Regional sacred-site guide
Sacred sites in Kyoto Prefecture
Explore 54 sacred places in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan, with a regional map and links to detailed site guides.
Traditions in Kyoto Prefecture
Site types in Kyoto Prefecture
Showing 1-48 of 54 sites in this regional guide
Anao-ji
Kameoka, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Anao-ji is station 21 on the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage, a Tendai Buddhism temple in Kyoto dedicated to Shō Kannon....
Atago Shrine (Atago Jinja)
Part of Mt. Atago
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Atago Shrine crowns Mount Atago at 924 meters, the highest point surrounding Kyoto....
Byōdō-in
Uji, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Amida’s Pure Land reflected in the waters before Phoenix Hall. Byōdō-in remains an active Pure Land Buddhism temple....
Chion-in
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Nembutsu carried through the head temple of Honen’s Jōdo school. Chion-in remains an active Jōdo Buddhism temple....
Chōhō-ji (Rokkaku-dō)
Nakagyo-ku, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Chōhō-ji (Rokkaku-dō) is station 18 on the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage, a Tendai Buddhism, Ikenobō / ikebana lineage temple in Kyoto dedicated to Nyoirin Kannon....
Daihōon-ji
Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Daihōon-ji, known popularly as Senbon Shakadō, holds Kyoto's oldest surviving wooden building inside the city limits — a 1227 National Treasure main hall that survived the...
Daikaku-ji
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Heart Sutra, flower practice, and imperial memory beside Osawa Pond. Daikaku-ji remains an active Shingon Buddhism, Daikaku-ji school temple....
Daitoku-ji
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
A living Zen township of subtemples, gardens, and tea memory. Daitoku-ji remains an active Rinzai Zen Buddhism, Daitoku-ji school temple....
Eikan-dō (Zenrin-ji)
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Amida turns back for those who have fallen behind. Eikan-dō (Zenrin-ji) remains an active Jōdo Buddhism, Seizan Zenrin-ji school temple....
Fushimi Inari-taisha
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Since 711 CE, pilgrims have climbed sacred Mount Inari through tunnels of vermilion torii gates—each one donated by someone whose prayers were answered, or who hoped they...
Gankei-ji
Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Gankei-ji is station bangai-gankei-ji on the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage, a Tendai Buddhism temple in Kyoto dedicated to Kannon....
Gyōgan-ji (Kōdō)
Nakagyo-ku, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Gyōgan-ji (Kōdō) is station 19 on the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage, a Tendai Buddhism, Miyako Shichifukujin temple in Kyoto dedicated to Senju Kannon....
Heian-jingū
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Kyoto’s imperial beginning and ending held in modern shrine space. Heian-jingū remains an active Shinto shrine....
Higashi Hongan-ji
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Immense timber halls built for shared listening and nembutsu. Higashi Hongan-ji remains an active Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism, Ōtani-ha temple....
Imakumano Kannon-ji
Part of Sennyū-ji
Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Imakumano Kannon-ji is station 15 on the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage, a Shingon Buddhism, Kumano cult temple in Kyoto dedicated to Jūichimen Kannon....
Iwashimizu Hachimangū
Yawata, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Hachiman’s protective sanctuary on Mount Otokoyama. Iwashimizu Hachimangū remains an active Shinto shrine....
Jingo-ji
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Kukai’s teaching memory reached by a demanding climb through Takao. Jingo-ji remains an active Shingon Buddhism temple....
Jishō-ji (Ginkaku-ji)
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Higashiyama culture and Zen restraint across sand, moss, and wooded slope. Jishō-ji (Ginkaku-ji) remains an active Rinzai Zen Buddhism temple....
Kami Daigo-ji
Fushimi-ku, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Kami Daigo-ji is station 11 on the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage, a Shingon-shū Daigo-ha temple in Kyoto dedicated to Juntei Kannon....
Kamigamo-jinja Shrine
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Thunder, mountain form, and cultivated water at Kyoto’s upper Kamo shrine. Kamigamo-jinja Shrine remains an active Shinto shrine....
Kennin-ji
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Zen discipline and tea memory in the streets behind Gion. Kennin-ji remains an active Rinzai Zen Buddhism, Kennin-ji school temple....
Kifune Shrine
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Nestled in the forested mountains north of Kyoto, Kifune Shrine has stood for over sixteen centuries as the dwelling place of Kuraokami, the dragon god who governs water....
Kitano Tenmangū
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Learning, memory, and plum blossom before Tenjin. Kitano Tenmangū remains an active Shinto shrine....
Kiyomizu-dera Temple
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
On the forested slopes of Mount Otowa in eastern Kyoto, a vast wooden stage juts out over the valley—built without a single nail, supported by pillars of...
Kōryū-ji
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Miroku’s poised stillness within one of Kyoto’s earliest temples. Kōryū-ji remains an active Shingon Buddhism temple....
