VISIT KANAZAWA, JAPAN - Official Travel Guide

Why not start your Kanazawa trip with a morning activity at a temple near the Ninja Temple? After waking up your body and mind with a practice of kendo (Japanese martial arts) using shinai (bamboo swords) in the temple grounds, enter the main hall. After awakening your body and mind with the practice of kendo (sword swinging with a bamboo sword) in the temple grounds, you will enter the main hall and listen to the Buddhist priest's talk while savoring the Japanese aroma wafting from the incense burner, then calm your mind by burning incense while the sutra chanting resounds. The morning rice porridge, which is said to have ten merits in Buddhism, will purify your body and mind and give you power.

Experience Details

7:30 Gather at Josho-ji Temple Registration

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Practice swinging with bamboo sword (20 min.)

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Sermon by the priest and burning incense at the main hall (30 min.)

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Morning porridgein the tatami room (10 min.)

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8:45 Dismissal

Kendo Practice

We will demonstrate and explain how to hold and swing a shinai (bamboo sword), so even first-timers will be fine. Everyone will practice swinging with shinai (bamboo swords) and try to hit with shinai (bamboo swords). In case of rain, the practice will be held in the Japanese-style room of the main hall.

Dharma Talk and Incense Burning Experience

Participants will learn about the history of Buddhism, which was introduced to Japan from India via China, and the meaning of "incense" in Buddhism by holding an incense burner in their hands and smelling the fragrance.

Morning porridge

Porridge is served at the end of the experience. In Buddhism, porridge is said to have ten kinds of merits, such as "improving skin color and luster," "increasing physical and mental strength," and "prolonging life.

Josho-ji Temple

Belonging to the Hokke school of Buddhism (Honmon school) and headquartered in Honnoji, Kyoto, this temple was founded in 1589 in Owari-cho, Kanazawa and moved to its current location in Teramachi in 1616. The temple's Kishimojin Hall houses a demon mask said to have emerged from the waters off Ataka Seki, and the painting on the door of the main hall is said to be by Tawaraya Sotatsu, a painter of the Edo period (not usually open to the public). The temple also houses the tomb of Fukuoka Sosuke, a feudal retainer who advocated the theory of the "Kinno" (loyal to the Emperor) at the end of the Edo period (1603-1868).