Higashi Hongan-ji is the last word in all things grand and gaudy. Considering its proximity to the station, the free admission, the awesome structures and the dazzling interiors, this temple is the obvious spot to visit when near the station. The temple is dominated by the vast Goei-dō (Main Hall), said to be the second-largest wooden structure in Japan, standing 38m high, 76m long and 58m wide. An audio guide (¥500) is available at the information centre.
The refurbished hall contains an image of Shinran, the founder of the sect, although the image is often hidden behind sumptuous gilded doors.
There’s a tremendous coil of rope made from human hair on display in the passageway to the adjoining refurbished Amida-dō hall, where the Amida Buddha is enshrined on the central altar. Following the destruction of the temple in the 1880s, a group of female temple devotees donated their locks to make the ropes that hauled the massive timbers used for reconstruction.
Higashi Hongan-ji was established in 1602 by Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu in a ‘divide and conquer’ attempt to weaken the power of the enormously popular Jōdo Shin-shū (True Pure Land) school of Buddhism. The temple is now the headquarters of the Ōtani branch of Jōdo Shin-shū.
