichibu

Nosaka-ji (Nosaka Temple) the 12th stop on the Chichibu 34 temple pilgrimage, 秩父札所十二番 野坂寺.

Nosaka-ji

A few years ago while at Hitsujiyama Park for the moss phlox, my family and I went for a hike in the area. We found this stunning temple on our way. Furthermore, it had beautiful wisteria in bloom and my heart skipped a beat when a yellow train passed as I was taking a photo of it. At that time in my life, I was at a stage when I couldn’t really stop and take decent photos for the blog. All four of my kids were still quite young at the time, so photos were always a rush job. If I ever get the chance I want to go back to Nosaka temple and get a good photo of the wisteria with the Seibu Chichibu yellow train running behind. (As per the featured photo at the very top of the post).

But the wisteria wasn’t what made this temple special. It is just one of those temple’s that is a pleasure to find. You know the kind that have an aura about them. I don’t know if its officially a “power spot” as they are called in Japan. But I got a very definitive strong positive vibe even approaching the gate of Nosaka-ji. I really liked that the doors of the temple are completely open, so you can get a really good view inside, which is becoming more and more rare in recent years. I took a photo back then, but to be honest I wouldn’t now. I’ve gone quite superstitious about photographing inside a temple or shrine!

In addition, there is lots to look at and discover on the grounds of the temple. Such as various statues and religious artefacts. And the temple building has some really beautiful and intricate carvings. And a great view from the top of the graveyard on the grounds. Moreover, we found an old secret trail to the top of Hitsujiyama park off to the side of the temple. As well as an old shrine with a beautiful trail made from tree roots:

Interestingly there is very little online, in any language, about the history of this temple, or it could be just that all the recent Google updates have broken the Search Engine Result Pages! The official web page and the Chichibu City website both mention a fire that destroyed the original main gate in 1906. And that it was rebuilt in 1974. But apart from these tidbits, even the “official” sites don’t offer much about the background of the temple. I did find many Japanese language blogs each explain one or other of the different statues and significant religious paraphernalia at the temple. But, one, I don’t know how accurate they are. And two, I’d be here all day going through them all! Regardless, there is plenty to discover on the grounds and its very photogenic too.

Flowers at Nosaka-ji

The wisteria that run by the train tracks are in the car park of the temple. There are even more vines within the grounds of the temple. In addition, colorful shrub is bountiful. There’s plenty of evergreen too. There are also azalea which were coming into bloom when we visited which was around the end of April. Moreover, the avenue leading up to the temple gate is lined with cherry blossoms. They had fresh green on them during our visit. According to the Chichibu 34 temple pilgrimage website the temple also has peach blossoms, hydrangea and lotus.

I have not seen the lotus flowers personally, but you will see in the comments that “Chichibu Muse“, a Chichibu local, recommends the lotus at this temple. She also provides information (in the comments) about the Chichibu 34 Temple Pilgrimage 秩父札所十二番 野坂寺 of which Nosaka is temple number 12. In addition, there is a post on the Chichibu Muse blog about Saizenji, which is temple number 8 on the Chichibu 34 Temple Pilgrimage, which has some beautiful hydrangea:

Lantern Festival

The temple has a large lantern float festival on August 16th annually. Supposedly it is quite famous, but to be honest I only heard about it when inquiring about the temple. But Chichibu has a festival every single day of the year, literally, not just a figure of speech! So it is hard to keep up with them all! Some are smaller than others. It sounds like this is one of the bigger ones though.

Information

Access

The Seibu Railway’s train tracks run right by the temple’s car park, but the nearest station – Seibu Chichibu Station – is about a ten to fifteen minute walk away. During the period of the shibazakura festival in adjacent Hitsujiyama park, there is a bus that goes relatively nearby, from Ohanabatake station on the Chichibu Railway line also.

Free parking for about 20 cars.