Chūsonji (中尊寺) Temple in Hiraizumi, Iwate Prefecture, Japan was established in 850 as a temple of the Tendai sect of Buddhism. The temple came to prominence when the northern branch of the Fujiwara clan moved their base to Hiraizumi. At its peak, the temple consisted of a large network of dozens of buildings. [1]
With the fall of the Fujiwara at the end of the 12th century, Chūsonji suffered likewise so that now only two buildings from that era remain intact. Luckily, among these is the most spectacular, the Konjikidō (金色堂). Similar to Kyoto's famous Kinkakuji (金閣寺, literally "Temple of the Golden Pavilion"), Konjikidō is a building completely covered in gold. It dates back to 1124 and stands inside another concrete building for protection. [1]
The opening photograph is the concrete building constructed to protect the Konjikidō and is the typical photograph that all visitors are allowed to make of the "Konjikidō". Once you enter the protective building, any video or photography is strictly prohibited of the spectacular Konjikidō itself.
Please continue reading the rest of the article to see a video of the golden Konjikidō and see more photographs of Chūsonji when I visited on 25 Nov 2017.
