{"id":2020,"date":"2026-10-12T17:15:49","date_gmt":"2026-10-12T08:15:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/japan-stroll.com\/miyajima\/english\/guide\/%featured_category%\/reikado-hall-fire\/"},"modified":"2026-10-12T17:15:51","modified_gmt":"2026-10-12T08:15:51","slug":"reikado-hall-fire","status":"publish","type":"featured","link":"https:\/\/japan-stroll.com\/miyajima\/english\/guide\/things-to-do\/reikado-hall-fire\/","title":{"rendered":"Reikado Hall Fire on Miyajima: What Happened and What’s Left"},"content":{"rendered":"

On the morning of 20 May 2026<\/strong>, the Reikado Hall near the summit of Mount Misen on Miyajima burned to the ground. The hall was the home of the kiezu no hi<\/em>, the “eternal flame” said to have been lit by the monk Kukai in 806. According to Daisho-in, the temple that looks after the mountain, the flame itself was carried out by the monks before the building was lost and is still kept alight elsewhere. Nobody was hurt. The temple plans to rebuild the hall on the same spot, with November 2027<\/strong> as the target.<\/p>\n

If you are planning a climb up Mount Misen, the short version is this: the mountain, the ropeway and the summit are still there, but the Reikado you have read about in older guides is not. Do not go up expecting to see the flame or to be handed a cup of water boiled over it. This page sets out what happened, what the reports say about the cause and the rebuilding, and what you can and cannot expect on the summit until the new hall is finished. (Facts from Daisho-in’s statements as reported by Kyodo, Nikkei, the Chugoku Shimbun and Get Hiroshima, and from the temple’s own site; checked October 2026.)<\/p>\n

The Reikado fire at a glance<\/h3>\n
\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Question<\/th>\nWhat is known (October 2026)<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
When<\/td>\nMorning of 20 May 2026. Daisho-in staff called the fire service at about 8:30<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
What burned<\/td>\nThe Reikado Hall and the small annex beside it, both completely; flames also reached nearby trees and structures. The site is near the Misen summit, next to the Misen Hondo (main hall)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
The eternal flame<\/td>\nCarried out by the monks and kept alight at another location, according to the temple. Where it is kept, and whether visitors can see it, has not been announced<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Injuries<\/td>\nNone reported<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Cause<\/td>\nNot determined. The fire service’s final report in August 2026 could not identify the cause. Police said there was no evidence of arson<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Rebuilding<\/td>\nOn the same site, target November 2027 (Chugoku Shimbun, 19 June 2026). Daisho-in is accepting donations<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mount Misen itself<\/td>\nThe ropeway, the trails, the Misen Hondo, the Sankido and the summit observatory were not reported as damaged or closed. Check with Daisho-in or the Miyajima Tourist Association for the current state of the Reikado site<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table><\/div>\n

What the Reikado was<\/h2>\n

The Reikado, written \u970a\u706b\u5802 (“hall of the sacred fire”) and often called the Eternal Flame Hall in English, stood a few steps from the Misen Hondo, the main hall of Daisho-in’s mountain precinct, about 30 minutes on foot above the upper ropeway station. It was a small wooden building, and almost everyone who climbed Misen stopped there.<\/p>\n

Inside burned the kiezu no hi<\/em>, literally “the fire that does not go out”. Tradition holds that Kukai (Kobo Daishi), the founder of Shingon Buddhism, lit it during a hundred days of ascetic practice on the mountain in 806, and that it had been kept burning ever since: more than twelve centuries. A large iron cauldron hung over the fire, and the water heated in it was offered to visitors as a cure-all. For many people, a paper cup of that slightly rusty-tasting water was the memory they took home from the summit.<\/p>\n

The flame has a second life off the island. When the Peace Flame in Hiroshima’s Peace Memorial Park was lit in 1964, fire from Mount Misen was one of the sources used. The two are separate fires today, and the Peace Flame is unaffected by what happened on Misen.<\/p>\n

The hall and its surroundings were also recognised as a “Lovers’ Sanctuary” (koibito no seichi<\/em>), which is why the upper ropeway station has a couples’ monument. Our page on the Lovers’ Sanctuary on Mount Misen<\/a> describes the hall as it was before the fire.<\/p>\n

What happened on 20 May 2026<\/h2>\n

The fire was reported shortly after 8:30 in the morning by people connected with Daisho-in, who saw the hall burning. Eight fire engines were sent to the island and helicopters were used to attack the blaze from the air, since the site is near the top of a 535-metre mountain with no road access. Firefighters had the fire largely under control after about two hours, but the Reikado and the annex next to it were already destroyed. The surrounding area was fully extinguished the following day.<\/p>\n

Daisho-in said soon afterwards that the eternal flame had been divided and carried to safety before the hall fell. It was the second time this had been necessary: in May 2005 the Reikado also burned down, the monks carried the flame out, and the hall was rebuilt the following year.<\/p>\n

The cause, and the rumours<\/h3>\n

Within days, posts spread on social media claiming that a foreign visitor had started the fire. The Hatsukaichi police said they had found nothing to suggest arson and no trace supporting the claims, and NHK and the Chugoku Shimbun reported the posts as baseless. The fire service investigated through the summer and published its final report in August 2026: the cause could not be determined. That remains the position as of October 2026.<\/p>\n

The rebuilding plan<\/h2>\n

On 19 June 2026 the Chugoku Shimbun reported that Daisho-in intended to rebuild the Reikado on the same site, aiming to finish by November 2027. Local television later put the estimated cost at about 280 million yen and reported that the head priest is considering changes to make the new hall harder to burn: earthen walls inside instead of exposed timber, fire shutters and sprinklers. Collection boxes for the rebuilding fund have appeared around Miyajima, and the temple is accepting donations through its website.<\/p>\n

If the schedule holds, the flame will return to a new Reikado in late 2027, as it did in 2006. Until then there is no public timetable for when, or whether, visitors can see it.<\/p>\n

Visiting Mount Misen now: what to expect<\/h2>\n

None of the reports mentioned closures of the ropeway or the hiking trails, and the fire did not reach the Misen Hondo, the Sankido or the summit observatory as far as has been published. So a climb up Misen is still the best half-day on the island; it is just that one stop on the usual route has changed.<\/p>\n