Hokekyoji Temple Soshido Hall

A Twin-Roofed Founder's Hall

The Hokekyoji Temple Soshido Hall (法華経寺祖師堂) is one of the largest Buddhist halls in the Kanto region, enshrining Nichiren and the six patriarchs of Nakayama under a twin hip-and-gable roof of 1678 in Nakayama, Ichikawa City, Chiba Prefecture, and was designated an Important Cultural Property on May 18, 1985 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

The Agency records a single-storey hall seven bays square with a twin hip-and-gable roof, a three-bay front porch and a one-bay rear porch; designation number 02167.

A Hall with a Twin Roof

The Soshido, or founder's hall, of Hokekyoji in Nakayama, Ichikawa City, Chiba, was built in 1678 and enshrines Nichiren and the six patriarchs of Nakayama (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Seven bays square, it is one of the largest Buddhist halls in the Kanto region.

Its roof is a twin hip-and-gable roof, two roofs set front and back, with a three-bay porch at the front and a one-bay porch at the rear (Agency for Cultural Affairs). The roof was for a time a single hip-and-gable roof in three tiers, but it was first built in this rare twin form with two tiers. According to an Ichikawa City area map, the name board "Soshido" was written by Hon'ami Koetsu.

Why It Is an Important Cultural Property

The Agency values the hall as one of the largest in Kanto, typical of the early modern halls supported by popular faith, with an interior that well shows mid-Edo features.

What to Look For

At the founder's hall, look for the rare twin hip-and-gable roof and the name board by Hon'ami Koetsu (Agency for Cultural Affairs; Ichikawa City).

Visiting

The hall is owned by Hokekyoji (Agency for Cultural Affairs). According to an Ichikawa City area map, the road running north from Keisei Nakayama Station leads to the temple approach.