Nihon-ji and the Nokogiriyama Daibutsu

photo by Warren Apel · CC BY-SA 4.0

photo by Dandy1022 · CC BY-SA 4.0

The Buddha carved in 1783 by 27 disciples is 31 m tall, almost twice the height of the one in Nara.

Founded about 1300 years ago by decree of Emperor Shōmu, it is the oldest temple founded by imperial decree in the Kantō. On the south side of the mountain, over 100,000 tsubo of land hold the great Buddha (Yakushi Rurikō Nyorai), the hundred-foot Kannon and 1,500 stone arhat statues. At the top, from the ‘Jigoku-nozoki’ platform you look out over a vertical rock face with a view of Tokyo Bay.

Nihon-ji was founded by Gyōki by decree of Emperor Shōmu. The present great Buddha, 31.05 m tall, was carved into the rock in 1783 by Ōno Jingorō Hidenori and 27 pupils over three years; the hundred-foot Kannon (30.3 m), by contrast, was carved between 1960 and 1966 in memory of the victims of war and of road accidents.

ℹ️ Open 9:00–16:00 (last entry 15:00). Admission 700 yen for adults, 400 yen for children aged 4–12. The route has many steps and is demanding in places (source: nihonji.jp and aggregated search).

🚉 Hama-Kanaya · 30 min walk

Sources: nihonji.jp

All series · Open the map