Fodor's Expert Review Miroku-in Temple
Set on the mountainside of Philosopher's Walk is the small shrine of Shiawase no Jizo (Joyful Jizo), with an image of the Buddhist figure holding a child on his left arm and a pilgrim's staff in his right hand. Similar images of the protector of children and the guardian of travelers can be found throughout the city, often clothed by devotees in colored bibs and caps. Jizo is beloved by Kyoto's citizens—fresh bouquets of flowers are dutifully set in the shrines twice a month. The image of Dainichi Nyorai, or the Cosmic Buddha, in the building beside the Jizo shrine, is attended to by mountain priests who announce their presence by blowing a conch shell, one of which rests on a low table, and by wearing deerskin aprons, much like the deerskin draped over another low table.