is a temple of the

Jōdo Shinshū , also known as Shin Buddhism or True Pure Land Buddhism, is a school of Pure Land Buddhism founded by the former Tendai Japanese monk Shinran. Shin Buddhism is the most widely practiced branch of Buddhism in Japan. History Shinran (founder) S ...

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Pure Land Pure Land is a Mahayana, Mahayana Buddhist concept referring to a transcendent realm emanated by a buddhahood, buddha or bodhisattva which has been purified by their activity and Other power, sustaining power. Pure lands are said to be places ...

) school of

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

. It is located in Takachiho Town, Miyazaki, on

Kyūshū is the third-largest island of Japan's four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa and the other Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Islands). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regio ...

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 ...

's southernmost main island. The Shonen-ji temple complex is situated at the base of Genbuzan mountain, about 12 km outside central Takachiho. It was established there in 1578 by Tanio Yoshimura following the destruction of Genbu-jo, the Yoshimura clan's castle. Genbu-jo was burned and the principal Yoshimura family members killed when the Christian ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and no ...

'',

Ōtomo Sōrin , also known as Fujiwara no Yoshishige (藤原義鎮) or Ōtomo Yoshishige (大友義鎮), was a Japanese feudal lord (''daimyō'') of the Ōtomo clan, one of the few to have converted to Catholicism. The eldest son of , he inherited the Funa ...

, invaded from

Bungo Province was a province of Japan in the area of eastern Kyūshū, corresponding to most of modern Ōita Prefecture, except what is now the cities of Nakatsu and Usa. Bungo bordered on Hyūga to the south, Higo and Chikugo to the west, and Chikuze ...

in the north. According to temple records, Tanio Yoshimura experienced a revelation following the loss of the castle and then committed himself and his successors to a religious life in atonement for the many deaths that had occurred. In accordance with Jōdo Shinshū tradition, the position of head priest at Shonen-ji is hereditary through the eldest son. The present head priest, Junsho Yoshimura (b. 1958), is the seventeenth generation of his family to serve at Shonen-ji. Shonen-ji is unique (June 2011) among Japanese temples in that the English wife of the head priest is herself an ordained Kiyoshi (senior priest). In May 2006, Shonen-ji established a branch temple in the Kishinoue section of central Takachiho. The Kishinoue Kaikan (see image below) includes a meeting hall, a

mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type o ...

, and an English school.

Principal buildings

Takachiho-cho

* A stands at the main entrance to the temple. In 1978, a new bell was installed to mark the 400th anniversary of Shonen-ji's founding. The tower itself was rebuilt as a 3x2

ken Ken or KEN may refer to: Entertainment * ''Ken'' (album), a 2017 album by Canadian indie rock band Destroyer * ''Ken'' (film), a 1965 Japanese film * ''Ken'' (magazine), a large-format political magazine * Ken Masters, a main character in th ...

(bay) structure in 1986. *Shonen-ji's measures 7x7

(bays). The hall has been destroyed by fire twice in its history. The present structure dates from the early 20th century. *Nokotsu-dō (Mausoleum) 3x2

*Kaikan (Meeting Hall). Opened in December 2000. *Community Hall

Central Takachiho

*Kishinoue Kaikan (Branch temple, mausoleum, and English school) in the Kishinoue section of central Takachiho.

Gallery

File:Shonen-ji Entrance (1).jpg, Shonen-ji's Main Entrance File:Shoro-mon from north (2).jpg, Shōrō-mon seen from the courtyard File:Shonen-ji Hon-do.jpg, Shonen-ji Hon-dō (Main Hall) File:Shonen-ji Hon-do Roof.jpg, Main Hall (roof detail) File:Shonen-ji Kishinoue Kaikan.jpg, Shonen-ji Kishinoue Kaikan

References

External links

Shonen-ji Temple, Takachiho - Official Site

Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha - Official Site

Takachiho Tourism Site
* {{Buddhist temples in Japan Buddhist temples in Miyazaki Prefecture Pure Land Buddhism Pure Land temples