Find Buddhist Spots
A connection with a Buddha image may appear unexpectedly. Search for places that may lead you to your own My Buddha.
Asakusa Kannonji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Sho Kannon Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
北海道小樽市富岡1丁目19番21号
Visiting Status Advance reservation required (contact the temple before visiting)
GentlenessRefinementStillness
This wooden standing Sho Kannon Bosatsu is the principal image of Asakusa Kannonji Temple and is designated a Tangible Cultural Property of Otaru City. It is believed to have been made around Kyoto or Shiga in the latter half of the 10th century, during the middle Heian period, and is one of the oldest Buddhist statues confirmed in Hokkaido. Carved from a single block of cherry wood, the face and torso preserve much of their roughly 1,000-year-old form, apart from later repairs to portions of both arms. Its rounded face, small eyes and nose create a notably gentle expression. Tradition holds that it was brought to Otaru in the late 1890s from Umon-in, a subtemple of Shogo-in in Kyoto. It remains the temple’s principal image, and viewing requires advance contact.
Kikoin Temple
Buddhist Image Great Amida Nyorai (Wooden Great Buddha) Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
北海道岩内郡岩内町高台143
Visiting Status Viewing available (confirm visiting hours in advance)
SolemnityDignityPeacefulness
Enshrined in the Main Hall of Kikoin, the oldest temple in Iwanai, this wooden Great Amida Nyorai stands 6.8 meters tall. The fifth head priest, Nomura, initiated the Great Buddha project in 1918, and with support from temple followers the image was completed and consecrated in 1921. Covered entirely in gold leaf, it is introduced by the temple, the Hokkaido Shiribeshi General Subprefectural Bureau, and Iwanai’s official tourism portal as the largest wooden Great Buddha north of Tokyo. When the 1954 Great Iwanai Fire destroyed most of the town, the temple escaped the flames. In 1969 the statue became Iwanai Town’s first designated Tangible Cultural Property. It remains viewable in the Main Hall today.
Naritasan Shinkyuji Temple
Buddhist Image Nyoirin Kannon Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
北海道旭川市5条通4丁目325
Visiting Status Secret principal image (unveiled only at the annual festival at 13:00 on September 18)
MysteryNobilityStillness
Nyoirin Kannon Bosatsu is enshrined as the principal image of Rokkakudo Hall at Naritasan Shinkyuji Temple. The six-armed figure holds a wish-fulfilling jewel, prayer beads, lotus, and Dharma wheel; the first right hand rests against the cheek in contemplation, while the first left hand hangs toward the ground. A Nyoirin Kannon goma service is held in Rokkakudo Hall at 13:00 on the 18th of every month, but the principal image is normally hidden from public view. It is unveiled only during the annual festival at 13:00 on September 18, when general visitors can worship the image directly.
Hozoji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Jizo Bosatsu (Mokujiki Statue) Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
北海道二海郡八雲町熊石根崎町398
Visiting Status Advance confirmation required (viewing hours are not published)
WarmthGentlenessDepth
Enshrined at Hozoji Temple in the Kumaishi area of Yakumo, this wooden standing Jizo Bosatsu was carved by Mokujiki Gyodo. Measuring 206 cm high and 50 cm wide, it is carved from a single piece of cypress and is the largest surviving Mokujiki statue in Hokkaido. An inscription on the back records the completion date of April 24, 1780 and the name Gyodo, making it an important work from the early period when Mokujiki began carving Buddhist images in Ezo. Designated a Tangible Cultural Property of Hokkaido, Japan’s Cultural Heritage Online describes it as a masterpiece of his early work, combining bold carving with a warm, compassionate expression. A national tourism listing updated in 2026 presents it as a visitor attraction, but viewing hours are not published, so advance confirmation is required.
