Find Buddhist Spots
A connection with a Buddha image may appear unexpectedly. Search for places that may lead you to your own My Buddha.
Zuishin-in Temple
Buddhist Image Nyoirin Kannon Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
京都府京都市山科区小野御霊町35
Visiting Status Main Hall open to visitors / principal image is secret; special openings held
GentlenessPurityDepth
Zuishin-in’s Main Hall enshrines a secret Nyoirin Kannon Bosatsu as its principal image. Known as a monzeki temple associated with Ono no Komachi, it combines the gentleness of Kannon devotion with a pure afterglow suggestive of court culture. The principal image cannot normally be viewed directly, but special openings provide opportunities to encounter it inside the Main Hall.
Bishamondo Monzeki Temple (Yamashina)
Buddhist Image Bishamonten Category Tenbu (Deva)
京都府京都市山科区安朱稲荷山町18
Visiting Status Main Hall open to visitors / principal image is secret; substitute image can be viewed
PowerDignityStillness
The Main Hall of Bishamondo, a monzeki temple in Yamashina, enshrines Bishamonten as its principal deity. The sacred image is kept hidden inside its shrine, and visitors normally worship before a substitute Bishamonten image. Revered as a deity of wealth, victory and protection, Bishamonten gives the hall a sense of powerful yet quiet dignity.
Nison-in Temple
Buddhist Image Shaka Nyorai and Amida Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府京都市右京区嵯峨二尊院門前長神町27
Visiting Status Regular viewing available
PeacefulnessPurityStillness
An old Tendai temple at the foot of Mt. Ogurayama in Sagano. The Main Hall enshrines two principal images known as the “Shaka who sends forth” and the “Amida who welcomes,” expressing Pure Land faith that guides people from this world toward the Pure Land. Surrounded by a quiet approach and the natural setting of the mountain foothills, the temple offers a peaceful space in which to contemplate the passage between life and death.
Kaikoji Temple
Buddhist Image Joroku Shaka Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府京都市東山区泉涌寺山内町29
Visiting Status Regular viewing available
DignityPurityDepth
Kaikoji, a sub-temple of Sennyu-ji, is known for its large Shaka Nyorai affectionately called “Joroku-san.” The Main Hall enshrines the Migawari Joroku Shaka Nyorai, revered as a Buddha who takes upon itself illnesses and misfortunes affecting the head and upper body. In the quiet Sennyu-ji precincts, visitors can feel the statue’s imposing presence together with a reassuring sense of protection.
Hoshakuji Temple
Buddhist Image Eleven-Faced Kannon Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
京都府乙訓郡大山崎町銭原1番地
Visiting Status Regular viewing available
DepthPurityDignity
An old temple of the Shingon-shu Chizan-ha school on the slope of Mt. Tennozan. Tradition holds that Gyoki founded it at the request of Emperor Shomu, and it is affectionately known as “Takaradera.” The Main Hall enshrines an Eleven-Faced Kannon Bosatsu also known as Hashikake Kannon, quietly conveying the layers of faith and history rooted in Yamazaki. In the calm atmosphere of this mountain temple, visitors can encounter Kannon’s compassion and the deep passage of time preserved by the ancient temple.
Kaijusenji Temple
Buddhist Image Standing Eleven-Faced Kannon Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
京都府木津川市加茂町例幣海住山20
Visiting Status Main Hall interior open to visitors / waits may occur during services or prayers
StillnessPurityDepth
Kaijusenji is an old Shingon-shu Chizan-ha temple in the mountains of Kamo-cho, Kizugawa. Although its National Treasure five-story pagoda is especially well known, the Main Hall enshrines a standing Eleven-Faced Kannon Bosatsu designated an Important Cultural Property as its principal image. Praying in the stillness of this mountain temple offers an encounter with the Kannon devotion handed down in southern Yamashiro and the calm presence of an ancient Buddhist image.
