Our family has been coming to this temple for over 30 years. It's my mother's must do list on the…read morefirst day of every Chinese New Year to come here to give blessings, give thanks, and prayers for the Buddha. Quan Yin/ Kwan Ying is the Goddess of Compassion in the Buddhist religion. This temple is dedicated to her. I find this temple is more genuine about the true religion and dedicate to patrons to come here seeking prayers, serenity, peace for their beliefs. Although donations are appreciated it's not expected like some of the Buddhist temples around that make you feel that it's all about the money, how much you donate, and everything and services cost money.

What's up: The family comes to this temple to make prayers and ask for blessings during events such…read moreas beginning the New Year as well as ending the year. It's a bit out of our area, but we like that it's a small temple and that they aren't overly extravagant. Parking: They have a small lot that's up front and is almost always full. But...just because it's full, that doesn't mean the temple itself is. Parking is shared with the America's Vietnamese Chinese Friendship Association. You'll have better luck finding street parking on Gates St or Manitou Ave. Environment: Masks are required. We typically bring our own incense to offer to the gods. If you forget, there are incense available for you to use as people like to donate them. Once you walk in, the incense table can be found to the left. It's recommended to use 12 sticks of incense so you'll be able to at least give 1 stick at the incense pots. We like to bring fruits to offer/bless; there are plates towards the back room if you need to use them. Donation boxes are also available if you like to make one. Restrooms are available in the next building over on the ground floor. Yay/Nay/Meh: Yay. I like that this place feels humble and intimate as opposed to the larger temples. They have the main gods that we would make prayers and offerings to and it's rarely busy unless you come in on one of the major holidays.

Nice temple! There's some parking on their lot as well as the street. Staff can speak English and…read moreVietnamese. They have events for Chinese new year.

Absolutely beautiful temple, and this one was welcoming to visitors. I did not feel like an…read moreoutsider here. The people who were here taking care of the place smiled at me and did not hover over me as I looked around. I took photos but I also tried to be respectful, and I said my thank yous to their gods. This place did smell very strong of incense, but was so gorgeous inside and out. They also had a restroom! ALSO WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBLE WITH RAMPS!!!

Very beautiful temple, but I'm not sure if people are allowed to take photos. This place was not…read morevery welcoming to visitors. The people here definitely gave the feeling they did NOT want outsiders here. I try to always be respectful when experiencing or seeing someone else's culture, but it really did feel like this place was for locals or members only.

Great beautiful place. Came here with family and it's busy but not too crowded. Super friendly…read morestaff, very welcoming

Come here every Chinese New Year... its awesome!read more

The memories I have with this temple have been pleasant and heartwarming…read more I can remember holding my ba ngoai's hand going from statue to statue and praying with heart as I place each incense in their holder. But as I got older and moved out I found myself going less and less. But I felt that this year was the year to rediscover my culture and I came back during Lunar New Year's weekend. I came on Lunar New Year day (1/29) and once more on Sunday (2/03). Being able to come and pray once more has brought more peace and ease to my heart. Especially now knowing that my dad's photo is here makes me so happy to know how close to home he is. When my mom told me my dad's photo was here I knew I had to come back, but when I came I was overwhelmed by how many photos there were and asked one of the ladies there to help. She was able to find my dad through his name and birthday and lead me to his photo. I was so happy to see his smiling face once more that I got a little misty eyed. But held back my tears because it is not good luck to cry on Lunar New Year LOL The temple is clean with helpful volunteers and monks. I love the food they make here and my boyfriend is hooked! They mentioned on Sundays at 9am they start selling food so I know where I'm heading that morning to grab a quick bite, say hi to my dad, and donate to the temple.

The Amazing Temple, along with the Most Venerable Thich Vien Ly, helped me discover a true sense of…read morefamily.

Koyasan Buddhist Temple is a small temple hidden within Little Tokyo. Our party came here on the…read moreNew Year Day (January 1st) and there was a long line for hatsumode (aka "first visit" - first visit of the year to a Buddhist temple or Shinto shrine taking place on the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd day of the New Year). This temple was founded in 1912 and moved to the current location in 1940. This is one of the oldest Buddhist temples in the United States. [Parking]: No designated parking for the temple, but Aiso Parking Garage (101 Judge John Aiso St) is located just one block away. [Waiting line]: The long waiting line is for visitors who want to pray inside of the temple. For anyone who want to buy souvenirs, then they can just walk directly into the front courtyard of the temple as there are separate lines to buy souvenirs. [Hatsumode]: Upon entering the temple, visitor can pay $5 donation for Goma-ki (write your wish and your name on the piece of wood and leave it on the table - it will supposedly be burned during a monthly ceremony Goma Fire Ritual at the last Sunday of each month outside of January). Once each person is done praying, then there's a wooden offering box for donation. No pictures are allowed inside of the temple. [Activities]: Other than hatsumode, the temple had Shusho-e (New Years Day) Service [with Mochi Presentation] on January 1st at 10 AM, New Year's Day Goma Service on January 1st at 2 PM, and Taiko Gohei Blessing Service / Goma Service throughout Jan 1st through Jan 3rd. [Classes]: Outside of hatsumode, the temple offers yoga class, Japanese calligraphy class, dharma class, tea with reverend, etc. throughout the year. [Souvenirs]: They sell omamori (Japanese amulets) , ofuda (talismans), ojuzu (Buddhist prayer beads), incense, arrows, etc. Heck they even sell Hello Kitty and Ultraman omamori. [Admission]: Free admission, but consider paying your respects with a donation in the large wooden offering box. [Conclusion]: This is one of few activities to do on the New Year Day and expect a huge crowd visiting for hatsumode. Our party stayed for approximately 45 minutes (including waiting time) and I definitely appreciate the tradition. Certainly worth a visit for anyone who is free on the New Year Day & would like to experience this annual Japanese cultural event.

I have attended services at this Buddhist temple in Los Angeles. It the most popular Japanese…read moretemple in the city. The New Years service gets thousands of visitors. New Years service at Koyasan temple is gathering place for Little Tokyo.

Nice and clean. Feel like home again. They give me suggestions on things. Bring good energy and…read moreluck home. Thank you

Xuan Wu San is NOT a charity. It's a small Buddhist temple. We go here every year after Chinese New…read moreYear to pray for some blessings for the year. There's three different kinds of rituals. One of them requires getting 12 incense sticks to pray at each little shrine in the temple. Each little shrine is numbered so you know which one to go to first. Red envelopes are exchanged for new ones. They also have yellow and green sheets for you to put in the house or in the car for good luck. There is a separate ritual for zodiacs that happen to land on a bad luck year. That's $20 per person. The smell of incense throughout this temple is very relaxing. There's also soothing music that plays throughout. Overall, it's a nice little Buddhist temple. I always feel a little at peace after my visit here. I'll be back again next year.

xei xei. In loving memory of Dr. Li, an amazing and selfless physician, husband, father, son,…read morebrother and friend.

Sometimes, it takes more than Google Maps for me to find where I'm going. This temple on New Ave…read morewas so nicely decorated on the exterior and welcoming that I decided to enter the vicinity. The parking lot was small. There were some people leaving.... Service must have ended. I parked and asked for directions to the Chinese New Year 2017 Rooster Celebrations. Friendly group. And apparently, due to weather conditions... the festivities were changed to January 28th & 29th instead. Also, this place was not a temple. This was a beautifully decorated Buddha Monastery. The inside was gorgeous too. Yellow gold and red were prominent colors. There were lots of incense, flowers and fruit offerings to the statues. Peaceful. Happy Chinese New Year / Happy Spring Festival