Find Buddhist Spots
A connection with a Buddha image may appear unexpectedly. Search for places that may lead you to your own My Buddha.
Genkoji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Eleven-Faced Kannon Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
京都府木津川市加茂町北山ノ上9
Visiting Status One-day special opening (November 3, 2026)
MysteryRefinementStillness
Genkoji’s treasure repository houses its principal image, a wooden seated Eleven-Faced Kannon Bodhisattva. Dating to the late Kamakura period, the statue is designated an Important Cultural Property and is considered to reflect the style of sculptors of the Kei school. Eleven-Faced Kannon images are usually standing figures, making this seated form exceptionally rare, with only a handful known nationwide. Genkoji is normally closed to the public, but the statue is scheduled for a one-day special unveiling on November 3, 2026. Its unusual iconography alone makes it a highly distinctive destination for Buddhist sculpture.
Joruriji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Yakushi Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府木津川市加茂町西小札場40
Visiting Status Limited-period viewing (October 31–November 8, 2026, weather permitting)
SolemnityStillnessDepth
On the first level of Joruriji’s National Treasure three-story pagoda sits a wooden Yakushi Nyorai dating to the late Heian period. Carved from a single block of wood, the statue is designated an Important Cultural Property. The pagoda interior is normally closed, so the image can be viewed directly only on scheduled opening days. Facing the Nine Amida Hall across the central pond, the pagoda forms the eastern half of Joruriji’s Pure Land layout, and the presence of Yakushi within it gives the site a distinct sacred character. In autumn 2026 the pagoda is scheduled to open from October 31 through November 8, weather permitting.
Jingoji Temple
Buddhist Image Five Great Kokuzo Bosatsu Statues Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
京都府京都市右京区梅ケ畑高雄町5
Visiting Status Limited-period viewing (October 10–12, 2026; 10:00–15:00)
SolemnityMysteryPower
Jingoji’s Tahoto Pagoda enshrines the National Treasure group known as the Five Great Kokuzo Bosatsu: Hokai, Kongo, Hoko, Renge and Goyo Kokuzo. The five figures, each about 90 centimeters tall, are regarded as one of the earliest surviving complete sets of this esoteric group. They are colored white, yellow, green, red and black, with differing mudras and attributes representing the five directions and the Five Wisdoms. Normally closed to the public, the pagoda is scheduled to open for only three days in 2026, from October 10 to 12. Seeing all five images together creates an exceptionally powerful mandala-like sacred space.
Daikakuji Temple
Buddhist Image Seated Aizen Myo-o Category Myo-o (Wisdom King)
京都府京都市右京区嵯峨大沢町4
Visiting Status Limited-period viewing (October 9–December 7, 2026; 9:00–17:00, last admission 16:30)
PowerDignityMystery
Daikakuji’s Treasure Hall preserves a seated image of Aizen Myoo, one of the most visually striking Wisdom Kings of esoteric Buddhism. With three eyes and six arms, Aizen holds ritual implements including a vajra bell, vajra, bow, arrow, jewel and unopened lotus, wears a lion crown, and is depicted in vivid red. The deity symbolizes the transformation of desire and attachment into Buddhist wisdom. The image is shown during Daikakuji’s special treasure exhibitions, and in autumn 2026 it is scheduled to be on view from October 9 through December 7.
Rokuharamitsuji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Statue of Kuya Shonin Category Other
京都府京都市東山区ロクロ町81-1
Visiting Status Regular viewing available (Reiwakan 9:00–16:15 / last admission 16:00)
DepthWarmthMystery
Rokuharamitsuji’s Reiwakan displays the famous wooden statue of Kuya Shonin, an Important Cultural Property attributed to Kosho, the fourth son of the sculptor Unkei. Kuya is shown walking in sandals with a gong at his chest, a striker in his right hand and a deer-antler staff in his left. Its most distinctive feature is the chain of six small Amida Buddhas emerging from his mouth, visualizing the legend that each syllable of the nenbutsu became an image of Amida. The statue combines vivid realism with devotional symbolism and can be seen during regular museum hours.
