Fukuraku-zanji Temple

Overview

Fukuraku-zanji Temple is a Tendai Buddhist temple located in Nachikatsuura-cho, Higashimuro-gun, Wakayama Prefecture. It's part of the Kumano Sanzan (Three Grand Shrines of Kumano) and a component of the UNESCO World Heritage site, "Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range. The temple boasts a long history, said to have been founded during the reign of Emperor Nintoku by Rakugyō Shōnin, who is believed to have drifted ashore from India. It's renowned for "Fukuraku Tokai," a religious rite practiced from the Heian to Edo periods, in which people embarked from Nachi's beach on small boats to reach the Pure Land of Kannon (Fukuraku-zan). Visitors can experience the historical and cultural significance of this practice. While Fukuraku-zanji Temple once possessed grand temple buildings, a typhoon in the Edo period destroyed all its main halls and pagodas. After a long period with a temporary main hall, a beautiful, elevated, four-sided hipped and gabled main hall in Muromachi style was reconstructed in 1990. The temple grounds are full of highlights, including the important cultural property, the standing wooden statue of Senju Kannon (the Thousand-Armed Kannon), and the exquisite main hall. The adjacent Hama no Miya Ōjisha ruins, where Kumano Sansho-taisha Shrine stands, further enhance the historical and natural ambiance. Registered as a World Heritage site, Fukuraku-zanji Temple is a highly recommended sightseeing spot offering a blend of history and nature.