Adashino Nenbutsu-ji Temple

Kyoto · Japan · Cemetery

The stone field is called Sai no Kawara — the riverbed of the dead, where children's souls pile stones forever and demons topple the towers again.

The eight thousand nameless stone Buddhas stand ranked in what the temple calls Sai no Kawara, the riverbed of the dead. In Japanese folk belief this is where children who died before their parents go: there they stack stones into towers for those they left behind, and there demons knock the towers down again, over and over, until Jizō comes down and gathers the children under his robe. The temple has long been one of Kyoto's most talked-about spirit places, and photography among the stones is restricted.

From the Heian period, Adashino in Sagano was one of the city's three great burial grounds, where the bodies of the poor were carried out and left under the open sky. The monk Kūkai is said to have founded the temple as early as 811 to give them rest.

FAQ

Where is Adashino Nenbutsu-ji Temple located?

Adashino Nenbutsu-ji Temple is in Kyoto, Japan.