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Todaiji Temple

Nara Daibutsu in the Great Buddha Hall

Todaiji Temple in Nara Park was first built in 752, and the Great Buddha Hall, the world's largest wooden structure, houses the 18-meter-tall bronze Buddha. Todaiji Temple is a famous tourist attraction in Nara, and the Great Buddha Hall, the South Gate, and the Nigatsu-do are all national treasures.

Nara Todaiji Temple is a Japanese Buddhist temple located in Nara Park. It was founded in the mid-8th century by Emperor Shomu 聖武天皇. It is said that when the Tang Dynasty monk Master Ganjin 鑒真 came east to Japan, he first settled at Todai-ji Temple and opened a preaching altar within the temple before moving on to Toshodai-ji Temple.

In 1199, Chogen 重源 remodeled the Nandaimon Gate (The Grand South Gate), which is the main gate of Todaiji Temple, to Chinese Song Dynasty Architectural Style. And a plaque of “大華厳寺” hangs over it. The gate is 25.46 meters high, with a Double-eaved saddle roof, supported by 18 huge wooden pillars.

The South Gate is connected to the Middle Gate by a Pilgrimage Lane, where the East and West Seven-storied Pagodas were built, but no longer existed. One pagoda of Todaiji Temple was replicated to the original scale at the 1970 Osaka World’s Fair, and its pagoda tip was moved to and reserved within the Todaiji Temple. Based on the 23.3-Meter Tall Pagoda Tip, you can roughly guess the majestic appearance of the Seven-storied Pagodas in those days.

Manywhere Trivia:
The tallest ancient pagoda in Japan is the 55-meter-tall five-story pagoda in Kyoto To-ji Temple, but the seven-storied pagoda that was destroyed at Todai-ji Temple was 100 meters tall according to the records, which would be shocking if it survived to this day.

Great Buddha Hall 大仏殿 is the main hall of the temple, also known as the Golden Hall. The current Great Buddha Hall, rebuilt in 1709, is the largest wooden structure in the world with a width of 57 meters and a height of nearly 50 meters. It is said that when the temple was first built, the size of the Great Buddha Hall was even more magnificent than what we can see before us, with a width of 11 rooms and a height of nearly 90 meters, the current size of the hall is only two-thirds of the original one. There is an Octagonal Lantern in front of the main hall, which is made of bronze and is ingeniously cast, and both the hall and the lantern have been designated as national treasures of Japan.

National Treasure Golden Bronze Octagonal Lantern

Manywhere Trivia:
Don’t just pay attention to the size of Todaiji Temple, as a national temple, it is also the highest-ranked temple in Japan.

The main statue Buddha Vairocana in the Great Buddha Hall is 18 meters tall, also known as Nara Daibutsu 大仏, and is the second largest bronze Buddha in the world, with the two sides of the Great Buddha co-opting Kokuzo-Bosatsu and Nyoirin-Kannon. On the east and west sides of the rear part of the Great Buddha Hall, stand wooden statues of two of the four heavenly kings, Only Heads of the Other Two Kings Remain.

A hole (30 cm wide, 37 cm high, 108 cm deep) was dug in the center of a wooden pillar at the back of the east side of the Great Buddha Hall, said to be as big as the Buddha’s nostrils, and it was rumored that if one successfully crawls through it, one will be able to get rid of illnesses and bring happiness. Pillar Hole Crawling is a must-do tourist experience at the Nara Todaiji Temple.

Waiting in line to crawl through the hole in the Great Buddha Hall

In the area east of the Todaiji Temple’s central axis, there are also well preserved Shoro Bell Tower 鐘楼, Nigatsu-do Hall 二月堂, Hokke-do (Sangatsu-do) Hall 法華堂 (三月堂) and other national treasures. The Bell Tower was rebuilt in the Kamakura period, and inside the bell tower hangs the National Treasure Bronze Brahma Bell, which is 3.86 meters tall and almost the same age as the temple. Nigatsu-do Hall is located on the East Slope of the Temple and is named after the meeting held there every year in the second lunar month. Looking west from the corridor outside the main gate of Nigatsu-do Hall, you can see all the large and small halls of Todaiji Temple and Nara City in its Entirety.