Iwato Kannon Hall
Buddhist Image Thirty-Three Forms of Kannon (including Iwato Kannon) Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
北海道札幌市南区定山渓温泉西4丁目
Visiting Status Regular viewing available (7:00–20:00 / open year-round / cave admission fee applies)
MysteryStillnessDepth
Iwato Kannon Hall in Jozankei Onsen was founded in 1936 by Usaburo Chizaki to memorialize those who died during the difficult construction of the Otaru–Jozankei road and to pray for Jozankei’s development. An approximately 120-meter cave extending behind the Main Hall contains 33 Kannon statues representing the Thirty-Three Forms through which Kannon is believed to appear in order to save beings. The images were donated by Chizaki and local residents, and the pedestal of No. 18, Iwato Kannon, bears the inscription “Otaru Jozankei Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha.” The present hall was rebuilt in 1967, while the cave preserves the hand-dug passage dating from the original foundation. It is open year-round from 7:00 to 20:00, allowing visitors to worship the 33 Kannon images as they walk through the cave.
Kokkasan Koryuji Temple
Buddhist Image Five Hundred Rakan Statues Category Other
北海道函館市船見町21-11
Visiting Status Regular viewing available (9:00–16:00 / open year-round / viewing may be unavailable during Buddhist services or other circumstances)
SolemnityDepthWarmth
The Five Hundred Rakan statues are enshrined in the Kaisando Hall (Garyobyo) of Koryuji, Hakodate’s oldest Soto Zen temple. Koryuji was founded in 1633 and moved to its present location in 1879. The Kaisando was built around 1899, at roughly the same time as the Main Hall, and contains the Five Hundred Rakan together with the Thirty-Three Kannon, Sixteen Rakan, the Ten Great Disciples of Shaka Nyorai, and memorial images of successive head priests. Hakodate’s official tourism site describes the interior as a solemn devotional space, while both the temple and the official Soto Zen portal identify the Five Hundred Rakan as one of Koryuji’s principal highlights. Visitors can normally worship from 9:00 to 16:00 by checking in at the reception area.
Naritasan Sapporo Betsuin Shineiji Temple
Buddhist Image Principal Fudo Myo-o Category Myo-o (Wisdom King)
北海道札幌市中央区南7条西3丁目2
Visiting Status Regular worship available (grounds open 7:30–16:00 / inner-sanctuary worship on Sundays at 14:00, the 28th of each month at 13:00, and other designated occasions)
PowerDignityTense Presence
The principal Fudo Myoo is enshrined in the Main Hall of Naritasan Sapporo Betsuin Shineiji. During Hokkaido’s pioneering era, devotees who relied on Fudo Myoo as spiritual support established a temporary hall at the present site in 1885 and invited a sacred manifestation of Fudo Myoo from Naritasan Shinshoji, founding the temple. The current Main Hall was built in 2003 and enshrines the principal Fudo Myoo together with the Four Great Myoo, while goma fire rituals are performed every day. In addition to ordinary worship, special inner-sanctuary visits are held on Sundays at 14:00, on Fudo Myoo’s monthly sacred day—the 28th—at 13:00, and on certain New Year dates. On these occasions visitors may approach the normally restricted goma altar and worship Fudo Myoo directly from the front.
Shomyoji Temple
Buddhist Image Kannon Bosatsu by Enku Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
北海道函館市船見町18-14
Visiting Status Advance confirmation recommended (Treasure Room / regular temple viewing hours 9:00–16:00)
GentlenessDepthWarmth
This wooden Kannon Bosatsu by Enku is preserved at Shomyoji Temple in Funami-cho, Hakodate. Measuring 42.5 cm in overall height, it is regarded as an early Enku work from around 1666 and is designated a Tangible Cultural Property of Hakodate City. Hakodate’s Board of Education identifies it as an important example of the style later known as the “Shomyoji type,” valuable for tracing the development of Enku’s Buddhist sculpture. Tradition says it was originally enshrined in a Kannon hall in Fukushima Town, later cast into the sea, recovered by a fisherman, and donated to Shomyoji in 1958. The temple lists it among the objects in its Treasure Room, but visitors should confirm current access before visiting.
