Find Buddhist Spots
A connection with a Buddha image may appear unexpectedly. Search for places that may lead you to your own My Buddha.
Juonji Temple
Buddhist Image Thirty-Three Kannon Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
Higashihata Bangai, Kidoishi, Kitaakita City, Akita Prefecture, Japan
Visiting Status Open to visitors (9:00–17:00)
GentlenessWarmthStillness
A group of Kannon images enshrined in the Kannon Hall of Juonji Temple. Although known as the “Thirty-Three Kannon,” the hall actually contains 34 Kannon statues. Juonji is a Soto Zen temple said to have been founded in 1521 and moved to its present location around 1640. The temple grounds are also known for their azalea garden, which attracts many visitors during the flowering season. Visitors can enjoy both the Kannon images and the peaceful garden while exploring the temple.
Unganji Temple
Buddhist Image Kongo Rikishi (Nio) Category Tenbu (Deva)
33 Maego, Shiraiwa, Kakunodatemachi, Semboku City, Akita Prefecture, Japan
Visiting Status Open for worship (visiting hours should be confirmed with the temple)
PowerDignityTense Presence
A pair of Kongo Rikishi statues enshrined at the temple gate of Unganji Temple. They were created by Takahashi Ichizo, also known as Enmanzo, a master craftsman sometimes called the “Hidari Jingoro of Tohoku” and known as the creator of the Akita folk song “Donpan-bushi.” According to tradition, a large tree in the temple grounds died after being struck by lightning, and the head priest commissioned the statues so the wood would not go to waste. The two figures were carved from the upper and lower portions of the same tree. Their powerful, dynamic forms guard the gate of Unganji, which is said to be the oldest temple in Kakunodate. The temple grounds also preserve a collection of Shiraiwa-yaki Thousand Buddha figures designated as a Tangible Cultural Property of Akita Prefecture.
Tenneiji Temple
Buddhist Image Amida Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
10 Kamishinmachi, Kakunodatemachi, Semboku City, Akita Prefecture, Japan
Visiting Status Temple grounds open for worship (visiting hours should be confirmed)
DepthStillnessSolemnity
A seated bronze image of Amida Nyorai enshrined in the grounds of Tenneiji Temple in Kakunodate. The large Buddha statue was created to memorialize Ashina Chizurumaru, the young lord of Kakunodate who died in childhood, and is said to have been made by the caster Sato Sajibei. Chizurumaru died in an accident at Tenneiji in 1653, after which the Ashina family line came to an end. According to tradition, a stone associated with the accident was used as part of the statue’s pedestal. Tenneiji is closely connected with the Ashina family and offers a place to reflect on the history of Kakunodate while paying respects to Amida Nyorai.
Daienji Temple
Buddhist Image Amida Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
147 Oyu, Oyu, Towada, Kazuno City, Akita Prefecture, Japan
Visiting Status Temple grounds open for worship (visiting hours should be confirmed)
SolemnityGentlenessWarmth
A large image of Amida Nyorai standing in the grounds of Daienji Temple, known as the “Oyu Daibutsu.” The statue is about 5 meters tall. According to temple tradition, only the head of an earlier Buddha statue was carried to the area by a major flood in the middle of the Edo period. Although the date of the original statue is unknown, the present form was reconstructed in 2008 based on the surviving head. Daienji is located in the Oyu Onsen area, and its grounds also contain a giant temple cedar said to be about 2,000 years old. Together, the great Buddha and ancient tree convey the history and faith of the local community.
Yokote Park
Buddhist Image Heiwa Kannon Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
Shiroyamamachi, Yokote City, Akita Prefecture, Japan
Visiting Status Open to visitors at all times (located in Yokote Park; free admission)
GentlenessStillnessPeacefulness
A Heiwa Kannon statue standing on Kannon-dai in Yokote Park. It was erected as a memorial to the war dead and as a prayer for peace, with support from the Yokote City Bereaved Families Association, the city’s Social Welfare Council, the local Buddhist community, and residents. Created by the stone sculptor Ishida Kansen of Okazaki City, the statue is carved from granite and measures 4.78 meters in height including the lotus pedestal, while the natural-stone base is 2.37 meters high. Completed in November 1965, it remains one of the landmarks of Yokote Park, which was developed on the former site of Yokote Castle.
Jozai-in Temple
Buddhist Image Jizo Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
134 Shiranezaka-dai, Shinzan, Kitaura, Oga City, Akita Prefecture, Japan
Visiting Status Open to visitors at all times (no reservation required; free admission)
MysteryDepthStillness
The “Shinzan Mantai-butsu” is a small hall containing approximately 12,000 wooden images of Jizo Bosatsu. The tiny statues, carved from cedar, cover the space from beneath the floor to the four walls and ceiling, filling the entire hall. According to tradition, the hall was established in 1714 by the monk Fumyo, who is said to have continued carving Jizo images to pray for a disciple who died tragically and for children who passed away at a young age. The site remains a place of local faith and is designated a Tangible Folk Cultural Property of Akita Prefecture. Located near the Namahage Museum and Shinzan Shrine, it can generally be visited freely without a reservation.
