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Nanzenji Temple

The most prestigious Zen temple in Japan

It is the most prestigious Zen temple in Japan and is located in one of the five mountains of Kyoto. It is treated as a special temple and has a beautiful array of halls and pagodas, including the famous Sanmon Gate, which is famous for the legend of Ishikawa Goemon.

The Hojo Garden is known as “Toranoko-no-Furashi” created by Enshu Kobori, and is a typical dry landscape garden of the early Edo period. Visitors can experience Zen meditation and stay overnight at the Nanzen Kaikan if they make reservations in advance.

The two-story Sanmon Gate is impressive at 22 meters high. The Hojo, a national treasure, is composed of a large and a small hojo, both of which have beautiful sliding door paintings by Kano Motonobu and Kano Tanyu, painters of the Kano school.

Nanzenji Temple is the head temple of the Nanzenji School. The main deity is the Sakyamuni Buddha. The temple was founded by Mukan Fumon (Daimei Kokushi) and is said to have been founded by Hōnin Kameyama. Officially, the temple is also called Tahei Kokoku Nanzenji Temple.

Nanzen-ji was the first imperial Zen temple in Japan and is a special temple located in the Kyoto Gozan and Kamakura Gozan temples, and is considered the most prestigious of all Zen temples in Japan.

History of Nanzenji Temple

Pioneer Period

The origin of Nanzenji Temple can be traced back to the Zenrinji-den, a detached palace built by Emperor Kameyama in the first year of Bun’ei (1264). The name “Zenrin-ji-den” comes from Zenrin-ji Temple (Eikando), the head temple of the Seizan Zenrin-ji school of the Jodo sect, located to the north of Nanzen-ji Temple.

The detached palace was divided into the “Upper Gosho” and the “Lower Gosho,” and in 1287, Emperor Kameyama built a jibutsu hall in the “Upper Gosho” and named it “Nanzen-in,” which was the beginning of Nanzen-ji Temple. Later, Nanzen-in, the Jibutsu-do hall, became the pagoda of Nanzen-ji Temple.

In 1289, at the age of 40, Emperor Kameyama ordained himself as the pope, and two years later, in 1291, he named the temple “Ryoansan Zenrin-ji Temple,” after the 80-year-old Museki Fumon, who founded the temple. According to legend, the Zenrin-ji Temple was frequently haunted by specters and transformations, which annoyed Hōhō Kameyama and the officials. However, when Museki Fumon entered the Zenrin-ji Temple and quietly sat in zazen meditation, the apparitions dissipated, and the emperor invited Museki to become the founder of the temple.

Museki Fumon was from Shinano Province. After studying under Enji, the founder of Tofukuji Temple, he went to the Song Dynasty at the age of 40, where he practiced for more than 10 years. After returning to Japan, he devoted himself to ascetic practice without a temple of his own until the age of 70. After the death of his teacher Enji, he became the abbot of Tofukuji Temple in 1281. Ten years later, in 1291, he was invited to found Nanzenji Temple, but died soon after. After Museki’s death, the construction of Nanzen-ji’s temple complex was essentially led by the second abbot, Kian Soyen (Nan-in Kokushi), who developed the former “lower palace” of the Zenrin-ji Temple, and the temple was built around the 7th year of Einin (1299). The first temple name, “Ryoansan Zenrin-zenji,” was changed to “Taipyeongxingkoku Nanzenji” during the Shoan era (1299 - 1302). In 1313, at the request of Emperor Go-Uda, ICHIYAMA Kazane went to Kyoto to become the third head of Nanzenji, and in 1325, MUMESO Soseki came to live at the temple.

In 1334 (the first year of the Kemmu Era), Emperor Godaigo made Nanzen-ji the first of the Gozan (five mountains), but in 1385 (the third year of the Shotoku Era), Ashikaga Yoshimitsu made Nanzen-ji a “separate temple” and placed it “above the five mountains” to make his own Shokoku-ji the first of the five, and further divided the five mountains into the five Kyoto mountains and the five Kamakura mountains.

By this time, Nanzenji had become a large temple with more than 60 pagoda temples, and was sometimes involved in political disputes with the old Buddhist powers such as Enryakuji Temple and Mitsui Temple. The temple suffered a fire in 1393 and the Great Nanzenji Fire in 1447, which destroyed the main temple complex, but it was nonetheless rebuilt. However, during the Onin War in 1467, the temple complex was destroyed in a city battle, and reconstruction was difficult.

Modern Period and After

Rebuilding of Nanzenji Temple made progress after Isshin Choden entered the temple in 1605 (Keicho 10) during the Edo period. In 1606, Toyotomi Hideyori rebuilt the Dharma Hall.

Yushin Choden was a well-known politician who worked closely with Tokugawa Ieyasu in diplomacy and temple policy. He resided at Kinji-in, the pagoda of Nanzen-ji Temple, where the Edo shogunate bestowed upon him the important position of “Shoroku” (priest’s roster). This was to serve as the nationwide head of Rinzai Zen temples. Later, the abbot of Kinji-in was called “Kinji Monks’ Roku” and became very powerful. In 1611 (Keicho 16), the facing palace of the Jyoin Gosho, built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, was given to Nanzenji Temple and designated as the Daihojo.

In 1875 (Meiji 8), Japan’s first public psychiatric hospital, the Kyoto Prefectural Epilepsy Hospital (now Kawagoe Hospital), was established in the precincts of Nanzenji Temple.

