Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda: a stone pagoda on the summit of Nyoi-ga-mine
Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda (室生寺納経塔, Murōji Nōkyōtō) is a late Heian period stone pagoda of 2 storeys in Muro, Uda City, Nara Prefecture, designated an Important Cultural Property on 23 March 1961.
Uda City places it on the summit of Nyoi-ga-mine, and records the tradition that this is the peak where Kobo Daishi buried the wish-fulfilling jewel he brought back from Tang China. It stands alone, on a height separate from the slope where the halls of the temple are ranged.
The stone is a rhyolitic welded tuff. The pagoda rises from a platform of dressed stone, and the shaft and the cornice stones were cut from separate blocks. The Agency for Cultural Affairs records the structure simply as a stone two-storeyed pagoda, while Uda City suggests it originally had 3 storeys, which would mean the uppermost stage has been lost.
What is inside, and what came out from underneath
The name of Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda points at its contents. Uda City records that the body of the pagoda is hollow and holds a sutra container. Copying a sutra, sealing it in a cylinder and depositing it in a pagoda was a widespread act of merit in the late Heian period, and here that practice determined the way the monument was built.
From beneath the pagoda came amber beads, a reliquary, a Wado Kaichin coin and a Xining Yuanbao coin. The Wado Kaichin is a Japanese coin first struck in 708; the Xining Yuanbao is a coin of Northern Song China. Old domestic currency and currency carried from the continent were deposited together in the same place.
Uda City describes Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda as probably Heian in date and as a monument with almost no parallel. A stone pagoda, hollowed to take a sutra container, accompanied by buried deposits and set on a mountain summit: the combination is what makes it rare, and it is the reason for the designation.
Although listed as a building, the monument functions much like a sutra mound. Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda sits on the line between architecture and buried archaeology.
How to read Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda
The other designated structures at Muroji Temple were built to be stood in front of and looked up at. This one was not. It was placed high on a mountain rather than where people gather, and the act of depositing was itself the purpose.
The construction follows from that. Shaft and cornice were cut as separate blocks and stacked. Nothing is framed or braced as it would be in a timber pagoda; the monument stands by weight alone, and the dressed-stone platform exists to take that load evenly.
Rhyolitic welded tuff is volcanic ash that settled while still hot and fused into rock. It cuts easily and weathers reasonably well, and it is the usual material for stone monuments across the country between Nara and Mie. That Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda is made of it indicates local stone and a local undertaking.
Visiting Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda
Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda does not lie on the route visitors normally walk. As Uda City records, it stands on the summit of Nyoi-ga-mine, away from the stone stairway that runs from the Golden Hall past the Main Hall and the pagoda to the Okunoin. Anyone hoping to see it should ask the temple first, on 0745-93-2003, whether access is possible.
Since the monument itself cannot readily be inspected, the documentation does the work instead. The Agency for Cultural Affairs database carries the structural record and the designation details, and Uda City's page on nationally designated properties goes further, into the stone, the platform and the buried deposits. Read them before you arrive and the wooded ridge above the precinct stops being anonymous.
On photography, Nara Prefecture prohibits photographing Buddhist statues and asks that cameras be pointed at nothing other than buildings, plants and scenery. The rule applies throughout the precinct.
Directions to the precinct, opening hours and the admission charge are set out on the Muroji Temple page.
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Q&A
- Can I see Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda?
- It is not on the ordinary visitor route. Uda City places it on the summit of Nyoi-ga-mine, away from the stairway that links the halls. Ask the temple whether access is possible.
- What is Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda made of?
- Rhyolitic welded tuff. It is a stone pagoda of 2 storeys on a dressed-stone platform, with the shaft and cornice cut from separate blocks. Uda City suggests it originally had 3 storeys.
- Where does the name Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda come from?
- From what it holds. The body is hollow and contains a sutra container. Copying a sutra, sealing it in a cylinder and depositing it in a pagoda was a common act of merit, and the structure was built to serve it.
- What was found at Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda?
- Amber beads, a reliquary, a Wado Kaichin coin and a Xining Yuanbao coin were recovered from beneath it. The Wado Kaichin is a Japanese coin first struck in 708; the Xining Yuanbao is from Northern Song China.
- Why is Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda an Important Cultural Property?
- Uda City calls it a monument of probably Heian date with almost no parallel. A hollow stone pagoda built to hold a sutra container, with buried deposits beneath it, is a rare combination. It was designated in 1961.
Basic Information
| Name | Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda |
|---|---|
| Location | Muro, Uda City, Nara Prefecture |
| Designation | Important Cultural Property |
| Year Designated | Important Cultural Property in 1961 |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Stone pagoda of 2 storeys on a dressed-stone platform (height not published) |
| Owner | Muroji Temple |
| Public Access | On the summit of Nyoi-ga-mine, outside the ordinary visitor route |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, National Cultural Properties Database: Muroji Temple Sutra Pagoda
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/102/2766
- Uda City: Nationally Designated Cultural Properties
- https://www.city.uda.lg.jp/soshiki/41/1075.html
- Nara Prefecture: Muroji Temple Route
- https://www.pref.nara.lg.jp/masumasu/2490.html
- Nara Prefecture Official Tourism Site: Muroji Temple
- https://yamatoji.nara-kankou.or.jp/01shaji/02tera/03east_area/muroji/
Last verified: 2026.09.13
