Shinnyo Sanmaya-dō

The Shinnyo Sanmaya-dō, or Hall of Contemplation on Ultimate Truth, is one of the most recently constructed places of worship within the precincts of Shimo-Daigo. It was inaugurated in 1997. The main object of worship in the hall is a statue of Parinirvana Buddha, the historical Buddha Shakamuni as the perfectly self-awakened one, entering the realm of eternal Nirvana. This teachings as well as iconography can be found across the world in a wide range of Buddhist canonical literature. The Shinnyo Sanmaya-dō succeeded the Hokke Sanmaya-dō (Hall of Contemplation of the Lotus Sutra), which was built in the 940s on decree of Emperor Suzaku (923–952, r. 930–946), but burned down in 1470 in the Ōnin Wars.