Nanzenji Temple
Buddhist Image Shaka Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府京都市左京区南禅寺福地町86
Visiting Status Worship possible from outside / interior normally closed
StillnessDignityDepth
The Hatto is the central hall of Nanzenji, a prestigious Zen temple ranked above Kyoto’s Five Mountains. It enshrines Shaka Nyorai and, within the expansive temple complex, conveys the taut stillness and refined dignity characteristic of Zen. Although Nanzenji is also famous for its Sanmon Gate and aqueduct, standing before the Hatto brings visitors closer to the temple’s original axis of prayer.
Kenninji Temple
Buddhist Image Eleven-Faced Kannon Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
京都府京都市東山区大和大路通四条下る小松町584
Visiting Status Regular viewing available
StillnessDepthNobility
The Hojo of Kenninji, regarded as Kyoto’s oldest Zen temple, enshrines Eleven-Faced Kannon Bosatsu as its principal image. In the refined space of a Zen temple, the image conveys a quiet nobility. Together with the dry landscape gardens and sliding-door paintings, this is a distinctly Kyoto setting where prayer and aesthetic sensibility merge into a single Zen atmosphere.
Tofukuji Temple
Buddhist Image Shaka Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府京都市東山区本町15丁目778
Visiting Status Confirmation required
DignitySolemnityStillness
Tofukuji’s Main Hall enshrines a triad centered on Shaka Nyorai with Kasyapa and Ananda as attendants. The imposing space suits the center of the temple’s vast complex and conveys the stillness and taut dignity characteristic of a Zen monastery. After the former Butsuden and Hatto were lost to fire in the Meiji period, the present hall was rebuilt to serve both functions.
Chishakuin Temple
Buddhist Image Dainichi Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府京都市東山区東瓦町964
Visiting Status Regular viewing available
DignityMysteryPurity
The Kondo is the central hall of Chishakuin, the head temple of the Shingon-shu Chizan-ha school. It enshrines Dainichi Nyorai as the principal image, conveying both the solemnity of an esoteric Buddhist temple and the quiet dignity of a head temple. The grounds also include a celebrated garden and a museum preserving screen paintings by Hasegawa Tohaku and his school, offering a sense of the deep time in which learning and prayer have been carried forward together.
Ninna-ji Temple
Buddhist Image Thousand-Armed Kannon Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
京都府京都市右京区御室大内33
Visiting Status Normally closed / special openings held
GentlenessPuritySolemnity
An important hall within Ninna-ji in Omuro that is normally closed to the public. The Kannon Hall enshrines Thousand-Armed Kannon Bosatsu together with Fudo Myoo, Gozanze Myoo, the Twenty-Eight Attendants and other figures, creating the solemn world of an esoteric Buddhist temple. Because the interior is usually hidden, the hall carries an especially concentrated sense of prayer and quiet mystery.
Daigoji Temple
Buddhist Image Yakushi Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府京都市伏見区醍醐東大路町22
Visiting Status Regular viewing available
DignityPurityPeacefulness
Daigoji’s Kondo enshrines a Yakushi Triad centered on Yakushi Nyorai, with Nikko Bosatsu and Gakko Bosatsu as attendants. As the central hall of the Shimo-Daigo temple complex, it brings together prayers to Yakushi for relief from illness and disaster with the quiet dignity of a National Treasure building.
Daigoji Temple
Buddhist Image Juntei Kannon Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
京都府京都市伏見区醍醐東大路町22
Visiting Status Regular viewing available
GentlenessPurityPeacefulness
Daigoji’s Kannon Hall enshrines Juntei Kannon, the principal image of the 11th temple of the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage. The image was originally enshrined in Junteido at Kami-Daigo, but after a fire the tradition of worship was transferred to the present Kannon Hall in the Shimo-Daigo complex. While Yakushi Nyorai in the Kondo is Daigoji’s central principal image, this Kannon symbolizes Daigoji’s identity as a Kannon pilgrimage temple.
