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Ninnaji with its wide open grounds, picturesque gardens and variety of buildings is one of the most fascinating temples in city of temples Kyoto. It was included in UNESCO’s world heritage lists in 1994. The temple complex includes many elegant palace style mansions. A five storied pagoda, temple halls, an imposing entrance gate, a bell tower, tea houses and acres and acres of beautiful sprawling gardens are all part of its enormous complex. Ninnaji is particularly famous for a rare type of locally cultivated cherry tree called the Omuro Cherry. This tree blooms late during the hanami season and the sight of the temple complex at the background of the cherry trees in full bloom is a truly glorious sight. Founded in 888 as an imperial residence, not much of the ancient structures have survived the repeated ravages of war and fire. The oldest surviving buildings dating back to the 17th century are in the northern part of the temple compound. Other sites that are popular with the tourists are the Edo period garden and the tall impressive gates that you can see from miles away. Ninnaji is the headquarters of the Omuro School of the Buddhist Shingon. The temple is a sacred pilgrimage spot for the Shingon sect of Buddhism. A pilgrimage to this particular temple is said to be as holy as the two month circular trip around Shikoku though walking around this temple takes a much more feasible two hours. Ninnaji temple is situated in northwest Kyoto (not far from Ryoan-ji), was founded in 888 by the retired Emperor Uda, who, in keeping with fathers dying wishes, converted the former palace grounds to a temple of the Shingon sect of Buddhism. The retired Emperor spent the remaining 30 years of his life here as the temple's abbot. Thus grew the tradition of sending the reigning Emperor’s son to the temple to take over as head priest in the event of a vacancy. Thus from 888 to 1869 (until the practice stopped) the temple flourished under this special kind of imperial attention and patronage.
The buildings of Uda's era have long been destroyed by some of the many fires that ravaged the site. The Omuro-gosho, a palace-like structure at the southwest corner of the temple is said to be the site of the original temple. Time passed and slowly the temple evolved into a shinden-style estate where the head priest lived in surroundings reminiscent of the Heian-era mansions of the 11th century. It was carefully renovated in the early 20th century with a lot of attention being paid to keep the “olden days” feeling alive. How to get there: Ninnaji is a 5-10 minute walk west of Ryoan-ji and is just a hop skip and a jump from Omuro Station on the Keifuku Kitano Line, a small, tram like train, which connects Arashiyama with the Kitano district.
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