Is Otagi Nenbutsu-ji Temple worth the visit?

Otagi Nenbutsu-ji temple is situated in the Arashiyama district of Kyoto, Japan.

Arashiyama

For those who don’t know it, the area of Arashiyama is a greatly desired place to visit by tourists and high on the bucket lists of travellers. Located on the western edge of Kyoto, Arashiyama is where the mountains begin and the city ends.

I can not talk about other people’s opinions of the area, only my own and from my own experiences.

Arashiyama is the perfect example of what package holidays and tours of Japan show off on their advertisements to potential visitors. The photographs used are taken without any people in. This then creates expectations of the tourists as to what they expect Japan to be…empty. And with little independent research it might be a shock on arrival.

Otagi Nenbutsu-ji temple is shown online as a hidden gem in Arashiyama, this description ‘hidden' has arisen from the bamboo groves and surrounding areas suffering from over-tourism. It is a walk away from the bamboo grove, and from my experience, crowds disperse into Arashiyama as you head up into the hills.

I have only ever visited at the early hours around dawn, for fear of crowds. I don’t think I could ever appreciate a place with people elbowing me and pushing. What am I trying to say here? Do I have a problem with people over visiting a site?

No.

Tourist spots are often* crowded for a reason. Take Sensō-ji temple in Tokyo, it’s significant for its age being one of the oldest established temples in Tokyo, yes, but it’s also beautiful in its context of the busy surroundings of Asakusa.

*Definitely not always

For me it’s the behaviours and intentions of visitors around me that I get effected by. I let it bother me so, that people travel exceedingly far to visit a site to obtain a few photos perhaps for socials to then move on. I feel so much disappointment from it.

I am also always wishing to be respectful of the culture that I am traveling to see and so try to blend in as much as possible. I know this can never be truly achieved but I feel a conscious choice to try. So to experience people littering for example and ignoring rules spoils an experience for me.

Otagi Nenbutsu-ji Temple

Returning to Otagi Nenbutsu-ji Temple, on first inspection, the temple appears well settled into its environment. It’s as if it has been there for a millennia, undisturbed and left for nature to take over.

Moss covers the peaceful army of Buddhist statues. Those without the cover of moss are sheltered by the canopy of the trees as the carvings wind further up into the hills. It’s quite steep, and the site is spread almost as vertically as it is horizontally.

Don’t be fooled by the moss.

The original temple built in 770 was located far away from where it is now and was washed away when the Kamo-gawa River burst its banks and flooded. It wasn’t until after a further natural accident in the form of a typhoon that this current site was chosen and the temple built up again in the 1950s.

If it shocks people to hear of it being so recent, I suggest looking closer at the Buddhist disciple carvings that fill most of the temple. On closer inspection you will see one for example, is holding a cassette player.

It was pretty in the morning, with the sun still feeling quite low on arrival and gradually rising during my time there. I could truly see a Ghibli scene in front of me despite being shocked still by its age. But then again, nature works quick. And then towards the end of my visit, someone shoved past me in a hurry.

You would think someone pushing past you like that so early in the morning in a temple would constitute that there had been some kind of emergency. Alas no, just the seizure of a moment to take the perfect Instagram photo.

They had no emergency other than the lack of people in one particular area around some of the statues. The scene was set for their Instagram shot. And so I observed as they crafted their perfect ‘photo for the gram’ taken by their associate.

Despite signs stating not to, the individual decided they had the right to climb over the rows of carvings and kneel down amongst them, putting their hands into a praying position. Not just in the one spot, I must add. The phone photos were checked, approved, and they left immediately.

What can I say, it put me in a mood. It also made me hyperaware of the behaviours of others.

To conclude, I would recommend Otagi Nenbutsu-ji, but perhaps for anyone seeking pilgrimages to more historical sites, bear in mind the site is newer than expected. Still, it’s magical if you get a quiet moment.

Wanderings

Is Otagi Nenbutsu-ji Temple worth the visit?

Arashiyama

Otagi Nenbutsu-ji Temple