Senso-ji Temple

Senso-ji Temple

Introduction

Senso-ji Temple is located in Taito Ward, Tokyo, and is a surviving example of an “Edo-style” public entertainment site in Japan. Legend has it that in the 36th year of Empress Suiko’s reign (628 AD), two fishermen caught a 5.5-centimeter-tall golden statue of the Goddess of Mercy (Kannon) while fishing in the Miyato River. The nearby residents pooled their money to build a temple to enshrine the statue, which became Senso-ji Temple. The temple has been destroyed by fire many times over the years. In the early Edo period, Tokugawa Ieyasu rebuilt the temple into a large religious complex, making it a place of leisure for the people of nearby Edo. The temple’s main gate is called the “Thunder Gate” (Kaminarimon), and behind it lies a 140-meter-long stone-paved approach leading to the main hall where the Kannon statue is enshrined. At the southwestern corner of the temple grounds stands a five-story pagoda, the second tallest in Japan after the five-story pagoda at To-ji Temple in Kyoto. To the northeast of the temple is the Asakusa Shrine, known for its elegant design and exquisite carvings. Asakusa hosts a wide variety of festivals throughout the year.

 Tokyo, Japan