More than a place to reflect: Find food, gifts at Tokyo’s oldest Buddhist temple

Amid the bustle of Tokyo and in one of the main districts for tourism you will find Sensoji, the oldest Buddhist temple in the city.

Originally completed in the year 645, this bright red compound in old Asakusa lies in the shadow of the Tokyo Skytree and is only a one-minute walk from Asakusa Station.

Steeped in lore, Sensoji’s story begins with two brothers fishing in the nearby Sumida River.

In 628, Hinokuma Hamanari and Hinokuma Takenari pulled from the river a statue of Kannon, the bodhisattva, or goddess, of mercy. The brothers tried to return the statue to the waters, but no matter what they did, it always found its way back to them.

Read more at: https://www.stripes.com/1.623033