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Engakuji Temple

Temple of Perfect Enlightenment

Engaku-ji Temple is ranked second among Kamakura's Five Mountains, and is the head temple of the Rinzai sect of the Engaku-ji School of Zen Buddhism, which was founded by Hojo Tokimune in 1282 and is dedicated to Shakyamuni with a Jeweled Crown. The temple is home to Japanese national treasures such as the Great Bell and the Reliquary hall.

In 1282, the eighth Kamakura Shogunate ruler, Hojo Tokimune, invited the Chinese Rinzai Buddhist monk, Mugaku Sogen, to found the temple in Kamakura to reincarnate the souls of both sides who died in the Mongol invasion of Japan.

Engaku-ji Temple 瑞鹿山円覚興聖禅寺 is ranked second among Kamakura’s Five Mountains, and is the head temple of the Rinzai sect of the Engaku-ji School of Zen Buddhism. It is built on a hilly site in the middle of a valley, and the temple’s halls rise with the mountain, forming a spectacular complex.

Manywhere Trivia:
The Five Mountains of Kamakura are the five highest-ranking Zen temples in Kamakura, modeled after the official Chinese temple hierarchy of the Song dynasty. They are Kencho-ji, Engaku-ji, Jufuku-ji, Jochi-ji and Jomyo-ji.

Sanmon, the Main Gate of Engaku-ji Temple was built in 1785 and is the only surviving building in the temple after the Great Kanto Earthquake in Japan. Through the Sanmon Gate, stands Butsuden, the Main Buddha Hall, which was rebuilt in 1964 and houses the seated statue of Shakyamuni with a Jeweled Crown (Hokan Shaka Nyorai). The White Dragon in the coffered ceiling was painted Tadashi Moriya under the supervision of art master Seison Maeda.

Hojo 方丈 behind the Buddha Hall was originally the abbot’s quarters, but is now the venue for various sermons, meditation and sutra sessions, with a Japanese garden landscape.

National Treasure Shariden

Engaku-ji Temple has a long history and is home to national treasures of Japan such as the Ogane and Shariden 舎利殿 (Reliquary Hall). The national treasure Ogane, the Great Bell standing 2.6 meters tall on the top of the hill to the southeast of the Sanmon Gate was cast in 1310 and is said to be the largest bronze bell in the Kanto region. Inside Shariden 舎利殿, the Reliquary Hall, there is a relic of Buddha’s tooth from China.

There are also many sub-temples within the territory of Engaku-ji Temple, such as the Butsunichian 仏日庵, the burial site of Hojo Tokimune.