Here’s some final pictures from the Daishoi-In Shrine on Miyajima island. This quirky little temple is chock a block with interesting sights.
These little Buddhas demonstrate the concept of getting through life by ignoring everything!
Within the shrine is a beautiful cave full of hundreds of lanterns. Henjokutsu Cave holds 88 principal Buddhist icons which are related to a pilgrimage route of visiting 88 temples in Shikoku.
Followers believe that they can be given the blessings in this cave instead of visiting all the temples of pilgrimage route.
In esoteric Buddhism, Dainichi Nyorai, or Cosmic Buddha, is believed to embody Buddhist philosophy, and other various Buddhist deities are incarnated in figures of Dainichi Nyorai.
There are four groups of Buddhist deities: Nyorai, Bosatsu, Myo-o, and Ten. You can find out more about them here.
Plus there’s my own personal favourites – Daruma. This is a traditional Japanese wishing doll or charmingly referred to as a “goal doll” that keeps us focused on achieving our goals!
These pop up on the wooden ema wish boards everywhere. I even took one home with me.
If you get the chance do visit Daishoi-In Shrine. It’s not as well known as other shrines on the island but well worth exploring.