Temples in Japan

A Buddhist temple on an artificial island that houses a monument to the fugu fish.

Only the face remains of this giant Buddha statue, which is said to be a source of luck for students.

This shrine dedicated to a legendary swordsman has become a pilgrimage site for the ill and infirmed.

This giant statue pays homage to this temple's furry residents who keep the landscape pristine.

Inside the columbarium, thousands of colorful, high-tech Buddhas guard the ashes of the dead.

A monk-run winery inside a Buddhist temple celebrates Japan's crown grape varietal.

This incredible mountainside temple is home to intriguing statues of demon-like creatures.

A temple made famous by Japanese Buddhist monks who sacrificed themselves at sea.

Rows of stone statues are dressed up to mourn children that are lost before birth.

Twelve hundred stone carvings guard this off-the-beaten-path Buddhist temple.

What's believed to be the country's first shrine is, in Shintō mythology, the annual meeting place of the gods.

The cemetery houses the remains of Jun’ichirō Tanizaki, one of Japan's most famous novelists.

A shrine contains nearly 200 statues of the Buddhist deity Jizo, dressed in bibs by parents who have lost a child.

This temple is steeped in local folklore involving a teakettle and a raccoon dog.

The legendary birthplace of the Japanese maneki-neko is dotted with hundreds of lucky beckoning cats.

Each year this Japanese temple overflows with scowling, bearded good luck talismans.