Temple

Otagi Nenbutsu-ji

Arashiyama, Kyoto

Address
2-5 Saga-Toriimoto Fukatani-cho, Ukyo-ku, Kyoto 〒616-8439 京都市右京区嵯峨鳥居本深谷町2-5
Hours
Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri, Sun
9:00 to 16:00
Wed, Sat
Closed

Source: otagiji.com, checked 11 Oct 2026.

Moss covered rakan statues on the slope of Otagi Nenbutsu-ji among autumn maples, Kyoto
Photo: 663highland / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.5)

About 1,200 stone rakan crowd the hillside at Otagi Nenbutsu-ji, at the top end of the Saga-Toriimoto road, each with its own expression. Ordinary visitors carved them in the 1980s, learning under the sculptor-priest Kocho Nishimura while he rebuilt the temple. The hall and gate themselves were moved here in 1922.

Nearest station Otagidera-mae bus stop (Kyoto Bus 94)
Cost ¥
Time needed 45 min
Best time Weekday mornings

Insider tip

It's closed on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Entry is ¥1,000, free for 10 and under. The temple suggests coming up by taxi (about 5 minutes and ¥1,500 from Saga-Arashiyama's north exit) or Kyoto Bus 94, then walking downhill through Saga-Toriimoto and the bamboo to Togetsukyo.

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What's on near Otagi Nenbutsu-ji

Upcoming events within a ten-minute walk of Otagi Nenbutsu-ji, from the weekly Kyoto events calendar.

Festival

Sento Kuyo Candle Service at Adashino Nenbutsu-ji

千灯供養（化野念仏寺）

28 to 29 Aug (dates to be confirmed) Adashino Nenbutsu-ji, Arashiyama

Time 17:30 to 21:00 (last entry 20:30), sutras from 18:00 Station Saga-Arashiyama (JR Sagano Line)

On the last weekend of August, candles are lit at dusk among the temple's stone Buddhas and stupas, which local people gathered from the old Adashino burial ground in the Meiji era, for the souls nobody remembers. Sutras start at 18:00, and lanterns line the old Atago road outside on the same evenings.

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Official site
Rows of small stone Buddhas and a stone pagoda at Adashino Nenbutsu-ji in Sagano, Kyoto Zairon, CC BY 4.0

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Nearby

Ayu Chaya Hiranoya Cafe · 4 min walk Hiranoya has stood at the foot of Atago Shrine's first torii for about 400 years, dealing in sweetfish from the Hozu River and serving tea to... Adashino Nenbutsu-ji Temple · 7 min walk Adashino was a burial ground from the Heian period on, and in the middle of the Meiji era local people gathered up the stone markers scattered across... Saga-Toriimoto Preserved Street Neighbourhood · 9 min walk Saga-Toriimoto grew up as both the gateway town for pilgrims heading to Atago Shrine and a farming village, and the road still shows both. Gio-ji Temple · 12 min walk Gio-ji is a small thatched nunnery hidden in bamboo and maples, with a story straight out of The Tale of the Heike. Nison-in Temple · 15 min walk Nison-in is named for its two main images, a Shaka who sends souls off and an Amida who welcomes them, a gilded pair carved in the mid-Kamakura... Jojakko-ji Temple · 18 min walk Jojakko-ji climbs the lower slope of Mount Ogura in flights of stone steps under the maples.

Around Arashiyama

Bamboo at first light, then the maple temples under Mount Ogura

Arashiyama is on Kyoto's north-western edge, where Togetsukyo Bridge crosses the Oi River with wooded hills right behind it. You'll want the bridge, Tenryu-ji and the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, and so will everyone else. Go early. Then walk north into Sagano. Its temples line the foot of Mount Ogura, and it's quieter at the far end, which Kyoto's official tourism site calls Okusaga.

Arashiyama has 30 places on the Roam Kyoto map: 14 shrines and temples, 4 landmarks, 3 parks and gardens, 2 restaurants, 2 bathhouses, 1 cafe, 1 museum, 1 viewpoint, 1 shop and 1 neighbourhood. Read the Arashiyama guide.

Good to know

What is the address of Otagi Nenbutsu-ji?
2-5 Saga-Toriimoto Fukatani-cho, Ukyo-ku, Kyoto (in Japanese: 京都市右京区嵯峨鳥居本深谷町2-5).
What are the opening hours of Otagi Nenbutsu-ji?
Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri, Sun 9:00 to 16:00; Closed Wed, Sat.
How do I get to Otagi Nenbutsu-ji?
The nearest station is Otagidera-mae bus stop (Kyoto Bus 94). Otagi Nenbutsu-ji is in Arashiyama, Kyoto.
How much does Otagi Nenbutsu-ji cost?
Otagi Nenbutsu-ji is cheap, marked ¥ on the site's price scale.
How long do you need at Otagi Nenbutsu-ji?
Plan for 45 min.
When is the best time to visit Otagi Nenbutsu-ji?
Weekday mornings.

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