Utagawa Hiroshige 歌川広重

Surrounded by the Kiso Mountains, Lake Suwa provides scenic views for travelers on the Nakasendō. On the right, Hokusai depicts the lake with the Kawaguchi Benten shrine in the foreground. On the left, Hiroshige captures a view of the lake from above, boats dotting its wide expanse of water. In both prints, the floating Takashima Castle rises at the middle left, with Mount Fuji in the distance. 

Sometimes in the winter, large cracks form on the surface of Lake Suwa, a phenomenon referred to as omiwatari (御神渡り), or God’s crossing. According to Japanese Indigenous belief, these fractures form when the lake’s guardian deity crosses the ice.