Ryounzan Zenrinji Temple
Buddhist Image Kannon Bosatsu by Enku (Byakue Kannon Bosatsu) Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
北海道広尾郡広尾町西2条9丁目4
Visiting Status Advance contact required (cultural-property viewing must be arranged in advance and may not always be possible)
WarmthGentlenessDepth
This small Kannon Bosatsu by Enku is enshrined at Zenrinji Temple in Hiroo. In 1666, Matsumae-domain senior retainer Kakizaki Kurando Hiroshige is said to have commissioned Enku to carve it for the safety of his lord Norihiro and donated it to Tokachi Myojin Shrine, now Tokachi Shrine. An inscription on the back records the donor and the year 1666. The statue measures 11.1 cm overall, with an image height of 7.3 cm. After being moved several times following the Meiji-period separation of Shinto and Buddhism, it was enshrined at Zenrinji in 1914. It is designated a Tangible Cultural Property of Hokkaido and is introduced by Hiroo Town as a cultural property that can be viewed. Viewing is free but requires advance contact and may be unavailable depending on temple circumstances.
Naritasan Daishoji Temple
Buddhist Image Shaka Nyorai by Myokei Matsumoto Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
北海道札幌市厚別区大谷地東3丁目5-35
Visiting Status Regular viewing available (8:30–16:30)
RefinementSolemnityStillness
This Shaka Nyorai enshrined in the Main Hall of Naritasan Daishoji was created by Kyoto master Buddhist sculptor Myokei Matsumoto, whom the temple introduces as a leading Buddhist sculptor of the Heisei era. Behind the Shaka Nyorai, approximately 1,500 of the temple’s “Three Thousand Fudo Myoo Statues” are arranged in orderly rows, creating a distinctive sanctuary centered on Shaka Nyorai and surrounded by numerous images of Fudo Myoo. Daishoji belongs to the Shingon-shu Chizan-ha school and serves as temples No. 87 and 88 of the Hokkaido 88 Sacred Sites and No. 34 of the Hokkaido 36 Fudo pilgrimage. The temple’s official visiting hours are 8:30–16:30 and general worshippers are welcomed.
Hokunanzan Koyaji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Dainichi Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
北海道函館市住吉町12-23
Visiting Status Advance confirmation recommended (principal image in the Main Hall / contact the temple before visiting)
NobilityRefinementSolemnity
Enshrined in the Main Hall of Koyaji Temple, this 158 cm wooden seated Dainichi Nyorai is made of joined cypress wood, lacquered and gilded. Depicted as the Dainichi of the Diamond Realm, it forms the wisdom-fist mudra, wears a jeweled crown and ornaments, and sits in the lotus posture. Dating to the 11th–12th centuries in the late Heian period, it preserves the elegant sculptural style associated with the lineage of Jocho. Originally the principal image of Dainichido Hall on Mount Koya, it was granted to Koyaji in 1891. The statue survived two major Hakodate fires by being carried to safety and underwent dismantling restoration in 1970. It is a nationally designated Important Cultural Property and one of Hokkaido’s most significant historic Buddhist sculptures. Koyaji remains the first temple of the Hokkaido 33 Kannon pilgrimage; visitors should confirm access to the principal image before visiting.
Jodo-shu Tennoji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Half-Lotus Seated Amida Nyorai and Two Attendant Bosatsu Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
北海道留萌郡小平町字鬼鹿田代20番地
Visiting Status Prior permission required (inside the Main Hall / permission from Tennoji Temple is required)
NobilitySolemnityPeacefulness
Enshrined in the Main Hall of Tennoji Temple in Onishika, this group consists of a wooden half-lotus seated Amida Nyorai and two attendant Bosatsu. The central Amida was made in the Edo period and brought from Koyamaji Temple in Aichi during the Meiji period to serve as Tennoji’s principal image, funded by local residents including fishing-net leader Denshichi Hanada. While Amida Nyorai is usually depicted standing or fully seated, this image lowers one leg in a half-lotus posture, interpreted as expressing raigo, the welcoming of the deceased into the Pure Land, and is considered extremely rare in Japan. The attendant Kannon Bosatsu and Seishi Bosatsu date from the Meiji period. The group was designated a Tangible Cultural Property of Obira Town in 2016. It remains enshrined as the temple’s principal image, and viewing requires permission from the temple.
