Echizen Daibutsu at Shindaiji

Japan's biggest Buddha statue sitting in Fukui!

Takako Sakamoto Jun 11, 2015 - 1 min read

<p>Close-up look at a huge Echizen Daibutsu (Buddha statue). What a serene face!</p>

<p>Looking up at a 17 meter high Echizen Daibutsu, which is about 2 meter higher than a Big Buddha of Todai-ji Temple in Nara and is Japan's highest Buddha statue in a sitting position.</p>

<p>The front view of the gigantic Daibutsu-den Hall (Big Buddha Hall) seen from the temple gate.</p>

<p>Stone marker of Shindaiji Temple standing in front of the gate</p>

<p>Long ascending roofed corridor leading to Daibutsu-den Hall (Big Buddha Hall)</p>

<p>Massive Daibutsu-den Hall (Big Buddha Hall) with a huge bronze lantern in front</p>

<p>Echizen Daibutsu statue sitting with golden lotus flowers in hand</p>

<p>Echizen Daibutsu is flanked by other tall statues on both sides. Humans can be totally dwarfed by them!</p>

<p>Countless Kannon statues adorn the walls of Daibutsu-den Hall. They look small, but actually each statue is about the size of a human adult.</p>

<p>Impressive sight of Big Buddha and other statues in the hall</p>

<p>Lotus flowers, lit lantern and Buddha statues in the hall</p>

<p>The interior of the Buddha Hall looks like a silent cathedral</p>

<p>A visitor was lighting a candle to offer prayers. You can see from the size of the statues in the wall shelves in the background how gigantic the Big Buddha must be.</p>

Located in Katsuyama City, Fukui, the 17-meter-tall Echizen Daibutsu in Shindaiji Temple is the tallest Buddha statue in Japan in a sitting position (it's taller than the 14.7 meter Big Buddha of Todaiji Temple in Nara and the 13.35 meter Kamakura Daibutsu). Then why in the world is this fact unknown and the temple deserted? Because it lacks the long history that other two big Buddha statues proudly possess. It's only 28 years old (built in 1987 by a local businessman) and apparently his youth can't attract attentions from history lovers. However, once you see him with your own eyes you'll be awed by his serene beauty. He sits in a big, dark, silent hall flanked by four likewise tall Buddhist statues. The whole scene was so sublime that it left me speechless with my eyes and mouth wide open!

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Takako Sakamoto @takako.sakamoto

I was born in and grew up in Tokushima prefecture, and have lived in many places since then: Nishinomiya, Kyoto, Nara, Mie, Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba, Fukuoka and Fukui. I am currently living in Yokohama City. All the places I lived, all the places I visited, I have loved dearly. The histor...