Visiting Nanzoin Temple in Fukuoka, The World’s Largest Reclining Bronze Buddha

Fukuoka Nanzoin Temple, The World’s Largest Reclining Bronze Buddha. — *Nanzoin Temple is home to the largest bronze reclining Buddha statue*

Nanzoin Temple in Sasaguri, Fukuoka is home to quite possibly the largest reclining bronze Buddha in the world.

Through my research, I have found larger bronze statues and larger reclining Buddhas sure (fun fact, the largest bronze statue is also located in Japan, the Ushiku Daibutsu statue at 120 meters tall!), but a bronze AND reclining Buddha statue? Nothing compares to the Nanzoin statue known as Nehanzo.

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The Charming Town of Sasaguri

train station at sasaguri — *The rural atmosphere starts right at the train station*

Nanzoin Temple is located 15 kilometers east of Fukoka in the quaint little town of Sasaguri. Taking a train there was really, assuming you are starting in Fukuoka city, you can hop on a train running on the Fukuhokuyutaka Line at Hakata Station, from there it’s a 20 minute ride directly to Sasaguri Station.

If you are heading straight to Nanzoin Temple, continue past Sasaguri Station and get out at
Kidonanzoin-Mae Station.

Being in the rural areas of Fukuoka, stepping foot into Sasaguri felt like a completely different vibe compared to the hustle and bustle of the city.

All the buildings are charming in design, being built in an old traditional wooden style architecture. And the town was really quiet and peaceful as well with awe-inspiring mountains and natural reserves. Although when I visited there was construction going on right at the train station but still that doesn’t take away from the peacefulness of it all.

From my research I found that Sasaguri is well known for it’s many temples and shrines, pilgrims come here to take the Sasaguri 88 temple pilgrimage route, that’s right, a route spanning 50 kilometers in length and 88 temples, the whole pilgrimage is said to take about 7 days to complete.

88 temples and 50 kilometers… I don’t about you, but I’m not a huge temple guy, so I commend those that could accomplish this.

The History of Nanzoin Temple

A little bit of history to wet your exploratory appettites, the Nanzoin temple was originally located on Mount Koya but was moved to Sasaguri in 1899. This was due to the threats of destruction by anto-Buddhism authorities.

A fun little story: Nanzoin Temple is believed to bring good luck and wealth, this is because a chief priest in the region won the lottery after laying his ticket down next to the Daikokuten deity, others have claimed that the same thing happened to them, and thus the belief was born.

Today millions of tourists visit the Nanzoin Temple every year and out of the countless temples, it is by far the most popular one in Sasaguri.

Trekking the Lower Levels of the Temple

Alright enough with the boring history lesson time to get to the meat and bones of the temple experience.

If you are looking for an all in one package, exploring just Nanzoin Temple but all the highlights in and around the City of Fukuoka as well, this Fukuoka Full-Day Private Tour is incredible, included is a government licensed guide, and a custom itinerary in which you can pick where you want to go.

Before I start I want to tell you that I got lost within the temple.

It might just be because I was dumb or the signs were all in Japanese but I spent a good while exploring the lower levels of the temple thinking that it would lead me to the main reclining bronze buddha, I seriously thought I was at the wrong temple and was about to leave until I asked a kind old man about the whereabouts of the bronze Buddha.

It took a little bit of back and forth, but I learnt that there is a SECOND level slightly hidden away behind a large building.

Anyways let’s get exploring!

turtles staring at torii — *They are just standing there, staring at the Torii gate, very eerie…*

Right at the entrance I spotted a little pond with a little Torii gate, these gates mark the entrances of the Shinto shrines.

But what’s odd was that there were half a dozen turtles all looking directly a the Torii gate. These aren’t fake turtles either, they’re real (I double checked). It was a completely bizarre sight and quite frankly a little supernatural and eerie.

giant stone statue of maneki neko — *Never in my life I’d thought I see a giant statue of the Maneki Neko*

Deeper into the temple I discovered this Maneki Neko, a cat statue believed to bring goodluck to the owner, typically these come in smaller figurine sizes but seeing this human-sized stone statue for the first time was really awesome.

I feel like the bigger the Maneki Neko is, the more good luck it will bring.

statue of buddha monks — *I’d imagine walking through here at night would be pretty terrifying*

There is one area populated by statues of various depictions wearing red robes, I’m not quite sure what these are to be honest, my guess is that these are likely depictions of monks or past pilgrims.

