is a Shingon Buddhism#Branches of Shingon, Shingi Shingon Buddhist temple of the Buzan-ha located halfway up a mountainside in the town of Mashiko, Tochigi, Japan.

History

Built in 737 and rebuilt in 1492, it is one of the four oldest temples in eastern Japan.

Features

It is the only temple where one can see a statue of a laughing Enma, the Judge of Hell. The temple also has a stand of ''shikeidake,'' a decorative bamboo originally from China with four-sided, rather than round, stalks that grow to 30 feet in height. -ji has been designated an Important Cultural Properties of Japan, Important Cultural Property by the Government of Japan.

References

Buddhist temples in Tochigi Prefecture Tochigi Prefecture designated tangible cultural property Designated historic sites of Tochigi Prefecture {{Japan-Buddhist-temple-stub