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京都府
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Konkai Komyoji
京都府
Jodo head temple 'Kurodani-san' where Honen first chanted nembutsu in 1175, later headquarters of the Aizu domain and reputed birthplace of the Shinsengumi
Founded
1175
Type
Temple
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Info
Temple
Founded 1175
851 years
Enshrined Deity
阿弥陀如来
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Buddhist Sect
Jodo
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Overview
Head temple of the Jodo sect, fondly known as "Kuro-dani-san," originating in 1175 when Honen Shonin first expounded the teachings of nembutsu at this site. In the late Edo period the Aizu domain under Matsudaira Katamori, serving as Kyoto Protector, established its main camp here, making it a historic site associated with the origins of the Shinsengumi. From the three-storied pagoda (Monju Tower)…
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Origins
The temple traces its origins to 1175, when Honen Shonin descended from Mount Hiei and first expounded the nembutsu teachings at this site. According to tradition, Honen witnessed auspicious purple clouds when he chanted the nenbutsu here, and the site came to be venerated as a sacred place of the J…
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Shinbutsu Reijo Pilgrimage
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Divine Benefits
Purification
Rebirth in Pure Land
Cleansing impurity, spiritual purification, driving away evil. Rooted in misogi ablutions and goma fire rites.
Derived from the enshrined deity "阿弥陀如来"

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Related Articles
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記
The Nembutsu Revolution — The Day Honen Opened Buddhism to the People with 'Namu Amida Butsu'
Honen (1133–1212) mastered Tendai Buddhism on Mt. Hiei before founding Jodo Shu in 1175. His teaching of exclusive nembutsu — that simply chanting 'Namu Amida Butsu' is enough for anyone to reach the Pure Land — liberated Buddhism from aristocratic and clerical monopoly. Despite fierce persecution, his teaching became the wellspring of Pure Land Buddhism, flowing into the traditions of disciples Shinran and Ippen.
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人
Related Figures
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H
Honen
Founder of Jodo Shu
Age 42 at founding
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Tradition holds that in 1175, after leaving Mount Hiei, Honen first preached the nembutsu here, making it the earliest Jodo hermitage. Affectionately called Kurodani-san, it is a principal temple of the sect.
Hijikata Toshizo
Vice-Commander of the Shinsengumi
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In 1863, Hijikata Toshizo came to Kyoto with Kondo Isami as part of the Roshigumi. When part of the group returned to Edo, Hijikata and Kondo stayed, seeking the protection of the Aizu domain under Matsudaira Katamori, Kyoto's military governor, whose headquarters stood at Konkai-komyoji. This became the origin of the Shinsengumi, giving the temple its name as their birthplace.
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