is an

Ōbaku The is one of several schools of Zen in Japanese Buddhism, in addition to Sōtō and Rinzai. History Often termed the third sect of Zen Buddhism in Japan, Ōbaku-shū was established in 1661 by a small faction of masters from China and their ...

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 in

Nagasaki is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. It became the sole Nanban trade, port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hi ...

, Japan. Its honorary '' sangō'' prefix is .

History

The first temple built in Nagasaki was Kofukuji, built in 1623 by traders from the northern provinces of China, such as

Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its ca ...

and

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , Chinese postal romanization, also romanized as Chekiang) is an East China, eastern, coastal Provinces of China, province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable citie ...

. Fukusai-ji, the second temple, was founded in 1628 by members of the Nagasaki Chinese community, predominantly merchants from Southern Fujian and their families. It was built partially in response to the implementation of the anti-Christian motivated tearuke system that required citizens registered to prove their affiliation with a Buddhist temple. Temples would issue certificates that members were not Christian and, because of the long history of Christianity in Nagasaki specifically, the system was first implemented in Kyushu and Kyoto in 1638. The temple was built in part by the desire of the Chinese community to confirm that they were not Christian while maintaining a separate place of worship. The nearby Sōfuku-ji was constructed a few years later by the Northern Fujian community in 1632. The monk Mu'an (,1611-1684), the disciple of Ingen, became the abbot of Fukusai-ji in 1655 and remained in Nagasaki until 1660. In 1910, the main hall of the temple was designated as a

National Treasure of Japan Some of the National Treasures of Japan A is the most precious of Japan's Tangible Cultural Properties, as determined and designated by the Agency for Cultural Affairs (a special body of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Scien ...

. The temple was completely destroyed in the atomic bombing of Nagasaki on 9 August 1945 at 11:02 am. It was subsequently rebuilt in 1979 with an 18-meter

aluminium alloy An aluminium alloy (or aluminum alloy; see spelling differences) is an alloy in which aluminium (Al) is the predominant metal. The typical alloying elements are copper, magnesium, manganese, silicon, tin, nickel and zinc. There are two principa ...

statue of

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 ...

, the

Bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood. In the Early Buddhist schools ...

of compassion, standing atop a spirit turtle. Inside is a

Foucault pendulum The Foucault pendulum or Foucault's pendulum is a simple device named after French physicist Léon Foucault, conceived as an experiment to demonstrate the Earth's rotation. A long and heavy pendulum suspended from the high roof above a circular ...

which swings over the remains of 16,500 Japanese killed 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 ...

and in the atomic bombing of the city. At 25 meters, it is one of the largest Foucault pendulums in Japan. In honor of the victims of the atomic bomb, a bell is rung at 11:02 am each day.

References

Buddhist temples in Nagasaki Prefecture Obaku temples Buildings and structures in Nagasaki Buildings and structures in Japan destroyed during World War II 1628 establishments in Japan {{zen-stub