Tsukiji Hongan-ji Temple
Concrete Buddhist hall built like an ancient Indian temple, with stained glass, chairs, and a two-thousand-pipe organ.
Location
About this audio guide
This guide to Tsukiji Hongan-ji Temple in Tokyo opens with the funeral of X Japan guitarist Hide in May 1998, when tens of thousands of grieving fans packed the street outside. From there it turns to why the temple looks nothing like a Japanese hall at all, tracing architect Ito Chuta's 1934 concrete rebuild after the 1923 earthquake fire and his choice to model it on ancient temples he had studied across India and Asia. Step inside and look up at the stained glass glowing above the entrance.
This audio guide was created using AI.
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