Historic Temple Holding Japan’s 1,200-Year ‘Eternal Flame’ Destroyed by Fire

A devastating fire ripped through part of a historic Buddhist temple in Japan, destroying a hall that housed a sacred flame believed to have burned continuously for more than 1,200 years.

The blaze broke out Wednesday at Daishoin Temple on Miyajima Island in Hatsukaichi, a city in Hiroshima Prefecture. Flames tore through Reikado Hall, a wooden structure located on Mount Misen and known for protecting the temple’s famous “unquenchable fire.”

The sacred flame is said to have been originally lit by a Buddhist monk in the year 806.

For generations, the flame has carried deep religious and historical meaning. It was later used to help ignite the eternal flame at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, which honors the victims of the 1945 atomic bombing.

Local reports said officials believe the sacred flame itself may have sparked the fire, though police are still investigating the exact cause.

Despite the destruction, the flame survived.

Officials were able to preserve it and move it to a safe location, where it has continued burning.

The fire was first reported around 8:30 a.m. Wednesday and was not confirmed fully extinguished until Thursday. Dramatic footage showed orange flames swallowing the wooden hall as beams collapsed in the forested area around Mount Misen.

The fire spread into nearby trees before firefighters were able to contain it. No injuries were reported.

Reikado Hall has been damaged by fires and natural disasters multiple times over the centuries. In 2005, the structure was destroyed in another blaze and rebuilt the following year to protect the historic site and the eternal flame.

At the time, investigators believed that fire may have been caused by burning dead wood and other combustible materials inside the hall.

The temple flame became especially symbolic after World War II. One of the flames used to light Hiroshima’s Flame of Peace came from Reikado Hall’s eternal fire.

That Peace Flame was designed to keep burning until all nuclear weapons are abolished worldwide, tying Miyajima’s ancient Buddhist tradition to Hiroshima’s modern message of remembrance and peace.

The latest fire is part of a troubling string of blazes at religious sites across Japan this year.

In February, at least three temples burned in Ehime and Yamaguchi prefectures, with multiple deaths reported. In April, two more temples burned in Toyama and Mie prefectures. Earlier this month, a 300-year-old Shinto shrine dedicated to fire prevention burned down in Niigata Prefecture.

Most recently, a 573-year-old temple in Toyama Prefecture burned on May 16, with firefighters needing nearly nine hours to bring the flames under control.

For Daishoin Temple, the loss of Reikado Hall is devastating. But the survival of the 1,200-year-old flame has given the tragedy a remarkable twist.