What is Kiyomizu-dera?

Kiyomizu-dera is a Buddhist temple on the slope of Mount Otowa in Kyoto, traditionally founded in 778. It is known for its wooden stage built without a single nail, the waterfall at its base, and the statue of the eleven-faced thousand-armed Kannon, which is unveiled only once every 33 years.

What does the name Kiyomizu-dera mean?

清水寺 literally means "temple of pure water": 清水 (kiyomizu) is "pure water," after the waterfall at the foot of the mountain, and 寺 (tera, here dera) is "Buddhist temple." The name links the building to the spring that, according to legend, led the first hermit monk here in 778.

What does "to jump off the stage of Kiyomizu" mean?

The proverb 清水の舞台から飛び降りる means to take a desperate, irrevocable step—like the English "to burn one's bridges," but through the image of jumping from the temple's high stage. According to the temple chronicle, between 1694 and 1864, 234 people jumped from the stage, and the custom was stopped by a ban only in 1872.

Which stream of the Otowa Waterfall should you drink from?

The Otowa Waterfall has three separate streams, and according to folk belief they bring different things: one longevity, another success in studies, the third luck in love. You are supposed to choose one: drinking from all three at once is considered shameful greed, though the temple itself sets no formal rule on this.

How is Kiyomizu-dera written in Japanese?

清水寺, in kana きよみずでら. 清水 (kiyomizu) means "pure water," and 寺 (tera) means "temple": the consonant becomes voiced to dera when attached to the second part of the name. The same characters 清水 are used to write the common Japanese surname Shimizu, but it is read differently—しみず.

Kiyomizu-dera: the "Pure Water" Temple in Kyoto and the Leap from the Stage

Kiyomizu-dera is a Buddhist temple on the slope of Mount Otowa in Kyoto, traditionally founded in 778. It takes its name, "Pure Water Temple," from the waterfall at its base, and is most famous for its wooden stage built without a single nail, from which people once jumped to make a wish. The stage is so well known that it gave rise to the proverb "to jump off the stage of Kiyomizu"—about a decisive, irrevocable act.

The same Mount Otowa gave Kiyomizu-dera its name, its waterfall, and its famous stage on stilts, whose leap became a proverb for every occasion. Let's look at where the legend of the temple's founding in 778 came from, why the "kanji of the year" is tied to this very place, and why the second character in the name is "dera" rather than the usual "tera."

Kiyomizu-dera: a temple above a waterfall on the slope of Otowa

Kiyomizu-dera (清水寺) stands on the slope of Mount Otowa in the eastern part of Kyoto. According to legend, in 778 the monk Kenshin, who later took the name Enchin, found a pure spring here and settled nearby. The military commander Sakanoue no Tamuramaro, impressed by his asceticism, later helped build a proper temple hall on this site. Today it is the head temple of the Kitahosso school. The main object of worship is an eleven-faced thousand-armed Kannon, hidden from public view. It is unveiled only once every 33 years: the last such showing was in 2000, and in 2008–2009 the statue was revealed again on a special occasion.

The three streams of the Otowa Waterfall

At the foot of the main hall flows the Otowa Waterfall, which, according to one theory, gave the temple its name: 清水 literally means "pure water." Its flow is divided into three separate streams, and visitors have long scooped water with a special ladle on a long handle. According to a popular belief, one stream brings longevity, another success in studies, and the third luck in love; drinking from all three at once is considered shameful greed—this is a folk interpretation, not a rule of the temple itself.

"To jump off the stage of Kiyomizu": the proverb and real jumps

The building standing today is a reconstruction from 1633: the previous temple burned down in a fire in 1629, and the new one was rebuilt with funds from the shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu. The main hall rests on dozens of tall stilts on the mountainside, and the famous wooden stage hangs high above the steep slope. There are no nails in the structure at all: the stilts and beams are joined with mortise-and-tenon joints. Such a stilted structure over a cliff is called kake-zukuri, "suspended construction," and is associated with the Kannon Sutra, where the bodhisattva appears on Mount Fudaraku.

The proverb "to jump off the stage of Kiyomizu"

The proverb 清水の舞台から飛び降りる, literally "to jump down from the stage of Kiyomizu," means to take a desperate, irrevocable step—like the English "to burn one's bridges," but through the image of jumping from a great height. According to the temple chronicle Jojuin Nikki, from 1694 to 1864, 234 people jumped from the stage: it was believed that surviving the jump would grant one's wish. Most survived thanks to the shrub-covered slope below, but there were also fatalities. The custom was stopped by an official ban in 1872.

