is a

Rinzai The Rinzai school ( ja, , Rinzai-shū, zh, t=臨濟宗, s=临济宗, p=Línjì zōng) is one of three sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism (along with Sōtō and Ōbaku). The Chinese Linji school of Chan was first transmitted to Japan by Myōan ...

Buddhist temple of the

Kenchō-ji Kenchō-ji (建長寺) is a Rinzai Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the ...

school in Yamanouchi (a.k.a. Kita-Kamakura), near Kamakura,

Kanagawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-densest at . Its geographic area of makes it fifth-smallest. Kana ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. It lies between two Kita-Kamakura landmarks, the entrance of the Kamegayatsu Pass and

, the oldest

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

monastery in Japan. Chōju-ji is one of two , or funeral temples, dedicated to

Ashikaga Takauji was the founder and first '' shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate."Ashikaga Takauji" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 625. His rule began in 1338, beginning the Murom ...

, founder of the dynasty of shōguns that carries his name. (The other is Kyoto's

Tōji-in is a Buddhist temple of the Rinzai Tenryū sect located in Kita Ward, Kyoto, Japan, and one of two funeral temples (''bodaiji'') dedicated to Ashikaga Takauji, first ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga dynasty. Its main object of worship is Shakyam ...

.) In its garden there are a

gorintō ("five-ringed tower") is a Japanese type of Buddhist pagoda believed to have been first adopted by the Shingon and Tendai sects during the mid Heian period. It is used for memorial or funerary purposesKōjien Japanese Dictionary and is therefore ...

dedicated to the shōgun and a

hōkyōintō A is a Japanese pagoda, so called because it originally contained the .Iwanami Kōjien Japanese dictionary A Chinese variant of the Indian stūpa, it was originally conceived as a cenotaph of the King of Wuyue – Qian Liu. Structure and func ...

containing some of his hair. Chōju-ji has recently opened for the first time its doors, and receives visitors from Friday to Sunday, 10 AM to 3 PM. The temple allows the use of pocket cameras, however professional and semiprofessional equipment are forbidden, the reason being that visitors should not visit the temple to take photographs.Temple's pamphlet

History

Much about the temple's history is unclear.Shirai (1976:202) According to the temple's records, Chōju-ji was founded in 1358 by Kamakura's Ashikaga ruler, ''

Kantō kubō (also called , , or ) was a title equivalent to ''shōgun'' assumed by Ashikaga Motouji after his nomination to ''Kantō kanrei'', or deputy shōgun for the Kamakura-fu, in 1349.Kokushi Daijiten (1983:542) Motouji transferred his original title t ...

'' Ashikaga Motouji, son of Takauji, on the grounds of a former family mansion. It was the second of his father's so-called ''bodhi'' temples, institutions dedicated to ensuring as much as possible his happiness in the next world.Kamiya Vol. 1 (2008:260–261) Takauji died in

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin, Keihanshin metropolitan area along wi ...

at the beginning of that year at the age of 54 and was given two

posthumous names A posthumous name is an honorary name given mostly to the notable dead in East Asian culture. It is predominantly practiced in East Asian countries such as China, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, and Thailand. Reflecting on the person's accomplishments o ...

(also meant to ensure his happiness in the beyond), one in Kyoto and one in Kamakura: the first was Tōji-inden, the second was Chōju-inden, from the names of his two funeral temples. This version of the birth of the temple however has problems. Takauji himself mentions Chōju-ji in a 1336 document, declaring it was "Kenchō-ji's archives". This highly trustworthy letter makes it likely that the founder was Takauji himself, and that the foundation date is at least 1336 if not earlier, thus contradicting the foundation date given by the temple's own records. It is likely therefore that the whole story of its foundation as Takauji's ''bodhi'' temple was simply a ruse by his son Motouji to symbolically tie rebellious Kamakura to the founder of the new dynasty of ''shōguns''. Because it had such deep ties with the Ashikaga who had again usurped the power Emperor Go-Daigo had briefly managed to recover during the

Kenmu Restoration The was a three-year period of Imperial rule in Japanese history between the Kamakura period and the Muromachi period from 1333 to 1336. The Kenmu Restoration was an effort made by Emperor Go-Daigo to overthrow the ruling Kamakura Shogunate ...

, Chōju-ji for a long time faced the open hostility of the Imperial House. For this reason it had great difficulty surviving the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

Structure

Like many other Buddhist temples, Chōju-ji used to be much larger and have a complete "

shichidō garan ''Shichidō garan'' is a Japanese Buddhist term indicating the seven halls composing the ideal Buddhist temple compound. This compound word is composed of , literally meaning "seven halls", and , meaning "temple". The term is often shortened t ...

" (the set of seven buildings that constitute the core of great temples). The bell now at

Engaku-ji , or Engaku-ji (円覚寺), is one of the most important Zen Buddhist temple complexes in Japan and is ranked second among Kamakura's Five Mountains. It is situated in the city of Kamakura, in Kanagawa Prefecture to the south of Tokyo. Founde ...

's ''

Butsuden Main hall is the building within a Japanese Buddhist temple compound ('' garan'') which enshrines the main object of veneration.Kōjien Japanese dictionary Because the various denominations deliberately use different terms, this single English ...

'' was originally built here at great expense. It now includes a ''

Hon-dō Main hall is the building within a Japanese Buddhist temple compound ('' garan'') which enshrines the main object of veneration.Kōjien Japanese dictionary Because the various denominations deliberately use different terms, this single English t ...

'' (Main Hall), a ''

Shoin is a type of audience hall in Japanese architecture that was developed during the Muromachi period. The term originally meant a study and a place for lectures on the sūtra within a temple, but later it came to mean just a drawing room or st ...

'' ("drawing room"), a ''Kaisan-dō'' (Founder's Hall), and the ''Shohōjō'' (the chief abbot's living quarters), all recently restored and open to the public. (The Kaisan-dō houses a statue of goddess

Kannon Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk religion. She w ...

and is therefore also known as a Kannon-dō, or "Kannon's Hall".) Visitors are invited to sit anywhere they wish within the temple, relax and enjoy the atmosphere. Between the main hall and the abbot's residence lies the temple's

Zen garden The or Japanese rock garden, often called a zen garden, is a distinctive style of Japanese garden. It creates a miniature stylized landscape through carefully composed arrangements of rocks, water features, moss, pruned trees and bushes, and u ...

. In the front garden can be found a

yagura Yagura may refer to: * Yagura castle * Yagura opening * Yagura (tombs) * Yagura (tower) is the Japanese word for "tower", "turret", "keep", or "scaffold". The word is most often seen in reference to structures in Japanese castle compounds bu ...

containing Ashikaga Takauji's grave (as already mentioned, there is another in Kyoto's

) and a great ''gorintō'' erected in his memory. The grave's ''

'' contains some strands of the ''shōgun''s hair. The temple owns several statues, all made during the

Muromachi period The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate (''Muromachi bakufu'' or ''Ashikaga bakufu''), which was officially established in 1338 by t ...

, among them one of Ashikaga Takauji, one of his son Yoshiakira, one of goddess

, and one of the temple's founder, Kosen Ingen.

Notes

References

* * English language pamphlet from Chōju-ji, March 10, 2009 * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Choju-ji Buddhist temples in Kamakura, Kanagawa Kenchō-ji temples Rinzai temples

History

Structure

See also

Notes

References