Byodoin Temple
Uji, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan Buddhism
UNESCO-listed Pure Land Buddhist temple in Uji, famous for the 11th-century Phoenix Hall.
The World’s Sacred Places
Sacred Places
Discover a curated guide to significant sacred places, pilgrimage traditions, architecture, documented history and practical visitor information across cultures and faith traditions.
CuratedSource-awareMulti-faithVisitor-ready where known
Curated Discovery
28 Sacred Places
Browse Sacred Places selected for Templestan’s public collection.
Chuson-ji
Koromonoseki, Hiraizumi, Iwate Prefecture, Japan Buddhism
UNESCO-listed Hiraizumi temple famous for the gold-covered Konjikido and Pure Land Buddhist heritage.
Daihonzan Eihei-ji
Shihi, Eiheiji, Yoshida District, Fukui Prefecture, Japan Buddhism
One of the two head monasteries of Soto Zen, founded by Dogen in a forested mountain valley in Fukui.
Dazaifu Tenmangu
Saifu, Dazaifu, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan Shinto
Major Tenmangu shrine built at the burial place of Sugawara no Michizane, patron of learning and scholarship.
Enryaku-ji
Sakamoto Honmachi, Otsu, Shiga Prefecture, Japan Buddhism
Head temple of Tendai Buddhism on sacred Mount Hiei, a UNESCO-listed center of monastic training for more than 1,200 years.
Fujisan Hongu Sengen Taisha
Miyacho, Fujinomiya, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan Shinto
Head shrine of more than 1,300 Sengen shrines and a historic pilgrimage gateway for worship of Mount Fuji.
Fushimi Inari Taisha
Fushimi, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan Shinto
Head shrine of Inari worship, internationally famous for its thousands of vermilion torii gates on Mount Inari.
Hase-dera (Kamakura)
Hase, Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan Buddhism
Kamakura temple famous for its monumental eleven-faced Kannon and a long sacred-origin story involving a statue carried by the sea.
Horyu-ji
Ikaruga, Ikoma District, Nara Prefecture, Japan Buddhism
One of the world’s oldest surviving wooden temple complexes and a foundational monument of Japanese Buddhism.
Ise Jingu Naiku (Inner Shrine)
Uji, Ise, Mie Prefecture, Japan Shinto
Japan’s most sacred Shinto sanctuary, dedicated to Amaterasu Omikami and central to the Ise pilgrimage tradition.
Izumo Taisha
Taisha-cho Kizukihigashi, Izumo, Shimane Prefecture, Japan Shinto
One of Japan’s oldest and most important Shinto shrines, associated with Okuninushi and traditions of divine gathering and matchmaking.
Kasuga Taisha
Kasuganocho, Nara, Nara Prefecture, Japan Shinto
UNESCO-listed Nara shrine of the Fujiwara tradition, famous for sacred deer, primeval forest and thousands of lanterns.