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Miyajima Island (official known as Itsukushima Island) floats like a diamond in the Inland Sea of Japan. From ancient times, people have sensed the spiritual sanctity of Miyajima, and have revered and worshipped the island itself as goddesses.

Daishoin Temple is an ancient Shingon Buddhist temple built at the foot of the sacred Mt Misen. During the time of fusion period of Shintoism and Buddhism, this distinguished temple governed all priests in Miyajima and was in charge of religious ceremonies of Itsukushima Shrine.Including Mt. Misen, Daishō-in is within the World Heritage Area of Itsukushima Shrine

Hōchōzuka Monument

A ceremony to give thanks to old kitchen knives that are

no longer usable is held before this monument on

March 8th

Daishoin Temple Niomon Gate, serves as the official gate away into the temple. A pair of guardian king statues stand by the gate

Niō are two wrath-filled and muscular guardians of the Buddha standing today at the entrance of many Buddhist temples. They are dharmapala manifestations of the bodhisattva Vajrapāṇi, the oldest and most powerful of the Buddhist pantheon.

In Japan, there is a traditional Buddhist flag (goshikimaku) which has different colors than the Buddhist flag  designed in the late 19th century to symbolise and universally represent Buddhism but is sometimes merged with the design of the international flag to represent international cooperation. The five colors of the Japanese Buddhist flag represent the Five Wisdom Buddhas, or alternately the colors of the Buddha's hair

There are prayer wheels on the

railings of the steps leading from

Daisho-in’s Niomon Gate to Onarimon

Gate

The six hundred volumes of Dai-hannyakyo Scripture were introduced from India by a Chinese monk named Sanzo It is believed that touching these sutras will bring you enormous fortune

Dai-hannyakyo Sutra

Dai-hannyakyo Scripture

500 Rakan statues

Lining the steps to the temple are the statues of five hundred of Shaka Nyorai’s disciples.These images all have unique facial expressions

In some cases, Jizo images are wearing red bibs and caps

like babies.Parents who have lost their

children take good care of Jizo images, as though they were

their lost children

Bonshō (Buddhist bells), also known as tsurigane or ōgane are large bells found in Buddhist temples, used to summon the monks to prayer and to demarcate periods of time. Rather than containing a clapper, bonshō are struck from the outside, using either a handheld mallet or a beam suspended on ropes

Pilgrim Etiquette

At some of the temples there is large bell that can be rung to announce your arrival and also as a sound-prayer offering. First, put an offering (fifty to a hundred yen is appropriate) into the box, then ring the bell once only. To strike the bell, take up the rope and swing the pole back and forth a couple of times without hitting the bell - this builds up momentum for a good sound when the bell is struck. On the third swing strike the bell and then hold back the pole to prevent it from swinging in again.If you have companions who also want to ring the bell, wait until the bell stops vibrating before striking it again. Only ring the bell once on arrival, do not ring the bell on leaving the temple

Bonshō (Buddhist bell)

Onarimon-gate, Daisho-in temple, Miyajima

The Image of Kannon Bosatsu or

Deity of Mercy

Jizō is a Bodhisattva

(Bosatsu), one who achieves

enlightenment but postpones Buddha hood until all can be

saved

One of the most beloved of all

Japanese divinities, Jizō

works to ease the suffering and shorten the

sentence of those serving time in

hell

In modern Japan, Jizō is a

savior par excellence, a friend to all,

never frightening even to children, and his/her many manifestations -- often cute and cartoon-like in contemporary

times -- incorporate

Taoist, Buddhist, and Shintō elements

The 500 Disciples of the Buddha with their various expressions are everywhere on the temple grounds

Daishoin Temple’s green,

plant-filled precincts

command a fine view and are very photogenic with

its many decorated

Buddhist statues

Kannon-do Hall, Daisho-in temple, Miyajima

Temple's roof detail

Chokugan-do Hall, Daisho-in temple, where Namikiri Fudomyoo is enshrined and where Hideyoshi Toyotomi prayed for absolute victory during the Imjin War

Chokugan-do Hall, Daisho-in temple, Miyajima

Fudo Miyo-o, or Immovable King, is an incarnated figure of Dainichi Nyorai, or Cosmic Buddha.The image is characterized by the fierce face to show his determination to destroy evil. Toyotomi Hideyoshi, one of three great unifiers of Japan in the 16th century prayed to this image for safety at sea and victory in battle

Text: InternetPictures: Sanda Foişoreanu Nicoleta Leu InternetCopyright: All the images belong to their authors

Presentation: Sanda Foişoreanuwww.slideshare.net/michaelasanda

Sound: Japan Buddhism Music 2016