Kimii-dera

Kimii-dera (紀三井寺) is a Buddhist temple located in the city of Wakayama, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan. It is the head temple of the Kusei Kannon sect of Japanese Buddhism and its honzon is a hibutsu image of Jūichimen Kannon. The temple's full name is Kimiiyama Gokoku-in Kongōhō-ji (紀三井山 金剛寶寺 護國院).The temple is the 2nd stop on the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage route. The temple grounds are located on the western slope (approximately 50 meters above sea level) of Mount Nakusa (228.7 meters) in the southern part of the Kinokawa River estuary plain, offering a panoramic view of Wakaura Bay from the temple grounds. The temple is named after the three springs of water (Kisshō-sui, Seijō-sui, and Yōryū-sui) that spring up within the temple grounds. Each spring has a sandstone tank inscribed with the name of the water, along with the date of 1650. These tanks were built by order of Tokugawa Yorinobu, the daimyō of Wakayama Domain. In March 1985 the Ministry of the Environment selected the water as one of Japan's "100 Famous Waters." The temple grounds are also famous for cherry blossom viewing, and have been selected as one of Japan's 100 Best Cherry Blossom Viewing Spots. The sakura tree to the left of the main hall is designated as the specimen Somei-Yoshino cherry tree by the Wakayama Regional Meteorological Observatory for determining the start of spring. The temple originally belonged to the Yamashina branch of Shingon Buddhism, but in 1951 it became independent.