Taichō, a mountain Shugendo monk, first climbed Mount Hakusan in 717. For hundreds of years, people have come to Haku for prayers (白山信仰 Hakusan Shinkō). A branch shrine of Shirayama Hime Shrine, which served as the supreme shrine for Kaga Province, is on the mountain. The Shirayama Hime Shrine is the of approximately 2,000 in Japan. In 1980 an area of 48,000 ha was designated a UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Reserve.