What is an Amidado hall?

An Amidado is a Buddhist hall dedicated to Amida Nyorai, the Buddha of the Western Pure Land. It is most common at Pure Land temples, where believers chant Amida's name hoping to be reborn in his paradise.

What is the difference between an Amidado and a temple's main hall?

An Amidado specifically enshrines Amida Nyorai, whereas a temple's main hall may be dedicated to a different central Buddha such as Shaka or Yakushi. At some temples the two stand as separate buildings side by side, so it helps to check which figure each hall enshrines.

What is a famous example of an Amidado?

The Phoenix Hall at Byodoin in Uji, near Kyoto, is one of Japan's most celebrated Amida halls, built to enshrine a seated statue of Amida Nyorai. The hall also appears on the Japanese ten yen coin.

Amidado

Architecture

阿弥陀堂・ Reading: あみだどう

Amidado — Wiiii at Japanese WikipediaWikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 3.0

Definition

A hall dedicated to Amida Nyorai, the Buddha of the Western Pure Land. It is central to Pure Land Buddhism, where believers chant Amida's name hoping for rebirth in his paradise.

What it is

An Amidado is a hall built to enshrine Amida Nyorai, the Buddha who presides over the Western Pure Land. Its purpose is devotional rather than decorative: the space is arranged so that worshippers can face the image, chant the nembutsu (the phrase "Namu Amida Butsu"), and express their hope of being reborn in Amida's paradise. Amidado belong above all to the Pure Land schools, though many older temples of other traditions keep one as well.

What to look for

The focus is the central Amida figure, often seated or standing with a hand gesture of welcome, sometimes flanked by the bodhisattvas Kannon and Seishi as a trio. Look also at the ceiling, canopy and gilding, which are meant to suggest the splendour of the Pure Land itself.

How it differs

A hall's name follows its main image, so an Amidado is defined by its Amida, just as a Yakushido honours the Medicine Buddha and a Kannondo honours Kannon. Where a temple has several halls, the Amidado may sit apart from the principal Hondo, and some famous examples, built to face a pond or garden, were designed to be reflected in water like a vision of paradise.

Common questions

What is an Amidado hall?: An Amidado is a Buddhist hall dedicated to Amida Nyorai, the Buddha of the Western Pure Land. It is most common at Pure Land temples, where believers chant Amida's name hoping to be reborn in his paradise.
What is the difference between an Amidado and a temple's main hall?: An Amidado specifically enshrines Amida Nyorai, whereas a temple's main hall may be dedicated to a different central Buddha such as Shaka or Yakushi. At some temples the two stand as separate buildings side by side, so it helps to check which figure each hall enshrines.
What is a famous example of an Amidado?: The Phoenix Hall at Byodoin in Uji, near Kyoto, is one of Japan's most celebrated Amida halls, built to enshrine a seated statue of Amida Nyorai. The hall also appears on the Japanese ten yen coin.