You can see the entire southern area from the lookout. To the west of the outer wall, you can see The East China Sea. And to the east, on your left, there are three significant sites that we’ll briefly guide you through.
The furthest spot on the left is a mountain called “Bengadake,” which is considered to be a spiritual site of Utaki.
Pivot your view a tad to the right, where on a clear day you’ll see Kudaka Island off in the distance. Kudaka Island is said to be the first island created by the goddess of the Ryukyu Kingdom, Amamikiyo, when she descended from the heavens.
Shifting your gaze further to the right, the area where the top of the mountain looks slightly unusual, is the World Heritage Site, Sefa-Utaki. Recognized as the most sacred place in the Ryukyu Kingdom, the Imperial Government made a point to personally take care of it. The inauguration ceremony of the Kikoe-ōkimi was held at this Utaki;the Kikoe-ōkimi would march from Shuri-jo Castle to Sefa-Utaki, gathering the local priests along the way for a grand event.
These sites are extremely important and sacred, and at this lookout location you can see all three in one glance. Therefore, it’s thought that this lookout could serve as a place for “three-pointed worship.”
Since they are famous, you may have already heard of Kudaka Island and Sefa-Utaki. While Bengadake is less famous than the others, it’s actually the highest mountain in Naha City and is known to have a high level of feng shui harmony. You can see the influence of feng shui teachings around Okinawa from the homes to the tombs, as students used to go to China to study feng shui. Students of feng shui said that Shuri-jo Castle was in a good position with the good “chi” of Bengadake behind it. The kingdom also felt this mountain was very important for the flow of feng shui energy.
