Saihoji Temple (Pamphlet) 西方寺（パンフレット）

Official explanation

Saihoji Temple sits on a hill overlooking Takehara’s historic district. The local landmark is famous for its impressive stone wall, which resembles that of a castle, and viewing platform. Saihoji is said to have been founded in 1560 in a nearby town. It was destroyed by a fire in 1602 and then moved to its current location.

The Fumeikaku (Kannon Hall) was built in 1758 and has a large veranda cantilevered over the edge of the sacred site. The hall enshrines Juichimen Kannon (Eleven-Headed Kannon), a popular manifestation of Kannon (Avalokiteshvara), the bodhisattva of compassion. In the precincts of the temple is the Asakarizuka Mound, a memorial to the haiku poetry written in Takehara during the Edo period (1603–1867).

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The temple was immortalized in the 1983 movie, Toki o kakeru shojo (The Girl Who Leapt Through Time), directed by Obayashi Nobuhiko (1938–2020). It is an important part of the town’s landscape and can be seen from many locations around Takehara. Saihoji has been designated an Important City Heritage Site.

出典: 地域観光資源の多言語解説文データベース（観光庁） — www.mlit.go.jp/tagengo-db. この英語解説文は観光庁の地域観光資源の多言語解説整備支援事業で作成しました。
Source: Japan Tourism Agency, Multilingual Explanation Database. This English text was produced by the Japan Tourism Agency's multilingual explanation project and is shown unedited. Opening hours and services may have changed since it was written.