Niōmon Gate — Local services in Tokyo

Oeshiki, the festival commemorating the anniversary of Buddhist saint Nichiren's death, is the annual highlight at the majestic Ikegami Honmonji, the place where this holy honcho is said to have drawn his last breath, and attracts around 300,000 people each year. With origins reaching back more than 700 years, this one's got both tradition and spectacle, especially in the form of Wednesday evening's mando procession that sees around 3,000 participants carry elaborate lanterns along the two-kilometre route from Ikegami Station to the temple (from 6pm). The festivities go on...

The gate, and the overall temple grounds, were modern (in that all but 2 of the major structures were rebuilt after the war), but one building and the pagoda were original and over 400 years old. The pagoda itself has an interesting history in that it survived major earthquakes owing to a large vertical bar inside the pagoda that is free to swing and purportedly helps to stabilizer the pagoda during an earthquake. Also, this is one of the temples at which you can drive your car to one of the side buildings to...

仁王門 Niomon [Two Guardians Gate] of the Ikegami Honmonji Temple. The precincts are surrounded by long staircases to the sacred heights. Near the rear corner of the gate (North East) is a charming statue of a...