Seisuiji Temple

Seisuiji Temple on Sado Island shares an unusual connection with Kiyomizudera in Kyoto: the same Chinese characters spell both names, and both were founded in the early ninth century. Seisuiji actually predates Kiyomizudera. Like its more famous counterpart, the main hall here dates to 1730 and extends a wooden platform over a hillside on tall supporting pillars. A legend says the temple was founded in 808 after a monk followed a shimmer in a river to its source and encountered a heavenly child at a pine tree's roots. The approach climbs stone steps lined with cedar trees estimated at 500 years old.