is a

Tendai , also known as the Tendai Dharma Flower School (天台法華宗, ''Tendai hokke shū,'' sometimes just ''Hokkeshū''), is a Mahāyāna Buddhist tradition with significant esoteric elements that was officially established in Japan in 806 by t ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

located on

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 by ...

Ōtsu 270px, Ōtsu City Hall is the capital city of Shiga Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 343,991 in 153,458 households and a population density of 740 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . History Ōtsu is ...

, overlooking

Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. , the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it t ...

. It was first founded in 788 during the early

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means in Japanese. It is a ...

(794–1185) by Saichō (767–822), also known as Dengyō Daishi, who introduced the Tendai sect of

Mahayana Mahāyāna ( ; , , ; ) is a term for a broad group of Buddhist traditions, Buddhist texts#Mahāyāna texts, texts, Buddhist philosophy, philosophies, and practices developed in ancient India ( onwards). It is considered one of the three main ex ...

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

from

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. The temple complex has undergone several reconstruction efforts since then, with the most significant (that of the main hall) taking place in 1642 under

Tokugawa Iemitsu was the third ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate, Tokugawa dynasty. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Hidetada with Oeyo, and the grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Lady Kasuga was his wet nurse, who acted as his political adviser and was at the ...

. Enryaku-ji is the headquarters of the Tendai sect and one of the most significant monasteries in Japanese history. As such, it is part of the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

" Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto (Kyoto, Uji and Otsu Cities)". The founders of

Jōdo-shū Jōdo-shū (浄土宗, "The Pure Land School"), is a Japanese branch of Pure Land Buddhism derived from the teachings of the Kamakura era monk Hōnen (1133–1212). The school is traditionally considered as having been established in 1175 and i ...

, ,

Sōtō Zen Sōtō Zen or is the largest of the three traditional sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism (the others being Rinzai school, Rinzai and Ōbaku). It is the Japanese line of the Chinese Caodong school, Cáodòng school, which was founded during the ...

, and

Nichiren Buddhism Nichiren Buddhism (), also known as ''Hokkeshū'' (, meaning ''Lotus Sect''), is a branch of Mahayana Buddhism based on the teachings of the 13th-century Japanese Buddhist priest Nichiren (1222–1282) and is one of the Kamakura period school ...

all spent time at the monastery. Enryaku-ji is also the center for the practice of kaihōgyō (aka the "marathon monks").

History

With the support of Emperor Kanmu, the Buddhist monk Saichō ordained a hundred disciples in 807. Maintaining a strict discipline on Mt. Hiei, his monks lived in seclusion for twelve years of study and

meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique to train attention and awareness and detach from reflexive, "discursive thinking", achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state, while not judging the meditat ...

. After this period, the best students were retained in positions in the monastery and others graduated into positions in the government. At the peak of its power, Enryaku-ji was a huge complex of as many as 3,000 sub-temples and a powerful army of . In the tenth century, succession disputes broke out between Tendai monks of the line of Ennin and Enchin. These disputes resulted in opposing Tendai centers at Enryaku-ji and at Mii-dera, known respectively as the and the . Warrior monks were used to settle the disputes, and Tendai leaders began to hire mercenary armies who threatened rivals and even marched on the capital to enforce monastic demands. As part of a program to remove all potential rivals and unite the country, warlord

Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...

ended this Buddhist militancy in 1571 by attacking Enryaku-ji, leveling the buildings and slaughtering monks. Enryaku-ji's current structures date from the late 16th century through the first half of the 17th century, when the temple was reconstructed following a change of government. Only one minor building survived, the ''Ruri-dō'' (るり堂, "

Lapis Lazuli Lapis lazuli (; ), or lapis for short, is a deep-blue metamorphic rock used as a semi-precious stone that has been prized since antiquity for its intense color. Originating from the Persian word for the gem, ''lāžward'', lapis lazuli is ...