Byodoji Temple (Inabado)
Buddhist Image Wrathful Three-Faced, Six-Armed Daikokuten Category Tenbu (Deva)
京都府京都市下京区因幡堂町728
Visiting Status Opened only on Kinoe-ne days (next: October 17, 2026)
PowerDignityMystery
Byodoji Temple, better known as Inabado, enshrines an exceptionally rare wrathful form of Daikokuten with three faces and six arms. Far removed from the familiar benevolent god of fortune, this image preserves the fierce Mahakala-type iconography seen in the Womb Realm Mandala. The three wrathful faces show fangs, while the six arms spread an elephant hide, seize a human and a ewe, and hold a sword across the knees. Normally closed from public view, the image is unveiled only on Kinoe-ne days, once every sixty days. The temple itself describes it as Daikokuten in an Indian-transmitted form, a deity of destruction and creation.
Unryuin Temple
Buddhist Image Half-Seated Fudo Myo-o with Kongara and Seitaka Doji Category Myo-o (Wisdom King)
京都府京都市東山区泉涌寺山内町36
Visiting Status Limited-period viewing (November 14–30, 2026; 9:00–17:00, last admission 16:30)
PowerDignityMystery
In the right side chamber of Unryuin’s Ryukaden Hall is a rare Fudo triad. The central Fudo Myoo is shown in a half-seated posture with the left leg hanging down from the rock pedestal, holding a sword in the right hand and a lasso in the left, flanked by Kongara and Seitaka Doji. Sculptural examples of half-seated Fudo are uncommon, and the left-leg-down form is especially rare. Normally closed to the public, the restored triad is scheduled to be unveiled during the autumn special viewing from November 14 through 30, 2026.
Hogonji Temple (Ushio Kannon)
Buddhist Image Eleven-Faced Thousand-Armed Thousand-Eyed Kannon Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
京都府京都市山科区音羽南谷1
Visiting Status Unveiled twice a year (April 17 and October 17; autumn 2026: October 17)
MysterySolemnityStillness
Hogonji, a mountain temple on Mount Ushio in Kyoto’s Yamashina area, enshrines an Eleven-Faced Thousand-Armed Thousand-Eyed Kannon as its principal image. Temple tradition attributes the image to an imperial commission by Emperor Tenji, with Fudo Myoo and Bishamonten serving as attendants. The Kannon is normally kept as a secret image and is unveiled only twice each year, on April 17 and October 17. The spring opening accompanies a goma fire ritual, while the autumn opening is held with a ceremonial recitation of the 600-fascicle Great Perfection of Wisdom Sutra. The limited viewing and mountain pilgrimage setting make this a distinctive Buddhist-statue destination.
Toji Temple
Buddhist Image National Treasure Tobatsu Bishamonten Standing Statue Category Tenbu (Deva)
京都府京都市南区九条町1
Visiting Status Limited-period viewing (September 20–November 25, 2026; 9:00–17:00, last admission 16:30)
PowerDignityMystery
Toji’s Treasure Hall preserves the National Treasure standing statue of Tobatsu Bishamonten, a wooden sculpture from the Tang period. Wearing chain-mail armor and staring with wide, forceful eyes, the figure has a distinctly Central Asian character. Tradition holds that it once stood above Rajomon, the southern gate of Heian-kyo, guarding the capital before being moved to Toji in the late Heian period. Beneath its feet, the earth goddess Jiten and the two demons Niranba and Biranba support the figure, creating an unusual composition. In autumn 2026 it is displayed in the Treasure Hall from September 20 through November 25.
Zenkyoan Temple
Buddhist Image Secret Marishiten Statue Category Tenbu (Deva)
京都府京都市東山区大和大路通四条下る4丁目小松町146
Visiting Status Unveiled once a year (every October 20; in 2026, the unveiling ceremony begins at 13:00)
MysteryPowerDignity
Zenkyoan, a subtemple of Kenninji, enshrines a secret image of Marishiten in its dedicated hall. Tradition holds that the founding monk Daikan Seisetsu Shocho brought the deity from Yuan China, and the image has been worshiped here as a guardian deity for nearly seven centuries. Marishiten is revered as a protector of the Buddhist Dharma, and at Zenkyoan the deity is represented seated upon seven boars, a form reflected in the many guardian boar statues around the precincts. The image normally remains concealed inside its shrine and is unveiled only once each year, on October 20. In 2026, the annual unveiling and Great Prajna prayer service begins at 13:00, with visitors allowed inside the hall to worship directly.
