750 Piece Puzzle: Sanjudo Pagoda, Japan

According to Japanese legend, Seiganto-ji (青岸渡寺) dates back to the mid three hundreds, when an Indian monk named Ragyo Shonin followed a river in the Kii Peninsula of Japan, looking for a place to practice. After practicing shugyo, a type of Buddhist awakening, Shonin was said to have seen the goddess Guanyin or Kannon, and founded the temple for her worship. Between 592 and 628, Shobutso Shonin travelled from Yamato to take part in Buddhist practices. While here, he carved a four metre image of Guanyin from tree bark, and the building’s main temple was later built in this image. In 988, Japanese emperor Kazan is said to have completed 1000 days of spiritual training underneath Nachi Falls, after which he had an image of Guanyin, subsequently declaring the building Temple One of the Saigoku Kannon pilgrimage.