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The Gokoku-ji (lit. "Protection of the Nation Temple") in [[Tokyo]] was founded in [[1682]] as a private temple for [[Keishoin|Keishôin]], the mother of Shogun [[Tokugawa Tsunayoshi]].
The Gokoku-ji (lit. "Protection of the Nation Temple") in [[Tokyo]] was founded in [[1682]] as a private temple for [[Keishoin|Keishôin]], the mother of Shogun [[Tokugawa Tsunayoshi]].
The temple contains a [[Toshogu|Tôshôgû]], a [[Shinto]] shrine dedicated to the spirit of [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]], erected within the grounds in [[1691]]. Six years later, the main hall of the temple was rebuilt, and the temple was reestablished as a public temple, no longer a private space.
The temple is dedicated to Daigensui Myôô, a deity associated with the protection of the realm, and in particular the defeat or destruction of enemies of the state. Daigensui is also enshrined in at least one temple in [[Yamashiro province]], serving as protector of the Imperial capital of [[Kyoto]]; here, in [[Edo]], he was chosen as a guardian deity to protect the [[Tokugawa shogunate]].
The temple contains a [[Toshogu|Tôshôgû]], a [[Shinto]] shrine dedicated to the spirit of [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]], erected within the grounds in [[1691]]. Six years later, the main hall of the temple was rebuilt, and the temple was reestablished as a public temple, no longer a private space. Several buildings on the grounds, including the [[1697]] ''Hondô'' and the [[Muromachi period]] ''Gekkôden'', have been designated [[Important Cultural Properties]]. The [[Yakushi]] Hall (''Yakushi-dô''), also built in 1691, includes ''[http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/k/katoumado.htm katômado]'' windows, and other elements of [[Zen]] architecture, and remains unchanged from its original design, serving as an excellent example of [[Genroku]] period architecture.
The temple is dedicated to Daigensui Myôô, a deity associated with the protection of the realm, and in particular the defeat or destruction of enemies of the state. Daigensui is also enshrined in at least one temple in [[Yamashiro province]], serving as protector of the Imperial capital of [[Kyoto]]; here, in [[Edo]], he was chosen as a guardian deity to protect the [[Tokugawa shogunate]].
The previous Yakushi-dô was converted into a Daishi-dô ("Great Master Hall", dedicated to [[Kobo Daishi|Kôbô Daishi]]) in [[1701]]; it was renovated and relocated in 1926 to its current location. It is a relatively unadorned structure, and retains many features of medieval architecture. The temple's bell tower, similarly, is one of few surviving examples of a particular style of mid-Tokugawa-period ''hakama-goshi-tsuki jûsô irimoya-zukuri'' architecture. The bell itself, dating to the temple's founding in 1682, was a gift from Tokugawa Tsunayoshi in honor of his mother, Keishôin.
Another prominent object of worship at the temple is an image of the 33-bodied Buddha (''sanjûsanjin''), commissioned in [[1704]] by Keishôin upon her 77th birthday; each of the thirty-three statues contains a strand of Keishôin's hair, and one is believed to have been sculpted to represent Keishôin herself, as a spirit, deity, or Buddha helping to protect the shogun and his realm.
Another prominent object of worship at the temple is an image of the 33-bodied Buddha (''sanjûsanjin''), commissioned in [[1704]] by Keishôin upon her 77th birthday; each of the thirty-three statues contains a strand of Keishôin's hair, and one is believed to have been sculpted to represent Keishôin herself, as a spirit, deity, or Buddha helping to protect the shogun and his realm.
The temple is also home to a number of tearooms, including one associated with ''daimyô'' tea master [[Matsudaira Fumai]].
Adjacent to the Gokoku-ji is the [[Toshima-ga-oka Cemetery]], which contains exclusively Imperial graves.
Adjacent to the Gokoku-ji is the [[Toshima-ga-oka Cemetery]], which contains exclusively Imperial graves.
*[[Matsudaira Fumai]]
*[[Matsudaira Fumai]]
*[[Muto Nobuyoshi|Mutô Nobuyoshi]]<!--武藤信義-->
*[[Muto Nobuyoshi|Mutô Nobuyoshi]]<!--武藤信義-->
*[[Nanbu Toshihisa]] and his wife [[Tokugawa Akiko]] (Matsu-hime)
*[[Nanbu Toshinaga]]<!--南部利祥-->
*[[Nanbu Toshinaga]]<!--南部利祥-->
*[[Nanbu Toshiyuki]] and his wife
*[[Noma Seiji]]<!--野間清治-->
*[[Noma Seiji]]<!--野間清治-->
*[[Okuma Shigenobu|Ôkuma Shigenobu]]
*[[Okuma Shigenobu|Ôkuma Shigenobu]]
==References==
==References==
*Anne Walthall, "Hiding the shoguns: Secrecy and the nature of political authority in Tokugawa Japan," in Bernard Scheid and Mark Teeuwen (eds.) ''The Culture of Secrecy in Japanese Religion'', Routledge (2006), 347-348.
*Anne Walthall, "Hiding the shoguns: Secrecy and the nature of political authority in Tokugawa Japan," in Bernard Scheid and Mark Teeuwen (eds.) ''The Culture of Secrecy in Japanese Religion'', Routledge (2006), 347-348.
*Pamphlets available on-site.
*Plaques and Pamphlets available on-site.
==External Links==
==External Links==
