I wander around the 88 temples of Shikoku with my wife by car.We will travel, dividing into several times of 10.
The holy pilgrimage of eighty-eight temples in Shikoku is said to have originated some 1200 years ago with
disciples of the Buddhist priest, Kobo Daishi. After the death of Kobo Daishi, disciples traced this route
travelled by the priest himself.The number of temples is connected to the belief that people are afflicted
with eighty eight worldly desires. Every temple visited will supposedly erase human vice, and therefore
completion of the pilgrimage is said to bring enlightenment.The temples are spread around the whole of
Shikoku, and the distance of the pilgrimage route is around 1440km or 900 miles.Coming spring, pilgrims
visiting the temples along the holy route are a common sight.Nowadays, hundreds of thousands of people
take part in the pilgrimage every year.If you decide to undertake the pilgrimage, you will have the
opportunity to experience merits of Tokushima not ordinarily seen by tourists. You will have daily
encounters with fellow pilgrims, and many chances to meet the friendly local people. Even if you are not
a Buddhist nor interested in religion, the physical training you receive walking through the mountains and along
the coast will revive you in mind and body.