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    Nara's Gorgeous Flower-Filled Hasedera Temple Come for the flowers, stay for the eleven-faced deity

    Nature and a whole host of beautiful flowers surround the large complex of Hasedera Temple. It is the main temple of the Buzan sect of Shingon Buddhism.

    japanese wooden shrine hasadera

    You need to pay an admission fee to enter, which is 500 yen for both adults and students, and 250 yen for children and people with disabilities. Once you pass the gate…

    japanese wooden staircase shrine

    …you will be presented with a seemingly endless staircase.

    japanese shrine flower garden

    Depending on the season, you'll be able to enjoy the flowers while climbing the stairs to the temple. Apparently they have beautiful hydrangeas from the middle of June through mid-July.

    I visited there in May and there were a lot of peonies. It's said that the origin of these peonies was over 1000 years ago when the wife of the Emperor of the Tang dynasty in China donated a young peony plant to Hasedera. She did this to honor a miraculous gift given to her by Kannon, a.k.a Boddhisattva, who is the Buddhist deity of mercy. What did the Tang Emperor's wife receive? The Buddhist deity of mercy mercifully gave her great beauty!

    temizuya washing a baby's hands at the shrine

    On the way to the top, there is a place called "temizuya" where you wash your hands and mouth to purify the body and mind with water before standing in front of the deity. This ritual is called "misogi" and it is done at all temples. You first scoop up water in a ladle with your right hand and pour water over your left hand. Next, switch hands and wash your right hand. Then, put some water in to your left hand from the ladle, and rinse your mouth with it. (Do not touch the ladle directly to your mouth)

    japanese people climbing stairs shrine

    After that ritual, you still have more stairs to conquer. In fact, there are exactly 399 stairs in total. It's designed like this because the 400th step represents one's first step into death, or the afterlife. The number four, which is written as shi , is pronounced "shi" in Japanese, and that is the same pronunciation as the word shi , which means death.

    Once at the top of the stairs, you are presented with the temple's main attraction, a Buddha statue called the Juichimen Senju Kannon (Eleven-faced and thousand-armed Kannon). You have successfully entered the afterlife!

    beautiful view green trees japan
    view of japanese rooftops and trees

    After completing the 399 stairs, this outstanding view is the first thing the afterlife bestows upon you, so I recommend not giving up on your way to the top. Taking a picture of the Kannon statue is prohibited, but you will be able to see it when you go there.

    stone steps hasadera shrine

    With most temples, the journey back is a little boring because you just go down the same way that you came up. However, Hasedera, you will take another path, which makes for a really wonderful walk full of colorful, beautiful flowers.

    white flowers on a bush

    White ones…

    pink flowers on a tree

    Pink ones…

    red flowers on a tree

    And red ones…

    japanese couple leaving a shrine

    When I visited, the peony garden was in full bloom just beyond this gate.

    flowers at a shrine in japan
    white flowers roses peonies
    pink flowers peonies growing in japan

    There are a lot of large, gorgeous peonies to stick your nose in.

    pink cherry blossom tree japan

    I thought this pink and white tree was very pretty too. What and end to a wonderful journey.

    Avatar mami suzuki 783807d8

    Mami’s Review7/10

    It was a very beautiful place. You have to go up a lot of stairs, but the view from the mountain top is worthwhile! I recommend this temple especially when the flowers are in bloom.

    Hasedera Temple

    Pros

    • Beautiful flowers, beautiful temple, quite a site.
    • Scenic views that are beautiful in the fall, too.

    Cons

    • There is a 399 step walk to the temple, but at least the view is good.
    • A 15-20 minute walk to the temple from Kintetsu Hasedera Station. Couple this with the long walk up the steps. Wear some comfy shoes.

    Overall Rating

    7

    Accessibility Rating

    6

    Fun Rating

    8

    Uniqueness Rating

    7

    Additional Information

    731-1 Hase
    Sakurai, Nara Prefecture 633-0112
    Japan

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