Senso-ji Main Hall: The Gold Guanyin and Sacred Smoke
Why is it significant?
Stand in the central courtyard before the massive bronze incense burner, the Jokoro, and wave the fragrant, billowing coils of incense smoke toward your head and limbs. Japanese tradition holds that bathing in this sacred smoke cures aches, heals illnesses, and brings sharp wisdom.
Key Facts
| Place | Senso-ji Main Hall: The Gold Guanyin and Sacred Smoke |
|---|---|
| Address | 2-Chome-3-1 Asakusa, Taito City, Tokyo 111-0032 |
| Geo Coordinates | 35.71480, 139.79670 |
| Part of Walk | Old Edo to Tokyo: Asakusa's Senso-ji, Red Lanterns, and Ueno's Shrines |
| Generated | Generated |
Stand in the central courtyard before the massive bronze incense burner, the Jokoro, and wave the fragrant, billowing coils of incense smoke toward your head and limbs. Japanese tradition holds that bathing in this sacred smoke cures aches, heals illnesses, and brings sharp wisdom.
Senso-ji is Tokyo's oldest temple, founded in six hundred and twenty-eight AD during the Asuka period. Two fisherman brothers, Hinokuma Hamanari and Takenari, were casting nets in the nearby Sumida River when they hauled up a tiny, five-centimeter golden statue of Kannon, the goddess of mercy. Even when they tossed it back into the water, the statue miraculously returned into their net at every cast.
Their village headman recognized the divine presence, converted his private home into a temple, and consecrated the statue. That original sacred golden statue remains buried deep within the inner sanctuary as a hidden Buddha, an image so holy that not even the chief priest is permitted to gaze upon it.
Gaze up at the soaring red tiers of the Five-Story Pagoda standing to the left.