Okura Daibutsu is an 8 meters tall bronze statue of Buddha at Myohoji (妙法寺), a Nichiren sect temple located in Okura, Setagaya ward, Tokyo. It is said that the temple was founded approximately 350 years ago.
The Great Buddha was completed in 1994. It is known as a high-tech “rotating” Buddha. From 9am to 5pm, it faces the temple’s cemetery and main hall. At 5pm it slowly rotates 180 degrees to face Setagaya-dori Street. The basement of the Great Buddha is a ossuary. When someone insert a card into the altar, the urn of his ancestors will appear on the altar in front. In the center of the ossuary there is a mechanism that rotates the Great Buddha.
The temple grounds are decorated with bamboo and a variety of flowers, with the cherry blossoms and white egret flowers being especially renowned.
photos © Japanbyweb.com
Myohoji is a 17-minute walk from Seijogakuen-mae Station on the Odakyu Odawara Line. The nearest bus stop is Toho-mae on Setagaya-dori, a 2-minute walk from the temple. The Great Buddha can be seen from Setagaya-dori Street.
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