, is a

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

temple belonging to the

Myōshin-ji is a temple complex in Kyoto, Japan, and head temple of the associated branch of Rinzai Zen Buddhism. The Myōshin-ji school is by far the largest school in Rinzai Zen, approximately as big as the other thirteen branches combined: it contains wit ...

branch of the

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 ...

school of Japanese

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 ...

. Located in the city of

Kōshū, Yamanashi is a city located in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 31,526 in 13,147 households, and a population density of 120 persons per km². The total area of the city is . The city is the home of the indigenous ...

, Japan. It is the clan temple of the

Takeda clan The was a Japanese samurai clan active from the late Heian period until the late 16th century. The clan was historically based in Kai Province in present-day Yamanashi Prefecture. The clan reached its greatest influence under the rule of Taked ...

, noted

Sengoku period The was a period in History of Japan, Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615. The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the Feudalism, feudal system of Japan under the ...

warlords and rulers of Kai Province from 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 ...

. Its main image is a statue of Shaka Nyōrai.

History

The temple founded in 1380 by Nikaidō Sadafuji, the ''

shugo , commonly translated as “(military) governor,” “protector,” or “constable,” was a title given to certain officials in feudal Japan. They were each appointed by the ''shōgun'' to oversee one or more of the provinces of Japan. The pos ...

'' of Kai Province, who invited the noted Zen prelate

Musō Soseki was a Rinzai Zen Buddhist monk and teacher, and a calligraphist, poet and garden designer. The most famous monk of his time, he is also known as ("national Zen teacher"), an honorific conferred on him by Emperor Go-Daigo.''Musō Soseki'', Kyo ...

from

Kanagawa 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. Kanagaw ...

to build a hermitage on his property. Due to the fame of Musō Soseki, it became the center for the dissemination of Rinzai teachings in Kao Province, and was name one of the Kantō Jissetsu by Shogun

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was the third '' shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate, ruling from 1368 to 1394 during the Muromachi period of Japan. Yoshimitsu was Ashikaga Yoshiakira's third son but the oldest son to survive, his childhood name being Haruō (). Yoshimitsu ...

. However, the temple fell into ruin during the

Onin War Onin may refer to: * Ōnin, a Japanese era ** Ōnin War * Onin peninsula, on the Bomberai Peninsula of Indonesian Papua * Onin language Onin is a minor Austronesian language of the Onin Peninsula Onin may refer to: * Ōnin, a Japanese era ** � ...

. It was revived in the Sengoku period by Takeda Harunobu in 1541.

Takeda Shingen , of Kai Province, was a pre-eminent ''daimyō'' in feudal Japan. Known as the "Tiger of Kai", he was one of the most powerful daimyō with exceptional military prestige in the late stage of the Sengoku period. Shingen was a warlord of great ...

made Kaisen Joki head priest in 1564. In 1582, Kai Province was invaded by an alliance between Oda Nobunaga and

Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and fello ...

. Eirin-ji was accused of sheltering

Rokkaku Yoshisuke (died 1612) was the son of Rokkaku Yoshikata; and, after 1562, he took responsibility for administration in his father's Namazue domain in Japan's Ōmi Province. Papinot, Edmund (2003). ''Nobiliaire du japon,'' p. 53. During the Sengoku period, Ja ...

(a former enemy of the Oda), and the temple was completely destroyed. After Tokugawa Ieyasu became master of Kai Province, he ordered that the temple be rebuilt and in 1672, memorial services for Takeda Shingen were held. The temple continued to honor its connection with the Takeda clan through the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characte ...

and even after 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 ...

. Most of the Edo period structures were lost in a fire of 1905.

Cultural properties

Important cultural properties

Erin-ji Gate

The is a wooden gate with four pillars and a cypress-shingle roof, built in 1606. It is the oldest remaining structures of the temple. It was designated an Important Cultural Property of Japan on August 28, 1907

''Tachi'' Japanese sword

The an Edo period

Japanese sword A is one of several types of traditionally made swords from Japan. Bronze swords were made as early as the Yayoi period (1000 BC – 300 AD), though most people generally refer to the curved blades made from the Heian period (794 – 1185) to ...

(''

tachi A is a type of traditionally made Japanese sword (''nihonto'') worn by the samurai class of feudal Japan. ''Tachi'' and ''katana'' generally differ in length, degree of curvature, and how they were worn when sheathed, the latter depending on t ...

''), with a length of 79.5 cm. It was made in 1705 and donated to the temple by

Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu was a Japanese samurai of the Edo period. He was an official in the Tokugawa shogunate and a favourite of the fifth shōgun, Tokugawa Tsunayoshi. His second concubine was Ogimachi Machiko, a writer and scholar from the noble court who wrot ...

on the occasion of the 133rd memorial services for Takeda Shigen. It was designated an Important Cultural Property of Japan on March 26, 1915.

''Tantō'' Japanese sword

The a

Nanboku-chō period The Nanboku-chō period (南北朝時代, ''Nanboku-chō jidai'', "North and South court period", also known as the Northern and Southern Courts period), spanning from 1336 to 1392, was a period that occurred during the formative years of the Mur ...

(''

Tantō A is one of the traditionally made Japanese swords (Commons:Nihonto, ''nihonto'') that were worn by the samurai class of feudal Japan. The tantō dates to the Heian period, when it was mainly used as a weapon but evolved in design over the year ...

''), with a length of 27.4 cm. It was made in 1367 and donated to the temple by

on the occasion of the 133th memorial services for Takeda Shigen. It was designated an Important Cultural Property of Japan on March 26, 1915.

National Place of Scenic Beauty

Erin-ji gardens

The

Japanese garden are traditional gardens whose designs are accompanied by Japanese aesthetics and philosophical ideas, avoid artificial ornamentation, and highlight the natural landscape. Plants and worn, aged materials are generally used by Japanese garden desi ...

at Erin-ji located behind the main hall of the temple was designed by Musō Soseki when he was 56 years old, and can be considered a prototype for similar gardens he designed for Saihō-ji and

Tenryū-ji , formally known as , is the head temple of the Tenryū-ji branch of the Rinzai sect of Zen Buddhism, located in Susukinobaba-chō, Ukyō Ward, Kyoto, Japan. The temple was founded by Ashikaga Takauji in 1339, primarily to venerate Gautama Budd ...

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 ...

. The garden covers approximately 2270 square meters, and contains a number of large stones, a pond with a small stream and a small waterfall, with the mountain in back forming part of a "borrowed landscape". It was designated as a National Places of Scenic Beauty of Japan on June 6, 1994. File:恵林寺 - panoramio.jpg, Erin-ji Gardens File:恵林寺 - panoramio (3).jpg, Erin-ji Gate (ICP) File:Grave of Takeda Shingen in Erinji.JPG, Grave of Takeda Shingen File:Erinji garden and Corridors.JPG,

Engawa An or is an edging strip of non-tatami-matted flooring in Japanese architecture, usually wood or bamboo. The may run around the rooms, on the outside of the building, in which case they resemble a porch or sunroom. Usually, the is outside t ...

overlooking Erin-ji Gardens

References

External links

Takeda Shigen Museum official site
{{Authority control Buddhist temples in Yamanashi Prefecture Kōshū, Yamanashi Rinzai temples Kai Province Places of Scenic Beauty Important Cultural Properties of Japan Myoshin-ji temples