Kannonzan Shokoin Temple
Buddhist Image Kannon Statue Group by Toun Takamura (Principal Sho Kannon Bosatsu and Thirty-Three Manifestations of Kannon) Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
北海道登別市登別温泉町119-1
Visiting Status Viewing available (confirm viewing hours in advance)
SolemnityRefinementDepth
Enshrined in the Main Hall of Kannonzan Shokoin, this group of Kannon statues was created by the third-generation Buddhist sculptor Toun Takamura. Local believers, including Kikujiro Iwahara, proprietor of Kagetsudo, pooled funds to commission the works, which were donated when the temple’s new building was completed in 1952. The ensemble consists of one principal Sho Kannon Bosatsu and 33 manifestations of Kannon, for a total of 34 statues, and is designated a Tangible Cultural Property of Noboribetsu City. The official Jodo-shu temple profile describes Shokoin as a temple open to the public and lists viewing as available. As a rare surviving ensemble of works by the third Toun Takamura, the statues themselves provide a strong reason to visit.
Tentokuin (Tentokukan)
Buddhist Image Hokkaido Tentoku Dai Kannon Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
北海道芦別市旭町31番1
Visiting Status Worship available (confirm visiting hours in advance)
SolemnityDignityMystery
The Hokkaido Tentoku Dai Kannon, formerly known as the Hokkaido Dai Kannon, is a colossal 88-meter Kannon statue in Ashibetsu. Planning began in 1975, and its consecration ceremony was held on November 3, 1989, attended by monks invited from Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya, the head priest of Shin-Yakushiji in Nara, and priests from temples across Hokkaido. Inside the statue, a spiral staircase and elevator connect floors 1 through 20. Different floors enshrine forms of Kannon including Byakue Kannon Bosatsu, Ryuzu Kannon Bosatsu, Nyoirin Kannon Bosatsu, and Sho Kannon Bosatsu, together with guardian images, while the 20th floor contains the principal image and a sky worship area. Today the site is managed by Tentokuin, whose official website states that visitors may freely worship the images on the various floors. The combination of the monumental exterior and an interior pilgrimage makes this one of Hokkaido’s most distinctive Kannon worship sites.
Hokuen-zan Shinzenkoji Temple
Buddhist Image Seated Amida Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
北海道札幌市中央区南6条西1丁目2
Visiting Status Regular worship available (open morning worship in the Main Hall daily from 8:30 / confirm other visiting times in advance)
PeacefulnessNobilityRefinement
This 52 cm seated Amida Nyorai is preserved at Shinzenkoji Temple in central Sapporo. The image was transferred from Jokokuji Temple in Kyoto in 1964. Although it had traditionally been regarded as a Kamakura-period work, Buddhist sculpture researcher Fukaku Morikawa examined its style in 1978 and identified it as a late-Heian-period image. A 1992 examination by Saburo Tanabe of Musashino Art University reached the same conclusion. Features such as the small, evenly aligned spiral curls, slender carved eyes, and relatively upright body with a shallow chest and abdomen preserve an older sculptural style. It is a rare opportunity to worship an early Buddhist image in a working temple in central Sapporo. The temple’s official site states that morning worship is held in the Main Hall every day from 8:30 and is freely open to anyone.
Kotoku-zan Kozenji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Amida Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
北海道松前郡松前町字松城303
Visiting Status Advance confirmation required (confirm access to the Main Hall with the temple before visiting)
PeacefulnessNobilityRefinement
The principal image enshrined in the Main Hall of Kotoku-zan Kozenji Temple in Matsumae is a wooden standing Amida Nyorai. Measuring 96 cm high, it is made of joined cypress blocks with a lacquer-and-gold-leaf finish and is accompanied by a boat-shaped halo and a triple-tiered lotus pedestal. Its rounded face, slender crescent-shaped downcast eyes, and shallow, gently flowing robe lines are characteristic of a work from the late Heian period. The statue is designated a Tangible Cultural Property of Hokkaido. Traces of repairs from the Edo period remain, while the halo and pedestal are considered later additions. Kozenji is an active Jodo-shu temple founded in 1533, and the image continues to be worshipped as its principal image. Matsumae’s official tourism site lists the temple as a sightseeing spot, but hours for viewing the Main Hall and the statue are not published, so advance confirmation is required.
