• Toshodai-ji is a buddhist temple of Ganjin in Nara City. The head temple of Risshu, one of six denominations in the south capital. Principal image is Rushana Buddha and the founder is Ganjin. The temple where monk Ganjin, coming from China in Tang Dynasty, spent later years, and a lot of cultural assets including the auditorium and the lecture hall of the Nara era construction are possessed. Created in 759.

• Ganjin was invited to Japan as spiritual guide "Master of the information admonition" that gave commandments by the Buddhism person. "Commandments" mean "Standard" and "Regulations", and they should be kept by Buddhism people being kept at daily life. There are two kinds of commandments, one "Buddhist saint admonition" for initial Buddhist and the other "Fulfillment admonition" for the formal monk. It was necessary to receive "Fulfillment admonition" from qualified monk in facilities of "Admonition platform" so that the priest may become a formal monk. And at that time in Japan (In first half of the eighth century), there was no formal admonition platform and the qualified monks that gave commandments were also insufficient. In 733, study student monks Fusho and Yoei together with Japanese envoy to Tang Dynasty China were asked by the imperial court to invite a proper spiritual guide to establish a formal admonition platform in Japan. It was in 742 that they met high priest Ganjin in Yo state (present Chiangsu province) for the first time. Though Ganjin accepted the visit to Japan, navigation at that time was at the risk of one's life. Ganjin failed to voyage to come to Japan five times in 12 years. It would be thrown to Kainan island in the Chinese south end after as many as five times failure, and he lost Yoei, who acted together with Ganjin. Ganjin experienced the hardship of losing one's sight. In 753, though it succeeded in the visit to Japan at last by the sixth passage, making a passage that violated the national ban at this time, and took advantage of the Japanese envoy to Tang Dynasty China ship of Japan. Ganjin was 66 years old already at that time. Ganjin landed on Satsuma (or Ryukyu) landed in October, 753, next year in 754 February, he landed on Nanba (Osaka) at last, and initiated the Buddhist saint admonition into the Retired emperor Shobu, Empress Komyo and Emperor Koken at the Todaiji great image of Buddha. Ganjin spent 10 years in Japan and spent half five years at Todaiji and in 759, Ganjin was given the present place of Toshodaiji Temple.

• "Shodai" of the temple name was originally used in the Chinese of the Sanskrit origin that indicated "vast" or "wide"but also meant the Buddhist temple. In a word, the origin of the name of this temple was used as "Temple for the monk Ganjin of Tang Dynasty".

Toshodaiji Temple, World Heritage.	Nandaimon or South great gate. Rebuilt in 1960.	Admonition platform-priest holds ceremony of receiving admonition.	Lecture hall of Tenpyo age.
Lecture hall (national treasure) is a building of a hall of Heijo capital. It was moved and modified. It is very precious because it is the only one palace architecture of Tenpyo age.
Buddhist saint image of Miroku in lecture hall.	Right drum tower and east hall on opposite	Right east hall and open-the-temple hall in front	Treasure storage house built of logs.

2006/01/01