In 1888, the Suijikaku (waterway) of the Lake Biwa Canal, which runs through the precincts of Nanzenji Temple, was constructed. This structure, designed by Tanabe Sakuro, has been used for filming TV dramas and is now widely recognized as part of the Kyoto landscape. The original plan was to dig a tunnel to the south of Nanzen-in Temple to form a waterway, but this would have led through the back of the Mausoleum of Hōhō Kameyama at Nanzen-in Temple, which Nanzen-ji opposed, so the plan was changed to its present form. Although there was some opposition when it was first constructed, claiming that it would spoil the scenery of the ancient capital, it is said that Nanzen-ji’s Sanmon Gate attracted many onlookers.

Immediately after the Meiji Restoration, Nanzen-ji Temple came under government pressure and lost many of its pagoda temples, some of which were on the verge of extinction. However, these sites were redeveloped as residential areas, and beautiful gardens were created, which still remain as valuable spaces today.

In 1895 (Meiji 28), the Dharma Hall of Nanzenji Temple was destroyed by fire, and was rebuilt in 1909 (Meiji 42).

In 1937, a game of shogi between Sankichi Sakata and Yoshio Kimura took place at the Nanzenji pagoda. This game was a big game, with each player having 30 hours to play, and in particular, Sakata’s -9-4 against Kimura’s ▲76 pawns was a moment that would go down in shogi history.

In 2005, the precincts of Nanzenji Temple were designated as a national historic site.

Precincts

Daihojo (National Treasure):. 

The temple consists of the Daihojo and Kohojo. The Daihojo was built during the Keicho era (1596-1598) and was donated to Nanzenji by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1611. Although many documents state that the building was relocated from the Seiryoden Hall of the former imperial palace, it is in fact not the Seiryoden Hall but the facing palace of the Jo-in Palace that was moved to the new building. The kobojo was built during the Kan’ei era (1624 - 1645) and was used as a small shoin (drawing room) for Fushimi Castle.

The main hall has a six-room layout, with the Hanatori-no-Ma (West Room), the Midday Room, and the Musk Room on the south side, and the Crane Room, the Butsumen (Inner Sanctuary), and the Narutaki-no-Ma on the north side. At the eastern end of the building is a long, narrow room one and a half ken (one and a half meters) wide, called the Yanagi-no-Ma. Each of the rooms, with the exception of the Buddhist room, is decorated with barrier paintings by painters of the Kano school during the Momoyama period (1573-1600), and a total of 124 paintings (including four designated as annexes) have been designated as Important Cultural Properties. These paintings were originally part of the barrier paintings of the former imperial palace, but the arrangement of the sliding doors was changed when the building was relocated. The carvings on the transoms are believed to have been made by Jingoro Hidari. Although the barrier paintings in the kobojō are attributed to Kano Tanyū, it is highly likely that they were actually created by several different painters.

Suijikaku” of Biwako Sosui (Lake Biwa Canal): This brick arch bridge was built in 1888. It is also known as a famous photo spot.

Belfry: Located on a hill near the Nanzen-in Temple and the Biwako Sosui Canal.

Sanmon Gate (Important Cultural Property): In the Kabuki play “Roumon Gosangiri,” Ishikawa Goemon says, “Is the view superb? A superb view? This is the Sanmon Gate of Nanzenji Temple where Ishikawa Goemon uttered the famous line, “A superb view, eh? However, the actual Sanmon gate was donated by Takatora Todo, lord of the Tsu domain, in 1628, more than 30 years after Goemon’s death, to pray for the repose of the souls of the warriors of his clan who were killed in the Osaka Summer Battle. It is also known as the “Tenka Ryumon” (dragon gate). The original Sanmon gate was built in Einin 3 (1295) and was replaced by a new one during the Oan era (1368 - 1375). However, it was destroyed by fire in the Great Nanzenji Fire of 1447. It has a double gate with three five-storied rooms (the front has five rooms with three rooms in the center as entrances), and the upper section is called “Gohorou,” in which statues of Sakyamuni Buddha and sixteen arhats are enshrined. The ceiling paintings are by Kano Tanyu. Together with the Sanmon Gate of Chion-in Temple and the Mikado Gate of Higashi Honganji Temple, it is considered one of the three major gates in Kyoto.

Stone lantern: Dedicated by Katsuyuki Sakuma in 1628, it is generally known as the “Sakuma Genkan no Katanorogo” (one side lantern of the Sakuma clan). It is 6 meters high and is considered the tallest lantern in the East.

Imperial Gate (Important Cultural Property): This gate was transferred from the Imperial Palace’s Hinomikado Gate, which was received from Emperor Meisho in 1641.

Naka-mon Gate: In 1601, Matsui Yasuyuki, a retainer of the Hosokawa family, donated this gate to the Matsui residence in Fushimi Castle as the Imperial Gate. It was moved to its current location following the receipt of the Imperial Gate of Hinomiya. It was formerly called Wakimon (side gate).

Information

Name
Nanzenji Temple
南禅寺
Link
Official Site
Address
Nanzenji Fukuchi-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto City, Kyoto
Telephone number
075-771-0365
Hours of operation

8:40-17:00
December - February 8:40 - 16:30

Admission fee

Hojo Garden
Adults 600 yen
High school students: 500 yen
Elementary and junior high school students 450 yen

Sanmon Gate
General 600 yen
High school students: 500 yen
Elementary and junior high school students: 450 yen

Nanzen-in Temple
Adults 400 yen
High school students 350 yen
Elementary and junior high school students 250 yen

Parking lot
Parking lot
Access

5 min. on foot from Keage Station on the Subway Tozai Line

30 min. by city bus from JR Kyoto Sta.

Kifune, Kurama, Ohara

Kyoto