In 1090, Emperor Shirakawa had visited Kumano and observed the place bustling with pilgrimages to Kumano Sanzan; he felt that Kumano Sanzan which had been rather an insignificant local reizan (sacred mountain) needed to be managed systematically.
寛治4年（1090年）、熊野に参詣した白河天皇は、熊野詣の盛行に鑑みて、一地方霊山に過ぎなかった熊野三山を組織的に管理する必要を感じた。