The Kamakura Buddha (Daibutsu) at Kotoku-in

The statue, known in Japanese as the Kamakura Daibutsu, is the principal image of the temple Kotoku-in. It is a colossal image of Amida Buddha, and the temple itself calls it a National Treasure, some 11.3 meters tall and around 121 tons in weight.¹ What sets it apart from most of Japan's big Buddha statues is where it sits: in the open air, with nothing between the figure and the sky.⁶

That open setting was not the original plan. The statue was first enshrined inside the Daibutsu-den Hall, and old records say the hall was damaged and finally destroyed by typhoons in 1334 and 1369, and then by a severe earthquake in 1498.⁷ Since then the figure has simply stood in the weather. You meet a dark, softened surface today, not a gleaming one, yet when it was built the statue was covered in gold, and traces of that gold remain on both cheeks.⁸

Construction began in 1252, according to the Azumakagami, a chronicle of the Kamakura shogunate, and the priest Joko is believed to have gathered donations to pay for it.⁹ The temple is candid that much about the building of the statue is unclear, and the artist has not been identified.⁹ Its style shows the influence of the Kei School of sculptors and of Song Dynasty China, and it counts as a typical example of Kamakura period Buddhist sculpture.¹⁰

The simplest public route is the Enoshima Electric Railway, known as the Enoden. From Kamakura Station, take the line toward Fujisawa and get off at Hase Station, the third stop, about seven minutes away.⁴ The temple is then a seven-minute walk from the station.⁴ The little tram-like carriages are part of the outing, and the line also runs on to the coast toward Fujisawa.

The bus is the other option. From the East Exit of Kamakura Station, the Enoshima-dentetsu bus from stop 1 or the Keikyu bus from stop 6 runs to the stop named Daibutsu-mae, in about 10 minutes.²⁰ If you arrive by car, note that there is no parking at the temple itself, so drivers use public lots nearby.²¹

From Tokyo, the Great Buddha is one stop on a long day rather than a destination of its own. Our Kamakura and Enoshima day trip runs for 9 to 9.5 hours and takes in Tsurugaoka Hachimangu and Komachi Street before Hase-dera, Kotoku-in and Enoshima. Check the closing time for your month in the next section before you plan the order of your day.

Before you see the statue you pass the Nio-mon gate. It was moved together with its pair of Nio guardian images from another location and rebuilt at the beginning of the 18th century.¹¹ It frames the first view well, and it is worth a pause, as from the gate the figure is seen in full, seated on its platform, with the temple trees closing in on both sides.

On the grounds, look along the corridor to the right as you face the statue. A pair of straw sandals 1.8 meters long and 0.9 meters wide, weighing 45 kilograms, rests on the wall.²⁷ Children from Hitachi-Ota first wove a pair in 1951 and have given a new pair every three years since 1956, with the wish that the Buddha would walk around Japan bringing happiness to the people.²⁷

You will also find the Kangetsu-do, a hall believed to have been part of the imperial palace in mid-15th century Hanyang, the present Seoul, and moved to Kotoku-in in 1924.²⁸ The office issues commemorative goshuin seals: handwritten ones from 9:00 to 15:00 and printed ones from 8:00 to 16:30.²³ The temple shop is open from 8:30 to 16:45 year-round, which makes it the last stop if time is short.²³