On our sightseeing tour of Kyoto, we visited two Buddhist temples, Kiyomizu and Sanjusangendo. Along with Shinto, Buddhism is one of the most prominent religions practiced in Japan. It was introduced in the sixth century from a Korea and currently approximately 96 million people adhere Buddhism (as I mentioned yesterday, it is often practiced with Shinto because they are complementary). There are many different forms, or schools, of Buddhism in Japan and Jodo Shinshu is the most prevalent form practiced today.
The Kiyomizu temple sits atop a hillside overlooking the city of Kyoto. It was built in 1633 and named in honor of the waterfall that is located within the temple complex (Kiymizu means “pure water”). The impressive veranda is supported by hundreds of wooden columns and is the inspiration for the popular saying “to jump off the stage at Kiyomizu.” In the Edo period, it was said that to survive the leap from the veranda to the ground below would lead to a wish come true for the jumper; now the saying is used similarly to our “take the plunge”.
The Sanjusangendo temple is an impressively long structure that dates back to the 12th century. The temple’s name literally means “hall with thirty-three spaces” to indicate the number of columns present in the main hall. Inside this hall are 1,001 statues of the 1,000 armed Kannon, the bodhisattva of compassion, 28 statues of guardian deities, and statues of the Japanese gods Fujin (wind) and Raijin (thunder and lightning). The statues are constructed of Japanese cypress and each of the Kannons has a different face. Another interesting thing about the temple is that each year an archery competition is held where competitors shoot arrows the length of the long hall.
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