
is a
Shingon
is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asian Buddhism. It is a form of Japanese Esoteric Buddhism and is sometimes called "Tōmitsu" (東密 lit. "Esoteric uddhismof Tō- ...
-sect
Buddhist temple
A Buddhist temple or Buddhist monastery is the place of worship for Buddhism, Buddhists, the followers of Buddhism. They include the structures called vihara, chaitya, stupa, wat, khurul and pagoda in different regions and languages. Temples in B ...
in the city of
Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. Ob ...
,
Fukui Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Fukui Prefecture has a population of 737,229 (1 January 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,190 Square kilometre, km2 (1,617 sq mi). Fukui Prefecture border ...
,
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
.
History
The foundation of Myōtsū-ji is uncertain. Per temple records dated 1374, the temple was founded by the famous general
Sakanoue no Tamuramaro
was a court noble, general and ''shōgun'' of the early Heian period of Japan. He served as Dainagon, Minister of War and ''Ukon'e no Taisho'' (Major Captain of the Right Division of Inner Palace Guards). He held the ''kabane'' of Ōsukune an ...
in 806. Two of the structures of the temple date to the
Kamakura period
The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...
: the
Hondō
Main hall or Main Temple is the building within a Japanese Buddhist monastery compound ('' garan'') which enshrines the main object of veneration.Kōjien Japanese dictionary Because the various denominations deliberately use different terms, thi ...
and the
three-storey pagoda and both are designated
National Treasures
A national treasure is a structure, artifact, object or cultural work that is officially or popularly recognized as having particular value to the nation, or representing the ideals of the nation. The term has also been applied to individuals or ...
. A number of
Heian-period statues
A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone. Typical statues are life-sized or close to life-size. A sculpture ...
within these buildings are designated
Important Cultural Properties. The temple also has a
garden
A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate bot ...
with a pond.
Buildings
*
Hondō
Main hall or Main Temple is the building within a Japanese Buddhist monastery compound ('' garan'') which enshrines the main object of veneration.Kōjien Japanese dictionary Because the various denominations deliberately use different terms, thi ...
(1258) (
NT), also referred to as the has a floor plan of 14.09 m × 14.82 m. The building has a hipped roof with a distinctive roof beam and is covered with
cypress
Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs from the ''Cupressus'' genus of the '' Cupressaceae'' family, typically found in temperate climates and subtropical regions of Asia, Europe, and North America.
The word ''cypress'' ...
bark shingles (檜 皮 葺, Hiwada-buki). It was restored in 1923.
*
Three-storey pagoda (1270) (NT), with a total height of 22.13 meters is also covered with cypress bark shingles. It was restored in 1958.
*
Sanmon
A or is the most important mon of a Japanese Zen Buddhist temple, and is part of the Zen '' shichidō garan'', the group of buildings that forms the heart of a Zen Buddhist temple.JAANUS It can be often found in temples of other denominations ...
(1772) is an Obama City Cultural Property (C.ICP), and contains statues of the
Kongōrikishi which are dated 1264, and which are also Obama C.ICPs.
*
Shōrō
The two main types of bell tower in Japan
The or is the bell tower of a Buddhist temples in Japan, Buddhist temple in Japan, housing the temple's . It can also be found at some Shinto shrines which used to function as temples (see article ' ...
Treasures
* Seated wooden statue of
Yakushi Nyorai
Bhaiṣajyaguru (, zh, t= , , , , ), or ''Bhaishajyaguru'', formally Bhaiṣajya-guru-vaiḍūrya-prabha-rāja ("Medicine Master and King of Lapis Lazuli Light"; zh, t=藥師琉璃光(王)如來, , , ), is the Buddha of healing and medicine i ...
(
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means in Japanese. It is a ...
) (
Important Cultural Property),
Gohonzon
is a generic term for a venerated religious object in Japanese Buddhism. It may take the form of a scroll or statuary. The term typically refers to the mainstream use of venerated objects within Nichiren Buddhism, referring to the calligrap ...
* Standing wooden statue of
Gōzanze Myōō (Heian period) (ICP)
* Standing wooden statue of
Fudō Myōō
or Achala (, "The Immovable", ), also known as (, "Immovable Lord") or (, "Noble Immovable Lord"), is a wrathful deity and '' dharmapala'' (protector of the Dharma) prominent in Vajrayana Buddhism and East Asian Buddhism., Jp. rel. dict., ...
(Heian period) (ICP)
* Standing wooden statue of Jinja Daishō (Heian period) (ICP)
* Kenponchakushoku Hikohohodemi-no-mikoto
''emaki'', 6 scrolls (
Edo period
The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...
) (
Prefectural Cultural Property)
* 399 donor plaques dating from 1309 to 1694 (Prefectural Cultural Property)
See also
*
List of National Treasures of Japan (temples)
The term " National Treasure" has been used in Japan to denote cultural properties since 1897.
The definition and the criteria have changed since the inception of the term. The temple structures in this list were designated national treasures whe ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Myotsu-ji
Buddhist temples in Fukui Prefecture
National Treasures of Japan
9th-century establishments in Japan
Temples of Bhaiṣajyaguru
National Treasure of Fukui Prefecture
Buildings and structures in Obama, Fukui