Kinkasan faith

...Kinkasan is home to Koganeyama Shrine halfway up the mountain, and Ooumitsumi Shrine at the summit. In the early modern period, these two shrines were called Daikinji and Ryuzo Gongen, respectively, and attracted worshippers as mountains dedicated to Benzaiten. Belief in Kinkasan has spread widely not only to coastal areas but also to rural areas, thanks to the preaching of ascetic monks, and Kinkasan sects are found throughout the Tohoku region. The faith in Kinkasan is also strongly characterized as a god of fortune and good luck. In addition to the worship of Benzaiten, other reasons for this include the fact that it was seen as an ideal land on the eastern seas due to its location, and that it was seen as a golden island due to its connection with the gold production of the ancient Mutsu Province.

*Some of the terminology used in relation to "Kinkasan faith" is listed below.

Source | Heibonsha World Encyclopedia 2nd Edition | Information

…金華山の中腹には黄金山神社，山頂には大海祇（おおうみつみ）神社が鎮座しているが，近世期にはそれぞれ真言宗大金寺，竜蔵権現と呼ばれ，弁財天をまつる山として信仰を集めてきた。金華山信仰は修験者の布教などによって沿岸部はもちろんのこと，農村部にも広く浸透し，東北地方一帯に金華山講が分布している。その信仰には金運の神，福神としての性格も強く，その要因として弁財天をまつること以外に，その立地条件によって東方海上の理想郷と観念されたり，古代陸奥国の黄金産出と結びついて黄金の島と観念されてきたことなどが考えられる。…

※「金華山信仰」について言及している用語解説の一部を掲載しています。

出典｜株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典 第２版について | 情報