Ujidera underwent a change during the middle ages when Buddhism diffused down through aristocratic society and the samurai class to develop from being the sole preserve of the imperial family and powerful families to become a religion of the common people.
仏教が、限られた皇族や有力豪族の信仰から、貴族社会全般に浸透し、武家や一般民衆まで及ぶ中世に入ると、氏寺も古代のそれとは変化していった。