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A branch temple of [[Gokoku-ji (Okinawa)|Okinawa's Gokoku-ji]], the name "Rinkaiji" literally means "temple beside the sea," an appropriate name given its location; that location also earned it a number of common alternate names, all incorporating the character 『沖』 (''oki''), meaning, roughly, "in the open sea."

A branch temple of [[Gokoku-ji (Okinawa)|Okinawa's Gokoku-ji]], the name "Rinkaiji" literally means "temple beside the sea," an appropriate name given its location; that location also earned it a number of common alternate names, all incorporating the character 『沖』 (''oki''), meaning, roughly, "in the open sea."

It is unclear when Rinkai-ji was first built, though references to it date back at least as far as [[1609]], the location "Rinkai," and the existence of a temple there, being mentioned in ''[[Kyan nikki]]''. However, a temple bell dating to [[1459]] is also associated with the site, indicating the possibility that Rinkai-ji dated back that far as well.

It is unclear when Rinkai-ji was first built, though references to it date back at least as far as [[1609]], the location "Rinkai," and the existence of a temple there, being mentioned in ''[[Kyan nikki]]''. However, a temple bell dating to [[1459]] is also associated with the site, indicating the possibility that Rinkai-ji dated back that far as well. The bell, known as the Ippon-gongen bell <!--一品権現鐘-->, is said to have been cast and hung at Rinkai-ji by magistrate Yonafuku and builder Hanagusuku. Lost in 1945, the severely damaged bell was rediscovered in 1954, and is now held at the Okinawa Prefectural Museum.<ref>Gallery labels, Okinawa Prefectural Museum, August 2013.</ref>

The temple is featured in "The Sound of the Lake at Rinkai" (臨海湖声, ''Rinkai kosei''), one of [[Hokusai]]'s ''[[Ryukyu hakkei|Ryûkyû Hakkei]]'', or "Eight Views of Ryûkyû," a series of landscape prints published in [[1832]].

The temple is featured in "The Sound of the Lake at Rinkai" (臨海湖声, ''Rinkai kosei''), one of [[Hokusai]]'s ''[[Ryukyu hakkei|Ryûkyû Hakkei]]'', or "Eight Views of Ryûkyû," a series of landscape prints published in [[1832]].

In [[1908]], due to construction in the port, the temple was moved to the Naha neighborhood of Sumiyoshi-chô, where it came to incorporate a number of [[Shinto shrine]]s, including a [[Kumano gongen]] shrine, and a [[Hachiman]] shrine; as a result of its newfound association with [[Shinto]], the temple was renamed Oki-gû, or Oki Shrine.

In [[1908]], due to construction in the port, the temple was moved to the Naha neighborhood of Sumiyoshi-chô, where it came to incorporate a number of [[Shinto shrine]]s, including a [[Kumano gongen]] shrine, and a [[Hachiman]] shrine; as a result of its newfound association with [[Shinto]], the temple was renamed Oki-gû, or Oki Shrine.

The temple was destroyed in the 1945 Battle of Okinawa, and was rebuilt in 1967 in the Aja neighborhood of Naha. The hall was rebuilt in 1981, and today it stands in the Akebono neighborhood of Naha.

The temple was destroyed in the 1945 Battle of Okinawa, and was rebuilt in 1967 in the Aja neighborhood of Naha. The hall was rebuilt in 1981, and today it stands in the Akebono neighborhood of Naha. [[Oki Shrine]] survives as a separate Shinto shrine in Onoyama Park.

==References==

==References==

*"Rinkaiji" 臨海寺。 ''Okinawa Encyclopedia – Okinawa daihyakka jiten'' 沖縄大百科事典。Naha: Okinawa Times, 1983. vol. 3. p962.

*"Rinkaiji" 臨海寺。 ''Okinawa Encyclopedia – Okinawa daihyakka jiten'' 沖縄大百科事典。Naha: Okinawa Times, 1983. vol. 3. p962.

[[Category:Temples]]

[[Category:Temples]]

[[Category:Ryukyu]]

[[Category:Ryukyu]]