Enjo-ji
Unkei's First Signed Statue in a Quiet Hill Temple East of Nara
A temple in Ninnikusen, in the hills east of Nara city on the old Yagyu road, with a late Heian p...
Tachibana-dera
The Temple That Marks the Traditional Birthplace of Prince Shotoku, with a Two-Faced Stone and an Old Pagoda Base
A Tendai temple on the spot where, by tradition, Prince Shotoku was born. The Asuka-period temple...
Yata-dera
A Jizo Temple in the Hills West of Yamato-Koriyama, Under 10,000 Hydrangeas in June
Properly Kongosen-ji, a temple halfway up Yatasan in the Yata hills west of Yamato-Koriyama, know...
Kimpusen-ji
Yoshino's Zao-do Hall and the Blue Zao Gongen, Shown Only in Spring and Autumn
The head temple of Kimpusen Shugen Honshu, a Shugendo school, halfway up Mount Yoshino. Its main ...
Kairyuo-ji
A Four-Metre Five-Storey Pagoda Kept Indoors Since the Nara Period, Next Door to Hokke-ji
A small temple in the north-east corner of what was Empress Komyo's palace, a couple of minutes f...
Matsuo-dera
A Hilltop Temple West of Yamato-Koriyama That Calls Itself Japan's Oldest for Warding Off Bad Luck
A Shingon temple on Mount Matsuo at the south end of the Yata hills, which by its own account was...
Shin-Yakushi-ji
Twelve Clay Generals from the 8th Century, in a Quiet Lane Below Mount Takamado
A small temple in the Takabatake district, south of Kasuga Taisha, with one Nara-period hall and ...
Saidai-ji
Three Minutes from Yamato-Saidaiji Station, a Temple Where Tea Is Passed Round in a Giant Bowl
Once the western counterpart of Todai-ji, now a set of Edo-period halls three minutes from a busy...
Abe Monju-in
Kaikei's 7-Metre Monju on a Lion, Abe no Seimei's Hall and a Cosmos Maze in Sakurai
A temple of the Abe clan south of Sakurai Station. The main hall holds a group of five National T...
Akishino-dera
A Small Temple of Moss in Northwest Nara, Kept for Japan's Only Old Gigeiten Statue
A quiet temple a short bus ride north of Yamato-Saidaiji, with a National Treasure main hall from...
Asuka-dera
The Asuka Daibutsu, Dated by the Temple to 609 and Called by It Japan's Oldest Buddha Statue, Photos Allowed
A small hall in the fields of Asuka on the site of the temple Soga no Umako began in 588. Inside ...
Chugu-ji
A Nunnery Beside Horyu-ji's Yumedono, Kept for One Dark Wooden Bodhisattva
A small nunnery right next to the Yumedono in Horyu-ji's east precinct. It is kept for its main i...
Hokke-ji
Empress Komyo's Nunnery, Where the Eleven-faced Kannon Comes Out Three Times a Year
A working nunnery on the site of Empress Komyo's palace, just east of the Heijo Palace Site. Its ...
Okadera
Asuka's Hillside Temple for Warding Off Bad Luck, with Japan's Largest Clay Buddha
A temple on the slope of Mount Oka in Asuka, formally Ryugai-ji, that calls itself Japan's first ...
Byakugo-ji
Stone Steps Up the Foot of Mount Takamado to a View Across Nara, with a 400-Year-Old Camellia
A small hillside temple south-east of central Nara, under a kilometre from Shin-Yakushi-ji, reach...