is a temple of the

Nichiren Shū was a Buddhism in Japan, Japanese Buddhist priest and philosopher of the Kamakura period. His teachings form the basis of Nichiren Buddhism, a unique branch of Japanese Mahayana, Mahayana Buddhism based on the ''Lotus Sutra''. Nichiren declar ...

in the city of

Fujisawa, Kanagawa is a Cities of Japan, city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 439,728 and a population density of 6300 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Fujisawa is in the south-central part of Kan ...

Prefecture, Japan. It stands on the site of the former Tatsukuchi (or Tatsunokuchi) Execution Grounds, and its name uses the same two

kanji are logographic Chinese characters, adapted from Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script, used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are ...

meaning "dragon mouth"(). It was here that

Nichiren was a Japanese Buddhist priest and philosopher of the Kamakura period. His teachings form the basis of Nichiren Buddhism, a unique branch of Japanese Mahayana Buddhism based on the '' Lotus Sutra''. Nichiren declared that the '' Lotus Sutra ...

, namesake of the Buddhist sect, was to have been executed, but was spared. It was founded in 1337 by Nippō, a disciple of Nichiren. Major buildings at the temple include a ''

hondō Main hall or Main Temple is the building within a Japanese Buddhist monastery compound ('' garan'') which enshrines the main object of veneration.Kōjien Japanese dictionary Because the various denominations deliberately use different terms, thi ...

'' (main hall), a five-story pagoda, a

stupa In Buddhism, a stupa (, ) is a domed hemispherical structure containing several types of sacred relics, including images, statues, metals, and '' śarīra''—the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns. It is used as a place of pilgrimage and m ...

(''sharitō''), and the Shichimendō. The cave where Nichiren was confined is preserved on the grounds. A statue of him stands in the courtyard in front of the ''hondō''. Ryūkō-ji is a short walk from

Enoshima Station is a commuter railway station on the Enoshima Electric Railway (Enoden) located in the city of Fujisawa, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Lines Enoshima Station is served by the Enoshima Electric Railway Main Line and is from the terminus of t ...

on the

Enoshima Electric Railway is a private railway operator in Kanagawa Prefecture, Kanagawa, Japan. Its sole line, the Enoshima Dentetsu Line, connects Kamakura Station in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura with Fujisawa Station in Fujisawa, Kanagawa, Fujisawa. Both the company ...

, and from

Shōnan-Enoshima Station is a monorail train station on the Shōnan Monorail Enoshima Line located in Fujisawa, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is the southern terminus of the Shōnan Monorail Enoshima Line and is located 6.6 kilometers from the northern terminus at � ...

on the

Shonan Monorail The is a suspended SAFEGE monorail in the cities of Kamakura and Fujisawa in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by the which belongs to Michinori Holdings, and opened on March 7, 1970, the first monorail of its kind in Japan. Trai ...

On the grounds

File:Ryukoji-M8719.jpg, Marker at site of execution grounds File:Ryukoji-M8727.jpg, Outer gate File:Ryukoji-M8736.jpg, Inner gate File:Ryukoji-M8752.jpg, Cave where Nichiren was confined File:Ryukoji03.jpg, Stupa File:Ryukoji-gojyunoto.jpg

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ryuko-Ji Buddhist temples in Kanagawa Prefecture Nichiren-shū temples