Jurinji Temple

Jurinji Temple in Kyoto's western foothills has been a place to pray for safe childbirth since Emperor Montoku founded it in 850. The Heian-era poet Ariwara no Narihira, one of the Six Immortal Poets, spent his later years here, and a small stone pagoda on the hillside behind the temple marks his supposed grave. The garden contains a 200-year-old weeping cherry tree that blooms in early spring, and a stone salt-making kiln replicating one Narihira used: aristocrats would boil seawater and enjoy the smoke, a pastime called shioyaki re-enacted each November 23rd.