Toshodaiji

Toshodaiji was founded in 759 by Ganjin, a Chinese monk who crossed to Japan after repeated shipwrecks and blindness to transmit the rules of Buddhist ordination. Part of the Nara World Heritage grouping, its main hall is a rare surviving example of grand eighth-century temple architecture, its broad tiled roof carried on a colonnade of stout wooden pillars. Inside stand serene lacquered statues of the era, and a memorial hall preserves a revered portrait sculpture of Ganjin. The quiet grounds, away from Nara's deer, reward unhurried visits.