Konkai Komyo-ji
Ginkakuji, Kyoto
Source: kurodani.jp, checked 11 Oct 2026.
Known as Kurodani, this is where Honen built his first hermitage in 1175 after coming down from Mount Hiei, and it's now a head temple of the Jodo sect. In 1862 Matsudaira Katamori, lord of Aizu, made it his Kyoto headquarters with 1,000 men, and the men who became the Shinsengumi had their audience with him here. The Aizu cemetery up the hill remembers 237 who died in Kyoto from 1862 to 1867 and 115 killed at Toba-Fushimi.
Insider tip
The Ohojo with its tiger screens, the Shiun garden and the upper floor of the 1860 gate open for the autumn special viewing, 13 November to 6 December 2026. A ticket for everything costs ¥1,600, or ¥1,000 for the halls and garden alone, and there's an evening light-up in the same weeks. The graves face west, toward Mount Ogura, more than 10 km away, and around the equinoxes you can watch the sun go down behind it.
What's on at Konkai Komyo-ji
Upcoming events at Konkai Komyo-ji and within a ten-minute walk, from the weekly Kyoto events calendar.
Kurodani Konkai Komyo-ji Autumn Night Viewing
くろ谷 金戒光明寺 秋の特別公開 夜間拝観
Time 17:30 to 20:30 (last entry 20:00) Station Okazaki-michi bus stop (City Bus 32, 203, 204), 10 min walk
Konkai Komyo-ji lights its Goeido hall and the Shiun garden, where the maples reflect in the pond, shows Ito Jakuchu's rooster screens in the great abbot's hall, and lights next-door Eisho-in too (¥1,600 for both). Koto and shinobue players give 20-minute sets at 17:45, 18:30 and 19:30, included in the ticket.
NORITO,S, CC BY-SA 3.0 Ojuya Nembutsu Services at Shinnyo-do
お十夜（十日十夜別事念仏会）
Time 15 Nov: procession 14:00, closing service 17:00 Station Kinrin Shako-mae bus stop (City Bus 5)
For ten nights the main Amida statue is unveiled and a white cord tied to its hand runs out to a post in front of the hall, and touching the cord is said to carry your wish straight to the Buddha. On the last day, 15 Nov, there's a procession of children and monks at 14:00, close-up viewing of the statue from 9:00 and free azuki bean porridge.
KENPEI, CC BY-SA 3.0 Sumitomo Shunsui: 100 Years On
特別展 没後100年記念 住友春翠 －仕合せの住友近代美術コレクション
Time 10:00 to 17:00 (last entry 16:30), closed Mondays (open 23 Nov) and 24 Nov Station Miyanomae-cho bus stop (City Bus 32, 105), 1 min walk
A centenary show for Sumitomo Shunsui, the 15th head of the Sumitomo family, whose collecting laid the museum's foundations, with Japanese and Western paintings and crafts including Monet's Parc Monceau and Fujishima Takeji's Sachi aru asa. Under-18s get in free, and the ticket covers the Bronze Gallery of ancient Chinese bronzes too.
Takigi Noh at Heian Shrine
薪能（平安神宮）
Time Evenings Station Higashiyama (Tozai Line), 10 min walk
Noh performed by firelight at Heian Shrine on the evenings of 1 and 2 June. In rain it moves indoors to the main hall of ROHM Theatre Kyoto, as the second night did in 2026, and the shrine garden stops taking visitors at 17:20 on both days.
Manish Prabhune, CC BY 2.0 Tanabata Wind Chime Festival at Heian Shrine
七夕風鈴まつり（平安神宮）
Time 8:30 to 18:00 (last entry 17:30) Station Higashiyama (Tozai Line), 10 min walk
Wind chimes hang from the Hashidono, the roofed bridge over the pond in Heian Shrine's garden, and you can write a wish on a strip for ¥300, free on 7 July and 19 August if you've paid for the garden. Garden entry is ¥600.
Manish Prabhune, CC BY 2.0 Nearby
Around Ginkakuji
Temple gardens along a canal path, under the Daimonji hill
Get to Ginkaku-ji for its 8:30 opening, because the temple fills up as the day goes on. Then walk south on the Philosopher's Path, about 1.8 km of stone path beside a branch of the Lake Biwa Canal, and turn off it for the temples on either side. Honen-in's grounds open at 6:00, and you don't pay to go in.
Ginkakuji has 15 places on the Roam Kyoto map: 7 shrines and temples, 2 museums, 2 restaurants, 1 viewpoint, 1 shop, 1 neighbourhood and 1 bathhouse. Read the Ginkakuji guide.
Good to know
- What is the address of Konkai Komyo-ji?
- 121 Kurodani-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto (in Japanese: 京都市左京区黒谷町121).
- How do I get to Konkai Komyo-ji?
- The nearest station is Okazaki-michi bus stop (City Bus 32, 203, 204). Konkai Komyo-ji is in Ginkakuji, Kyoto.
- How much does Konkai Komyo-ji cost?
- Nothing. Konkai Komyo-ji is free to visit.
- How long do you need at Konkai Komyo-ji?
- Plan for 45 min.
- When is the best time to visit Konkai Komyo-ji?
- Late afternoon.
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