Kofukuji Temple, a Japanese temple with treasures

Many people were looking at something in the Sarusawa Pond at the end of Sanjodo Street(Sanjodo-ri).
As I approached and looked closely, I saw fish playing in the water.

Tourists were throwing bread crumbs to feed the fish, but I didn’t have any, so I just watched.
If continue straight from Sarusawa Pond, can go to Nara Park,
but instead of going straight, I took the opposite side and headed towards Kofukuji Temple.

Kofukuji Temple: A temple that brings blessings

Kofukuji Temple was a temple sought after by many tourists in order to receive blessings.
It is considered one of the top families in Japan and is the temple of the ‘Jiwara clan’.
It is also known as one of the famous temples, along with Todaiji Temple in the country.
The temple was said to have been destroyed by fire and rebuilt.
Like in Korea, it’s a pity that most of the temple buildings are wooden and vulnerable to fire.

On the other side of the pond, a rickshaw puller was waiting for customers.
Dressed in Japanese attire and with a rickshaw, it felt like I had traveled back to the 1950s.
It was fascinating to see a rickshaw like the ones in dramas or movies.
However, there was no one using the rickshaws.

I saw stairs leading to the place with the rickshaws, heading towards Kofukuji. The structure and layout of Japanese temples are slightly different from Korean temples. In Korean temples, you pass through the Iljumun Gate and enter the temple, while in Japan, there doesn’t seem to be such a distinction.

As I climbed the stairs, a small statue greeted me, and there was a spring-like fountain in front of the statue. It didn’t seem like drinking water, but as I waited, I saw people coming and pouring water into the statue.

There is a story that washing this statue with water can cure illnesses, so people were performing a ritual of washing their illnesses away with water. One good thing about religion is that it always makes people humble. Whenever I visit a temple, I always pay my respects. However, on this day, I didn’t perform any rituals or wash the statue with water.

At the entrance of the temple, there was a large incense burner and a paper hanging from the sky. I was curious why the bell was hung so high, but there was no one to ask.

The grounds of Kofukuji Temple were quite spacious, with many buildings, attractions, and people.
Although I was alone, I didn’t feel lonely or bored.

Tall building: Kofukuji Five-Story Pagoda.
It was called a five-story pagoda, but it looked more like a five-story building.
It appeared narrow and tall, and seemed a bit precarious.
But sure enough, they had raised the burnt-down building again.

The central building of the temple, Tokondo Hall.
It looked like Daeungjeon Hall in a Korean temple, but it wasn’t Daeungjeon.
They said it enshrined treasures.
It had a similar yet slightly different feeling from Korean temples.

The place where Kofukuji’s treasures are enshrined, Kofukuji National Treasure Hall.
They said there were many treasures in the temple, and there was a separate national treasure hall where multiple statues were enshrined.
The temple and the treasures could be enjoyed for free. There were many Koreans visiting, and I was glad to occasionally come across guideposts in Korean.

Dec. 13. 2009.