In the days of Japan's 15th Emperor, the scholar Wani traveled to Japan from the ancient Korean kingdom of Kudara, eventually settling permanently in Japan. His descendants continued to work to advance Japan's culture, and this temple is said to have begun when they converted a part of their home into a Buddhist training center during the reign of Japan's 29th Emperor. There is also an anomaly in Buddhist archaeology located on the temple grounds in the form of a rare arrangement of boulders forming the foundation of a pagoda. This foundation weighs roughly 28 tons, making it one of the largest examples of the 6th - 7th century style.