薬王寺

薬王寺は726年創建で、四国八十八箇所霊場の第23番札所です。

Pilgrims drop coins on each of the 136 stone steps (33 for women's unlucky years, 42 for men's, and 61 for age 60) to ward off bad luck. Each step has a character from a sacred sutra buried beneath it.

The temple's main Buddha statue is called the 'backward-facing Yakushi Nyorai' because it miraculously flew away during a 1188 fire, then returned and entered its case facing the wrong direction after the temple was rebuilt.

薬王寺には、女厄坂・男厄坂・還暦坂という名の石段があり、年齢ごとの厄年信仰と結びついています。