Forest of the Seven Lucky Gods (Shichifukujin no Mori)

Wooded grove of seven outdoor wood carvings of Japan's lucky gods

A quiet wooded grove on the western edge of town where seven of Japan's traditional gods of fortune — Daikokuten, Ebisu, Bishamonten, Benzaiten, Fukurokuju, Jurōjin and Hotei — are rendered as huge wooden carvings, each made from a thousand-year-old cedar. The figures are roughly hewn, weathered and surrounded by cedar trees; the atmosphere is unusual, peaceful and faintly mystical.

The site is small and easily missed; it sits a short walk west of the Hida Folk Village and is best combined with that visit.

things to do sight
A story
The seven gods were carved over several years in the 1980s by a local artist from a single cedar log over a thousand years old, salvaged from a typhoon-felled tree. The figures stand among the cedars exactly where the tree once grew.

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