Nanzoin Temple is full of chapels and shrines with many twists and turns, so it is understandable if you get lost here like I did.

500 statues of buddha disciples — *Imagine all the time it must’ve taken to individually craft these statues*

What I find more impressive is this army of statues of what I also assume are monks or followers of Buddhism.

Thee are dotted all along the rockface of the temple and I’m not good at counting but I’d say there’s at least 500 of them. All with unique faces and caricatures.

The amount of time and attention to detail someone spent carving these is insane.

I am unsure as to what the purposes of these statues are, It could be an urn to store the ashes of a deceased person. If you know what these are then please let me know in the comments below.

shrine hidden in a cave — *Not sure what this is for, but it’s a cool shrine*

Somewhere inside the temple complex is a little dark tunnel and at the end of the tunnel is a shrine. Again I am unsure as to what this shrine means or what is its purpose.

I did notice that there is a depiction of a rabbit stuck above the shrine.

giant statue of fudo myo-o — *I can assure you that the Fudo Myo-o may look menacing but he is actually a pretty cool guy*

Now this is something that I know, an epic statue of Fudo Myo-o, one of the 5 deities protecting the laws of Buddhism. Fudo Myo-o is known as the God of fire, despite his menacing and formidable appearance, he is actually a defender of the faith who guides you past temptation towards the path of enlightenment.

Typically his statues and depictions are located deep within mountain ranges or near waterfalls, when I read this I thought it was kind of cool to see him here at Nanzoin, tucked in between towering rock formations.

The Majestic Bronze Reclining Buddha

We finally arrive to the second level of the temple where the bronze reclining Buddha can be seen. The journey requires a bit of a trek but nothing too major.

There are 3 poses for the Buddha to note:

Standing - Common everywhere
Sitting - Commonly seen in Japan, showcases meditation
Reclining - Common in South East Asia, representing the point of the Buddha’s death and ascension to Nirvana

the giant bronze reclining buddha nehanzo — *The spectacle is much grander in person, a photo does not do it justice*

The Nehanzo is one of the larges bronze statues in the world and the largest bronze statue of the reclining Buddha in the world. It’s approximate measurements are 41 meters in length, 11 meters high, and the weight comes in at about 300 tons!

designs on the feet of the giant reclining bronze buddha nehanzo — *Some elaborate gold drawings are stuck on the feet, do you know what it means? I don’t*

A little story behind the statue of the Nehanzo, The people of Nanzoin temple have been sending medical supplies and aid to the children of Myanmar and Nepal for years.

To showcase their gratitude, the Buddhist Congress of Myanmar presented Nanzoin Temple with the ashes of the Gautama Buddha, where the ashes kept within the statue.

Rules on Visiting Nanzoin Temple

There are quite a few rules when visiting the Nanzoin Temple, it is strictly a sacred place of worship, not a tourist attraction. Therefore you’ll have to follow some rules to maintain the peace:

No eating or drinking while walking around, there is an ice cream and coffee stall next to the Nehanzo but you are required to sit down at the seating area or stand still while eating.
No smoking or alcohol.
Talking or making loud noises disturbing others.
Use of selfie sticks, stabilizers, or similar items,
Exposure of tattoos
Wearing indecent or revealing apparel, fabric coverings are available for purchase nearby the entrance.

Details about Nanzoin Temple, Fukuoka

Nanzoin Temple is a beautiful place to visit and explore, full of shrines, and statues, you are sure to be awe-struck by the atmosphere, history, and spectacle.

Entrance to the temple is free.

How to get to Nanzoin Temple

If you have a JR Pass, you’ll be able to book a seat free of charge. If not then expect to pay quite a bit of money for the journey, you can purchase a JR Kyushu Rail Pass here which encompasses the entire Kyushu Island, including Fukuoka and neighboring towns like Yufuin.

Assuming you are starting at Hakata Station in Fukuoka city, you will need to take the train to Kido Nanzoin-Mae Station on the Fukuhokuyutaka Line. The journey will take about 25 minutes

From Kido Nanzoin-Mae Station, Nanzoin Temple is just a 3 minute walk, walk past the bridge and turn right, you'll see a sign pointing directly into the temple.

Location: 1035 Sasaguri, Kasuya District, Fukuoka 811-2405, Japan

Opening Hours: +81 92 947 7195

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