Saihoji Temple
Buddhist Image Thirty-Three Kannon Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
51 Yoshida, Kamiyoshida, Hirakamachi, Yokote City, Akita Prefecture, Japan
Visiting Status Open to visitors (6:00–18:00, open year-round)
GentlenessWarmthPeacefulness
Thirty-three Kannon statues, numbered from the first to the thirty-third, are enshrined throughout the grounds of Saihoji Temple. Visitors can walk through the temple grounds and worship each Kannon image in turn. Other approachable Buddhist images, including the “Pokkuri Jizo” and the “Boke-yoke Kannon,” are also enshrined here. Saihoji welcomes visitors in everyday life, encouraging people to visit the temple freely. The grounds also contain one of the largest temple bells in Akita Prefecture, making this an open and peaceful place where visitors can encounter a variety of Buddhist images.
Nokogiriyama Nihonji Temple
Buddhist Image Great Buddha (Yakushi Ruriko Nyorai) Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
千葉県安房郡鋸南町元名184
Visiting Status Open to the public during viewing hours (9:00–16:00, last admission 15:00; admission fee required)
DignitySolemnityPeacefulness
The Great Buddha of Nokogiriyama Nihonji is a seated Yakushi Ruriko Nyorai carved into the mountainside. Its original form was created in 1783 by Ono Jingoro Eirei together with 27 disciples over a period of three years. After severe deterioration caused by weathering, restoration began in 1966 and continued for four years, with the image restored in 1969. Chiba Prefecture’s official tourism site introduces it as Japan’s largest cliff-carved Buddha and one of the principal sights of Nihonji. It remains open to general worship at the Daibutsu Plaza during viewing hours.
Nokogiriyama Nihonji Temple
Buddhist Image Hyakushaku Kannon Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
千葉県安房郡鋸南町元名184
Visiting Status Open to the public during viewing hours (9:00–16:00, last admission 15:00; admission fee required)
PowerMysterySolemnity
The Hyakushaku Kannon at Nihonji was commissioned to pray for those who died in war, from illness or other wartime hardships, as well as victims of traffic accidents. It was carved into the wall of a former stone quarry over six years beginning in 1960 and completed in 1966. Today it is revered as a principal image protecting the safety of sea, air and land travel. The monumental Kannon, carved directly into the vast rock face, stands in Nihonji’s summit area and is open to general worship during viewing hours.
Funagatayama Daifukuji Temple (Gake Kannon)
Buddhist Image Cliff-carved Standing Eleven-Headed Kannon (Gake Kannon) Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
千葉県館山市船形835
Visiting Status Open to the public during viewing hours (8:00–16:30; free. The Kannon Hall may be closed in strong winds, heavy rain or other adverse weather)
MysterySolemnityStillness
Daifukuji’s principal image is a cliff-carved standing Eleven-Headed Kannon in a stone niche cut into the middle of the cliff behind the temple. The 131 cm figure stands on a double lotus pedestal before a boat-shaped halo; bodhisattva faces above the head, a water vase in the left hand and folds of the robes can still be identified. It is designated a Tangible Cultural Property by Tateyama City. The city notes stylistic features suggesting the middle Heian period, but says the date of production cannot be determined because of severe wear. Temple tradition holds that the image was created to pray for fishermen’s safety at sea and abundant catches. It remains open to general worship inside the Kannon Hall projecting from the cliff.
Naritasan Shinshoji Temple
Buddhist Image Fudo Myo-o (Principal Image) Category Myo-o (Wisdom King)
千葉県成田市成田1
Visiting Status Open to general worship inside the Great Main Hall (anyone may enter the hall and worship the principal image; Goma fire rituals are held daily)
PowerDignitySolemnity
The principal image of Naritasan Shinshoji is Fudo Myoo. Temple tradition holds that Kobo Daishi Kukai, founder of the Shingon school, carved and consecrated the image with prayer, making three bows for each stroke of the carving. In 939, during the rebellion of Taira no Masakado, Archbishop Kancho received an imperial command to pray for the rebellion’s suppression and carried the image to the Kanto region. In 940 he performed a 21-day Goma fire ritual at Narita, an event connected with the temple’s founding tradition. Today the image is enshrined at the center of the Great Main Hall, built in 1968, with Kongara Doji on its right and Seitaka Doji on its left. Anyone may enter the hall and worship it directly, and it remains the central object of devotion in the Goma rites that have continued since the temple’s founding.
