Higashi betsuin, big temple close to Sakae
Higashibetsuin is a temple of the Jodo Shinshu sect called the “Shinshu Otani”. This temple’s headquarter is Higashi Honganji temple in Kyoto which is well preserved and attracting many tourists. On the other hand, Higashi Betsuin in Nagoya, which was originally constructed in 1790 was destroyed by US air raid in 1944 and reconstructed in 1962. Unfortunately the reconstruction is not good, it is not made of wood and there is no historical atmosphere. Only thing which could avoid the air raids was the East gate of temple shown below picture.
Handmade Morning Market
Jodo Shinshu is the largest Buddhist sect in Japan. This Jodo Shinshu sect is divided into the Shinshu Otani-ha and the Honganji-ha. The Higashi Betsuin belongs to the Shinshu Otani-ha. Interestingly, the Nishi Betsuin, which belongs to the Honganji-ha is located closed to Higashi Betsuin. I’ve detailed the history of the split in the following article, so if you’re interested, please take a look.
The Higashi Betsuin holds a market on the 8th, 18th, and 28th of every month. It’s open to the public, regardless of religion. Most visitors are locals, but there’s no problem if people from overseas want to attend.
I visited the market in May, and there were more people than I expected. There were many food trucks lined up, offering a variety of dishes to enjoy.
In addition to food, there were also crafts and vegetables grown by local farmers for sale.
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