Takada Honzan Senshu-ji Temple ~Lotus~

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Hello. I am a staff member specializing in updating Toyoko Inn Tsu Station West Exit MATCA.

This time, I will talk about the lotus flowers at Takada Honzan Senshu-ji Temple in Tsu City, Mie Prefecture.

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• Table of Contents
• What is "Takada Honzan Senshu-ji Temple"?
• How to get to Takada Honzan
• Mie Prefecture's first national treasure
• lotus
• Photo gallery
• bonus
• detail

What is "Takada Honzan Senshu-ji Temple"?

Takada Honzan Senshu-ji Temple is one of the ten sects of the Jodo Shinshu sect that inherit the teachings of Saint Shinran. It is the head temple of the Shinshu Takada sect, which has more than 600 temples nationwide. Its official name is "Shinshu Takada sect head temple Senshu-ji Temple," but it is affectionately known locally as "Takada Honzan."

Located in the center of Isshinden-cho, Tsu City, Mie Prefecture, the temple grounds are about twice the size of the Tokyo Dome. In addition to two national treasures, it is a huge temple with 11 other buildings designated as important cultural properties by the government.

Recently, it has also been talked about as a filming location for the movie "Legend & Butterfly" (released in January 2023) starring Kimura Takuya, and the movie "My Happy Marriage" (released in March 2023) starring Meguro Ren (Snow Man).

How to get to Takada Honzan

◆Car or taxi: Approximately 10 minutes from the hotel.

◆Bus: Take the bus bound for "Isshinden" or "Mie Hospital" from bus stop number 4 at the east exit of Tsu Station and get off at "Motoyama-mae".

◆Train: The nearest stations are JR Isshinden Station, Ise Tetsudo Isshinden Station, and Kintetsu Takadamotoyama Station.

Karamon Gate, an important cultural property. You can enter the temple grounds from here.

Mie Prefecture's first national treasure

Senshu-ji Temple is home to Mie Prefecture's first national treasure buildings, the Mie-do Hall and the Nyorai-do Hall.

Goei-do Hall. A wooden statue of Saint Shinran is enshrined here.

Miedo Hall during the Oshichi-ya festival. The surrounding area is bustling with food stalls and bazaars.

Nyorai-do Hall. The standing statue of Amida Nyorai (nationally designated important cultural property) is enshrined here.

lotus

Takada Honzan is also famous as the "Lotus Temple." In the summer, lotus flowers begin to bloom beautifully within the temple grounds.

In Buddhism, there is an afterlife called "Pure Land" or "Gokuraku Jodo" (Pure Land of the Pure Land). The lotus is a flower that is said to bloom in the Pure Land.

At Takada Honzan, you can enjoy over 100 lotus flowers of 35 different kinds.

Perhaps it was just bad timing to go see the lotus flowers, or perhaps I just couldn't find them, but I was only able to photograph pink and white lotus flowers, but Takada Honzan also seems to have yellow lotus flowers, white and pink mottled lotus flowers, and lotus flowers with pale green petals. Please try to find them.

Also, lotus flowers only bloom in the morning and return to buds in the afternoon, so if you're going to see lotus flowers, make sure to visit in the morning, when they're at their best.

Photo gallery

A double-flowered white lotus. The petals look like ruffles on a dress and are so beautiful (^^♪

Bumblebees also come to suck nectar from the flowers.

Sunny days are best for taking photos, but on rainy days the water droplets on the flowers and leaves sparkle and look beautiful (^^♪

There are also many lotus flowers blooming in the pond behind the teahouse (Temple Cafe "Renshinan"). There are also carp and turtles in the pond.

bonus

The path leading to the ossuary is beautiful with green leaves in early summer and red leaves in autumn, and it is one of my secret favorite places.

There is a big pond here with big carp swimming in it. When you look into the pond, they come over one after another, as if they think that humans will feed them. When you see them up close, you'll be surprised at how big they are. Please don't feed them.

detail

Name: Senshu-ji Temple, Head Temple of the Takada Sect of Shinshu

Address: 2819 Isshindencho, Tsu City, Mie Prefecture, 514-0114

Opening hours: Sanmon gate opens at 6:00 and closes at 17:00. Miedo and Nyorai-do halls open at 6:00 and close at 15:30.

・Fee: Free

・Best time to see lotus flowers: Late June to early July. Flowers only bloom in the morning.

Official website: Senjuji Temple, head temple of the Shinshu Takada school (senjuji.or.jp)