is a

Jōdo-shū , also known as Jōdo Buddhism, is a branch of Pure Land Buddhism derived from the teachings of the Japanese ex-Tendai monk Hōnen. It was established in 1175 and is the most widely practiced branch of Buddhism in Japan, along with Jōdo Shins ...

Buddhist temple in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

, Japan. It is the main temple of the

("Pure Land") Chinzei sect of Buddhism in the Kantō region,. Its mountain name is San'en-zan (三縁山). Zōjō-ji is notable for its relationship with the

Tokugawa clan The is a Japanese dynasty that was formerly a powerful '' daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of the Minamoto clan (Seiwa Genji) through the Matsudaira clan. The early history of this cl ...

, the rulers of Japan during the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional ''daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was character ...

, with six of the

Tokugawa shōguns Tokugawa may refer to: *Tokugawa era, an alternative term for the Edo period, 1603 to 1868 *Tokugawa shogunate, a feudal regime of Japan during the Edo period **Tokugawa clan, a powerful family of Japan ***Tokugawa Ieyasu (154 ...

being buried in the

Taitoku-in Mausoleum The Taitoku-in Mausoleum (台徳院霊廟, Taitokuin Reibyō) was an Edo period mausoleum for Shōgun Tokugawa Hidetada. It was located within the grounds of Zōjō-ji in Tokyo. The architecture of the mausoleum was sumptuous. It was largely destr ...

in the temple grounds. Also, the temple's ''Sangedatsumon'' (main gate) is the oldest wooden building in Tokyo, dating from 1622. The original buildings, temples, mausoleums and the cathedral were destroyed by fire, natural disasters or air raids during World War II. It is located in the Shiba neighborhood of

Minato Minato (港 or 湊) is Japanese for 'harbor', and may refer to: Places * Minato, Tokyo or Minato City, a special ward in Tokyo, Japan * Minato-ku, Nagoya, a ward of Nagoya, Japan * Minato-ku, Osaka, a ward of Osaka, Japan * Minato (湊), a neig ...

. The

Shiba Park is a public park in Minato, Tokyo, Japan built around the temple of Zōjō-ji. The park is located between the Minato municipal offices and Tokyo Tower. Many of the footpaths in the park offer excellent views of Tokyo Tower, so the park is a popu ...

is built around the temple, with the

Tokyo Tower is a communications and observation tower in the Shiba-koen district of Minato, Tokyo, Japan, built in 1958. At , it is the second- tallest structure in Japan. The structure is an Eiffel Tower-inspired lattice tower that is painted white and ...

standing beside it. In 2015 a Treasure Gallery was opened on the underground level of the ''Daiden'' (great hall), and it currently houses paintings of

Kanō Kazunobu Kanō Kazunobu (, 1816 – November 3, 1863) was a Japanese painter of the Kanō school. Kazunobu produced mainly Buddhist paintings and he is best known for his highly acclaimed ''Five Hundred Arhats''. Some of his other surviving works ...

and a model of the

History

Shūei (宗叡, 809-884), a disciple of

Kūkai Kūkai (; 27 July 774 – 22 April 835Kūkai was born in 774, the 5th year of the Hōki era; his exact date of birth was designated as the fifteenth day of the sixth month of the Japanese lunar calendar, some 400 years later, by the Shingon s ...

, founded a temple named Kōmyō-ji (光明寺) at Kaizuka (貝塚, present-day

Kōjimachi is a district in Chiyoda, Tokyo. History Prior to the arrival of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the area was known as . The area developed as townspeople settled along the Kōshū Kaidō. In 1878, the Kōjimachi area became , a ward of the city of Tokyo ...

Chiyoda, Tokyo is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward located in central Tokyo, Japan. It is known as Chiyoda City in English language, English.

); it is said to have been the forerunner of Zōjō-ji. In 1393, during the

Muromachi period The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate (''Muromachi bakufu'' or ''Ashikaga bakufu''), which was officially established in 1338 by ...

