Ishikawa · Kanazawa TeramachiNo.491★★★Open in map →

Myoryuji Temple

— The Kanazawa temple nicknamed Ninja-dera

historyThe classic — done right

From the street it looks like a modest two-storey temple. Inside, the floors fold into one another and the stairs and rooms interlock like a puzzle. The interior can be walked only with a guide, and only with a phone reservation made in advance.

FromKanazawa Station
~30 minCity bus from Kanazawa Station
Get off atHirokoji (Hokutetsu bus / Loop Bus anticlockwise)
On foot
Myoryuji Temple

Directions ↗

Where it is

16 more notes in Ishikawa · open the map →

What to look for — in walking order

The gate and stone markerNaokijp / CC BY-SA 4.0

The gate and stone markerthe street-front entrance and name stone, the part you can see without a booking
The offertory box trapa pit built beneath the box set into the main hall entrance
The hidden staircasea stair that appears when the floorboards of a storeroom are lifted
The light-well stairpaper screens set into the risers, so light passes through and a person's shadow shows
The rooftop lookouta watch platform at the ridge of the main hall, facing the castle and the Kaga plain

How to actually get there

Book by phone first — there is no online booking, and the temple asks the visitor to call in person.
Kanazawa Station east exit → Hirokoji (Hokutetsu city bus, or the anticlockwise Kanazawa Loop Bus).
Hirokoji → Myoryuji (walk about 2 minutes), then check in at the main hall entrance.
Look at the gate and grounds first — those need no booking — then join your tour group.

Bus from Kanazawa Station east exit: Kanazawa Station (east exit) → Hirokoji. Every bus from stands 8, 9 and 10 serves this stop, as does the anticlockwise Kanazawa Loop Bus from stand 7. The temple's own guidance allows about 30 minutes by bus, or about 15 minutes by taxi. From Hirokoji it is a two-minute walk.
Back from Hirokoji: Buses for Kanazawa Station leave from the opposite side of the same street, and the anticlockwise loop bus curves round towards Kenrokuen. The loop service finishes before 18:00, so an early-afternoon slot is easier to travel back from than a late one.

Directions from my location (Google Maps) ↗

About the place

Myoryuji stands in Teramachi, the temple district on the bluff south of the Sai River. From the street it reads as a two-storey temple; inside it is four floors arranged in seven levels, with twenty-three rooms and twenty-nine staircases. Corridors double back, a storeroom floorboard lifts to reveal a stair, and the offertory box at the main hall entrance is built over a pit. None of this is ninja folklore. It is defensive architecture, built by a domain that expected to be attacked, and the nickname was attached long afterwards.

How to enjoy it

Guided visits run from 9am to 4pm, in Japanese only, and each takes about forty minutes with no leaving partway. Phone bookings open a month ahead, and the temple asks that the visitor call in person rather than through a hotel or agent; same-day places exist but go quickly. Entry begins ten minutes before your slot and the guide starts exactly on the hour, so a late arrival forfeits the booking.

Background & history

The temple was founded in 1643 on the order of Maeda Toshitsune, third lord of the Kaga domain, who moved a prayer hall out of Kanazawa Castle. Kaga was the largest of the outside domains and was watched closely by the Tokugawa shogunate. The lords treated the Sai and Asano rivers as natural moats and ringed the castle with temple districts beyond them as an outer defensive line. Myoryuji was later moved to its present site in Teramachi and given the central part in that line, while remaining a prayer hall the lords themselves visited.

Before you go

Cash: Admission is 1,200 yen for adults and secondary-school students, 800 yen for primary-school children, taken at the main hall entrance. Cash only — cards and e-money are not accepted. Walking into the grounds costs nothing.
Good to know: Closed on 1 and 2 January and on memorial-service days. Preschool children cannot enter the building, and wheelchairs cannot be used inside because of the steps throughout. Photography and recording are not permitted indoors; the grounds are fine.
Another way: Hirokoji is also served by buses coming from Katamachi and Korinbo, so you can walk the castle side of the city first and pick up a southbound bus. The temple has no car park of its own and asks visitors to come by public transport.
After you get off: From the Hirokoji stop, walk about two minutes into the Teramachi streets. The stone name marker and the gate stand at the street front.