Osaka｜Katsuoji Temple surrounded by Daruma, a thousand-year-old temple where shoguns from the Kamakura shogunate would come to seek victory

This ancient temple surrounded by tens of thousands of Daruma is located in Minoh City, north of Osaka. It is a temple that has been believed to be a place for "praying for victory" since ancient times. Even the most powerful generals from the Kamakura and Muromachi shogunates would come here to worship again and again. What is its charm? According to legend, in the year of Hoki, Kaisei, the brother of Emperor Kanmu who converted to Buddhism, founded Mirokuji Temple here. In order to pray, he copied 600 volumes of the Great Prajna Sutra. Since the Heian period, this has been a temple visited by royal family members and nobles. Legend has it that the abbot prayed for Emperor Seiwa and was miraculously cured, so word of mouth called it "Shooji Temple", but because it was too ostentatious, it was finally changed to Katsuoji Temple with the same pronunciation. Katsuo-ji Temple, which enshrines the 11-faced Thousand-armed Kannon, belongs to the Koyasan Shingon sect. People still come here to pray for good luck in exams, winning competitions, prosperous business, and overcoming illness. The most attractive part is the offering shed, where believers worship the Bodhidharma with their own eyes painted on, symbolizing the determination to achieve the goal, just like Bodhidharma. By the way, there is a statue of Bodhidharma with $ symbols for eyes. Go find it when you get a chance. In addition, the fortune sticks in the temple are hidden in small Daruma pottery dolls. After the believers take out the fortune sticks, the creative small Darumas are decorated on the temple's bell tower, eaves, and even hidden in tree holes. The temple is also very creative in giving a postcard when entering. You have to walk through the main hall, Taho Pagoda, Nikaido, etc. before you can get a stamp to make a Daruma postcard of Katsuo-ji Temple. 📍Address: 〒562-8508 2914-1 Aimagaya, Minoh City, Osaka Prefecture 🚗Take the Kita-Osaka Express and subway train to Minoh Kayano, and transfer to Hankyu Bus No. 29 or 30 to arrive. #AprilGoodDestinations2025