Kumano Nachi Taisha 熊野那智大社

Kumano Nachi Taisha (熊野那智大社) is a Shinto shrine and part of the UNESCO-designated World Heritage Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range of Japan. The Kumano Kodō route connects it to other sites under the same classification, which are primarily located in Wakayama Prefecture, Japan. The four sites on the route, classified as pilgrimage destinations and World Heritage Sites, are: 1) Nachi Taisha; 2) Hongū Taisha; 3) Hayatama Taisha; 4) Koya-san.

Kumano Nachi Taisha is also one of the three sacred Kumano Sanzan shrines:

Kumano Nachi Taisha

Kumano Hongū Taisha

Kumano Hayatama Taisha

This classification is based mostly in Japanese history, as pilgrims would travel to all three sites to complete their pilgrimage.

Kumano Nachi Taisha is an example of Buddhist and Shinto syncretism (Shinbutsu shūgō) nestled in the Kii Mountains, near Kii Katsuura, Japan. Cedar forests surround the site. The 133-meter Nachi Waterfall, worshiped at the Hiryū Shrine near Kumano Nachi Taisha, is believed to be inhabited by a kami called Hiryū Gongen. Also, there is a sacred tree at this site, the Sacred Camphor Tree, located between the Nachi Shrine (heiden) and Seigantoji temple. It is 850 years old and is said to have been planted by Taira-no-Shigemori (1138–1179). The straw rope (shimenawa) and paper flags show that this tree has been sanctified as a kami.