ABSTRACT
City of temples though it is, Kyoto has none standing that can compare with the Tokugawa's golden palace, or with the elaborate adornment of Nikko. The Higashi Hongwanji is of all things a popular temple. It was built by offerings from all over the country, contributions of material as well as mouey, and, among the rest, great ropes of hair, from glossy black to thin, pathetic strands of gray, the gift of women who had nothing else to give. The main temple was founded in Ashikaga times—say about the middle of the fourteenth century. The architecture and decoration is full of dignity and reserve, and the apartments are unusually rich in paintings and carvings, and there is a very splendid altar in the main temple. There are Shinto temples, too, not so many as Buddhist, nor of course so magnificent, but much frequented of the common people.
