Horyu-ji

Horyu-ji in Ikaruga, Nara Prefecture, is one of the most important surviving monuments of early Japanese Buddhism. Temple records associate its foundation with Empress Suiko and Prince Shotoku and state that a temple and Buddhist image were completed in 607 in fulfilment of a vow made by Emperor Yomei.

The Nihon Shoki records a major fire in 670, after which the complex was rebuilt. The surviving West Precinct contains wooden structures dating from the late seventh and early eighth centuries, among the oldest extant wooden buildings in the world. Horyu-ji and nearby Hokki-ji form UNESCO’s Buddhist Monuments in the Horyu-ji Area, inscribed for their architectural, artistic and religious importance during the period when Buddhism was taking root in Japan.

The temple also preserves major sculptures and ritual objects associated with early Buddhist culture and the later devotional cult of Prince Shotoku. Horyu-ji remains an active temple as well as a heritage site, and admission is charged for the principal precinct and collections. Visitors should allow substantial time because the complex is extensive and divided between western and eastern areas. Claims of miracles associated with Prince Shotoku belong to later religious tradition, not to verifiable historical evidence.