Recommended Routes

Tour of a temple associated with Prince Shotoku and the Fujinoki burial mound (Ikaruga Town, Nara Prefecture)

Ikaruga is located in the northwest corner of Nara Prefecture.A visit here is a romantic journey into the history of Prince Shotoku with wonderful temples and shrines, to note Horyu-ji Temple, Hoki-ji Temple and Horin-ji Temple, set amidst an idyllic setting of rice paddies and mountain backdrops. The Horyu-ji Temple Complex, made famous by Shiki Masaoka in his haiku “Kaki Kueba Kane Ga Naru Nari Horyuji (‘Eating persimmons, the bell of Horuiji rings’)”, is roughly in the center of the town. It is widely known as the oldest wooden structure in the world and the complex of Buddhist buildings that includes it and Hoki-ji Temple was the first cultural property in Japan to be registered as a World Heritage.

Video

Tabinohoshi Tabinohoshi “An Adult's Journey through the 1,400-year history of Ikaruga, Ikaruga, Japan” Ikaruga, Japan vol.30

Access

How to get there - By train
Approx. 35 min from Osaka.
Take the JR Yamatoji Line from Osaka Station to Horyuji Station.
Take the Kintetsu Line from Namba station to Tutui station (change at Yamatosaidaiji statioon ...Approx. 50 min)
Approx. 1 hr from Kyoto.
Take the JR Nara Line from Kyoto Station to Nara Station. Change to the Yamatoji Line and get off at Horyuji Station.

How to get there - By car
Short distance north from the Horyuji IC of the Nishimeihan Expressway.

Route

  1. JR Horyuji Station (Tourist Information Center)on foot
  2. Horyuji i Centeron foot
  3. Nishisatoon foot
  4. Fujinoki Tumuluson foot
  5. Horyuji Temple (World Heritage)on foot
  6. Chuguji Templeon foot
  7. Horinji Templeon foot
  8. Hokkiji Temple (World Heritage)on foot
  9. JR Horyuji Station

Highlights

  • Horyuji i Center

    Horyuji i Center is your source of information on Horyu-ji Temple and other places in Ikaruga.

  • Nishisato

    The hamlet of Nishisato grew as a home for imperial carpenters who worked mostly on Horyu-ji Temple.

  • Fujinoki Tumulus

    This large circular burial mound is estimated to have been built in the later half of the 6th century prior to Prince Shotoku building his Ikaruga Palace (601)

  • Horyuji Temple (World Heritage)

    It is made of wood by Shotoku Taishi and is the oldest buiding in the wolrd. You can see many treasures such as Kondo, Yumedono, three statues of Buddha made by Toribusshi, national treasures, goddess of mercy, Tamamushinozushi, and so on.
    Access:5 minutes from Horyujimae bus stop on foot.

  • Chuguji Temple

    It was an imperial palace of Hashihito empress whose son was Shotoku Taishi. The statue of Buddha is full of mercy.

  • Horinji Temple

    They say that Yamashirono Oheno Ouji built it for Shotoku Taishi. The five-storied pagoda was burned in 1944. However, the new one was built in 1975 with the efforts of Koda Aya whose father is a writer of “Gojunotou.”

  • Hokkiji Temple (World Heritage)

    It has the oldest three-storied pagoda. It began to buid from 684 and took for 20 years.
    Admission free: adult 300yen