Tohoku Tabi: Mt. Osore (Osorezan) Day Trip Guide
Mt. Osore is a sacred mountain located in Aomori prefecture on the Shimokita Peninsula.
It’s known as Osorezan 恐山 in Japanese, and also known by monickers like:
Fear Mountain,
The Gateway to Hell,
and one of the three holiest sites in Japan.
A day trip to Osorezan was an inspirational trip for me, and if you are seeking a thoughtful and contemplative journey off the beaten path, I recommend experiencing it for yourself.
Osorezan
Basic Information
What: Mt. Osore (Osorezan 恐山) – site of Bodai-ji Temple
Where: Shimokita Peninsula, Aomori Prefecture
When: Bodai-ji Temple is open to visitors from May 1st – October 31st.
Hours: 6:00 – 18:00
Admission Fee: 500 yen
Transportation
Osorezan is located in a remote area on the Shimokita Peninsula. It is not possible to visit year-round as Bodai-ji is closed from November – April, so you should plan your visit ahead of time.
Osorezan is accessible by car, and there are also 3 – 5 buses a day (depending on the season) that can take you there. It takes about 45 minutes by bus to get to Osorezan and it costs 800 yen one way. You can catch the bus in front of JR Shimokita station (as of July 2018, it was from Bus Stop #1) or the Mutsu Bus Terminal.
TO Osorezan (From May 1st – October 31st)
| JR Shimokita Station | Mutsu Bus Terminal | Osorezan |
| 9:10 | 9:20 | 9:53 |
| 11:15 | 11:25 | 11:58 |
| 12:45* (Only departs if the Resort Shirakami train runs this day.) | 13:14 | 13:28 |
| 14:00 | 14:10 | 14:43 |
TO Osorezan (From May 1st – September 30th)
| JR Shimokita station | Osorezan |
| 16:55 | 17:30 |
FROM Osorezan (From May 1st – October 31st)
| Osorezan | Mutsu Bus Terminal | JR Shimokita Station |
| 10:05 | 10:35 | 10:45 |
| 13:00 | 13:30 | 13:40 |
| 15:00* (Only departs if the Resort Shirakami train runs this day.) | 15:30 | 15:40 |
| 15:50 | 16:20 | 16:30 |
FROM Osorezan (May 1st – September 30th)
| Osorezan | JR Shimokita Station |
| 17:30 | 18:05 |
The information listed in the tables is accurate as of July 2018. For an updated timetable, check the Shimokita Koutsu Bus website and click on the ” 恐山線/むつバイパス線/むつ養護学校線” link.
History
According to Japanese mythology, Osorezan is considered one of the gateways to hell. The Japanese translation of osore means “dreadful,” “fearful,” and terror,” and it isn’t difficult to imagine why people would have thought so. The natural landscape around Osorezan features bubbling ponds of sulfuric water and craggly peaks of ashen volcanic rock that suggest a dreadful hell.
The creation of Osorezan; however, was not inspired by a drive to create an ancient torture chamber. 1200 years ago a Buddhist priest named En’nin had a mysterious dream that told him to propagate Buddhism in the mountains that were a thirty day’s walk from Kyoto.
En’nin embarked on his pilgrammage and eventually came upon the modern-day location of Mt. Osore. He saw that the surrounding area fulfilled the conditions in his dream and set down to carve a statue of the Bodhisattva Jizo there.
Jizo is Bodhisattva who is known to embody compassion as he offers to take on and endure the suffering of those on Earth. Statues of Jizo are numerous on the mountain accompanied by offerings of stones, pebbles, and windmills. These are offerings from parents who have lost children to pray for the salvation of their child.
To those who believe, Jizo’s compassion makes Osorezan a land of salvation, peace, and happiness.
There are many curious tourists, like me, lured by the naturalistic memento mori, but it is also common to see those drawn to its sacredness. Pilgrims, people seeking to deepen their faith, and people who come to mourn their loved ones are also a common sight on the mountain.
