Toji-in

• Japanese: 等持院 (Touji-in)

Tôji-in is a Buddhist temple near the foot of Mt. Kinugasa in northwestern central Kyoto belonging to the Tenryû-ji school of Rinzai Zen. It is known as the site of the grave of Ashikaga Takauji, and the home of a number of wooden sculptures of Ashikaga shoguns that were beheaded in an infamous incident in the Bakumatsu period. The funerals for a number of notable members of the Ashikaga clan took place at Tôji-in.

History

Following the fall of the Ashikaga shogunate, the temple fell into ruin for a time, but was restored in 1606 by Toyotomi Hideyori. Most of the key buildings standing on the grounds today date to restoration efforts following an 1808 fire, completed in 1818.

The hôjô (main hall) was originally built by Fukushima Masanori in 1616 as the hôjô of Myôshin-ji; it was relocated to Tôji-in in 1818.

The temple's Reikôden contains a series of wooden statues of Ashikaga shoguns, and of Tokugawa Ieyasu, carved in the early Edo period.

References

• Plaques on-site.[1]