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During a two-day local festival in November 2009, Ryohoji saw some 2,000 visitors, including 400 people drawn by a maid cafe — a coffee shop with waitresses dressed as maids. Nakazato said this was a huge change from the past, "when hardly anyone stopped by."
Ryohoji has also generated publicity from related projects organized by, among others, the event company of the supporter's grandson, such as the release of an upbeat "temple theme song" that includes words from the Lotus Sutra, and a mobile phone program that plays a recording of Nakazato chanting the sutra.
Recently, the temple held an event to dedicate a figurine based on the Benzaiten anime character, describing it as a "moe Buddhist statue." The figurine's creator, Takeshi Miyagawa, 41, said Buddhist statues should "evolve" by using cutting-edge design and materials so his generation can come to admire them, just as people in the past appreciated traditional statues made in their own era.
While many of the responses have been positive, some people living nearby appear to have mixed feelings about the temple's new direction, according to Toromi.
Tetsuya Ono, a 54-year-old company employee, said that while temples should "devise ways" to lure visitors and avoid becoming desolate, he is not sure about the Ryohoji's newfound direction.
"I think the signboard was a fine idea, but maid cafe events were going too far," Ono said. "And I'm afraid that the temple will end up being just a mecca for fans of manga and anime, which is probably not the temple's intention."
