Deer roam freely along the path leading to Toudaiji in Nara.

The temples at Nara are often characterized as scholarly institutions that housed the study of abstruse texts and philosophical doctrines. But it is not clear how much scholarship was actually undertaken in a society in which basic literacy was still quite limited, even among the ruling elite. The emphasis of Nara Buddhism was, rather, on rituals to ensure the prosperity of the state and the health and welfare of its rulers. Many small images from this period, inscribed with prayers for the cure of a noble's illness, attest to this emphasis.

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