Turn the Page on 1400 Years of History

Knowing the backstory can greatly transform your understanding of a place. Take for example the origin of Sensoji Temple.

Around 1400 years ago, during the period of Emperor Suiko Asakusa, this area was just a small village on the banks of the Sumida river. In this village two brothers named Higashima Himawase and Takenari lived as fisherman.

One day, on their usual fishing expeditions near the Sumida river, a mysterious object was caught in their fishing net. The object looked to be in the shape of a human. The brothers brought it home to show the village chief Hajino Nakamoto. The village chief happened to be an intellectual and religious person, and when he stared at the object he exclaimed, “Isn’t this the Kannon Buddha?” On the spot he then placed his hands together and started to pray. Eventually he left his house and decided to build a temple in commemoration of this event.

This is the story behind the genesis of Sensoji Temple. When you take a trip to Asakusa you can think of it as a journey to meet that Buddha which was discovered some 1400 years ago.

Unlike some other famous shrines or temples Asakusa was not established by a great or powerful priest. It is a temple with working class origins that happens to be located in a working class town.

If you know this fact, the way you walk around Asakusa will change. The various actors are the points that come together to create the line which is Sensouji temple. The context creates a path, and when you walk it you start to understand how history has left a mark on the present. We want you to experience Asakusa like you are turning the pages of a story.

So let us turn the pages of Asakusa temple.