Ryuanji Temple

Legend holds that in 650, while training under Mino-o Falls, the ascetic En no Gyoja received teachings from the bodhisattva Ryuju and carved a statue of Benzaiten to enshrine below the falls, giving the temple its old name, Mino-oji. During the Edo period it issued a lottery called 'Mino-o no Fukutomi,' earning fame as the birthplace of Japan's lottery tradition — a scene depicted in the Settsu Meisho Zue guidebook. Worshippers seeking fortune and artistic skill visit its Benzaiten shrine year-round without interruption. It also serves as the foundational training center for mountain Shugendo asceticism, and its annual Great Fire Ritual draws yamabushi mountain ascetics from across the Kinki region.