Koryuji Temple

Koryuji, the Temple of Nishiyama

Koryuji Temple (興隆寺) is a Shingon Daigo-school temple in Furuta, Tanbara-cho, Saijo City, Ehime Prefecture, whose main hall, rebuilt in 1375, was designated an Important Cultural Property in 1907 and whose Nanboku-cho-period stone hokyointo pagoda was designated in 1954. It is also called Nishiyama-dera and is widely known as Nishiyama Koryuji; its mountain name is Buppozan, its cloister name Butsugen-in, and its principal image is a Thousand-armed Kannon.

According to the Shikoku Bekkaku 20 Pilgrimage Association, the temple is said to have been founded by the monk Kuhatsu in 642, in the reign of Empress Kogyoku, and later visited by Gyoki, Hoon Daishi and Kobo Daishi. It was revered by the imperial court, warlords and domain lords, and is now temple number 10 of the Shikoku Bekkaku 20 pilgrimage.

The Precinct and Its Treasures

The Ehime Prefectural Board of Education describes Koryuji as lying in a quiet mountain valley. At the top of the approach path the precinct opens out, with the main hall at its centre (Iyokan-net), and the hokyointo pagoda stands to the right rear of the main hall as you face it (Ehime Prefectural Board of Education).

Besides the two buildings designated Important Cultural Properties, the main hall (with 1 inner shrine cabinet, 1 bracket block and 2 ridge tablets) and the stone pagoda, the temple holds a bronze bell of the same rank. The pilgrimage association also lists cultural properties designated by the prefecture and the former town, among them a bronze standing Buddha, the temple's documents and a three-storey pagoda.

The grounds are famous for autumn colour, earning the name Momiji no Nishiyama Koryuji, and in spring Somei-yoshino and weeping cherries bloom (Iyokan-net).

Visiting and Getting There

According to Ehime's official tourism site, Iyokan-net, the temple is open 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with no closing days. There is free parking for about 100 cars, except in November, when a fee of 300 yen per visit applies. Enquiries: 0898-68-7275.

The pilgrimage association says a taxi from Nyugawa Station on the JR Yosan Line takes about 15 minutes to the temple gate; by car, leave the Matsuyama Expressway at the Iyo-Komatsu Interchange and follow National Route 11. The address is 1657 Furuta, Tanbara-cho, Saijo City.