In 741, Emperor Shomu issued a decree that a temple should be established in each of the more than 60 regions throughout Japan to pray for peace in the country through Buddhism. The Buddhist temples were called Kokubunji. Most of the Kokubunji temples have been lost or succeeded by other temples. Hida Kokubunji is one of the rare cases where the Kokubunji still exists in its original location. The original buildings have all been lost, but the current main temple building (hondo) which according to the temple’s website was built in the 15th century by the latest, remains to this day, and has been designated as an important national cultural property. Beside the hondo is a magnificent ginko tree estimated to be at least 1250 years old, meaning it must have been here from when the original Kokubunji was built. Originally, seven-story pagodas were built at all Kokubunji temples, which have all been lost. Hida Kokubunji has a 22 meters high three-story pagoda built in 1821, the tallest in the Hida region. The temple is located halfway from the JR Station to the popular merchant district and you may not notice it unless you look for it. In our case, this was the first place the local guide took us to. It was certainly well worth the visit.

Quiet temple near Takayama station which you could easily cover this spot in 10mins. Tori gate, temple, a huge tree and a pagoda, that's it. It's a good place to take a break too. Do note the opening hours 9am to 4pm as we thought it is 24 hours accessible but the entrance is to the compound was shut when we try to visit late in the evening.

When walking around town this is a must visit temple, it is a typical temple complex on a small site. The pagoda is beautiful, the 1200 year old tree is impressive. There is some nice shade at the complex for a small rest. I like to make pictures with no people in the picture, the complex is really quiet and i made some nice images without tourists or locals.