Kotokuin Temple, "The Great Buddha in Kamakura"

Kotokuin Temple is located on the west side of Kamakura. The name of "Kokukuin" may not be well known, even for Japanese, but it is very well known as for the great Buddha, "Kamakura Daibutsu".

It is not sure when Kotokuin Temple was built. As it is the fixed theory that the great Buddha stature started to be built in 1252, the temple would be built by the middle of thirteenth century. Originally, the great Buddha statue was located inside the building. However, the covering building was destroyed in 1369 and the Buddha statue has been exposed to rain. It is also said the building was completely destroyed by a tsunami in 1495.

If you walk to the north from Hase Station on the Enoshima Electrical Railway, so called the "Enoden" line, with following other sightseers, you will reach Kotokuin Temple in ten minutes.

First, you will go through the Deva Gate, and will pay the admission fee.

Then, you will see the great Buddha statue, "Kamakura Daibutsu", in front of you. The Buddha statue is a symbol of Kamakura, which used to be the capital of Japan during the Kamakura Age (1185 - 1333) .

The height of the statue is 11.39 meters and the estimated weight of the statue is approximately 121 ton.
The statue is made of copper casting, including lead and tin materials.

You are able to go inside the statue.

You can see that the statue consists of several parts. The huge hole shown in the above picture is a head portion of the statue.

As the Buddha statue keeps the original shape and construction methods of the thirteenth century, it is designated as a national treasure of Japan.

How to get there
To go to Kotokuin, "Kamakura Daibutsu", you will take a Yokosuka Line train from Tokyo or take a Shonan-Shinjyuku Line bound for Zushi. Change to a "Enoden" at Kamakura Station and get off at Hase Station.

Other Historical Sites near by:
Tsurugaoka Hachiman Shrine
Kaizoji Temple
Shichiri-gahama Beach
Enoshima Island