Byodo-in

Byodo-in began in 1052 (Eisho 7), when the regent Fujiwara no Yorimichi turned a villa inherited from his father, Fujiwara no Michinaga, into a temple. That year is regarded as the first year of the Final Age of the Dharma (mappo), a time when faith in the Pure Land and a hope for paradise was spreading. In 1053 (Tengi 1) the Amida hall, that is, the Phoenix Hall, was completed, and a jo-roku seated Amida Tathagata made by the sculptor Jocho was enshrined inside. Keeping in mind that the temple began from both a noble's private residence and a hope for the afterlife helps explain why garden and building were designed as one.

Four buildings of the Phoenix Hall are designated National Treasures: the central hall, the north and south wing corridors, and the tail corridor, all dated to 1053. Wing corridors extend left and right from the central hall, and each ends in a two-story corner tower of three levels. The wings bend as they extend, eight bays in length and one bay deep, with the corridor part built as one story with an upper level. Behind it runs a seven-bay tail corridor, so the whole composition spreads horizontally from the central hall. When viewing the exterior, check how the roof lines of the central hall and the two wings overlap, together with their reflection on the pond.

In 1951 the Phoenix Hall and the seated Amida Tathagata were designated National Treasures, and in the same year the Phoenix Hall was adopted as the design on the 10-yen coin. Comparing a coin from your pocket with the real building is a pleasure you can only have here. The Phoenix Hall had a Meiji repair from 1902 to 1907 and a major Showa repair from 1950 to 1957; during the Meiji repair, the Bodhisattvas Amid the Clouds on the walls were also restored to their present appearance. The phoenixes on the roof, the bronze bell, and the doors' paintings of the central hall were replaced in turn between 1967 and 1972. So the details you see today mix Heian-period work and later additions.

The garden was reworked from 1990 to 2003, including the restoration of the pebble shoreline. In 1994 the temple was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List as one of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto. The Hoshokan museum on the grounds displays temple treasures including National Treasures. Uji, where Byodo-in stands, is presented on the official site as a town tied to tea culture, and the official site also lists a tea room. Entering the Phoenix Hall interior is guided separately from viewing the exterior, so check the official site beforehand for the procedure.