Nakanotake Shrine (中之嶽神社)

A twenty-meter golden statue of Daikokuten stands halfway up Mount Myōgi, grinning with industrial-scale benevolence over the forest below. This is Nakanotake Shrine’s claim to contemporary fame — the largest Daikoku statue in Japan, erected in 2005 — but the shrine itself is far older, established in 534 CE as a mountain ascetic site where yamabushi practiced austerities among the jagged rock formations. The statue weighs in at over eight tons and cost 150 million yen to construct, funded entirely by donations from worshippers seeking financial fortune. What makes this shrine unusual is the collision: ancient mountain worship meets late-capitalist wish fulfillment, and both traditions operate simultaneously on the same slope.

Nakanotake Shrine was founded in 534 CE during the reign of Emperor Ankan, making it one of the oldest mountain shrines in Gunma Prefecture. The shrine sits at the midpoint of Mount Myōgi, one of Japan’s “three great strange mountains” (along with Mount Kinpu and Mount Kasagi), known for its sheer rock walls and dramatic pinnacles formed from volcanic tuff. The mountain became a center for Shugendō practice during the Heian period, with ascetics using the cliff faces and caves for meditation and ritual purification. The shrine’s name — “Middle of the Peak” — refers to its position on the mountain’s central ridge. Until the Meiji separation of Buddhism and Shinto, the site functioned as a syncretic temple-shrine complex called Myōgi-san Chūgatake-ji. The modern focus on Daikokuten worship and financial blessing began in the Edo period when merchant pilgrims from Takasaki and Annaka began visiting to pray for business success.

Ōkuninushi no Mikoto (大国主命) is the primary deity, worshipped here in his manifestation as Daikokuten, one of the Seven Lucky Gods. Ōkuninushi is the great land-builder deity who appears in both the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki as the kami who shaped and governed the earthly realm before ceding it to the heavenly deities. He is known for his repeated deaths and resurrections, his skill in healing and medicine, and his role as matchmaker — earning him dominion over relationships, business partnerships, and agricultural prosperity. The shrine also enshrines Sukunahikona no Mikoto (少彦名命), Ōkuninushi’s diminutive companion deity who assisted in nation-building and is associated with hot springs, medicine, and sake brewing. The pairing represents the complete spectrum of earthly prosperity: land, health, commerce, and human connection.

The founding legend tells of a yamabushi ascetic named En no Gyōja who climbed Mount Myōgi in search of spiritual power and encountered Ōkuninushi manifesting as a massive figure among the rock formations. The deity instructed the ascetic to establish a shrine at the mountain’s midpoint, promising that those who worshipped there would receive protection in their earthly endeavors. A later local legend explains the mountain’s dramatic rock formations as the remnants of a celestial battle: when Ōkuninushi agreed to cede the earthly realm to Amaterasu’s descendants, he demonstrated his power by striking the mountain, splitting it into jagged peaks as proof that he was surrendering the land by choice, not weakness. The shrine’s focus on financial blessing stems from an Edo-period story about a bankrupt silk merchant from Takasaki who climbed to the shrine, prayed for three days without food, and returned home to find a long-lost business contact waiting with an opportunity that restored his fortune. He donated an ornate mallet — Daikokuten’s symbol — which became the shrine’s most sacred object until the modern statue replaced it as the primary icon.

The shrine complex consists of a main hall (honden) built in traditional nagare-zukuri style, positioned on a stone platform carved into the mountainside. The approach involves climbing 100 stone steps through cedar forest, with red torii gates marking the ascent. The overwhelming feature is the 20-meter golden Daikokuten statue, completed in 2005 and positioned on a concrete platform that juts from the slope. The deity holds his traditional mallet (uchide no kozuchi) in his right hand and a large bag in his left, with a broad smile cast in reinforced polyester resin and covered in gold-colored paint. Around the statue’s base are dozens of smaller Daikoku figures in various poses, donated by businesses. The shrine sells small golden mallets as omamori — worshippers ring them while praying for financial success. The setting is dramatic: behind the shrine rise the sheer rock walls and pinnacles of Mount Myōgi, designated a national scenic beauty. A small museum building displays historical documents, old Daikoku statues, and photographs of the giant statue’s construction.

• Daikoku-sama Reitaisai (November 3) — The annual grand festival honoring Daikokuten, featuring ritual dances, taiko drumming, and distribution of small golden mallet amulets. Priests perform a prosperity prayer ceremony for all attending businesses and entrepreneurs.
• Hatsumode New Year Prayers (January 1-7) — Tens of thousands of visitors climb to pray for business success in the new year, creating lines that extend down the mountain in early January.
• Aki-matsuri Harvest Festival (October) — Traditional mountain shrine festival thanking Ōkuninushi for agricultural and commercial bounty, with offerings of rice, sake, and local produce.
• Monthly Mallet Ritual (1st of each month) — Priests ring a large sacred mallet at dawn to activate financial blessings for registered worshippers who have purchased annual prosperity amulets.

Late October to early November, when the maple and oak forests surrounding the shrine turn brilliant red and gold, creating a natural wealth of color that complements the golden statue. The autumn festival falls during this period. The shrine is stunning after fresh snowfall in January, when the white mountain peaks frame the golden Daikokuten against a clear blue sky. Avoid New Year’s week unless you enjoy dense crowds — the approach becomes a slow procession. Early morning visits (7-8 AM) offer solitude and the best light on the statue. Spring brings cherry blossoms to the lower slopes, though the shrine itself sits above the main bloom line.