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京都府
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Kennin-ji Butsuden (Hatto)
京都府
Kyoto's oldest Zen temple founded by Eisai in 1202, housing Koizumi Junsaku's Twin Dragons ceiling and Sotatsu's Wind-and-Thunder Gods screens
Founded
1202
Type
Temple
Visited
Want to go
Access
About 7 min walk from Gion-Shijo Station (Keihan Main Line)
584 Komatsu-cho, Yamato-oji-dori Shijo-sagaru, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto
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Info
Temple
Founded 1202
824 years
Enshrined Deity
釈迦如来
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Buddhist Sect
Rinzai Zen (Kennin-ji branch)
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Overview
The central hall of Kennin-ji, Kyoto's oldest Zen temple, founded in 1202 with Eisai as opening abbot under the patronage of Minamoto no Yoriie. The ceiling of the Hatto (Dharma Hall) features the dynamic "Soryuzu" (Twin Dragons) painted by Koizumi Junsaku—a massive ink painting the size of 108 tatami mats. A replica of the National Treasure "Fujin Raijin-zu" (Wind and Thunder Gods Screen) by Tawa…
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Origins
Kennin-ji was founded in 1202 by the monk Eisai, who had brought Zen Buddhism from Song-dynasty China, under the patronage of Minamoto no Yoriie, the second shogun of the Kamakura shogunate. It is regarded as Kyoto's oldest Zen temple and one of Japan's earliest Zen establishments. In its early year…
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Divine Benefits
Warding Off Evil
Purification
Rebirth in Pure Land
Averting disaster, directional protection, warding off epidemics. Central at Fudo, Kannon, and Gion-related sites.
Derived from the enshrined deity "釈迦如来"

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Related Figures
— 2

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Minamoto no Yoriie
Second Shōgun of the Kamakura Shogunate
Age 20 at founding
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The Hatto of Kennin-ji, Kyoto's oldest Zen temple, was founded in 1202 with Minamoto no Yoriie as patron (kaiki) and Eisai as founding abbot.
Eisai
Father of Rinzai Zen & Japanese Tea
Age 61 at founding
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Kennin-ji, Kyoto's oldest Zen temple, was founded in 1202 with the Zen master Eisai as its founding priest. As the father of Japanese tea who brought tea seeds from Song China, Eisai made this a wellspring of both Zen and tea culture.
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Official Links
Official Site
kenninji.jp
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