Hall"), which is located down a long, unmarked path from the ''Sai-tō'' complex. The structure dates to the 13th century and was repaired twice during the 20th century following harsh weather. During reconstruction, some buildings were transferred from other temples, notably Mii-dera, and thus the buildings themselves are old, though they have not always been at this location. Today, most of Enryaku-ji's buildings are clustered in three areas: ''Tō-dō'' (東塔, "East Pagoda"), ''Sai-tō'' (西塔, "West Pagoda"), and ''Yokokawa'' (横川). The monastery's most important buildings are concentrated in ''Tō-dō''. ''Sai-tō'' is a 20-minute walk away, primarily downhill from ''Tō-dō'', and also features several important buildings. ''Yokokawa'' is more isolated and less visited, about a 1:30 walk, and is most easily reached by bus, which connects the three complexes and other locations on the mountain. On April 4, 2006, Enryaku-ji performed a ceremony for former leaders of

Yamaguchi-gumi is Japan's largest ''yakuza'' organization. It is named after its founder Harukichi Yamaguchi. Its origins can be traced back to a loose labor union for longshoreman, dockworkers in Kobe before World War II. It is one of the largest organized cr ...

, by far the largest

yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media (by request of the police) call them , while the yakuza call themselves . The English equivalent for the term ''yak ...

organization in Japan. Because such temple ceremonies have been used for Yamaguchi-gumi fund-raising and demonstrations of power, the Shiga Prefectural Police requested that Enryaku-ji cease performance of the ceremony. Rejecting the request, Enryaku-ji received crime-related money for the ceremony and allowed nearly 100 upper-level Yamaguchi-gumi leaders to attend. After reports in the ''

Asahi Shimbun is a Japanese daily newspaper founded in 1879. It is one of the oldest newspapers in Japan and Asia, and is considered a newspaper of record for Japan. The ''Asahi Shimbun'' is one of the five largest newspapers in Japan along with the ''Yom ...

'' and ''

Yomiuri Shimbun The is a Japanese newspaper published in Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, Fukuoka, Fukuoka, and other major Japanese cities. It is one of the five major newspapers in Japan; the other four are ''The Asahi Shimbun'', the ''Chunichi Shimbun'', the ''Ma ...

'' newspapers, Enryaku-ji faced a nationwide scandal. The temple was also criticized by the Japan Buddhist Temple Association (representing 75,000 Buddhist temples), which led a movement against the yakuza. Finally on May 18, all representative directors of Enryaku-ji resigned, apologizing on their website and in e-mails which were sent to 3,000 branch temples.

Gallery

File:Enryakuji Daikodo01n3200.jpg, File:Enryakuji Kanchodo01n3200.jpg, File:Enryakuji Monjuro02n3200.jpg, File:Enryakuji Shoro01n4272.jpg, File:Enryakuji Toto01n3200.jpg, File:Enryakuji Amidado.jpg, File:Enryakuji Kaidanin01n3200.jpg, File:Enryaku-ji Yokokawa-chudo-r.jpg,

Gallery

Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Sanjo scroll File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Sanjo scroll part 8.jpg File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Sanjo scroll part 7.jpg File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Sanjo scroll part 6.jpg File:Heiji no ran.jpg File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Sanjo scroll part 4.jpg File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Sanjo scroll part 3.jpg File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Sanjo scroll part 2.jpg File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Sanjo scroll part 1.jpg Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Shinzei Scroll File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Shinzei Scroll d1.jpg File:Heiji.JPG File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Shinzei Scroll d2.jpg Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Rokuhara scroll File:Narrative picture scroll of the Heiji Civil War (Scroll of Shinzei).jpg File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Rokuhara scroll part 8.jpg File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Rokuhara scroll part 7.jpg File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Rokuhara scroll part 6.jpg File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Rokuhara scroll part 5.jpg File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Rokuhara scroll part 4.jpg File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Rokuhara scroll part 3.jpg File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Rokuhara scroll part 2.jpg File:Heiji Monogatari Emaki - Rokuhara scroll part 1.jpg

Notes

References

* Ponsonby-Fane, Richard Arthur Brabazon. (1956). ''Kyoto: The Old Capital of Japan, 794–1869.'' Kyoto: The Ponsonby Memorial Society.

External links

*
Japan Atlas: Enryaku-Ji Temple
8th-century establishments in Japan Nara period Buddhist temples in Shiga Prefecture World Heritage Sites in Japan Buildings and structures in Ōtsu Tendai Tendai temples National Treasures of Japan Important Cultural Properties of Japan Historic Sites of Japan 788 establishments Religious buildings and structures completed in the 780s Temples of Bhaiṣajyaguru {{Hiyoshi Faith

History

Gallery

Gallery

See also

Notes

References

External links