Honpouji temple

I went to Honpouji temple. It was established in Muromachi Era by Nisshin Saint.

This temple has Butsu Nehanzu, which is a picture of Buddha entering Nirvana and is designated as an important cultural property to Japan.

I could only see the full-scale replica because it is a limited exhibition between March 14th and April 15th every year. I missed it by only a few days..

The original was made in 1599 by Hasegawa Tohaku, who was the foremost artist of the Azuchi-Momoyama Era. The size is about 10 meters by 6 meters. People and animals are painted vividly and expressively in the whole screen. It was very powerful and attracted me so much. Surely I’d like to see the real one next time.

Next I visited the garden. It is a nationally-designated site of scenic beauty. We can enjoy it from the Shoin, a drawing room.

A long period of time have made the stones mossy and small hills unrecognizable. I enjoyed the serenity and relaxed.

However I felt Daitokuji temple or Shokokuji temple is better to enjoy the garden and relax because there are less people.

Honpouji temple is the place to visit when we can see the original, I think.

The entrance fee was 500 yen.

#temple #Kyoto #English