The mountain is known for its many oddly shaped rocks and as a battlefield during the wars of the Kemmu Restoration at the end of the Kamakura period.

According to legend, the annual Omizutori ceremony at Tōdai-ji was begun by the monk Jitchū after he discovered a passage here that led to the heavenly home of Maitreya (Miroku Bosatsu).

With a rise in popularity of worship in Maitreya in the Heian period, Mount Kasagi became a center of pilgrimage, attracting both the aristocracy of Kyoto and the common people.

The temple was destroyed during the Siege of Kasagi in the 1331 Genkō War by shogunate forces and the image of Maitreya was irreparably damaged, leaving only its halo.

[2] The trailhead to climb the mountain is a five-minute walk from the JR West Kansai Main Line Kasagi Station.