Japanese Shrines in Hawaii

SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE
March 18, 2011

The 12-foot-tall Amida Buddha at the Lahaina Jodo Mission
is said to be the largest of its kind outside of Japan.

HAWAII -- While Japanese-built temples and shrines can be found on all of Hawaii's major islands, several serene locations have become popular places for quiet reflection — and photo ops. The most famous may be the Byodo-In in the Valley of the Temples Memorial Park, a tranquil enclave at the foot of the Ko'olau Mountains on Oahu's Windward Side. Used as a stand-in for a Korean setting on "Lost," the nondenominational Buddhist temple, built without nails, is a scale replica of a 950-year-old shrine in Uji, Japan. It opened in 1968 to commemorate the centennial of Japanese immigration to Hawaii (although those first 148 laborers were later deported, the legal barriers had dropped by the 1880s.) [link]