Rurikō-ji

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Rurikō-ji
瑠璃光寺
140720 Ruriko-ji Yamaguchi Yamaguchi pref Japan02s3.jpg
Rurikō-ji Pagoda
Religion
Affiliation Buddhist
Deity Yakushi Nyorai
Rite Sōtō
Statusfunctional
Location
Location7-1 Kayama-cho, Yamaguchi-shi, Yamaguchi-ken 781-7108
Country Flag of Japan.svg Japan
Yamaguchi geolocalisation relief.svg
Red pog.svg
Shown within Yamaguchi Prefecture
Japan natural location map with side map of the Ryukyu Islands.jpg
Red pog.svg
Rurikō-ji (Japan)
Geographic coordinates 34°11′24.65″N131°28′22.5″E / 34.1901806°N 131.472917°E / 34.1901806; 131.472917
Architecture
Completed1471
Ruriko-ji

Rurikō-ji (瑠璃光寺) is a Buddhist temple located in the Kayama neighborhood of the city of Yamaguchi, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. The temple belongs to the Sōtō school of Japanese Zen sect and its honzon is a statue of Yakushi Nyorai. The temple's full name is Honeizan Rurikōzen-ji (保寧山瑠璃光禪寺). It is noted for its Muromachi period Five-story Pagoda which is designated a National Treasure. [1]

Contents

History

Kōshaku-ji

Initially, this location was the site of a temple called Kōshaku-ji, built by order of Ōuchi Yoshihiro (1356-1399), the 25th chieftain of the Ōuchi clan. Yoshihiro died in battle against the forces of Shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu and his his younger brother, Ōuchi Moriakira, ordered the construction of a pagoda in his memory. However, Ōuchi Moriakira died in battles against the Shoni and Ōtomo clans in Kyushu in 1431, and the pagoda was not completed until 1442. After the fall of the Ōuchi clan, the victorious Mōri clan ordered that the Main Hall of the temple be dismantled and relocated at their stronghold of Hiroshima in Aki Province. This structure, which was competed in 1540 still exists as the Hondo of Fudo-in temple in Hiroshima and is a designated National Treasure.

Niho Rurikō-ji

Rurikō-ji was originally located in the area that currently corresponds to the Niho district of the city of Yamaguchi. It was built in memory of Sue Hirofusa, seventh leader of the Sue clan, in 1471 and was originally called Anyo-ji. It was renamed Ruriko-ji in 1492. In 1600, Mōri Terumoto was defeated in the Battle of Sekigahara and the victorious Tokugawa shogunate deprived him of most of his territories, including Aki Province. Making Hagi his new seat, he transferred Kōshaku-ji to Hagi in 1604. Rurikō-ji was transferred to the former site of Kōshaku-ji in 1690, where it also assumed the original name of the temple. [2]

Pagoda

The Rurikō-ji pagoda is the tenth oldest of the five-story pagodas in all of Japan, and one of the most prominent structures from the mid-Muromachi period to survive to the present day. At 31.2 meters high, the pagoda is characterized by the use of a cornice only on the second story. The roofs have hinoki cypress bark shingles rather than roof tiles. Some parts of the building are in the zenshūyo , with Chinese influence, including the inverted lotus-shaped ornaments on the railing of the first floor. The circular altar on the lower floor, contains statues of image of Amida Nyorai and Ōuchi Yoshihiro.

Other notable buildings

Mori clan cemetery

The Kōzan Cemetery at Rurikō-ji contains the tombs of the last leaders of the Mōri clan. Along with Tenshu-in, Daishō-in and Tōkō-ji cemeteries in Hagi, it is part of the Hagi Domain Mōri Clan Cemetery National Historic Site. [3] In the cemetery are the 13th daimyō Mōri Takachika and his wife, his heir Mototoku and his wife, his son Motoaki and his wife, a total of seven tombs of successive generations of the Mōri family, and other graves.

The temple is located approximately 30 minutes from Yamaguchi Station on the JR West San'yo Main Line. [2]

See also

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References

  1. "瑠璃光寺五重塔". Cultural Heritage Online (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved 25 December 2022.(in Japanese)
  2. 1 2 Isomura, Yukio; Sakai, Hideya (2012). (国指定史跡事典) National Historic Site Encyclopedia. 学生社. ISBN   4311750404.(in Japanese)
  3. "萩藩主毛利家墓所". Cultural Heritage Online (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved 25 December 2022.(in Japanese)

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