Buddhist statues that rival Kyoto and Nara: Kanzeon-ji Temple! The Horse-Headed Kannon is amazing! Full of Important Cultural Properties! Kaidan-in Temple

The treasure house contains 16 Buddhist statues, all of which are designated as National Important Cultural Properties! Emperor Tenji commissioned the temple to pray for the repose of his mother, Empress Saimei. At the time of its founding in the Tenpyo era, it was a grand temple complex with seven main halls! Today, only the lecture hall and the main hall, rebuilt in the early Edo period, remain. The bronze bell on the temple grounds is a National Treasure and the oldest in Japan, cast in 681 in Tatara, Kasuya District, Chikuzen Province. It was once the premier ancient temple in Kyushu and still houses numerous works of Buddhist art. Since then, it shared its history with Dazaifu, but declined as Dazaifu itself faded away.

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5-6-1 Kanzeonji, Dazaifu City, Fukuoka Prefecture

▼Principal Image

Seated Statue of Shokannon

▼Highlights

At the time of its founding in the Tenpyo era, it was a grand temple complex with seven main halls! Today, only the lecture hall (main hall) and the golden hall (Amida hall), rebuilt in the early Edo period, remain. The bronze bell on the temple grounds is a National Treasure and the oldest in Japan, cast in 681 in Tatara, Kasuya District, Chikuzen Province.

▽Lecture Hall (Main Hall)

It is a fine main hall that makes you feel like you have arrived in Nara at a glance.

The principal image is the Heian-period 'Standing Statue of Shokannon Bodhisattva (Important Cultural Property)'.

▽Bronze Bell (National Treasure)

The temple grounds house a National Treasure bronze bell said to be the oldest in Japan. It was cast in 681 and is a National Treasure. The bronze bell is considered one of the oldest in Japan, along with those at Taima-dera Temple in Nara and Myoshin-ji Temple in Kyoto. It is said to be a 'sibling bell' to the one at Myoshin-ji in Kyoto due to similarities in shape and other features. The sound of this bell is also said to be one of the '100 Soundscapes of Japan'.

▽ Treasure House (Storage/Treasure Museum): All 16 Buddhist statues are National Important Cultural Properties

Sixteen Buddhist statues from the Heian to Kamakura periods are enshrined here, all of which are designated as National Important Cultural Properties. As expected of a great temple that featured a full seven-building complex at the time of its founding in the Tenpyo era!

　The Bato Kannon, Fukukenjaku Kannon, and Juichimen Kannon standing in the center of the hall are all giant statues around 5 meters tall. You can likely gauge their size from the photo posted in front of the storage facility.
　Many other Buddhist statues of various sizes and other temple treasures are also on display, representing some of the finest masterpieces in Kyushu.

・Wooden Standing Statue of Juichimen Kannon: 498cm tall, with an ink inscription from July 1069 remaining inside the body.
・Wooden Standing Statue of Bato Kannon: A masterpiece from the late Heian period, over 5 meters tall. Likely the largest Bato Kannon in Japan.
・Wooden Standing Statue of Fukukenjaku Kannon: 5.2 meters tall. Created in the Nara period.
・Wooden Standing Statue of Juichimen Kannon: 3 meters tall. Created in the 3rd year of Ninji (1242).
・Seated Statue of Amida Nyorai and Standing Statues of the Four Heavenly Kings: The Amida is in the Jocho style, and the Four Heavenly Kings are typical of the Heian period.
・Wooden Standing Statue of Daikokuten: Belongs to the oldest class of Daikokuten statues in Japan.

◆ 2020 Nara National Museum: "Bishamonten: Guardian Deity of the North" ◆
A "Tobatsu Bishamonten Standing Statue" from one of Kyushu's leading Buddhist temples was on display. Indeed, every time I see this statue, I think it is a first-class Buddhist statue that would not look out of place even if enshrined in the main hall of Joruri-ji Temple in Kyoto!

▽ Kaidan-in Temple

　In a corner of the temple grounds, there remains a Buddhist hall called Kaidan-in. A Kaidan-in is a place where monks are ordained with precepts. In ancient Japan, there were only three such ordination halls in the entire country, and this Kanzeon-ji Temple was considered one of the "Three Great Kaidan of the Realm," alongside Todai-ji in Nara and Shimotsuke Yakushi-ji in Shimotsuke Province.

▼ Places to visit together

▼ Travelogue

▼ Buddhist Statue Exhibition

▽ 2020 Nara National Museum: "Bishamonten: Guardian Deity of the North"

A "Tobatsu Bishamonten Standing Statue" from one of Kyushu's leading Buddhist temples was on display. Indeed, every time I see this statue, I think it is a first-class Buddhist statue that would not look out of place even if enshrined in the main hall of Joruri-ji Temple in Kyoto!

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#Kanzeonji
#BatoKannon
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