Tokyo Bay Kannon
Buddhist Image Tokyo Bay Kannon (Guze Kannon) Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
千葉県富津市小久保1588
Visiting Status Open to the public during viewing hours (8:00–17:00, admission until 16:00; fee required; closed Thursdays. Hours may change by season or weather)
GentlenessPeacefulnessSolemnity
Tokyo Bay Kannon is a 56-meter-tall Guze Kannon statue standing on Mount Otsuboyama in Minami-Boso Quasi-National Park. It was erected in 1961 by Masae Usami under an ideal of world peace, and its original model was created by sculptor Ko Hasegawa. The figure holds a jewel to its chest in prayer for a peaceful world and gazes over Tokyo Bay with a gentle expression. Visitors can enter the statue and ascend toward the upper levels; many Buddhist sculptures by Hasegawa are also enshrined along the 324 steps leading toward the highest level. It is one of Chiba Prefecture’s notable monumental Kannon images, offering both an exterior view of the colossal figure and a devotional route through its interior.
Daihizan Kasamori-ji Temple (Kasamori Kannon)
Buddhist Image Eleven-Headed Kannon (Principal Image) Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
千葉県長生郡長南町笠森302
Visiting Status Hidden image (unveiled from October 17 to November 18 in Years of the Ox and Horse, as listed in the temple’s annual schedule)
MysteryNobilityStillness
The principal image of Kasamori-ji is the Eleven-Headed Kannon. Chiba Prefecture describes the present image as 2.6 meters tall and bearing an inscription dated 1426. Temple tradition traces its founding to 784, when Saicho is said to have carved an Eleven-Headed Kannon from a sacred camphor tree and enshrined it on the mountain. The principal image is normally kept hidden and is unveiled only from October 17 to November 18 in Years of the Ox and Horse. It is enshrined in the Kannon Hall, famed as Japan’s only four-sided kakezukuri structure, and remains the focus of worship at the 31st temple of the Bando 33 Kannon pilgrimage.
Ryukaku-ji Temple
Buddhist Image Bronze Seated Yakushi Nyorai (Principal Image) Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
千葉県印旛郡栄町龍角寺239
Visiting Status Viewable from outside the worship hall on designated unveiling days, announced in Sakae Town’s official Ryukaku-ji unveiling calendar
NobilityDepthRefinement
Ryukaku-ji’s principal image, a bronze seated Yakushi Nyorai, is a nationally designated Important Cultural Property. It is one of the representative Hakuho-period Buddhist images of the Kanto region. According to Chiba Prefecture, a fire during the Genroku era destroyed the body below the neck, so the present figure retains a Hakuho-period head while the body was recast in 1711–1716. Despite fire damage, the image preserves archaic features in its full ears, elongated eyes, strongly defined line from the brows to the nose, and faintly smiling mouth. It is not on permanent display, but Sakae Town publishes current unveiling dates in an official calendar, and on designated days it can be worshipped by the public from outside the hall.
Choanzan Toko-in Ishido-ji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Eleven-Headed Kannon (Principal Image) Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
千葉県南房総市石堂302
Visiting Status Hidden image (unveiled in Years of the Ox and Horse; the 2026 Horse-year unveiling was held from March 28 to April 18)
GentlenessRefinementMystery
Ishido-ji’s principal image, a wooden standing Eleven-Headed Kannon, is a nationally designated Important Cultural Property. About 180 cm tall, it dates to the late Heian period and is carved from a single block of kaya wood with an unpainted finish. The crown carries a Buddha face, an Amida manifestation and bodhisattva faces; three faces on the left admonish evil, three on the right encourage those who persevere, and the rear has a laughing face that laughs away evil. The figure has a full, refined face with a gentle smile, a slender body and lightly arranged robe folds. It is normally kept hidden. The temple states that it is unveiled in Years of the Ox and Horse, and the Awa Kuni-fuda Kannon Pilgrimage Association held the 2026 Horse-year unveiling from March 28 to April 18.
Fudarakusan Nago-ji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Thousand-Armed Kannon (Principal Image) Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
千葉県館山市那古1125
Visiting Status Hidden image (unveiled during the Ox- and Horse-year openings of the Awa Kuni-fuda Kannon pilgrimage; the 2026 Horse-year unveiling ran from March 28 to April 18)
PowerDepthSolemnity
Nago-ji’s principal image, a wooden standing Thousand-Armed Kannon, is a 149 cm single-block sculpture designated a Tangible Cultural Property by Tateyama City. Even the joined hands and the hands in front of the abdomen are carved from the main body block, while the additional arms are later replacements attached separately. Its long eyebrows and eyes and triangular nose give the face an earthy strength rather than a simply gentle expression, while the complex yet clearly carved drapery lends the figure a weighty presence. Tateyama City describes it as an emblematic example of a provincial Buddhist image from the late Heian period. It is the devotional focus of Nago-ji, the final temple of the Bando 33 Kannon pilgrimage and the first temple of the Awa Kuni-fuda Kannon pilgrimage. Normally enshrined inside its cabinet as a hidden image, it is unveiled in Years of the Ox and Horse; the 2026 Horse-year unveiling was held from March 28 to April 18.
