Kitomizu Temple
Named after the pure healing waters that flow from Otowa no Taki waterfall, the World Heritage Site of Kiyomizu is older than the city, founded by General Sakanoue no Tamuramaro and given to the priest Enchin in 780.
For over 1,000 years, supplicants, some on their knees, ascended the two main staired streets known as the “two year slope” and the “three year slope” to offer prayers to the Goddess of Mercy. The street names came from a superstition that if one tumbled on the age softened stones, that person would incur two or three years of misfortune.
On both sides of the entrance to the complex is the gate with muscular Nio temple guardians, both challenging the evil beliefs of those attempting to pass between them. The gate (1478) is one of the oldest structures in the complex (the Sutra Hall is oldest).
The Main Hall, rebuilt in 1633, is a magnificent structure with an extended “dancing platform” supported by massive beams that form the scaffolding beneath, a 400 year old marvel of engineered joinery without nails. In the cool, dark recesses behind the main altar, gilded bodhisattvas glimmer dimly, adding to the mystical atmosphere. The main figure, Kannon, the Bodhisattva of Mercy, is so sacred that it is only displayed every 30 years, with the next opportunity in 2024.
The path to Okuno in, another building supported by scaffolding, offers a spectacular view of the Main Hall and the city beyond. In the late afternoon, the sun bathes the halls in a rosy glow, peeling away centuries and evoking the time when pilgrims traveled far to see this magical vista that remains one of Kyoto’s most popular tourist destinations.
The waterfall flowing from the mountain, from which the temple takes its name, has been divided into three channels, with long handled dippers available for visitors to sample its efficacious water.
Walking farther along the wooded pathway leads to the three tiered pagoda and another panoramic view of the Main Hall and Okuno in, the second pavilion.
The Higashiyama (Eastern Mountains) district around the temple is rich in color and craft. Rickshaws swoop around the hilly terrain carrying tourists. Tiny twisting streets and alley ways are lined with shops selling shichimi togarashi, seasoned chili powder, while characteristic archshaped baked sweets, yatsuhashi, permeate the air with the aroma of cinnamon.
Thrilled and embarrassed by the attention they draw, young women visitors, professionally dressed in the gorgeous kimono and obi worn by maiko, stroll the streets, snapping each other’s photos and posing for tourists.
Antique shops, cafes and eat eries catering to all tastes fill the Higashiyama area, and shops still feature the characteristic porce lain ceramics and enameled stoneware. Generations of potters took advantage of the foothill’s updraft to evenly fire their pottery in climbing kilns on the slopes until pollution laws in the 1950s required them to relocate.
Higashiyama offers many pleasures, from window shopping to visiting a temple that predates Kyoto, while the area’s playful and relaxed atmosphere encourages one to linger for hours.