Zenporitsuji Temple
Buddhist Image Hachiman Daibosatsu Statue (Monk-Form Hachiman Deity) Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
京都府八幡市八幡馬場88-1
Visiting Status Regular viewing available by advance reservation / special public opening November 14–21, 2026
DepthStillnessNobility
The principal image of Zenporitsuji’s Main Hall is a monk-form statue of Hachiman Daibosatsu traditionally dated to the Heian period. It may originally have been carved as a Jizo Bodhisattva and later came to be worshiped as Hachiman Daibosatsu. During the separation of Buddhism and Shinto in 1868, the statue was transferred from Iwashimizu Hachimangu to Zenporitsuji, preserving a vivid trace of Japan’s long history of syncretic worship. The Main Hall can normally be viewed by advance reservation, and a special public opening is scheduled for November 14–21, 2026.
Hossho-ji Temple
Buddhist Image National Treasure Wooden Standing Twenty-Seven-Faced Thousand-Armed Kannon Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
京都府京都市東山区本町16丁目307
Visiting Status Regular viewing available (9:00–16:00, free admission)
MysteryRefinementDepth
Hossho-ji’s Main Hall enshrines a National Treasure wooden standing Thousand-Armed Kannon from the Heian period. Known as the Twenty-Seven-Faced Thousand-Armed Kannon because of its unusually numerous faces, the image is iconographically exceptional. It is traditionally said to have been the principal image of the Kanjo Hall of the former Hossho-ji and came to be revered as an apotropaic Kannon after a legend that Fujiwara no Tadamichi recovered from illness through prayer before it. The temple is the 21st station of the Rakuyo Thirty-Three Kannon Pilgrimage and is currently open for worship from 9:00 to 16:00 with no admission fee.
Rengeoin Temple
Buddhist Image National Treasure Fujin and Raijin Statues Category Tenbu (Deva)
京都府京都市東山区三十三間堂廻町657
Visiting Status Regular viewing available (Apr 1–Nov 15, 8:30–17:00; Nov 16–Mar 31, 9:00–16:00; last admission 30 minutes before closing)
PowerDignityMystery
At the two ends of Rengeoin’s Sanjusangendo Hall stand the National Treasure statues of Fujin and Raijin, both created in the Kamakura period. Fujin carries a billowing wind bag, while Raijin is surrounded by a ring of drums, forms that became definitive images of the two deities in later Japanese art. Originally ancient Indian personifications of natural forces, they were incorporated into Buddhism as guardians of the Dharma. Positioned beyond the ranks of Thousand-Armed Kannon images, their dynamic movement and tension create a striking contrast with the serene Kannon figures. They can be viewed during regular year-round visiting hours.
Shoboji Temple (Yawata)
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Amida Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府八幡市八幡清水井73
Visiting Status Limited-period viewing (November 14–23, 2026; 10:00–15:00)
SolemnityPeacefulnessDepth
Shoboji in Yawata enshrines a monumental wooden seated Amida Nyorai in Houn-den Hall. Created in the Kamakura period, the statue stands about 2.8 meters high and reaches roughly 4.8 meters with its halo, and is designated an Important Cultural Property. The serene Buddha forms the chubon chusho preaching mudra, while thirteen small transformation Buddhas appear on the halo. Although unsigned, its style has led scholars to suggest a possible attribution to Kaikei. Originally enshrined in the Hakkakudo at Iwashimizu Hachimangu, it was transferred to Shoboji after the separation of Buddhism and Shinto in the Meiji period. A special public opening is scheduled for November 14–23, 2026.
Rozanji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Amida Nyorai and Two Attendant Bodhisattvas Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府京都市上京区北之辺町397
Visiting Status Regular viewing available (9:00–16:00)
PeacefulnessDepthSolemnity
Rozanji’s Main Hall enshrines an Important Cultural Property group of a seated Amida Nyorai flanked by Kannon and Seishi Bodhisattvas, dating to around the early 13th century. The triad represents Amida descending to receive a dying believer. The attendants sit with their knees together while their garments stream dramatically backward, creating an unusual sense of speed and movement in a sculptural raigo scene. Seishi is thought originally to have held a canopy above the person being welcomed to the Pure Land, an uncommon iconographic feature in sculpture. The triad combines serene devotion with a vivid sense of motion and can be seen during regular visiting hours.