Ketsuen-ji Temple
Buddhist Image Bronze Standing Fudo Myo-o Category Myo-o (Wisdom King)
千葉県印西市結縁寺516
Visiting Status Unveiled every September 28 (advance reservation required at other times)
PowerDignityTense Presence
Ketsuen-ji’s bronze standing Fudo Myoo is a nationally designated Important Cultural Property. The 47 cm cast-bronze figure has separately cast arms joined at the shoulders and stands on a bronze rock pedestal. It holds a sword in the right hand and a lasso in the left, twisting at the waist with the left foot slightly apart. Its wide-open eyes, bared fangs, wrathful expression, thick arms and sturdy body convey the realism and force characteristic of Kamakura-period sculpture. An inscription on the skirt identifies it as an image made in 1303 under the patronage of the Buddhist priest Taki-son. Bronze Fudo Myoo images designated as national Important Cultural Properties are rare; Chiba Prefecture notes that only three are known, including this one. It is open to general viewing during the annual unveiling service on September 28; at other times, advance reservations are required.
Takakurayama Mano-ji Temple
Buddhist Image Masked Thousand-Armed Kannon (Wooden Standing Thousand-Armed Kannon) Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
千葉県南房総市久保587
Visiting Status Hidden image (unveiled every November 23; special inner-sanctuary viewing is also offered)
MysteryPowerDepth
Mano-ji’s principal image, known as the Masked Thousand-Armed Kannon, is a wooden standing Thousand-Armed Kannon accompanied by a wooden gyodo mask and is designated a Tangible Cultural Property of Chiba Prefecture. Temple tradition says that Gyoki carved the image from a single piece of wood in the Nara period. According to the temple, its spiritual power was considered so strong that it would punish even those guilty of minor wrongdoing, causing people to fear approaching it; a ritual mask was therefore placed on the image to restrain that power. This makes it an unusual masked Kannon with few parallels in Japan. The image is normally hidden behind the closed doors of its cabinet, but every November 23 the doors are opened and visitors can see the masked Thousand-Armed Kannon. Special viewing from within the inner sanctuary is also offered that day.
Ho-ozan Manman-ji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Kongo Rikishi Statues (Agyo and Ungyo) Category Tenbu (Deva)
千葉県松戸市馬橋2547
Visiting Status Unveiled three times a year (Jan. 1–3, Mar. 27–29, Oct. 27–29; 9:00–16:00). During these periods visitors may take part in the Nio matakuguri ritual, passing beneath the statue’s legs
PowerDignityTense Presence
Manman-ji’s wooden Kongo Rikishi are a pair of Agyo and Ungyo guardian statues designated as a national Important Cultural Property. Carved in joined-block construction from kaya wood and painted, the Agyo stands 288 cm tall and the Ungyo 258 cm. Their piercing crystal eyes, powerfully modeled muscles and garments that sweep with the movement of the bodies combine dynamic energy with stability; Chiba Prefecture regards them as outstanding representative Kongo Rikishi images of the Muromachi period. An inscription inside records a restoration in 1474. The statues are unveiled three times each year, at New Year and during spring and autumn observances. During these openings, worshippers can participate in the Nio matakuguri ritual, passing between the legs of the Agyo statue while praying for freedom from illness and misfortune. The opportunity to approach the images closely and take part in a devotional practice centered on the statues themselves makes this an especially distinctive site.
Togakuzan Myoraku-ji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Dainichi Nyorai (Principal Image) Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
千葉県長生郡睦沢町妙楽寺500
Visiting Status Normally viewable through the lattice doors. The annual unveiling is held for the Hachinichi-sai festival, in principle on February 8; in recent years, when February 8 has not fallen on a Sunday, it has been moved to the preceding Sunday. Check the latest schedule in advance.
PeacefulnessNobilitySolemnity
Myoraku-ji's wooden seated Dainichi Nyorai is a nationally designated Important Cultural Property. About 2.8 meters tall, it is a large wooden image carved from a single block of kaya wood. The statue preserves the refined Jocho style of the late Heian period, with a rounded, gentle face, a full-bodied form and flowing robe folds; small celestial bodhisattvas playing musical instruments decorate the halo. It is one of Chiba Prefecture's representative historic Buddhist sculptures. The image can normally be worshipped through the lattice doors of the main hall. Once a year, during the Hachinichi-sai festival, visitors can enter the inner sanctuary to view the principal image at close range. The festival is held in principle on February 8; in recent years, when that date has not fallen on a Sunday, it has been moved to the preceding Sunday. Visitors should confirm the latest schedule in advance.