At the time of it's relocation down the mountain, the temple was sited at Sanjo-shirakawa (slightly northwest of its current location) but was moved to its current higher spot during the Kamakura period in order to avoid the flooding river.
山下へ移転した当初は三条白川（現在地のやや北西）にあったが、河川の氾濫を避け、鎌倉時代に高台の現在地へ移った。