Chionji Temple
It is one of the three temples in Japan dedicated to the Monju Bodhisattva(Bodhisattva of Wisdom). It is believed that you can gain wisdom from visiting this temple so many students and their families visit here to pray for help passing exams. The temple has many old paintings including a 300 year old painting of Heaven and Hell, a 300 year old painting of vassals taking revenge on a feudal lord, and a 210 year old painting related to Chinese history.
The Tahoto Pagoda that stands on the temple grounds is a National Important Cultural Property and enshrines a statue of the dainichi nyorai whois the Buddha believed to be the creator of all life.
The temple gate that faces Chaya Street is registered as Cultural Property of City and is the biggest temple gate in the Tango area. Building of the gate began about 260 years ago in 1762. It took a total of 7 years and 8,780 carpenters to finish.
Fan -shaped fortunes, the result of a recent trend, are also sold at Chionji Temple. The fortunes are tied to tree branches to pray for expanding fortune. Motoise Kono Shrine in the Fuchu area of Miyazu has umbrella-shaped fortunes for sale.
There is also an iron bath tub that was casted around 730 years ago in 1290. It has a diameter of 1.7 meters and a height of 0.6 meters. It was originally used as a bath for monks and is now used as a washbasin. In Japan, people usually wash their hands at shrines and temples before approaching the main building.
(Ref: http://www.amanohashidate.jp/lang/en/spots/chionji/)
This was a beautiful temple, very busy on the weekends with tourists and local visitors. It’s right across the famous crossing in Amanohashidate, and there are many shops and restaurants surrounding the temple. There are also boat rides available on the shoreside. Anybody in the area should visit this location.