Cherished Legend·Rakuchū / Nishijin

Uho-in (Nishijin Shoten)

Known by the mountain name Hokkōzan, this Shingon temple of prayer traces its origin, by tradition, to 821, when Kūkai is said to have carved a life-size figure of Kangiten and enshrined it in prayer for Emperor Saga's recovery from illness. It once stood within Daishō-kanki-ji at Senbon Itsutsuji; after the Ōnin War, only Uhō-in was rebuilt on its present site in the Nishijin district. The great pine that shades the grounds is called the Shigure-no-matsu, the "drizzle pine," after a member of the imperial family said to have sheltered beneath it from a sudden rain, while the nearby Somedono well, counted among Nishijin's waters, is said never to run dry and to make dyes take especially well. Before the main hall stands the double-petalled Kanki cherry, of the same kind as the famous Omuro cherry.

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These notes come from desk research. Local traditions vary.