Sensō-ji (浅草寺 [sẽ̞ꜜɰ̃so̞ːʑi] ^ⓘ, Sensō-ji; officially Kinryū-zan Sensō-ji (金龍山浅草寺), also known as Asakusa Kannon (浅草観音)), is an ancient Buddhist temple in Asakusa, Tokyo, Japan. It is Tokyo's oldest-established temple, and one of its most significant. It is dedicated to Kannon, the bodhisattva of compassion. Structures in the temple complex include the main hall, a five-story pagoda and large gates. It is the most widely visited religious site in the world with over 30 million visitors annually. The temple is the 13th stop on the Bandō Sanjūsankasho pilgrimage route.

The temple was destroyed during a 10 March 1945 firebombing air raid on Tokyo during World War II. The main hall was rebuilt in the 1950s. Formerly associated with the Tendai sect of Buddhism, the temple became independent in 1950 after the war. Leading to it is Nakamise-dōri street, containing many shops with traditional goods. Adjacent to the east of Sensō-ji is the Asakusa Shrine of the Shinto religion.

The origins of Sensō-ji are uncertain. According to legends found in sources such as the "Sensō Engi", the temple began in the Asuka period when the brothers Hinokuma Hamanari and Takenari discovered a statue of Kannon while fishing in the Sumida River in 628. The headman of their village, Haji no Nakatomo became a monk and converted his home into a temple. In 645, a monk named Katsumi renovated the temple and, following a revelation in a dream, designated the statue as a hibutsu image. The statue is said to be made of gold and measuring approximately 5.5 centimeters in height, but its true details is unknown as it is never displayed to the public. If this account is true, it would make Sensō-ji the oldest-established temple in Tokyo. In 857, during the early Heian period and in 828, Ennin visited the temple and carved a maedachi Kannon statue (a statue for people to worship in place of the secret image). In 942, when Taira no Kinmasa was appointed Musashi-no-kami, he renovated the shichidō garan, and the Kaminarimon Gate and Niōmon Gate were constructed at this time.

However, the first documented reference to Sensō-ji is in the Kamakura-period "Azuma Kagami." According to this chronicle, in 1181, carpenters were called in by Minamoto no Yoritomo from Asakusa to build Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū in Kamakura. Additionally, in 1192, monks from Sensō-ji participated in the 49th day memorial service for Emperor Goshirakawa held at Shōchōjū-in in Kamakura. Lady Nijō described her visit to Sensō-ji in her Towazugatari in 1290. In 1590, Tokugawa Ieyasu, who was in Edo, designated Senso-ji as an official place of prayer for the shogunate and granted the temple 500 koku of land.. Sensō-ji's buildings had burned down many times before theEdo period, and after the start of the Tokugawa shogunate, they were destroyed by fire twice, in 1631 and 1642. However, with the assistance of the third shogun, Tokugawa Iemitsu, the five-story pagoda was rebuilt in 1648 and the main hall in 1649. In 1685, shops that would become "Nakamise" were established on the main approach to the temple. The temple granted these businesses permission in exchange for charging local residents for cleaning the grounds. By the mid-Edo period, street performances and other events began to take place in the area at the back west of the temple grounds, commonly known as "Okuyama," and the temple grounds became a place of entertainment for the common people. Between 1843 and the following year, the three Edo theaters moved to Asakusa, further strengthening this trend.

Asakusa continued to thrive as a popular entertainment and entertainment district into the Meiji period. In 1873, much of the temple grounds were designated as Asakusa Park. In 1890, the 12-story Ryōunkaku (commonly known as the "Asakusa Twelve-Story Tower"), a commercial facility and observation tower, was completed. While much of the Asakusa district was destroyed in the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, a local construction master led the evacuees within the temple grounds in a bucket brigade firefighting operation, limiting damage to only a few buildings at Sensō-ji. However, the main hall (Kannon Hall), a former national treasure, and the five-story pagoda were destroyed in the 10 March 1945 firebombing air raid on Tokyo. The main hall was rebuilt in 1951–58 The temple now has a titanium tiled roof that maintains a historic image but is stronger and lighter. The Kaminarimon gate was rebuilt in 1960, the Hōzōmon gate in 1964, and the pagoda in 1973. After World War II, Asakusa temporarily declined due to the diversification of entertainment options and the development of other entertainment districts in Tokyo. However, thanks to efforts by the local shopping district, it gradually regained its former vitality and has become a representative tourist destination in Tokyo as a town that retains its old-fashioned atmosphere, with annual events such as the Hagoita Market and Hozuki Market attracting large crowds.

Sensō-ji is the focus of Tokyo's largest and most popular festival, Sanja Matsuri. This takes place over 3 to 4 days in late spring, and sees the surrounding streets closed to traffic from dawn until late evening.^{[citation needed]}

Dominating the entrance to the temple is the Kaminarimon or "Thunder Gate". This imposing Buddhist structure features a massive paper lantern dramatically painted in vivid red-and-black tones to suggest thunderclouds and lightning. Beyond the Kaminarimon is Nakamise-dori with its shops, followed by the Hōzōmon or "Treasure House Gate", which provides the entrance to the inner complex. Within the precincts stand a stately five-story pagoda and the main hall, devoted to Kannon.

Many tourists, both Japanese and from abroad, visit Sensō-ji every year. Catering to the visiting crowds, the surrounding area has many traditional shops and eating places that feature traditional dishes (hand-made noodles, sushi, tempura, etc.). Nakamise-Dori, the street leading from the Thunder Gate to the temple itself, is lined with small shops selling souvenirs ranging from fans, ukiyo-e (woodblock prints), kimono and other robes, Buddhist scrolls, traditional sweets, to Godzilla toys, t-shirts and mobile phone straps. These shops themselves are part of a living tradition of selling to pilgrims who walked to Sensō-ji.^{[citation needed]}