Discovering Katsuo-ji, Osaka’s Hidden Gem

Japan is old school in something that I adore – free leaflets, maps, magazines available to visitors looking to explore, find hidden gems, and also, a great source for future scrapbooking. I’ll speak about the latter at another time. I had picked some of these, and on my first evening in Osaka, back at my hotel, I started to peruse one of those magazines, coming across something that I had completely missed out on during my research – Katsuo-ji.

I’m a seasoned traveller, and I pride myself on being a good trip researcher. Of course time for research can be tight, with life happening. For Japan though, bear in mind this was a trip I was planning since 2019. I was meant to visit in April 2020 – I don’t think I have to say why it didn’t happen. I also didn’t just research online – I have Japan’s Lonely Planet book, gifted, and two additional pocket ones that I had gotten in 2019.

None of them mentioned Katsuo-ji. Yet, in that random free magazine, a picture of dozens of Daruma dolls occupied two pages, a massive feature on the “Temple of Winning”, located in the hills of north Osaka. 

On that same day, I had had the realisation of being templed out, and promised myself not to put my feet in another. But Katsuo-ji was special – there are thousands of Daruma dolls everywhere, and the location, in the mountains, seemed exactly the kind of thing I would be into.

To get to Katsuo-ji though you’ve got two options – the most expensive, getting a cab, or the budget option – getting there by bus,the one I chose. And this latter option is very straight forward too – you just need to get the metro to Minoh Kayano station, and from there the bus – don’t worry, you’ll see immediately which bus it is, and Google Maps really saved my life here. The whole journey took me just over 1 hour, and the bus takes you to the temple’s doorstep, so no extra walking.

The Daruma dolls I knew about were those sold with empty/blank spots for eyes. You are meant to make a wish or think about a goal you want to achieve, paint the first eye and then, after the goal has been accomplished, you paint the second eye.

But I quickly realised things worked differently here. The figure itself has origins in Bodhidharma, the monk that has been credited with bringing Chan Buddhism (later zen) from India to China and then influencing Japan. According to legend, he meditated so intensely that his arms and legs atrophied. This is why the figures are round and limbless. 

Katsuo-ji, though, has a long reputation as the winning or victory temple. Historical figures prayed here for success in political struggles – and so the Daruma already have eyes. In fact, eyes with such force determination that they look angry. Here you can buy the “fully awakened Daruma” and the symbolism shifts from making a wish to something closer to “reflect and carry this lesson with you”. Within the Daruma doll, there is a piece of paper precisely with a lesson – not a fortune, but food for thought instead.

These are left behind in the temple grounds. Left in handrails, trees, gates, fountains, by the sidewalk, tucked in rocks…. It’s like an art installation, and a competition – who gets to place their Daruma doll in the strangest possible place. I brought it back home with me – it’s not compulsory to leave it there, and I wanted to bring it home to remind me of the lesson and the reflection that I did there.

With all of these miniature red monks watching every step, you can tell Katsuo-ji is technically a Buddhist temple. Still, it felt very shinto to me. This is common in Japan – as I mentioned a few times in my posts – there is nature all around, even some torii gates. Buddhism and Shinto have blended together nicely, and it not only looks but feels wonderful.

At the beginning as you buy your ticket, they gave me a postcard that I am meant to stamp at multiple stamp stations throughout my visit, which created a beautiful image and a lovely souvenir to bring back home.

I was back in the city for the afternoon. I spent some time doing my last shopping before flying back the next day, but also visited a couple of famous places of Osaka. 

One of such places is the neighbourhood of America-Mura. As the name says, it takes full inspiration from the United States, with roots in the post World War II, when most of Japan was flooded with American culture through occupation forces and imported goods. Clothes, music, films drawn younger people looking for a new, cooler, fresher, and perhaps more relaxed identity. Fashion was a huge part of it, specifically when it comes to American-style denim. By the 70s-80s this neighborhood was a hub for street fashion, with American brands seen as a symbol of freedom and rebellion (sadly, these days, it’s not really so).

There’s street art and also lots of vintage shops that were a treat to navigate, even if a bit intimidating. I did not feel cool enough, especially the sweaty, tired traveling version of myself… and my suitcase was too heavy already.

As the sun started to set, I headed to Shinsekai. I thought in the evening it was when it would come to life. This is probably the most retro space of Osaka, full of nostalgia… and I found it not to be a happy kind. With the Tsutenkaki Tower glowing, towering over streets bright with neon signs, I was expecting it to be very busy. It was not. In fact, it felt a little like an abandoned funfair that Osaka refuses to turn the lights off to.

I was tired. I was flying back home the next day. Shinsekai mirrored my mood. A tender nostalgia was already overcoming me. A sadness that it was over – and it was time to leave Japan. This was made stronger by the feeling that this trip had done something really specific to me – meddled with my childhood memories in a different way I hadn’t quite experienced before. It wasn’t simply the realisation of dream, another achieved destination in my bucket travel list. It was more than that, something that five months later I’m still processing, and will be very soon writing about here.

Thanks for reading,

Nic
P.S. The below are affiliate links. This means I may earn a small commission if you decide to purchase or book anything through these links. None of it is sponsored. All my recommendations are based on my lived experience.

Where I stayed in Osaka: Hotel Noum OSAKA. Book here.

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