Shunkō-in (春光院, Temple of the Ray of Spring Light) is a Zen Buddhist temple 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 ...

, Japan and belongs 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 ...

(Temple of Excellent Mind) school, which is the largest among 14 Japanese

Rinzai Zen 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 E ...

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 ...

schools. The temple was established in 1590 by

Horio Yoshiharu was a Japanese ''daimyō'' during the Azuchi–Momoyama and Edo periods. He was appointed to the position of one of san-''chūrō'' (three arbiters) by Toyotomi Hideyoshi along with Ikoma Chikamasa and Nakamura Kazuuji. He was the first l ...

, who was a feudal lord, or ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and nominal ...

'', of

Matsue is the capital city of Shimane Prefecture, Japan, located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. The city has an estimated population of 202,008 (February 1, 2021) following the merger with Higashiizumo from Yatsuka District. Matsue is located ...

in present-day Shimane Prefecture. This temple houses important historical objects that reflect the multifaceted religious and artistic atmosphere in Japan from the sixteenth century onward.

The Bell of Nanban-ji

The Bell of Nanban-ji is a Jesuit bell made in

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

in 1577. The bell was used at Nanbanji Church, which was established by Jesuit Father

Gnecchi-Soldo Organtino Gnecchi-Soldo Organtino (1530 – April 22, 1609) was an Italian missionary with the Society of Jesus, of Nanban period (1543–1650). He is an example of Nanbanjin (Barbarians from the south, as the Occidental were called), who visited Japan at t ...

with the support of Oda Nobunaga in 1576. However, the church was destroyed in 1587 because Regent

Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: Military Innovations that Changed the Cour ...

made the first law against Christians in Japan. The Bell came to Shunkō-in during 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 ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the grandfather of the present vice-abbot buried the bell in the temple gardens to prevent destruction by the state authorities.

Kirishitan Lantern

The Edo period (between 1603 and 1867) was the dark age of Japanese Christians. Christianity was banned, and Christians were systematically eliminated by the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

, or Edo bakufu. However, some Christians kept their faith and hid their religious identity. Those hidden Christians made their crosses and graves to resemble the Buddhist statues, pagodas, and stone lanterns. Shunkō-in’s hidden Christian lantern is one of those religious objects.

The Garden of Boulders, or Sazareishi-no-niwa

The Garden of Boulders, or Sazareishi-no-niwa, is the main garden of Shunkō-in. The theme of the garden is

Ise Shrine The , located in Ise, Mie Prefecture of Japan, is a Shinto shrine dedicated to the sun goddess Amaterasu. Officially known simply as , Ise Jingū is a shrine complex composed of many Shinto shrines centered on two main shrines, and . The Inner ...

, or ''Ise Jingū'', in

Mie Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Mie Prefecture has a population of 1,781,948 () and has a geographic area of . Mie Prefecture is bordered by Gifu Prefecture to the north, Shiga Prefecture and Kyoto Prefectur ...

. Ise Shrine is the head shrine of all Shinto shrines in Japan. This garden houses a forest to Amaterasu-ōmikami, a sun goddess, and a shrine to Toyouke-no-ōmikami, a goddess of agriculture. It is common to see Buddhist and Shintō objects enshrined at the same place in Japan because until the Meiji period (in the late 19th and early 20th century), it was a popular belief in Japan that Shinto deities are various forms of the Buddha that existed to save people.

Sliding Door Panels, or fusuma-e, by Eigaku Kanō

Several sliding door panels at Shunkōin were painted by . Some of the paintings have

Confucian Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...

teachings as their theme. Confucianism was very important to samurai, or warriors, during the Edo period because

Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or a ...

taught samurai about honor, loyalty, and honesty.

Azaleas of D.T. Suzuki

Shunkō-in was one of the most important places in Japanese Buddhist philosophy in the early 20th century.

D. T. Suzuki , self-rendered in 1894 as "Daisetz", was a Japanese-American Buddhist monk, essayist, philosopher, religious scholar, translator, and writer. He was a scholar and author of books and essays on Buddhism, Zen and Shin that were instrumental in s ...

and

Shin'ichi Hisamatsu was a philosopher, 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 ( ...

, who are two of the most famous Japanese Zen Buddhist philosophers, discussed the future of Japanese Buddhism at this temple. There are azaleas planted by D.T. Suzuki in the front garden of Shunkō-in.

LGBT ally

Although there is no legal recognition for

same-sex marriage in 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, extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north towa ...

, in June 2011, the deputy head abbot of

's Shunkō-in

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 ...

temple announced that the temple would perform same-sex marriage ceremonies in the temple as part of

Gay and Lesbian Pride Month ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

External links

Shunkoin Temple
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shunko-in 1590 establishments in Asia Religious organizations established in the 1590s Buddhist temples in Kyoto Myoshin-ji temples 1590 establishments in Japan