According to a local guidebook, Jindaiji Temple stands in Jindaijimotomachi, Chofu City, in western Tokyo, and is described as a leading tourist landmark drawing domestic and international visitors. According to a temple history guidebook, the temple traces its founding to 733 CE (Tenpyo 5), placing it among the oldest temples in the Kanto region, with a history of more than 1,300 years.
Centuries of History
According to a temple history guidebook, during the Jogan era (859–877 CE) the priest Eryo from Mount Hiei came to pray for the suppression of a local rebellion, and after the court credited the prayers with ending the conflict, it awarded the temple and seven surrounding villages to him. According to the same guidebook, the temple then became a Tendai sect institution and was revered as a leading esoteric-Buddhism training ground in eastern Japan. According to a temple history guidebook, in 1591 Tokugawa Ieyasu donated fifty koku of land revenue to the temple, steadying its finances after periods of turmoil from fires and shifting political fortunes. According to a temple history guidebook, two major fires during the Edo period destroyed much of the complex, leaving the main gate and the incense-burner pavilion (Jokoro) among the surviving structures before the grounds were gradually rebuilt over later decades.
Halls, Gate, and Sacred Images
According to a temple guidebook, the main gate (Sanmon), inscribed with the mountain name Fugakusan, was built in 1695 and is the oldest surviving structure on the grounds, its thatched hip-and-gable roof re-thatched roughly every 20 to 25 years. According to a temple guidebook, the main hall (Hondo), rebuilt in 1919, enshrines a crowned Amida Nyorai as its principal image of worship and is decorated beneath the front gable with carved phoenixes, herons, and dragons. According to a temple history guidebook, a copper seated Shakyamuni Buddha, created in the late 7th century in the late Asuka period, was discovered inside the temple in 1909 during an internal survey by archaeologists, was designated a national treasure in 2017, and is displayed behind glass in the Shakado hall. According to a temple guidebook, the temple's Ganzandaishi (Ryogen) seated statue is described as Japan's largest portrait sculpture. According to the same guidebook, it is a concealed Buddhist image rarely shown to the public, a special viewing was held in 2025 to mark a major restoration, and the next planned public viewing is scheduled for 2034. According to a temple guidebook, to mark the temple's 1,300th anniversary in 2033, a new hall named Hakuho-in is under construction to house the national treasure Shakyamuni statue, designed by the architect Kengo Kuma and planned for completion in 2027.
Legends and Fortune Slips
A young man named Fukuman is said to have loved the daughter of a local clan chief, who imprisoned her on an island in a pond. Fukuman is said to have prayed to the water deity Jinsha Daio, who sent a sacred turtle to carry him across. The son born of their union is said to have become the founding monk Manku Shonin, who established the temple. The temple's fortune slips (omikuji) are said to follow the ancient form attributed to Ganzandaishi (Ryogen) of Mount Hiei, who is credited as the originator of omikuji. This traditional form is said to retain a roughly 30 percent probability of drawing a "kyo" (bad-luck) result, higher than at many modern temples.
Soba Along the Approach
According to a local history guidebook, the Jindaiji soba tradition began in the Edo period, when tenant farmers who grew buckwheat in the area — favored for its climate and abundant spring water — made buckwheat noodles from flour offered to the temple and served them to pilgrims, and a statue of a Kannon holding buckwheat seeds stands in the precincts to mark this heritage. Guidebooks describe the approach road (sando) as bordered by numerous soba restaurants, each using different buckwheat ratios from 80/20 blends to 100 percent buckwheat, along with distinct broths or dipping sauces, so side-by-side tasting comparisons are described as a popular part of a visit. Many soba restaurants along the approach are described in guidebooks as having terrace seats. Eating soba outdoors in this green, water-rich setting is said to evoke a sense of having traveled far from central Tokyo. Guidebooks describe Jindaiji's grounds as welcoming to pets and dogs. Many soba restaurants in the area are described in guidebooks as offering dog-friendly terrace seating, which is said to make the destination popular among visitors traveling with pets.
Seasonal Traditions
According to a temple guidebook, Jindaiji hosts one of Japan's three major daruma markets, held in early spring around the Setsubun period, during which Buddhist priests perform the traditional eye-painting ceremony using Sanskrit calligraphy on purchased daruma figures. An annual new-buckwheat festival is said to be held in late November at Jindaiji, when visitors can food-hop between member restaurants of the Jindaiji Soba Association. Related events are said to include a memorial ceremony for the soba-guardian Kannon.
Springs, Gardens, and a Hot Spring Nearby
According to a local history guidebook, the Jindaiji area holds some of Chofu City's roughly 60 known natural spring locations, many of them concentrated around the temple, and the Fudo-no-taki cascade within the temple grounds is listed among Tokyo's 57 designated famous springs. Guidebooks describe Jindai Botanical Garden (Jindai Shokubutsu Koen), which holds roughly 4,800 plant species, as connected directly to the temple precincts through a gate on the north side, so visitors can extend a temple half-day with a botanical stroll. A natural hot spring bathhouse called Yumori no Sato (湯守の里) is said to lie near Jindaiji, drawing distinctive black mineral spring water from deep underground.
Getting There
Guidebooks describe the temple as reachable by Keio Bus from Chofu Station or Tsutsuji-ga-oka Station on the Keio Line, with the Jindaiji stop set immediately beside the temple entrance.
Compare options and book via our partner links.