So, while it bears a fearful name, Osorezan is deeply a sacred place and is considered one of the three most holy sites in Japan alongside Hieizan in Kyoto prefecture and Koyasan in Wakayama prefecture.
Bodai-ji Temple
A trip to Osorezan is a trip to visit Bodai-ji Temple. Bodai-ji Temple is connected to the Soto sect of Buddhism and is an active temple whose grounds sprawl across the mountain.
As Bodai-ji is an active temple, there are also daily Buddhist services that you are welcome to join. The morning service begins at 6:30am, midday service begins at 11:00am, and the last service of the day begins at 14:00.
The monks are very kind and encourage anyone who is curious to join in. I stood by the entrance of the inner hall, peering into the beginning of the service, and was kindly invited in by a monk to come inside.
Each summer, from July 20 – 24th, there is a spiritual festival that involves itako, traditionally blind female mediums. Those who have lost loved ones make the journey to Osorezan with hopes to communicate with their deceased through the spiritual powers of the itako. Prior to the festival, the itako go through an intense training process to put themselves in a trance-like state that enables them to communicate with the dead.
I didn’t have the opportunity to see the festival and the itako this time, but I have heard that it is an extremely intense festival and that it is not for everyone.
Buses do not run to Osorezan during the festival, so if you want to see the itako, you will have to rent a car and drive up the mountain.
Lake Usori
When the Japanese Buddhist priest, En’in was given the vision to find sacred land in northern Japan, the landscape of Osorezan fit many of the details he was looking for.
Lake Usori sits in the middle of Osorezan and is surrounded by the hell-ish imagery of jagged volcanic rock while also being gently cupped by soft white sand and eight beautiful mountain peaks. The legend goes that En’in saw this harsh beauty and said that this site best represented the Buddhist idea of the Pure Land.
The eight peaks surrounding Lake Usori are said to sybolize a lotus flower with eight petals. The eight petal lotus flower is a significant symbol in Buddhism as it represents the world of the Buddha.
There is a beautiful paradox at Lake Usori wherein you can look, but you can’t touch. The clear, multi-hue blue waters of Lake Usori are highly sulfuric and it is toxic for humans to enter the water.
Near the shore of Lake Usori, there is a little hut where you can take a break and take in the scenery. It is one of the few spots where you can find reprieve from the sun if you happen to go during the summer time, so take some time for yourself to soak in the experience.
Onsen in Hell
You can take a bath while on Osorezan, and I highly recommend taking the time to do so while you are there.
There are three different wooden huts that are rotated between use for men and women. In the huts, you can dip into geothermal-heated mineral water. There aren’t any showers in the onsen as they are no frills and extremely rustic.
They are public baths, so you will have to share the bath if someone comes in, but there is a strong chance that you could be the only one there enjoying the mineral water. The water has a strong aroma of sulfur, so be warned, you will probably smell like eggs for the next couple days after.
Reflections
If you’re in a hurry, a half day trip would be enough to experience Osorezan. You could take the 9:10 bus up and then 13:00 bus back down, but if you have the time, it would be worthwhile to slowly take in Osorezan.
Most of my experience at Osorezan felt like episodes of my life were being played right in front of me again. I harshly remembered practical advice from childhood, like remember to wear sunscreen on a hot day. Basic life instruction that I usually ignore, but I got one of the most killer sunburns that day at the gateway to hell. I also thought of lessons from adulthood such as the value of being in the moment.
Not everything needs to be documented – being able to slowly take in your surroundings offers the chance to bear witness to the limits of potential of humanity. While I was on Osorezan, I saw a family gut-wrenchingly grieve the death of a loved one on the banks of Lake Usori. It was an intrusive moment, but to see the rawness of grief left me breathless and reflective.
If you go, I’d recommend taking the time to slowly enjoy Osorezan For me, being on the mountain encouraged self-reflection that I felt like I had been lacking recently. I took the time to write on the banks of Lake Usori with the spectacular views serving as an existential backdrop to remind me of my humanity.