, the temple, under its abbot Yūyo Shōsō, converted from Shingon to the Jōdo school. Shōsō is thus regarded as the founder of Zōjō-ji. Together with

Kan'ei-ji (also spelled Kan'eiji or Kaneiji) is a Tendai Buddhist temple in Tokyo, Japan, founded in 1625 during the Kan'ei era by Tenkai, in an attempt to emulate the powerful religious center Enryaku-ji, in Kyoto. The main object of worship is .Nih ...

, during the

Zōjō-ji was the Tokugawa's

family temple An ancestral shrine, hall or temple ( or , vi, Nhà thờ họ; Chữ Hán: 家祠户), also called lineage temple, is a temple dedicated to deified ancestors and progenitors of surname lineages or families in the Chinese tradition. Ancestral ...

Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and fel ...

had the temple moved, first to Hibiya, then in 1590, at the time of expansion of Edo Castle, to its present location. With the fall of the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in ...

, the grounds took on the character of a public park. The temple was badly damaged in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, but still retains the air of a major temple.English pamphlet from Zōjō-ji

Architecture

At its peak the temple grounds had more than 120 buildings, but following the decline of Buddhism during the

Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

(1868-1912), most of them burned during the

Bombing of Tokyo The was a series of firebombing air raids by the United States Army Air Force during the Pacific campaigns of World War II. Operation Meetinghouse, which was conducted on the night of 9–10 March 1945, is the single most destructive bomb ...

. Reconstruction began after the war, with the ''Daiden'' (great hall) being rebuilt in 1974. Zojo-ji sanmon

PSM V43 D345 Inner gate leading to the tomb of shogun tokugawa in shiba tokyo

Sangedatsumon

The 21 meter (69 foot) two-storied main gate, was constructed in 1622, and it is therefore the oldest wooden building in Tokyo. The temple's only original structure to survive the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, it has been designated an Important Cultural Property. "San" (三) means "three", and "Gedatsu" (解脱) means "

Moksha ''Moksha'' (; sa, मोक्ष, '), also called ''vimoksha'', ''vimukti'' and ''mukti'', is a term in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism for various forms of emancipation, enlightenment, liberation, and release. In its soteriologica ...

". If someone passes through the gate, he can free himself from three passions (貪 ''Ton''; "greed", 瞋 ''Shin''; "hatred", 癡 ''Chi''; "foolishness"). On the upper floor are enshrined an image of

Gautama Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in ...

flanked by two attendants, and statues of the Sixteen Arhats.

Mausoleum of Tokugawa Shōguns

Six of the 15 Tokugawa shōguns are buried at Zōjō-ji. The

of Hidetada (and the monument to his wife Sūgen'in), Ienobu, and Ietsugu had been designated National Treasures of Japan, but were burned in World War II. At present, parts of two of their graves have the distinction of being

Important Cultural Properties of Japan An The term is often shortened into just is an item officially classified as Tangible Cultural Property by the Japanese government's Agency for Cultural Affairs ( Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology) and judged to be o ...

. Additional graves are located in the cemetery behind the Great Hall. Parts of the former grounds of the temple are now occupied by a park and two hotels.

Tokugawa Iemochi (July 17, 1846 – August 29, 1866) was the 14th ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, who held office from 1858 to 1866. During his reign there was much internal turmoil as a result of the "re-opening" of Japan to western nations. ...

also Iemochi's wife,

Kazu-no-Miya Chikako (''Kazunomiya'') was the wife of 14th ''shōgun'' Tokugawa Iemochi. She was renamed Lady Seikan'in-no-miya after she took the tonsure as a widow. She was the great-great-great aunt of Emperor Akihito, who reigned from 1989 to 2019. Biography ...

also buried in Zozo-ji.

Sentai Kosodate Jizō (Unborn Children Garden)

In one particular garden at the cemetery, rows of stone statues of children represent unborn children, including miscarried,

aborted Aborted is a Belgian death metal band formed in 1995 in Waregem. The group currently consists of vocalist, founder and only constant member Sven de Caluwé, guitarist Ian Jekelis, bassist Stefano Franceschini and drummer Ken Bedene. Although t ...

