Kiyomizudera (Pure Water Temple) is a heavyweight among Kyoto buildings and a contender for the best view in Kyoto. You may think you’ve never seen it before but the Of Rice and Zen team would like to assure you that if you’ve ever a photobook of Japan, it’s almost inevitable that you’ve seen a photo of Kiyomizu’s famous stage. You’ll probably recognise it when you get here.

So for the trivia fans it’s a Tendai Buddhist temple in Eastern Kyoto and it’s full name is Otowa-san Kiyomizu-dera. For the accolade fans the temple is part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto (Kyoto Uji and Otsu Cities) UNESCO World Heritage site. For the architecture fans, you’ll be brought to a proud twitching stand to hear that not one nail is used in the whole temple.

For the history buffs among you, take a seat before you read that the temple dates back to 798 and that the present buildings were constructed in 1633. If you’re not into numbers, nails or any of the above let use try to convey to you what a visit to the temple will feel like for the average visitor. Imagine the Kyoto of your imagination. The majestic veranda. The misty mountains in the background. The wooden buildings. The impeccable design. The carpet of trees below you. The entire city of Kyoto laid out before you, like a delicious spread of food for a hungry feudal lord.

Now imagine 5 bus-fulls of tourists and schoolchildren walking through it. That’s what Kiyomizudera is like for most visitors during the popular summer or cherry blossom seasons. If you can time your visit so that it’s neither a peak season, nor a weekend you can expect something a little more zen and with much more leeway for photography.

The main hall has a famous veranda that overlooks Kyoto. It’s constructed on pillars and juts out from the mountainside. It’s an impressive piece of design and affords a truly iconic view of Kyoto. To jump from Kiyomizu’s stage was once the Japanese equivalent of “to take the plunge” and it was believed that surviving the 13 metre fall meant one’s wish would be granted.

Although this doesn’t show a strong grasp of the concept of cause and effect, people have always gone to great and illogical lengths for the illusory sense of some control over their destinies and in the Edo Period alone 234 jumps were recorded and an impressive 85.4% of said jumpers survived. Although how they felt about their survival after the fact is unclear. The practice is now prohibited. Much to the chagrin of the Of Rice and Zen team.

Beneath the main hall is the Otowa waterfall at which point three streams converge. Drinking from the three streams is said to confer wisdown, health and longevity, which does sound appealingly like something from a Legend of Zelda game. On the other hand some say that one must choose carefully and drink from only two, because to partake of all three (aka “crossing the streams”) shows greed and presumably causes a Ghostbusters-style explosion or an Indiana Jones-style hyper-accelerated ageing incident, which is covered by very few private insurers in Japan nowadays. Expats who have not paid into the national insurance system, you have been warned.

As is typical in Japan, the complex consists of several smaller shrines, one of the most famous of which is known as Jishu Shrine and is dedicated to Okuninushi, a god of love and matchmaking. It is said if one can walk between the shrine’s two “love stones” with one’s eyes closed, one will be granted good fortune in finding a partner. If one is helped, it is said that one will require a matchmaker throughout the relationship to guarantee a smooth-sailing marriage. The Of Rice and Zen team also thinks a “marriage referee” may be quite a good idea.

The employment system in Japan still largely excludes women from elevated positions and necessitates their financial dependence on men, so it is very common to see Japanese women, and even the occasional brave foreigner, walking this existential tightrope which gives to hope in the same measure that it removes from pride.

Reaching the other stone intact is a cause for celebration for most girls, but hitting the target too literally has caused a few trips and broken noses over the years, which know doubt hampers the search for the perfect partner. Similarly, missing the destination stone by any great margin could be evidence of either an inner ear infection or having one leg significantly shorter than the other and can therefore lead to greater despondency. The “dark mile”, as we like to call it, is not for the faint of heart. You have been warned twice.

As per usual the complex also offers you plenty of opportunities to pick up good luck charms, souvenirs for the folks back home, incense, omikuji (paper fortunes) and is a hugely popular destination for foreigners and locals alike during new year and obon festivals. Readers who are not a big fan of crowds and food stalls may prefer to choose a less high profile day for their visit, but we highly recommend you find time to visit Kiyomizu-dera, no matter how packed your Kyoto itinerary is looking.

For more tips and locals’ recommendations be sure to pick up a copy of JTB publishing’s excellent book Kyoto: The Greatest Travel Tips, which is a bilingual travel book published in Japan and features more maps and tourist tips than you could shake a stick at, if you are inclined to shake sticks at those offering you the benefit of their experience.

You can pick up a copy by clicking the following link and to neglect to do so would be like entering the medusa’s lair without a mirrored shield. Or if you’re a fan of metaphor localisation, it’d be constructing a Japanese bookshelf without an English translation of the instruction booklet. Or if you’re not a fan of metaphors it’d be like visiting a rich city without a good guide book. Alternatively if you’re not a fan of simile either it would ACTUALLY be visiting a rich city without a good guide book. But one does feel inclined to ask why you’re so against the use of simile and metaphor.