The was a Buddhist temple located in what is the Yoshizaki neighbourhood of the city of Awara, Fukui, Japan. It is known for its connection to

Rennyo Rennyo (, 1415–1499) was the 8th Monshu (head priest) of the Hongan-ji Temple of the Jōdo Shinshū sect of Buddhism, and descendant of founder Shinran. Jodo Shinshu Buddhists often referred to as the restorer of the sect ( in Japanese). H ...

, the founder of the Ikkō sect of

Japanese Buddhism Buddhism has been practiced in Japan since about the 6th century CE. Japanese Buddhism () created many new Buddhist schools, and some schools are original to Japan and some are derived from Chinese Buddhist schools. Japanese Buddhism has had ...

. The ruins of the temple were designated a National Historic Site in 2012.

Overview

In 1457, Rennyo was appointed as the eighth chief abbot of Hongan-ji, on the outskirts of

Kyoto Kyoto (; 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 metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ...

. Under Rennyo's leadership, Hongan-ji began to expand the teachings of

Shinran ''Popular Buddhism in Japan: Shin Buddhist Religion & Culture'' by Esben Andreasen, pp. 13, 14, 15, 17. University of Hawaii Press 1998, was a Japanese Buddhist monk, who was born in Hino (now a part of Fushimi, Kyoto) at the turbulent close of ...

Pure Land A pure land is the celestial realm of a buddha or bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism. The term "pure land" is particular to East Asian Buddhism () and related traditions; in Sanskrit the equivalent concept is called a buddha-field (Sanskrit ). T ...

Buddhism to areas beyond the capital. However, the rapid growth of Hongan-ji was met with hostility by the orthodox

Tendai , also known as the Tendai Lotus School (天台法華宗 ''Tendai hokke shū,'' sometimes just "''hokke shū''") is a Mahāyāna Buddhist tradition (with significant esoteric elements) officially established in Japan in 806 by the Japanese ...

sect based at

Enryaku-ji is a Tendai monastery located on Mount Hiei in Ōtsu, overlooking Kyoto. It was first founded in 788 during the early Heian period (794–1185) by Saichō (767–822), also known as Dengyō Daishi, who introduced the Tendai sect of ...

Mount Hiei is a mountain to the northeast of Kyoto, lying on the border between the Kyoto and Shiga Prefectures, Japan. The temple of Enryaku-ji, the first outpost of the Japanese Tendai (Chin. Tiantai) sect of Buddhism, was founded atop Mount Hiei ...

, and in 1465, Hongan-ji was destroyed by militant monks from Enryaku-ji and Rennyo was forced to flee Kyoto. In 1471, he re-established Hongaki-ji at the small village of Yoshizaki on the border of

Echizen Province was a province of Japan in the area that is today the northern portion of Fukui Prefecture in the Hokuriku region of Japan. Echizen bordered on Kaga, Wakasa, Hida, and Ōmi Provinces. It was part of Hokurikudō Circuit. Its abbreviated for ...

with

Kaga Province was a province of Japan in the area that is today the south and western portion of Ishikawa Prefecture in the Hokuriku region of Japan. Kaga bordered on Echizen, Etchū, Hida, and Noto Provinces. It was part of Hokurikudō Circuit. Its ab ...

. This rectory, known as the "Yoshizaki-gobō" was the location from which he sent out many epistles explaining the teachings of his version of the Pure Land faith, known as the '' Ikkō-shū'', in colloquial Japanese, and was the location at which he reformed the ritual practices of the sect. It was also from this location that he implemented his vision of reforming society by creating a semi-theocratic republic, in which the traditional feudal landlords would be replaced by communal landholding by lay followers of the sect led by the priesthood, thus laying the foundations for the

Ikkō-ikki were rebellious or autonomous groups of people that were formed in several regions of Japan in the 15th-16th centuries; backed up by the power of the Jōdo Shinshū sect of Buddhism, they opposed the rule of governors or ''daimyō''. Mainly co ...

movement. The town of Yoshizaki had residences for both priests and lay followers and provided lodgings and other services, and rapidly attracted large numbers of pilgrims mainly from the northern provinces as far away as Dewa and Ōshū. However, Rennyo's success at Yoshizaki drew hostility from the traditional political authorities. The Yoshizaki-gobō burned down in 1474 and again in 1475. After this, Rennyo left Yoshizaki and returned to Kyoto. The Yoshizaki Hongan-ji continued to be used by his followers and the ''

Kaga ikki The Kaga ''ikki'', also known as The Peasants' Kingdom, was a theocratic feudal confederacy that emerged in Kaga Province (present-day southern Ishikawa Prefecture), Japan, during the late 15th and early 16th centuries. The Kaga ''ikki'' was a ...

'' movement until it was destroyed by the forces of the Asakura clan in 1506. A new temple was built on the site in 1747, belonging to the Ōtani-branch of the

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

movement.

Gallery

File:Yoshizaki Gobo mark.jpg, Monument on the site of the Yoshizaki-gobō File:Bronze statue of Rennyo Syonin.jpg, Bronze statue of Rennyo on the site of the Yoshizaki-gobō

References

External links

*
Fukui Prefecture official site
Buddhist temples in Fukui Prefecture Buddhist archaeological sites in Japan Historic Sites of Japan Pure Land temples Awara, Fukui 1470s in Japan 1471 in Asia Jōdo Shin temples Rennyo Buildings and structures completed in 1471 {{Japan-religious-struct-stub

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See also

References

External links