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Famous Nara temple to open main hall to public for first time

Toshodai-ji Temple here will open its main hall to the public for the first time to commemorate the first anniversary of the completion of its renovation work.

Buddhist statues are pictured in the main hall of Toshodai-ji Temple in Nara. (Mainichi) The historical hall will be open to the public only on Nov. 3. It will be the first time for the temple to allow visitors to enter its main hall -- which has been designated as a national treasure -- since it was established in the 8th century, a temple official said.

Repairs started in 2000 and it took almost 10 years to finally complete the work last year. All of the nine Buddha statues placed inside the hall have also been named national treasures. Visitors usually see them from outside the hall, and Buddhist monks do not enter the building either unless they need to do so for their duty.

"We've decided to open the hall to the public to express our gratitude to all of those who were involved in the renovation work. I hope visitors will enjoy looking at the beautifully renovated building and the meticulous designs of the Buddhist statues," said chief priest Kyoon Horiki.

The main hall will be open from 8:30 a.m. through 4:30 p.m. Admission will be the same as the normal entrance fee of 600 yen for adults, 400 yen for high school and junior high school students and 200 yen for elementary school students.

Source: The Mainichi Daily News [October 20, 2010]