Jindoji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Aizen Myo-o (Tenkyu Aizen) Category Myo-o (Wisdom King)
京都府木津川市山城町神童子不晴谷112
Visiting Status Regular viewing available (9:00–17:00; until 16:00 in winter)
PowerMysteryTense Presence
Jindoji’s treasure repository houses an Important Cultural Property wooden seated Aizen Myoo from the Heian period, measuring 64.5 cm in height. Unlike the usual Aizen Myoo image, which holds bow and arrow across the body, this rare form draws the bow and aims the arrow upward toward the sky, earning the name Tenkyu Aizen. Aizen Myoo is an esoteric Buddhist deity who transforms desire and attachment into awakening, and this sculpture combines a wrathful expression with intense concentration and tension. Among Jindoji’s group of Heian-period Buddhist sculptures, its unusual iconography is especially distinctive and can be viewed during regular visiting hours.
Kodenji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Yakushi Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府木津川市加茂町高田奥畑54
Visiting Status Viewing available by advance reservation (adult admission ¥500)
PeacefulnessRefinementDepth
The principal image of Kodenji’s Main Hall is an Important Cultural Property wooden seated Yakushi Nyorai. This joined-wood sculpture is thought to date from the Hoan era, around 1120–1124, in the late Heian period. Its balanced proportions and calm, spacious seated posture are characteristic of early 12th-century Buddhist sculpture. Because its date can be estimated with unusual precision for a Heian-period image, it is also an important reference work in the history of Japanese sculpture. Visitors can view the statue in the Main Hall by making an advance reservation.
Kogenji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Bishamonten Category Tenbu (Deva)
京都府京都市右京区嵯峨天龍寺芒ノ馬場町65
Visiting Status Limited-period viewing (October 3–December 6, 2026; 9:00–17:00, last admission 16:45)
PowerTense PresenceDignity
Kogenji, a subtemple of Tenryuji, enshrines an Important Cultural Property wooden standing Bishamonten in its Bishamonten Hall. Dating to the 9th century in the Heian period, the figure holds a pagoda in the left hand and a halberd in the right, yet departs dramatically from more static examples through an extreme twist of the waist and long sleeves and robe hems that flare outward with exceptional force. Flames rising from the helmet reinforce this sense of movement, giving the sculpture remarkable tension and vitality. In autumn 2026 it is on special display from October 3 through December 6.
Sainenji Temple (Kaseyama)
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Yakushi Nyorai, Nikko and Gakko Bosatsu, and Twelve Heavenly Generals Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府木津川市鹿背山鹿曲田65
Visiting Status Viewing available by advance contact (10:00–16:00) / special openings in spring and autumn
PeacefulnessSolemnityDepth
Sainenji in Kaseyama, Kizugawa, enshrines a Heian-period wooden seated Yakushi Nyorai designated as a Kyoto Prefectural Cultural Property, together with Nikko and Gakko Bodhisattvas and the Twelve Heavenly Generals. The Yakushi image stands 50.7 cm high and is noted for its calm expression and refined Heian-period form. The major attraction is the rare chance to see a complete devotional ensemble centered on Yakushi Nyorai with both attendant bodhisattvas and all twelve guardian generals. The hall is normally closed, but visitors may arrange a viewing by contacting the temple in advance, with additional special openings held in spring and autumn.
Matsunoodera Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Amida Nyorai by Kaikei Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
京都府舞鶴市松尾532
Visiting Status Displayed in the Treasure Hall for two months each spring and autumn (9:00–16:00, reservation required; admission ¥800, inquiry recommended)
RefinementNobilityDepth
Matsunoodera’s Treasure Hall preserves an Important Cultural Property wooden seated Amida Nyorai by Kaikei. Carved in joined hinoki wood and forming the raigo mudra, the life-size image bears an ink inscription inside the head reading the Sanskrit seed syllable for Amida, confirming it as a work by the early Kamakura-period sculptor Kaikei. It is thought to date from the Kenkyu era in the 1190s and displays the fresh, taut quality associated with Kaikei’s early style. The statue itself was only identified in 1963, adding to its unusual history. It is exhibited in the Treasure Hall for two months each spring and autumn, with advance reservation required.