A Shingon (Toji branch) temple with origins in the Kasuga Zenbo hermitage where Chii Daitoku, a senior disciple of Ganjin, lived in seclusion during the Tenpyo-Shoho era (749–757). It is said that Kukai entered the temple during the Konin era and carved the principal Sanmen Senju Kannon. The garden "Tobi-ju no Sekitei" (Stone Garden of Birds and Beasts) is a distinctive dry landscape featuring sto…

Shoboji Temple traces its origins to the Kasuga Zenbo hermitage established during the Tenpyo-Shoho era (749–757), when Chii Daitoku, a senior disciple of Ganjin, lived in seclusion in the Oharano area. In the early Heian period, during the Konin era (810–824), Kukai (Kobo Daishi) is said to have en…