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Koshoji Temple

Koshoji Temple Koshoji Temple Koshoji Temple Koshoji Temple Koshoji Temple Koshoji Temple Koshoji Temple

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Koshoji Temple was founded in 1243 when Zen Master Dogen, the founder of the Soto sect, recommended the construction of a temple to Sasaki Nobutsuna, who was residing in Kutsukisho for a time, when he was heading from the capital to Echizen. From the temple grounds, you can see the vast and majestic scenery of the Azumi River and Kaminoyama. Kutsuki is said to be the place where the 1528th Shogun, Ashikaga Yoshiharu, stayed in XNUMX to escape the wars in Kyoto. The XNUMXth Shogun, Yoshiteru, also stayed there for over six years, escaping the wars in Kyoto. The Muromachi period was administered here and XNUMX employees lived there. In addition to the main hall, the quiet temple grounds are lined with a kuri (kitchen) and a bell tower. The wooden seated Shaka Nyorai statue, the principal image of the temple, is a masterpiece from the Heian period, said to be the last work of Dengyo Daishi, and is made of cypress inlaid with wood. Its grace and dignity have made it a designated Important Cultural Property of Japan.
<Former Shurinji Garden (also known as Ashikaga Garden)>
Located within the grounds of Kosho-ji Temple, this garden was designated a National Place of Scenic Beauty in 1935. Originally a residence garden, the gardens of the Muromachi Shogunate's 12th and 13th Shoguns, Ashikaga Yoshiharu and Yoshiteru, stayed for several years in the mid-16th century, fleeing a succession of rebellions by warlords. Shurin-ji Temple was later moved to another location, and during the Edo period, the family temple of the Kutsuki clan, Kosho-ji Temple, was relocated to this site, where it remains to this day. It is said to have been gifted to the Shogun by Kanrei Hosokawa Takakuni with the cooperation of the Kutsuki clan, as well as the Sasaki clan, including Kyogoku Takahide, Azai Suemasa, and Asakura Takakage. The gardens, featuring the clear waters of the Azumi River and the Hira Mountains, feature a stone waterfall on the western hill and a curving pond with a shoreline. Two crane and turtle islands are placed in the pond, and a stone bridge made of fossilized camphor trees connects it to Dejima on the opposite shore. This is one of Takakuni Hosokawa's masterpieces and is also known as the former Shurinji Temple Garden.

Admission fee: 500 yen per person

Address
374 Kuchikiiwase, Takashima City, Shiga Prefecture
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Contact Us
TEL：0740-38-2103
Access
From JR Azumigawa Station, take the bus (Kuchiki Line) for about 35 minutes, get off at "Kuchiki School Mae" and walk for about 15 minutes

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