Square at Senso-ji Temple, Asakusa, Tokyo, Japan

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❖Square at Senso-ji Temple, Asakusa, Tokyo, 2013[open in full screen]

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The story says that in 628, on March 18, two men fishing in the Sumida river caught in their net a statue of Bodhisattva Kannon, the Goddess of Mercy. Realizing the importance of the statue, the head of their village made a shrine dedicated to Kannon in his own house, where he displayed the statue. After 7 years, the priest Shokai Shonin enshrined the statue in the newly built Kannon-do Hall, which later became the Senso-ji Temple from Asakusa.

An interesting fact is that, after a revelation, he decided that the statue should be hidden from people and this rule remained in place until today.

However, 150 years later, a monk named Ennin made an identical replica of the original statue, displaying it and allowing people to worship it, a decision that contributed a lot to the development of the Senso-ji Temple.

To honour him, at the 1200 anniversary of its birth, in 1994, a dedicated hall was built at the Senso-ji Temple, the Yogodo Hall where this photos were taken.

❖ Photographs by Ken Grunberg,
and Una Janicijevic
VR by urbansquares

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❖..c l a s s i f i c a t i o n ... s y s t e m..❖
more about evaluation method		more about types of squares
sociability	9	ceremonial	x
uses & activities	10	religious	x
access & linkages	9	social	x
comfort	10	residential	x
image	10	courtyard	x
tourist value	10	with park	x
total	58	street, shopping	x