Great West Gate
(Gokurakumon)

This structure is better known as the “Gate of Paradise,” or Gokurakumon, in keeping with the Pure Land belief that paradise lies in the west. A previous gate was destroyed by firebombs during World War II, and this gate was built in 1962 through a donation from Matsushita Kōnosuke (1894–1989), the founder of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (later renamed Panasonic).

Several parts of the gate are adorned with murals painted by Ban’ura Shōgo (1901–1982). These murals depict the following Buddhist figures and motifs: the Ten Chief Disciples of the historical Buddha, the wise bodhisattva Seishi, the compassionate bodhisattva Kannon, and Amida Buddha rising over a mountain to welcome and escort the faithful to paradise.

There are also dharma wheels (tenpōrin), symbolic representations of the Buddha’s teachings based on the wheels of war chariots used in ancient India. They also serve as a way for the faithful to come into direct contact with the gate and cleanse their minds. To turn a tenpōrin, place your palm against it and turn it clockwise.