, and

stillborn Stillbirth is typically defined as fetal death at or after 20 or 28 weeks of pregnancy, depending on the source. It results in a baby born without signs of life. A stillbirth can result in the feeling of guilt or grief in the mother. The ter ...

children. Parents can choose a statue in the garden and decorate it with small clothing and toys. Usually the statues are accompanied by a small gift for Jizō, the guardian of unborn children, to ensure that they are brought to the afterlife. Occasionally stones are piled by the statue; this is meant to ease the journey to the afterlife.

Other structures

* Daiden (Great Hall) 1974 * Ankokuden * Sutra Repository * Treasures Gallery * Bell tower * Enko Daishi Hall * Koshoden

Access

There is no admission fee for visitors to enter the temple complex. For the Treasure Gallery museum the access fee is (, 700 yen). The entrance is at a 10-minute walk from Hamamatsucho Station on the JR Yamanote and Keihin-Tōhoku Lines, a 6-minute walk from Daimon Station on the Toei Asakusa and

Toei Oedo Line Toei or Tōei may refer to: * Tōei, Aichi, Japan * Toei Company, Japanese film and television production company ** Toei Animation, their animation subsidiary * , Japanese abbreviation meaning "operated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government" **Tr ...

s, a 3-minute walk from Onarimon and Shibakoen Stations on the

Toei Mita Line The is a subway line of the Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation (Toei) network in Tokyo, Japan. The line runs between Nishi-Takashimadaira in Itabashi and Meguro in Shinagawa. Trains continue with direct service into the Meguro Line ...

, and about 500 meters from the Shibakoen exit of the

Shuto Expressway is a network of toll expressways in the Greater Tokyo Area of Japan. It is operated and maintained by the . Most routes are grade-separated (elevated roads or tunnels) and central routes have many sharp curves and multi-lane merges that requi ...

. While not immediately obvious, the temple grounds are somewhat wheelchair-accessible if entering from the side street instead of the main gate.

Annual events

* Hatsumōde (New Year's visit) January * Kurohonzon Prayer Ceremony, 15 January * Setsubun Tsuina-shiki / Nehan Ceremony (Nirvana Day) February * Spring Higan Ceremony, March * Gyoki Ceremony / Buddha's Birthday (Flower Festival) April * Kurohonzon Prayer Ceremony, 15 May * O-bon / Kaisan-ki / Bon Odori, July * Peace Prayer Ceremony, August * Autumn Higan Ceremony / Takigi Noh, September * Kurohonzon Prayer Ceremony, 15 September * Juya Hoyo (Ten Nights of Prayer) November * Jodo Ceremony (Bodhi Day) / Butsumyo Ceremony / Joya no Kane (New Year's Eve Bell Ringing) December Monthly events * Sutra copying, 14th (except July and August) * Betsuji Nembutsu, 24th

Popular culture

Zōjō-ji was depicted multiple times in the art work of the Shin hanga artist

Kawase Hasui was an artist, one of modern Japan's most important and prolific printmakers. He was a prominent designer of the ''shin-hanga'' ("new prints") movement, whose artists depicted traditional subjects with a style influenced by Western art. Like man ...

during the 1920s and 30s. It was also shown in several

ukiyo-e Ukiyo-e is a genre of Japanese art which flourished from the 17th through 19th centuries. Its artists produced woodblock prints and paintings of such subjects as female beauties; kabuki actors and sumo wrestlers; scenes from history and folk ...

prints by

Hiroshige Utagawa Hiroshige (, also ; ja, 歌川広重 ), born Andō Tokutarō (; 1797 – 12 October 1858), was a Japanese ''ukiyo-e'' artist, considered the last great master of that tradition. Hiroshige is best known for his horizontal-format l ...

, in particular twice in his famous '' One Hundred Famous Views of Edo'' series from 1856–1858. ukiyo-e Ukiyo-e is a genre of Japanese art which flourished from the 17th through 19th centuries. Its artists produced woodblock prints and paintings of such subjects as female beauties; kabuki actors and sumo wrestlers; scenes from history and folk ...