| The Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage (西国三十三所, Saigoku Sanjūsan-sho) is a pilgrimage of thirty-three Buddhist temples throughout the Kansai region of Japan, similar to the Shikoku Pilgrimage. In addition to the official thirty-three temples, there are an additional three known as bangai (番外). The principal image in each temple is Kannon, known to Westerners as the Bodhisattva of Compassion (or sometimes mistranslated as 'Goddess of Mercy'); however, there is some variation among the images and the powers they possess. |