Why the "kanji of the year" is announced right here

Since 1995, Japan has chosen a "kanji of the year" (今年の漢字) annually. The Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation collects suggestions from people across the country, and on December 12, "Kanji Day," the abbot of Kiyomizu-dera writes the chosen character in ink on a large sheet of paper before the public. The location was chosen deliberately: the organizers conceived the project "with the determination to jump off the stage of Kiyomizu," and the association itself is located in Kyoto.

清水寺: why "tera" becomes "dera"

清 — значение: pure, clear — онъёми: セイ、ショウ、シン — кунъёми: きよ.い、きよ.まる、きよ.める — 11 штрих(ов). 清 — "pure, clear": the first character in 清水, "pure water," which gave its name to both the waterfall and the temple.

清水 is read きよみず (Kiyomizu)—both characters in kun reading: 清 "pure" and 水 "water." The same two characters also have a separate on reading せいすい (seisui)—a literary word meaning "pure, clear water," unrelated to the temple's name. And the very common Japanese surname Shimizu is written with the same characters 清水, but read differently—しみず.

Why "tera" becomes "dera"

The character 寺 on its own is read tera—"Buddhist temple." In the name 清水寺 it attaches to the word 清水 (kiyomizu) and becomes voiced: tera becomes dera. This is rendaku, a common phenomenon in Japanese where a voiceless consonant at the beginning of the second part of a compound becomes voiced.

Japanese	Reading	Translation
清水寺	Kiyomizu-dera · Kiyomizu-dera	Temple name
清水	kiyomizu · kiyomizu	Pure water
清い	kiyoi · kiyoi	Pure, unclouded
舞台	butai · butai	Stage, platform
音羽の滝	Otowa no taki · Otowa no taki	Otowa Waterfall
今年の漢字	kotoshi no kanji · kotoshi no kanji	"Kanji of the year"

Write 清 along the guides—the character of "purity" that gave its name to the waterfall and Kiyomizu-dera.

A temple, not a shrine, and jumps not for death

"Kiyomizu-dera is a Shinto shrine." No, it is a Buddhist temple: the word "dera" in the name is precisely the indicator. Nearby on the grounds stands a separate Shinto shrine, Jishu—it was once part of the temple, but after the separation of Shinto and Buddhism in the Meiji era, it became independent.
"People jumped from the stage to end their lives." No: they jumped to have a wish granted, and most jumpers survived—the slope below the stage was overgrown with trees and shrubs.
"The water of the Otowa Waterfall heals diseases." The three streams are associated with longevity, studies, and love in folk beliefs, but these are precisely beliefs, not a healing property of the water declared by the temple.
"The temple was founded by the warlord Sakanoue no Tamuramaro alone." The first to settle here was the monk Kenshin, who founded a hermitage by the spring as early as 778; Tamuramaro appeared later and became a patron, with whose funds the first proper temple hall was built.

FAQ

What is Kiyomizu-dera?: Kiyomizu-dera is a Buddhist temple on the slope of Mount Otowa in Kyoto, traditionally founded in 778. It is known for its wooden stage built without a single nail, the waterfall at its base, and the statue of the eleven-faced thousand-armed Kannon, which is unveiled only once every 33 years.
What does the name Kiyomizu-dera mean?: 清水寺 literally means "temple of pure water": 清水 (kiyomizu) is "pure water," after the waterfall at the foot of the mountain, and 寺 (tera, here dera) is "Buddhist temple." The name links the building to the spring that, according to legend, led the first hermit monk here in 778.
What does "to jump off the stage of Kiyomizu" mean?: The proverb 清水の舞台から飛び降りる means to take a desperate, irrevocable step—like the English "to burn one's bridges," but through the image of jumping from the temple's high stage. According to the temple chronicle, between 1694 and 1864, 234 people jumped from the stage, and the custom was stopped by a ban only in 1872.
Which stream of the Otowa Waterfall should you drink from?: The Otowa Waterfall has three separate streams, and according to folk belief they bring different things: one longevity, another success in studies, the third luck in love. You are supposed to choose one: drinking from all three at once is considered shameful greed, though the temple itself sets no formal rule on this.
Why is the kanji of the year written at Kiyomizu-dera?: Since 1995, the "kanji of the year" has been chosen throughout Japan—the Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation collects suggestions from people across the country. On December 12, "Kanji Day," the abbot of Kiyomizu-dera writes the chosen character in ink on a large sheet of paper before the public—the location was chosen in honor of the proverb about jumping off the stage of Kiyomizu.
How is Kiyomizu-dera written in Japanese?: 清水寺, in kana きよみずでら. 清水 (kiyomizu) means "pure water," and 寺 (tera) means "temple": the consonant becomes voiced to dera when attached to the second part of the name. The same characters 清水 are used to write the common Japanese surname Shimizu, but it is read differently—しみず.

Sources

Updated: 2026-09-14