Station #44: The road leads our eyes to the gates of a temple that houses a famous sculpture. According to legend, the revered priest Kobo Daishi (774-835) carved a statue of Buddha Yakushi (Medicine Buddha) from natural rock and dedicated it to the temple. Pilgrims believed that it was particularly powerful as a guardian against misfortune. Ishiyakushi station is named for this stone statue worshipped in Seifukuji Temple (ishi is the Japanese word for stone). Yakushi is the Buddha who is believed to heal the physical and spiritual illness of mankind.

Image Copyright: Minneapolis Institute of Art