World and Lore / Kyoto mystery

The Smallest Sutra in the World

Long ago, near Kiyomizu-zaka, there emerged a custom whereby pilgrims would gather pebbles on which they copied, one by one, the individual characters of a sutra, a verse of Buddhist scripture. Then they would wash the stones, as they prayed for the souls of the deceased. The temple hall where this custom was practiced exists to this day, and is known by the name Kyokaku-do, "the hall where sutras are written."