t Looking over Lake Chuzenji from the Futura-san Shrine

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This peaceful, rustic shrine, thought to be dedicated to a female deity, draws women and those looking for love. Toss a stone through the hole in the top of the torii and into the shrine grounds and your wish, they say, will come true.

This red-lacquered wooden bridge, just to the left of the road bridge, arches over the Daiya River where, legend has it, Shodo Shonin crossed the water on the backs of two huge serpents. The original bridge, which was built in 1636 for the exclusive use of the shogun and imperial messengers, was destroyed by a flood. The current bridge dates from 1907.

Founded by Shodo Shonin in 782, this shrine is dedicated to the gods of the mountains Nantai (male), Nyotai (female), and Taro, their child. It is actually the main shrine of three; the other two are at Lake Chuzenji and on Mount Nantai. The bronze torii here has been designated as an Important Cultural Property. But the shrine’s most interesting feature for visitors is a tall bronze lantern, nicknamed the “ghost lantern”, which is said to take the shape of a monster at night. The gashes in the lamp are from the sword of a terrified samurai who attacked it when the flame started to flicker in a peculiar way. A vermilion fence now protects the lantern from attack.

The first temple in Nikko, founded by Buddhist priest Shodo Shonin in 766, Rinno-ji was originally called Shihonryu-ji. When it became a Tendai-sect temple in the 17th century, it was renamed. Its Sanbutsu-do (Three Buddha Hall) is the largest hall at Nikko. The three gilt images – of Amida Buddha, Senju (thousand-armed) Kannon, and Bato (horse-headed) Kannon – enshrined in the hall correspond to the three mountain deities enshrined at Futara-san Shrine. Beyond the hall, the nine-ringed bronze pillar, Sorinto, contains 1,000 volumes of sutras (Buddhist scriptures) and is a symbol of world peace.

The temple’s beautiful Treasure Hall (Homotsuden) houses a large and fascinating array of temple treasures, mainly dating from the Edo period. Behind it is the Shoyoen, a lovely Edo-style 19th-century stroll garden that has been carefully landscaped so that it is at its best for every season. The enchanting path through the garden meanders around a large pond, over stone bridges, and past mossy stone lanterns.

t An imposing statue of Shodo Shonin found near Rinno-ji

Lava flows from an old eruption of Mount Nantai combine with the limpid waters of the Daiya River to make these unusual scenic pools. It is not hard to see why the Abyss is a sacred spot to Buddhism. About 70 stone statues of Jizo, the bodhisattva of children, line the path by the river. They are known as phantom statues because their numbers appear to change every time you look.

Some 3,000 varieties of plants and flowers from Japan and around the world can be seen at these gardens, a branch of the Koishikawa Botanical Gardens of the University of Tokyo. Flora from Nikko National Park are showcased. April to July, when skunk cabbages and irises bloom, is a lovely time to visit.

This small museum showcases lacquerware arts – urushi means lacquer. Used in Japan for over 5,000 years, lacquer has reached the height of refinement only in the past 1,000 years. The museum’s collection also includes decorative wares from China, India, and Egypt.

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