Honmyoji Temple 本明寺

This is where you will find Honmyokai’s mummy, the oldest of all the sokushinbutsu in Tsuruoka City, yet the most well preserved of them all. Honmyokai’s name was Togashi Yoshibei 富樫吉兵衛. He was once a samurai at the service of the Shonai Clan. When Yoshibei was 39, the lord of the Sakai family fell sick. Yoshibei and other servants went to Mt. Yudono to pray for his healing. But instead of going back to his master, Yoshibei decided to stay in Mt. Yudono because of the revelations he had there. The lord was furious and punished him for leaving his functions by canceling his marriage and confiscating his salary. Despite the harsh treatment, Yoshibei decided to enter Churenji Temple as a disciple monk and chose the name of Honmyokai to mark the start of his new life.

He became a sokushinbutsu in 1683.