Kiyomizu-dera Temple is not only a Buddhist temple belonging to a group of the Hosso sect (one of the Nanto rokushu (the six sects of Buddhism which flourished in ancient Nara)), but also one of only a few Buddhist temples with history started before the period when the national capital was transferred to Heian-kyo, along with Koryu-ji Temple and Kurama-dera Temple in Kyoto.
清水寺は法相宗（南都六宗の一）系の寺院で、広隆寺、鞍馬寺とともに、平安京遷都以前からの歴史をもつ、京都では数少ない寺院の1つである。