Senshoji Temple

Established in 1544, the venerable Senshoji out in residential Takaishi, a quick walk from the Nankai line station of the same name, stands on the site of a former medieval castle. Part of the castle moat remains in front of the temple’s main gate, beyond which stands the main hall, rebuilt in 1990. Housed here is the temple’s principal object of worship, a statue of the Amida Buddha, along with likenesses of the priest Honen, the founder of both Senshoji and Pure Land Buddhism in Japan, and Shandao, a Chinese scholar who influenced Honen. From the main hall, a corridor leads to an adjacent room with additional statues of Amida, the oldest of which dates back to the time of the temple’s founding.