Located half way up the Nachi Mountains, the Kumano Nachi Taisha Grand Shrine is one of the Three Kumano Grand Shrines. It is allegedly said that the shrine used to be near the waterfall, but was moved to the present location in the 4th century. Its main deity is Izanami no Mikoto (aka Kumano Fusumi no Ookami), who is a deity of unity and of everything. After the first visit to Kumano by a retired emperor Uda in 907, this grand shrine along with Kumano Hongu and Hayatama grand shrines has been visited not only by the nobles but also by commoners, especially after the 16th century. This Kumano Visit is often called an “ant procession to Kumano”.
