Sennyū-ji
Sennyū-ji (泉涌寺 Sennyū-ji), formerly written as Sen-yū-ji[1] (仙遊寺 Sen'yū-ji) , is a Buddhist temple in Higashiyama-ku in Kyoto, Japan.[2] For centuries, Sennyū-ji was a mortuary temple for aristocrats and the imperial house. Located here are the official tombs of Emperor Shijō[3] and many of the emperors who came after him.[1]
History
Sennyū-ji was founded in the early Heian period.[1] The origin of this temple, which is commonly called Mitera or Mi-dera, can be traced back to the Tenchō era (824-834) when the priest Kūkai established a small temple in this location. That modest structure and community were initially known as Hōrin-ji.[2] The major buildings in Sennyū-ji was very much reconstructed and enlarged in the early 13th century.[2]
Tsukinowa no misasagi
Emperor Go-Horikawa and Emperor Shijō were the first to be enshrined in an Imperial mausoleum at Sennyū-ji. It was called Tsukinowa no misasagi.[4]
Go-Momozono is also enshrined in Tsukinowa no misasagi along with his immediate Imperial predecessors since Emperor Go-Mizunoo -- Meishō, Go-Kōmyō, Go-Sai, Reigen, Higashiyama, Nakamikado, Sakuramachi, Momozono and Go-Sakuramachi.[5]
Nochi no Tsukinowa no Higashiyama no misasagi
Kokaku, Ninko, and Komei are also enshrined at Nochi no Tsukinowa no Higashiyama no misasagi (後月輪東山陵).[6]
Art
Sennyū-ji's large nehan-zu painting depicts Buddha on his death bed. This massive image (8 meters x 16 meters) is the largest in Japan. The image at nearby Tōfuku-ji is the second largest of its kind in Japan, measuring 7 meters x 14 meters. Both images are only rarely displayed, most recently in 2003 for three days only.[7]
See also
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sennyuji. |
- Tsuki no wa no misasagi
- Tōfuku-ji
- List of Buddhist temples in Kyoto
- Thirteen Buddhist Sites of Kyoto
- List of National Treasures of Japan (ancient documents)
- For an explanation of terms concerning Japanese Buddhism, Japanese Buddhist art, and Japanese Buddhist temple architecture, see the Glossary of Japanese Buddhism.
Notes
- 1 2 3 Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1956). Kyoto: The Old Capital of Japan, p. 113.
- 1 2 3 Sennyu-ji
- ↑ Pononsby-Fane, Richard. (1959). The Imperial House of Japan, p. 422.
- ↑ Ponsonby-Fane, Imperial House, p. 422; Sennyū-ji: Imperial mausoleum enclosure.
- ↑ Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). The Imperial House of Japan, p. 423.
- ↑ Ponsonby-Fane, Imperial House, p. 423; Sennyū-ji: Imperial mausoleum enclosure.
- ↑ "Kansai: Who -- What: Giant Buddhas shown for three days only," Japan Times Online. March 9, 2003.
References
- Hall, John Whitney, James L. McClain, Marius Jansen (1991). The Cambridge History of Japan: Early modern Japan. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-22355-3; OCLC 17483588
- Ponsonby-Fane, Richard Arthur Brabazon. (1956). Kyoto: The Old Capital of Japan, 794-1869. Kyoto: Ponsonby Memorial Society. OCLC 182637732
- __________. (1959). The Imperial House of Japan. Kyoto: Ponsonby Memorial Society. OCLC 194887
- (Japanese) 京都御寺泉涌寺展: 昭和47年3月16日--28日 (A guide to the Sennyū-ji Temple). Kyoto: Asahi Shinbun. 1972 March 16, 1972.
External links
- (Japanese) Senyū-ji website
Coordinates: 34°58′41″N 135°46′50″E / 34.97806°N 135.78056°E