Our 191st entry in this blog is our trip to Nara’s famous temple, the Todai-ji. We walked from Nara National Museum to this temple, while eating ice cream on the road. We were joined by a lot of people and of course, the deer 🙂 Temple visitors will encounter some deer from the adjacent Nara Park, begging for shika senbei, special crackers for deer that are sold for around 200 yen.

Tōdai-ji Temple, or the “Eastern Great Temple” is a Buddhist temple complex that was once one of the powerful Seven Great Temples, located in the city of Nara, Japan. Though it was originally founded in the year 738 CE, Tōdai-ji was not opened until the year 752 CE. The temple has undergone several reconstructions since then, with the most significant reconstruction (that of the Great Buddha Hall) taking place in 1709. – wiki

Along the approach to Todaiji stands the Nandaimon Gate, a large wooden gate watched over by two fierce looking statues. Representing the Nio Guardian Kings, the statues are designated national treasures together with the gate itself.

We have been walking quite a while and we are still going there. hehe. Such a long walk indeed 🙂

And finally we are here. We paused for a while outside the main gate to see the area, while Sai is playing with his toy car.

And it still remains a long walk even inside the temple area. The views are so relaxing with all the green grasses and red bushes. Imagine living here and you see that every day! 🙂

Todaiji’s main hall, the Daibutsuden (Big Buddha Hall), held the record as the world’s largest wooden building, despite the fact that the present reconstruction of 1692 is only two thirds of the original temple hall’s size. The massive building houses one of Japan’s largest bronze statues of Buddha (Daibutsu). The 15 meters tall, seated Buddha represents Vairocana and is flanked by two Bodhisattvas.

Several smaller Buddhist statues and models of the former and current buildings are also on display in the Daibutsuden Hall. Another popular attraction is a pillar with a hole in its base that is the same size as the Daibutsu’s nostril. It is said that those who can squeeze through this opening will be granted enlightenment in their next life.

Todaiji’s grounds are spacious and cover most of northern Nara Park, including a number of smaller temple halls and sites of interest around the Daibutsuden Hall. After our visit in this famous temple, we headed out and see where to go next.

And that was our quick tour at Nara’s famous Todaiji Temple. Hope to see Rei and Sai visit this place again on their own. 🙂