Taishizan Seidaiji Temple, Fukui

The site area of ​​Taishizan Seidaiji Temple with Echizen Great Buddha is 22 hectares. Great Buddha, Great Buddha hall, five-storied pagoda, Japanese garden and so on are located in extensive site. Although it may be thought that there is history in that it is this big temple, actually it is 1987 and it is quite recently completed. Moreover, it was considerably late in 2002 that it was registered as a religious corporation. And it was also in 1987 that the Echizen Great Buddha was completed. In other words, the Echizen Great Buddha has only been around 30 years since the opening. This is probably the biggest Buddha in Japan, the shortest history.
Taishizan Seidaiji Temple is a temple built by Kiyoshi Tada, a big businessman from Katsuyama city invested in personal property. To throw personal property and make a temple with a great Buddha, it is a behavioral force impossible for an ordinary person to imagine. However, it seems that there are few people who have visited here even from locals in Fukui Prefecture, whether it is from the shallowness of its history or because the charm is not known.
However, Taishizan Seidaiji Temple and Echizen Great Buddha are spots of the scale and atmosphere. The height of the Echizen Great Buddha is 17 meters, which is 2 meters larger than the Great Buddha of Nara. It is also Seidaiji Temple that there is the highest five-storied pagoda in Japan. The height is 75 meters. Speaking of the five-storied pagoda, Tojo in Kyoto is famous but its height is 55 meters. It is 20 meters higher than that. There are five Buddha statues in each hierarchy, and you can worship while climbing.
There is a Japanese garden on the way to the five-storied pagoda from the Great Buddha hall. Sakura, cedar, and maple are planted there, and it shows different beautiful faces every season. Because the Japanese garden is worth seeing in about 10 minutes, please visit those who go to the 5-storied tower by all means. The autumnal leaves season is recommended, and in Katsuyama city it will be around mid November. Ginkgo’s yellow color and maple reds shine throughout the garden and you can see the beautiful contrast with the Great Buddha hall and the five-story pagoda.

Overwhelm people who visited

The huge building “Taishizan Seidaiji Temple” in Katsuyama-shi, Fukui and Echizen great statue of Buddha. It was modeled by Todaiji in Nara and was made larger than that. The height sitting down of the Echizen great statue of Buddha is 17m more than the great statue of Buddha of Nara. The Wakiji-Butsu (Buddha accompanying honzon) of four bodies are enshrined by the right and left of the statue, and the Buddhist images of 1,281 bodies are installed in the surface of a wall.
In addition, there are Five Storeyed Pagoda proud of 75m in height, gorgeous nine dragon walls, and Japanese garden, they overwhelm people who visited.

It is a formal temple now

Kiyoshi Tada who was a businessman of this town opened here in 1987, and it was like the theme park of the sightseeing purpose at first and was not an official temple.
Since it was belonged to the temple of the Myoshinji Sect of the Rinzaishu in 2002, it is a formal temple now.

Larger than Great Buddha of Nara

Because the Hall of the Great Buddha is made mimicking the Hall of the Great Buddha of Todai-ji Temple, the design looks just like that except details.
The height of a sedentary statue is 17m. It is 28m including the plinth. At least a sedentary statue is larger than Great Buddha of Nara about 2 m.

38 billion yen

In his later years,Mr. Tada stated “since that many people helped me to get to where I am now”, and he did charitable work or contribution enthusiastically. The construction of this Seidaiji Temple is also one in it. The total cost of construction is 38 billion yen!

Funny spot

However, in spite of being such a splendid temple, there is hardly a tourist. In the shopping center of the temple town, the shutter of most stores is closed. It is almost a ghost town and famous also as “funny spot”.

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