Kawara-dera Temple was one of the four great temples of Asuka along with Asuka-dera Temple (Hokko-ji Temple), Yakushi-ji Temple and Daikan-daiji Temple (Daian-ji Temple), and although it is thought to have been constructed during the reign of Emperor Tenchi in the mid-seventh century, there is no mention of the founding of the temple in the official records in the "Nihonshoki" (Chronicles of Japan).
川原寺は、飛鳥寺（法興寺）、薬師寺、大官大寺（大安寺）と並ぶ飛鳥の四大寺に数えられ、7世紀半ばの天智天皇の時代に建立されたものと思われるが、正史『日本書紀』にはこの寺の創建に関する記述がない。