8/50.- Kyoto, Nishi Hongan-ji

In this picture you can see one of the lamps hanging at the entrance of the Nishi Hingan-ji Temple.

Buddhism arrived to Japan in the sixth century from China. The new religion has coexisted with the local religion, Shinto, since then.

In Japan there are different sects of Buddhism. The first to arrive were the Tendai Sect and the Shingon Sect in the 9th century. In the 12th century Honen founded the Pure Land Sect (Jodo Land Sect), its main theory is that anyone can be saved by believing in the Buddha Amida. In the 13th century Honen's successor, Shinran, founded the True Pure Land Sect (Jodo Shinshu), which currently has millions of followers in Japan.

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