Kōzan-ji (Kyoto)
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Myoe’s mountain discipline above the cedar paths of Toganoo. Kōzan-ji (Kyoto) remains an active Shingon Buddhism temple....
Kurama-dera Temple
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Rising 584 meters above Kyoto's northern edge, Mount Kurama has drawn seekers for over twelve centuries....
Manpuku-ji
Uji, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Ming monastic form and Chinese chanting in Japanese Obaku Zen. Manpuku-ji remains an active Ōbaku Zen Buddhism temple....
Matsunoo-dera
Maizuru, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Matsunoo-dera is station 29 on the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage, a Shingon-shū Daigo-ha temple in Kyoto dedicated to Batō Kannon....
Matsunoo-taisha Shrine
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Mountain water and the kami honored by generations of brewers. Matsunoo-taisha Shrine remains an active Shinto shrine....
Mimuroto-ji
Uji, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Mimuroto-ji is station 10 on the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage, a Honzan Shugen-shū temple in Kyoto dedicated to Senju Kannon....
Mt. Atago
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Rising 924 meters above Kyoto, Mount Atago has guarded the ancient capital from fire for over 1,300 years....
Myōshin-ji
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
A vast Rinzai head temple ordered around training and lineage. Myōshin-ji remains an active Rinzai Zen Buddhism, Myōshin-ji school temple....
Nanzen-ji
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Imperial retreat transformed into a head temple of Rinzai Zen. Nanzen-ji remains an active Rinzai Zen Buddhism, Nanzen-ji school temple....
Nariai-ji
Miyazu, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Nariai-ji is station 28 on the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage, a Hashidate Shingon-shū temple in Kyoto dedicated to Shō Kannon....
Ninna-ji
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Imperial memory and Shingon practice among Omuro’s late cherries. Ninna-ji remains an active Shingon Buddhism, Omuro school temple....
Nishi Hongan-ji
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
A vast congregational home for hearing the Dharma of Amida. Nishi Hongan-ji remains an active Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism, Hongwanji-ha temple....
Rengeō-in (Sanjūsangen-dō)
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Compassion multiplied along a hall of one thousand Kannon forms. Rengeō-in (Sanjūsangen-dō) remains an active Tendai Buddhism temple....
Rokuharamitsu-ji
Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Rokuharamitsu-ji is station 17 on the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage, a Shingon Buddhism, Kūya nembutsu temple in Kyoto dedicated to Jūichimen Kannon....
Rokuon-ji (Kinkaku-ji)
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
A Buddhist reliquary of gold, reflection, rebuilding, and Zen custodianship. Rokuon-ji (Kinkaku-ji) remains an active Rinzai Zen Buddhism temple....
Ryoan-ji
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Ryoan-ji in Kyoto holds the world's most celebrated Zen rock garden. Fifteen stones rest on raked white gravel, arranged so that from any viewing point, one remains hidden....
Saihō-ji
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Scripture before moss in a garden formed by Zen attention. Saihō-ji remains an active Rinzai Zen Buddhism temple....
Sanzen-in
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Amida devotion held within the moss and streams of Ohara. Sanzen-in remains an active Tendai Buddhism temple....
Seigan-ji
Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Seigan-ji is the head temple (sōhonzan) of the Jōdo Seizan Fukakusa branch, founded in Nara in 667 CE and relocated in 1591 to Kyoto's Shinkyōgoku entertainment district....
Sennyū-ji
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Buddhist worship and imperial memorial care at the Mitera. Sennyū-ji remains an active Shingon Buddhism, Sennyū-ji school temple....
Shimogamo-jinja Shrine
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Kamo worship carried through Tadasu no Mori and ritual water. Shimogamo-jinja Shrine remains an active Shinto shrine....
Shōkoku-ji (Kyoto)
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
The Zen monastery behind Kyoto’s Golden and Silver Pavilions. Shōkoku-ji (Kyoto) remains an active Rinzai Zen Buddhism, Shōkoku-ji school temple....
Tenryu-ji Temple
Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
At the foot of the Arashiyama mountains in western Kyoto, Tenryu-ji preserves a garden designed by Zen master Musō Soseki for a single purpose: meditation....
Showing 1-48 of 54 sites
Key questions
Kyoto Prefecture sacred-site questions
- How many sacred sites are listed in Kyoto Prefecture?
- This regional guide currently includes 54 sacred sites in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan.
- Which traditions are represented in Kyoto Prefecture?
- The most represented traditions in the current guide include Buddhism, Shinto, Rinzai Zen Buddhism, Shingon Buddhism, Tendai Buddhism, Jōdo Buddhism, Jōdo Buddhism, Seizan Zenrin-ji school, Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism, Hongwanji-ha.
- Can I view Kyoto Prefecture sacred sites on a map?
- Yes. Switch to map view to compare the listed places, then open a site page for coordinates and visiting context.