Matsui-san took us to Sanjusangendo which means the Hall with Thirty-three Spaces. The temple houses 1001 statues of Buddha. They were made out of cypress and carved in the 12th and 13th centuries. Some have been damaged in a fire in the 13th century. The Buddha statues are arranged on something that resembles a grandstand and there are 33 spaces between the columns, thus the name. In the middle of the hall resides the main deity named the Thousand Armed Kannon and is considered a national treasure of Japan. In front of all the statues are 28 guardian deity statues. On either side are the statues of Fujin (Wind) and Raijin (Rain). Many people were lighting candles in this hall and making donations. No pictures allowed and we were furnished slippers to wear in the hall.
The hall has a special ceremony in January called the Rite of the Willow in January. When they touch your head with a willow your headache is cured. There is also a famous archery tournament that is called Toshiya (literally means “arrow that hits the target”). They shot arrows all the way down the long veranda on the side of the hall which is 120 meters in length. The event started in the 16th century when a samurai fired 51 arrows rapidly. The contest evolved to the most arrows to hit the target out of 100, then 1000, then in 12 hours, then in 24 hours. The record is 8133 targets hit out of 13,053 arrows fired in 24 hours – 9 arrows fired per minute.
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