Rokudo Chinno Temple: Passage to the Underworld (Sachiko)

At Rokudo Chinno Temple, there is a well that supposedly acts as a passageway to the underworld. The Heian period scholar Ono no Takamura, also known as Sangi no Takamura, served the Imperial Court by day, then would allegedly climb down this well at night to aid in the work of judging those souls who have died and entered the afterlife. His grave is said to be in Kita Ward, Kyoto, next to the grave of Murasaki Shikibu, the woman who penned the epic “Tale of Genji” and, as legend has it, descended into hell as a punishment for her lustful behavior.