Jiko Temple

Jiko-ji Temple is one of the stops on the Onomichi Seven Buddha Pilgrimage and is the closest temple to JR Onomichi Station. It was founded during the Jowa era (834–848) by Jikaku Daishi as a Tendai Buddhist temple, but it later converted to the Jodo sect in 1382. A huge stone gate, perfectly suited to Onomichi’s reputation as a "city of stone," is a famous power spot. The gate is made of 36 granite slabs cut from Mount Nichirin, and it is said that passing through it will extend your lifespan. The popular "Nigiri-botoke" experience (an additional fee required), where you shape a small Buddha figure by squeezing clay in your hands, is also available. The temple houses many treasured artifacts, and a replica of the National Treasure Buddhist painting "Fugen Enmei-zo" (Polychrome on Silk) from the Heian period is on display. The principal image, the Goko Shii Amida Nyorai, can be seen even from within the temple grounds, and its gentle face is sure to be soothing. "Goko" refers to an unimaginably long cosmic span of time in the divine and Buddhist world, expressed through the statue’s elongated hair to symbolize the time Amida Buddha spent contemplating how to save people. Known as a "hydrangea temple," Jiko-ji also offers seasonal flowers beyond hydrangeas, including weeping plum blossoms, white magnolias, and red plum blossoms.