Founded in the 12th century, Nakayama-dera is a temple dedicated to Kannon, the Bodhisattva of Compassion. If you have been reading my posts or have visited Japan yourself, you probably have noticed that Kannon has at least a hall in dedication to the deity in almost every temple complex, and it’s easy to see why. Compassion is a form of relief that we all strive to obtain no matter what the situation. As such, Kannon is one if not the most popular Bodhisattva in Japan if not all of Buddhism. But Nakayama is slightly different from other temples to Kannon because it focuses on a specific kind, or genre, of compassion; namely for and around child birth. Nakayama-dera is a temple solely dedicated to the well being of mothers and newborns. Even the goshuin from the temple are varied based on the condition of the mother. There are goshuin pre-conception, others for midterm, and others for newborns. Prayer services focus on the familiy and call upon Kannon to bless them with good fortune during a major transition in any family’s timeline.

For the casual: 5. For the educated: 5.

Even though I marked this location as only a 5 out of 10, I believe it has much more to offer than just that. For one, the location is a really great one. Up in the hills between Osaka and Kobe, it overlooks the greater Osaka area with very little resistance. Second, the community surrounding the temple is lovely. Nakayama-dera is nestled in a suburban community which means that there are cute little shops, stalls, and cafes all around, not to mention the lovely reprieve from the bustling noise of city life. Third, the temple is extremely considerate of the women in particular who are coming to the temple to pray. I mentioned earlier that the temple is on a hill and in Japan hills are not gentle; they rise and fall with very little hesitation. This means that there are multiple flights of stairs that are equally not as gentle as one would like especially when being weighed down by a human. So how does this compassionate temple respond? They install outdoor escalators for you to use if the stairs are simply too difficult to use.

Another reason I found this temple a great place to visit was because of the sights. The temple buildings are covered in vibrant colored paintings with beautiful and fantastical creatures on almost every wall. For those alone I would recommend the trip to anyone with a pension for art. The five-story pagoda is also slighty irregular but facinating with a blue-purple color painted atop the wood wich both complements the dark colors of the exposed wood and ceramic roof tiles, but also stands out without being loud.

If you’re looking for a place to enjoy the Kansai area with a kind of overlooking and quiet vibe, there are very few other places I would recommend apart from Nakayama-dera.

The term "temple", when used in reference to structures in Japan, is associated with structures belonging to Buddhism. Buddhism was introduced to Japan through trade contacts with China and Korea in the sixth century and in comparison to other waves of faith in the world, it was taken in fairly easily. Well, of course there were disputes, but there wasn’t a massive war or religious cleansing which can be found in other parts of world history. Buddhas and Bodhisattva can be passed off as another embodiment of Shinto deities, a fun fact which can be found often if there is a shrine to local deities with a temple nearby.

A common understanding of Japanese culture states that the Japanese "are born by Shinto and die by Buddhism". This is actually correct. Ceremonies regarding birth and marriage in Japan take place at Shinto shrines, but according to Shinto, death is an unholy thing and is not something which is allowed to be interacted with by the living. For this reason, until Buddhism was introduced, there was no singular location or palace for the King of Japan; there are many many sites in the Kansai plain where these ancient mansions are found. With Buddhism, death is a natural part of life and a cleansing ritual is all that is needed to help the spirit of the dead find enlightenment while removing the physical area left behind of any blights. To this affect, to pray for the dead, one prays at a Buddhist temple.

Buddhist temples are often very easy to identify both by name and by architecture. By name, they will end with "-ji" or with "dera", both of which are readings of the character 寺. Occasionally one might find a place that ends with "-in", but those are often found when referring to a hall within a temple complex. However, any temple which ends with the “-in” title, was once a building serving another perpose, likely the home of a lord or emperor before being converted into a temple. By architecture, temples usually adorn the roofs with tiles and the wood used to construct the complex is stained for longevity. Also, if you see a rock garden or a pagoda: temple.

There are many souveniers which can be purchased at temples across Japan. First and foremost are souvenirs which mainly consist of good luck charms and the like. These items are often very affordable and are unique to the temple where it was purchased. If the temple has a specific deity which it is known for, images and such of that deity are available for any and all private forms of worship at home. Another souvenir which is highly recommended is the goshuinchô, an item which I have added a page about for greater detail.

Many temples will have incense pits in front of the main hall. These incense pits are large metal containers usually already filled with piles of ash from years of contributions from visitors. Visitors can purchase a roll of incense usually for 100 yen, which is then lit and added to the pit. Be careful not to blow on the incense since breath is considered tainted or unholy and will be seen as bad luck rather than good. The smoke from incense is supposed to bring good luck and health, so visitors waft the smoke over their heads and to areas that they would like healed. Just be careful of wind direction, otherwise you'll be like me on my first try and be wafting smoke to your eyes to get healed following the burning sensation we all love from smoke.

Also, a warning. Western visitors will probably get a bit of culture shock when they see the number of swastikas all around Japan. DO NOT PANIC!!!!!! It is understandable that many might view this symbol as a symbol of hate and violence at the hands of the Nazi party in Germany. Though Japan was allied with Germany in WWII, this symbol is not analogous. In Japan, this symbol is called a Manji and is almost the exact opposite in meaning of the German swastika. The manji is essentially the wheel of life with the two vertical arms representing the connection between heaven and earth while the horizontal arms connect light and dark. This symbol is of Hindu origin and embodies how life flows on while keeping everything connected. Visitors will find this symbol on maps to represent the location of a temple, they may be present on souvenirs from temple shops, and they will be on objects around and in the temple. If as a visitor you cannot stand the site of this symbol, it would be best to stick to tourists sites of popular culture rather than historical and spiritual culture in Japan. It is good to know what the swastika means in a Western society, but the manji is far older than Westen culture and is benign in Buddhist society.