Nara｜The legend of Kume Sage is in Kume Temple of Reizen Mountain. Visit the sacred site of Western Medicine Master

This is really an unpopular temple in Nara, but it has an interesting legend. In Japanese mythology, there is a person named Kume-sensei in the Yamato Heaven. He practices Taoism in the mountains and can fly in the sky. One day when he was flying, he saw a woman washing clothes by the river. He was attracted by her for a moment but lost his supernatural power and could no longer fly. From then on, he devoted himself to practicing Buddhism here. It is said that Kume Sennin was the founder of Kume Temple. Yakushi Nyorai is enshrined here and it is the seventh of the 49 sacred sites of Yakushi in the West. It is said to have been founded in the Asuka period, which is about 1,500 years ago. There is also a saying that this place was founded by Prince Shotoku's younger brother, Prince Kurome. Compared with other famous ancient temples in Nara, Kume-dera Temple is low-key and simple, but the azaleas in the garden are blooming in season. The magical thing is that I happened to meet an injured cat here. I don’t know if it was raised by the temple, but it was guarding the wooden floor in front of the temple, as if it was inspired by Medicine Buddha and was practicing in front of the temple. There is a special event here on May 3rd every year. On this day, 25 Bodhisattvas dressed in human form will appear in turn. 📍Address: 〒634-0063 502 Kumecho, Kashihara City, Nara Prefecture 🚗8 minutes walk from Kintetsu Kashihara Jingu Shrine #AprilGoodDestinations2025