Mizusawa’s Kumano shrine 水沢の熊野神社

Not far from the Minakami Hachiman Shrine, there is Mizusawa hamlet’s Kumano Shrine, a generic name given to shrines that worship the gods of Kumano Sanzan (another trio of holy mountains of Shugendo spirituality).

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The shrine was first built during the 10th century. Behind the shrine, the giant cedar tree, which age has been estimated over 1000 years old, has been registered in the National Natural Monuments lists in 1927. In 1932, a lightning bolt stroke the forest, provoking a giant fire near the cedar tree, but thanks to the hamlet’s people’s efforts, the cedar tree remained intact.