Ninen-zaka and Sannen-zaka are pedestrian-only lanes leading up to Kiyomizu-dera Temple. The names “Ninen-zaka” (“Second-Year Slope”) and “Sannen-zaka” (“Third-Year Slope”) are said to derive from the fact that the lanes were constructed in the second and third years of the Daido Era (807 and 808). Sannen-zaka is also referred to as “Sannei-zaka” (written with the characters for “childbirth” and “calm”), because the lane is also used by people visiting Kiyomizu-dera to worship Kannon, the guardian goddess of children and childbirth, and pray for safe childbirth.