Jūraku-ji

Just over a kilometer west of Anraku-ji, the road continues into Awa, and the precinct of Jūraku-ji opens behind a distinctive two-story Chūmon — an inner gate housing not the standard Niō guardian kings but Aizen Myōō, the Love-Dyed Wisdom King.

The temple's name, written with the characters for 'ten' and 'joys,' expresses a Pure Land aspiration: ten kinds of bliss to outweigh the eight sufferings of human existence — birth, aging, illness, death, separation from the loved, encounter with the disliked, the unmet desire, and the burden of attachment to the five aggregates that constitute the self.

The principal image is Amida Nyorai, Buddha of the Pure Land, traditionally said to have been carved by Kūkai while he preached in this area during the Daidō era (806-810).

The temple was originally located about three kilometers north, in a place called Dōgahara in the Jūrakuji Valley; the medieval temple was burned by Chōsokabe Motochika in the 16th century, the chief priest is said to have rescued the principal image and carried it to safety on his back, and the rebuilt temple was relocated to its current site in 1635. The new wooden Hondō was completed in 1994.

But pilgrims do not come to Jūraku-ji primarily for the Amida principal image. They come for two side-stations that distinguish it among the early-route temples: the eye-healing Jizō informally known as Chigan Shitsume Kyūsai Jizō, beside the Hondō, where pilgrims with vision-related ailments come and pray; and the row of seventy small Jizō statues, mizuko-Jizō, dedicated to children lost to miscarriage, stillbirth, or abortion. The mizuko row is among the most quietly affecting features of the early Tokushima leg.

Many henro who pass through this temple do so unprepared for it. The combination of Pure Land naming, eye-healing intercession, and mizuko memorial creates a devotional gravity that sometimes surprises pilgrims this early on the route — typically prompting unexpected emotional response.

The 'Ten Joys' theme of the temple's name corresponds to standard Pure Land doctrinal vocabulary: ten kinds of bliss available in Sukhāvatī, Amida's western paradise. The temple's full mountain-and-hall name — Kōmyōzan Rengein Jūrakuji, 'Bright-Light Mountain Lotus-Garden Hall Temple of Ten Joys' — embeds three Pure Land images simultaneously: the bright light of Amida's name, the lotus that opens at rebirth, and the ten joys themselves.

Within this Pure Land framework, the temple's specialized intercessions register as embodied applications of Amida's compassion. The eye-healing Jizō addresses a specific bodily condition. The mizuko-Jizō row addresses the most acute grief Japanese Buddhist practice has developed a vocabulary for. The Aizen Myōō at the Chūmon gate works on a third register: a tantric figure who transmutes erotic and emotional attachment into bodhisattva resolve, his presence at the inner gate turning the architectural threshold itself into a doctrinal one.

Relationships purified before entry. The combination is unusual on the early route, and the temple's relatively small size concentrates it.

Tradition places the founding during the Daidō era (806-810) by Kūkai, who is said to have witnessed Amida Nyorai while preaching in this area. The original temple stood about three kilometers north of the present site, in Dōgahara in the Jūrakuji Valley.

The medieval temple complex was burned during Chōsokabe Motochika's 16th-century invasion of Awa. Tradition holds that the chief priest rescued the principal Amida image and carried it to safety. The temple was rebuilt at the current location in 1635 and a new wooden Hondō was completed in 1994. The mizuko-Jizō and eye-healing Jizō devotions appear to have intensified during the Edo and modern periods as the henro practice grew. The temple is today a Kōyasan Shingon parish temple.

The walk from Anraku-ji takes about twenty minutes along quiet roads. The first gate is the standard Niōmon. The Chūmon — the inner two-story gate housing Aizen Myōō — distinguishes the entry; pilgrims familiar with the Shikoku 88 route notice it because the Niō are not the typical figures here. Inside, the precinct is compact. The Hondō stands ahead, the Daishi-dō to one side, and beside the Hondō is the small enclosure of the eye-healing Jizō.

To the other side is the row of seventy small Jizō statues, each one dressed in a red cap or bib, often with small offerings — toys, candy, paper cranes, sometimes a hand-written note. At the Hondō the standard ritual unfolds — candle, three incense sticks, osamefuda, coin, the Heart Sutra, and the Amida mantra. The same at the Daishi-dō. At the Chūmon, pilgrims familiar with esoteric practice may chant the Aizen Myōō mantra.

At the eye-healing Jizō, the traditional gesture is to wash one's eyes lightly with the temple's water before prayer rather than touching the statue itself. At the mizuko row, the gesture is quieter: a coin, a moment, a small offering if one is carried, or simply a bow. Many pilgrims pause longer than they planned. The stamp office is to the right. Twenty to forty-five minutes is typical, though those who came specifically for mizuko-kuyō stay longer.

