Kōzan-ji

For the temple in Shimonoseki, see Kōzan-ji (Shimonoseki).
Not to be confused with Kōsan-ji, a Hongan-ji school Jōdo Shinshū temple in Onomichi.
Kōzan-ji
高山寺

Path to the Golden Hall
Basic information
Location 8 Umegahata Toganō-chō, Ukyō-ku, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture
Affiliation Shingon Buddhism
Deity Shaka Nyorai (Śākyamuni)
Country Japan
Website http://www.kosanji.com/
Architectural description
Founder Emperor Kōnin
Completed 774

Kōzan-ji (高山寺), officially Toganōsan Kōsan-ji (栂尾山高山寺), is a Buddhist temple of the Omuro sect of Shingon Buddhism in Umegahata Toganōchō, Ukyō Ward, Kyoto, Japan. Kōzan-ji is also known as Kōsan-ji and Toganō-dera. The temple was founded by the Shingon scholar and monk Myōe (1173 1232) and is renowned for its numerous national treasures and important cultural properties.[1] The Chōjū-jinbutsu-giga, a group of ink paintings from the 12th and 13th centuries, are among the most important treasures of Kōzan-ji.[2] The temple celebrates Biyakkōshin, Zenmyōshin and Kasuga Myōjin, as well as the temple's tutelary Shintō deity. In 1994, it was registered as part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto".[2]

History

The path to the Golden Hall

Togano, located deep in the mountains behind Jingo-ji temple, which are famous for their autumn foliage, is considered an ideal location for mountain asceticism, and there have long been many small temples in this location. In addition to Kosan-ji, there have been other temples in the area, such as Toganoo-ji (度賀尾寺) and Toganoo-bō (都賀尾坊). According to legend, these were said to have been established by the imperial orders of Emperor Kōnin in 774, however, the accuracy of these claims is not clear.

In 1206, Myōe, a Kegon Buddhist priest who had been serving at nearby Jingo-ji, was granted the land to construct a temple by Emperor Go-Toba. He selected the name Hiidetemazukousanwoterasuyama-no-tera (日出先照高山之寺). The temple's name was taken from a line in the Avatamsaka sutra: "When the sun appears, it first casts its light upon the highest mountain." (日、出でて、まず高き山を照らす hi, idete, mazu takakiyama wo terasu).

The temple was destroyed numerous times by fire and war. The oldest extant building is Sekisui-in (石水院), which dates from the Kamakura Period.

Layout

Golden Hall

Jingo-ji houses a diagram of Kōzan-ji that was drawn in 1230, some 20 years after it was constructed. The diagram is registered as an important cultural property, because it shows the original layout of the temple. From the diagram, we know that Kōzan-ji originally consisted of a large gate, a main hall, a three-storied pagoda, a hall dedicated to Amitabha, a hall dedicated to Lohan, a bell tower, a scripture hall, and a Shinto shrine dedicated to the tutelary deity of the area. However, all of these buildings have since been destroyed, except for the scripture hall, which is now known as Sekisui-in.

In addition to Sekisui-in, today's Kōzan-ji also contains a main hall (originally part of Ninna-ji, relocated to Kōzan-ji) and a hall dedicated to the founding of the temple, which houses an important carved wooden bust of Myōe. Both of these buildings, however, are modern reconstructions.

Cultural Properties

The temple possesses numerous National Treasures and Important Cultural Properties, however, the majority of them are currently on loan to national museums in Kyoto and Tokyo.

National Treasures

Sekisui-in

Important Cultural Properties

A large number of buildings, picture scrolls, carvings, furnishings and old writings have been registered as important cultural properties. The most significant among these include:

Founders Hall

See also

References

  1. "Myōe". Encyclopedia of Japan. Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC 56431036. Retrieved 2012-06-03.
  2. 1 2 "Kōzanji". Encyclopedia of Japan. Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC 56431036. Retrieved 2012-06-03.

Much of the content of this article comes from the equivalent Japanese-language article, accessed on July 27, 2006.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sekisui-in, Kōzan-ji.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kōzan-ji (Kyoto).

Coordinates: 35°03′37″N 135°40′42″E / 35.06028°N 135.67833°E / 35.06028; 135.67833

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/29/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.