Goshuincho: the ultimate pilgrimage keepsake

Goshuincho are booklets used to collect temple and shrine seals, which have become increasingly popular among travelers in recent years. After seeing the magnificent calligraphy and artistry of these handwritten seals, you’ll surely want one too!

The Shikoku 88 temple pilgrimage has its own special kind of goshuincho (specifically called nokyocho), which includes one or two pages dedicated to each temple along the 1,200-km route. Although the temples are numbered, you can certainly collect the seals in any order you like, and over any length of time, based on your unique itinerary

You can purchase goshuincho at temple gift shops, where you’ll find a range of lovely designs and sizes. Although the seals were once applied using woodblock prints, they are now almost always handwritten, which makes them miniature works of one-of-a-kind art

Fun fact: Once you purchase your goshuincho for the Shikoku 88 temple pilgrimage, you will use the same one for life! If you re-visit a temple, the new seal is added on top of the old one on the same page

It costs 300 yen to receive a seal along the Shikoku 88 temple pilgrimage route
Temple offices are usually open from 7am to 5pm
Generally, you should ask for a seal after paying respects to the temple’s main deity (and at the Daishi Hall), but temples can be flexible about this if you arrive just before the office’s closing time


Learn more about the Shikoku 88 temple pilgrimage: https://visitkochijapan.com/en/highlights/henro