The temple is small enough to take in at a glance, but the three devotional stations — eye-healing Jizō, mizuko-Jizō row, Aizen Myōō at the Chūmon — each warrant their own pause. Visit the Hondō and Daishi-dō first to complete the standard ritual; the side stations have no required sequence and are visited as inclination prompts.

Kūkai is said to have witnessed Amida Nyorai while preaching in this area during the Daidō era. He carved a statue of Amida and named the temple Kōmyōzan Jūraku-ji — 'Bright-Light Mountain Temple of Ten Joys' — in the hope that ten lights of joy would shine on people despite the eight sufferings of human existence.

When Chōsokabe Motochika's forces burned the temple in the 16th century, the chief priest is said to have rescued the principal image, carrying it to safety on his back. The relocated temple was built at the current site in 1635.

Jūraku-ji is a parish temple of the Kōyasan Shingon-shū. Its dedication to Amida Nyorai expresses Shingon's integration of Pure Land devotion with esoteric ritual. The Aizen Myōō at the Chūmon and the eye-healing Jizō beside the Hondō layer tantric and folk-Buddhist practices into the broader Pure Land framework, producing the temple's particular three-register character.

At each main hall, the standard sequence — chōzuya, one bell stroke on arrival, candle, three incense sticks, osamefuda, coin, sutra. The Amida mantra ('On amirita teizei kara un') is chanted at the Hondō; the Kōbō Daishi mantra at the Daishi-dō. At the Chūmon, the Aizen Myōō mantra ('On makakyaranan banzaroshunisha bazara satoba jaku un ban koku') is chanted by those familiar with it.

At the eye-healing Jizō, pilgrims wash their eyes with a small handful of water from the temple's water source — never touching the statue itself — and offer a coin and a brief prayer. At the mizuko-Jizō row, mizuko-kuyō is the technical term for the memorial practice; small offerings of flowers, candy, or folded paper are common, and formal services can be arranged through the temple office for families bearing specific grief.

Daily Shingon liturgy continues. Eye-health prayers at the Jizō and mizuko-kuyō at the small-Jizō row are the most active specialized practices. Relationship and harmonious-marriage blessings are offered at the Aizen Myōō. The stamp office issues the seventh inscription. Formal kitō services for any of these intercessions can be requested; the temple office can advise on timing.

Complete the standard ritual at both halls. Visit the eye-healing Jizō with a small intention — eye health, vision, or by extension, clarity of seeing. At the mizuko row, slow down. Even pilgrims with no personal experience of mizuko grief often find the row affecting; bring whatever attention you have. If you carry specific grief — a miscarriage, an abortion, a lost child — this is a place where Japanese Buddhist practice has developed a vocabulary that may register.

At the Aizen Myōō at the Chūmon, the gesture is quieter: a bow on entry, a moment of attention to the figure's tantric presence at the threshold.

Jūraku-ji's three devotional stations invite three different readings, and each station functions on its own register: doctrinal Pure Land at the Hondō, folk-Buddhist intercession at the eye-healing Jizō and the mizuko row, and tantric esotericism at the Aizen Myōō.

Films, episodes, and recorded talks for visitors who want more context before or after a visit. Speculative and alternative-history entries are labelled as perspectives, not as sources for established claims.

Continue through the atlas by country, tradition, physical form, or a focused search that combines this place’s strongest context.

Explore other sacred places in the region. Proximity does not establish access or travel time; check each place’s guidance.

Anraku-ji

Kamiita, Tokushima Prefecture, Japan

1.0 km away

Kumadani-ji

Awa, Tokushima Prefecture, Japan

3.5 km away

Hōrin-ji

Awa, Tokushima Prefecture, Japan

4.5 km away

Jizō-ji

Itano, Tokushima Prefecture, Japan

5.3 km away

Sources consulted for this page. Source categories describe the publication, not a guarantee that every claim is verified. Traditional accounts and outside interpretations may differ.

1. 01Jurakuji – Awa, Tokushima Prefecture, Shikoku — Henro.orgguideStandard pilgrimage reference
2. 02Temple 7, Jūrakuji — Tourism ShikokuguideOfficial regional tourism portal
3. 03Koumyouzan Rengein Jyurakuji — Shikoku 88 Temple Pilgrimage AssociationofficialOfficial 88-temple association
4. 04Customs and Etiquette of the Shikoku Pilgrimage — Henro.orgguidePilgrim protocol
5. 05Jūraku-ji (Awa) — WikipediaencyclopediaCross-referenced