Toji Temple
Buddhist Image Five Great Kokuzo Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
京都府京都市南区九条町1
Visiting Status Regular viewing available
DepthMysteryStillness
Kanchi-in, a sub-temple of Toji, enshrines the Five Great Kokuzo Bosatsu as its principal images. Each of the five sits upon a different bird or animal, and together they symbolize wisdom, reflecting the temple’s historic role as a center of esoteric Buddhist learning. While Toji’s Kodo presents the esoteric world on a grand scale, Kanchi-in offers a quieter place to encounter the depth of study and prayer.
Toji Temple
Buddhist Image Thousand-Armed Kannon Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
京都府京都市南区九条町1
Visiting Status Open in spring and autumn / exhibits should be confirmed
SolemnityGentlenessDepth
Toji’s Treasure Museum houses a large Thousand-Armed Kannon Bosatsu that once served as the principal image of the Jikido Hall. An image long worshipped in a temple hall now stands at the center of a space preserving Toji’s treasures, conveying the depth of the temple’s history and devotion. Distinct from the Kodo’s three-dimensional mandala and the Kondo’s Yakushi Triad, this statue carries a quiet depth and gentleness as an image protected and transmitted through times of disaster.
Kiyomizu-dera Temple
Buddhist Image Amida Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府京都市東山区清水1丁目294
Visiting Status Regular viewing available
PeacefulnessStillnessPurity
Kiyomizu-dera’s Amida Hall enshrines Amida Nyorai as its principal image. Tradition holds that Honen practiced continuous nenbutsu here, adding the quiet prayer of Amida faith to a temple otherwise best known for Kannon devotion. Slightly removed in atmosphere from the bustle around the Main Hall, it is a place where visitors can pause quietly.
Sanzen-in Temple
Buddhist Image Sho Kannon Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
京都府京都市左京区大原来迎院町540
Visiting Status Regular viewing available
GentlenessStillnessPeacefulness
The Kannon Hall stands deep within the grounds of Sanzen-in in Ohara. Inside is a golden Sho Kannon image, while many additional Kannon statues are enshrined in the smaller halls nearby. Surrounded by mountain-village stillness and greenery, the site conveys Kannon’s gentleness and a quiet sense of prayer that stays close to each visitor.
Ohara Gyozan Raigoin Temple
Buddhist Image Yakushi Nyorai, Amida Nyorai and Shaka Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府京都市左京区大原来迎院町537
Visiting Status Regular viewing available
StillnessPurityPeacefulness
An old Tendai temple in the mountains of Ohara, known as a fundamental training center for Tendai shomyo Buddhist chanting. The Main Hall enshrines three Buddhas—Yakushi Nyorai, Amida Nyorai and Shaka Nyorai—preserving a tradition of prayer handed down together with the sound of shomyo. Located in a quiet area beyond Sanzen-in and Shorin-in, it offers the pure air of Ohara and a profound sense of enduring faith.
Shinshogokurakuji Temple (Shinnyo-do)
Buddhist Image Amida Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府京都市左京区浄土寺真如町82
Visiting Status Regular viewing available
PeacefulnessPurityStillness
Shinnyo-do, the Main Hall of Shinshogokurakuji, enshrines Amida Nyorai as its principal image. Known as the “Nodding Amida,” the image has long attracted devotion as an Amida especially associated with the salvation of women. Although the temple is famous for autumn leaves, the interior retains the calm of a Tendai temple and conveys the peace and pure stillness of Amida faith.
Honen-in Temple
Buddhist Image Amida Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府京都市左京区鹿ケ谷御所ノ段町30
Visiting Status Main Hall interior normally closed / worship possible from veranda
StillnessPeacefulnessDepth
Honen-in’s Main Hall enshrines Amida Nyorai as its principal image. Although visitors normally cannot enter the hall, they may worship from the veranda; beyond the thatched gate and the white-sand mounds lies a quiet place of nenbutsu devotion. Together with the understated atmosphere of the grounds, the temple conveys the gentle peace and depth of Amida faith.