Senryuzan Daisho-ji Temple
Buddhist Image Sapporo Yakushi Daibutsu (Seated Yakushi Nyorai) Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
北海道札幌市白石区北郷2362
Visiting Status Regular worship available (temple grounds open 8:00–16:00 / no reservation required / free admission)
PeacefulnessSolemnityDignity
The Sapporo Yakushi Daibutsu is a monumental bronze seated Yakushi Nyorai in the grounds of Daisho-ji Temple in Sapporo’s Shiroishi Ward. Inspired by the principal Yakushi Ruriko Nyorai of Yakushi-ji in Nara, its original model was created by Buddhist sculptor Tsuneo Kagami under the supervision of former Nara National Museum director Kyotaro Nishikawa and others. The statue was installed in 2009 and consecrated in 2012 by Eiin Yasuda, former head priest of Yakushi-ji. The Buddha itself stands 8.4 m high, reaches 13.7 m including its pedestal, and weighs about 25 tons. It is described by the temple as Hokkaido’s first pure-bronze Great Buddha. The Soto Zen official temple portal explicitly introduces Daisho-ji as a temple where the Sapporo Yakushi Daibutsu can be worshipped, while Hokkaido Chuo Bus tourism information lists the grounds as open 8:00–16:00 with no reservation required and free admission.
Naritasan Daishoji Temple
Buddhist Image Three Thousand Fudo Myo-o Statues Category Myo-o (Wisdom King)
北海道札幌市厚別区大谷地東3丁目5-35
Visiting Status Regular viewing available (8:30–16:30)
PowerSolemnityTense Presence
The “Three Thousand Fudo Myoo Statues” are enshrined throughout the Main Hall of Naritasan Daishoji Temple. According to the temple, about 1,500 Fudo Myoo images are arranged behind the Shaka Nyorai, with another approximately 1,500 behind the statues of Kobo Daishi Kukai and Kogyo Daishi Kakuban, creating an ensemble of roughly 3,000 images. Daishoji’s principal image is also Fudo Myoo, accompanied by about 50 related figures including the Five Great Myoo, Thirty-Six Attendants, and Eight Great Attendants. The dense arrangement creates a striking sanctuary centered on devotion to Fudo Myoo and can be viewed during regular visiting hours from 8:30 to 16:30.
Ryutakuzan Tosenji Temple
Buddhist Image Saigoku Thirty-Three Kannon Statues Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
北海道函館市湯川町3丁目35-10
Visiting Status Viewing available (the Thirty-Three Kannon are in the temple grounds / afternoon is recommended for goshuin; temple staff may be away on duties)
WarmthGentlenessStillness
The Saigoku Thirty-Three Kannon statues stand in the grounds of Tosenji Temple in Hakodate’s Yunokawa district. They originated around 1834 on Mount Hakodate, where soil brought from each of the thirty-three temples of the Saigoku Kannon pilgrimage was placed beneath the stone images. When Mount Hakodate was turned into a military fortress in the mid-Meiji period, most of the statues were moved down the mountain and were later relocated via Yunokawa Village to their present home at Tosenji. Soil newly collected by temple members from the thirty-three pilgrimage temples is now placed in the pedestals, and the temple continues to hold spring and autumn festivals for the Kannon. The grounds contain about fifty Buddhist statues and stone monuments and are only a few minutes’ walk from the Yunokawa tram stop.
Noboribetsu Jigokudani
Buddhist Image Kannon Bosatsu by Enku (Natazukuri Kannon) Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
北海道登別市登別温泉町
Visiting Status Outdoor worship available (free / subject to the condition of the Jigokudani walking paths)
MysteryDepthStillness
Near an observation point overlooking Noboribetsu Jigokudani stands a Kannon Bosatsu carved by Enku. It is believed to have been made in 1666, when Enku traveled through southern Hokkaido carving Buddhist images with a hatchet, and is designated a Tangible Cultural Property of Noboribetsu City. The statue disappeared during a forest fire in 1911 and was later found badly charred. It is now enshrined overlooking Jigokudani. The official Noboribetsu tourism association lists Natazukuri Kannon as a sightseeing spot with free access, making it an unusually easy place to worship an original Enku image while visiting one of Hokkaido’s best-known destinations.