Fifteen bays long, two full storeys
Engyoji Temple Jikido (円教寺食堂), the Refectory, stands on Mount Shosha in Shosha, Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture, was built around 1461 to 1466 in the Kansho era, and was designated an Important Cultural Property on 22 June 1955. The hall is fifteen bays wide and four deep, with two full storeys under a single Irimoya-zukuri roof of Hongawarabuki tiles. Jikido means the building where monks in training slept and ate, not a place that serves meals to visitors.
This is the hall that closes the west end of the raked sand court of the Mitsunodo. It runs about forty metres, which has earned it the nickname Nagado, the long hall. Its upper roof meets the roof of Jogyodo to the south, so from the court the two read almost as one continuous wall.
The building was once called Sanboin. The temple's own account has it founded in 1174 by decree of the retired emperor Go-Shirakawa, with a monk-form Monju as its principal image. Himeji City cites a tradition of a ridge-raising in 1338 but assigns the present structure, on stylistic grounds, to the middle of the Muromachi period.
A form without parallel
Engyoji Temple Jikido was designated because its scale and its form have no counterpart. The Agency for Cultural Affairs states plainly that the refectory is built with two complete storeys and that this is unique among early temple buildings. Himeji City goes further and calls it the largest two-storey Buddhist hall among Japan's designated cultural properties.
Pre-modern Buddhist halls commonly carry two roof levels over a single interior floor, and Daikodo across the court is exactly that. The Refectory is not. It has a floor at ground level and another above it. No other Japanese medieval temple building combines a length of fifteen bays with two genuine storeys.
There is also a long blank in its history. Begun in the medieval period, it was left unfinished for several centuries, and only the dismantling repair of 1963 brought it to its intended form. What visitors see at Engyoji Temple Jikido today is a design completed roughly five hundred years after it was started.
Two floors, two uses
The ground floor of Engyoji Temple Jikido is now a hall for sutra copying and the upper floor houses the temple's treasures. Of the three buildings around the sand court, this is the only one where visitors can spend real time inside.
Going up to the exhibition floor is what makes the length register. The line of columns recedes into the distance and the run of the floorboards becomes the measure of the room. The nickname Nagado only makes sense once you are standing in it.
For the exterior, take a position toward the east side of the court. Fifteen bays repeat horizontally and the railed veranda of the upper storey runs above them. The north end abuts the flank of Daikodo and the south end meets the roof of Jogyodo, so angles that isolate the Refectory on its own are surprisingly few. The far corner of the court is the practical choice.
Visiting
Engyoji Temple Jikido is the one hall in the Mitsunodo group open inside all year. Visitors can try sutra copying on the ground floor and view temple treasures on the upper floor. Services and special observances occasionally suspend both, so check with the temple office if your visit is fixed to a particular date.
Individual exhibits may carry their own photography notices. The rules for the building and the rules for what is displayed inside it are not always the same, so read the signage on the upper floor before raising a camera.
The Mitsunodo court is a few minutes on foot through the woods behind Maniden. Directions to the mountain and the conditions of entry are set out on the Shoshazan Engyoji Temple page. Reaching the upper floor means climbing stairs, so leaving bulky bags below makes the visit easier.
Q&A
- Is Engyoji Temple Jikido a restaurant?
- No. Jikido is the refectory of a monastery, the building where monks in training slept and took their meals. It served no visitors and sells no food today. It was formerly known as Sanboin.
- Can visitors go inside Engyoji Temple Jikido?
- Yes. The ground floor is a sutra-copying hall and the upper floor displays temple treasures. It is the only one of the three halls around the sand court that is open inside year-round.
- How big is Engyoji Temple Jikido?
- Fifteen bays wide and four deep, about forty metres long, with two full storeys under an irimoya roof of formal tiles. Himeji City calls it the largest two-storey Buddhist hall among Japan's designated cultural properties.
- When was Engyoji Temple Jikido built?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to around 1461 to 1466. A tradition places a ridge-raising in 1338, but the style points to the middle Muromachi period. It was finally completed during the dismantling repair of 1963.
- Can I copy sutras at Engyoji Temple Jikido?
- The ground floor is set up for it. Availability and reception hours can vary from day to day, so contacting the temple in advance is worthwhile if this is the reason for your visit.
Basic Information
| Name | Engyoji Temple Jikido (Refectory) |
|---|---|
| Location | 2968 Shosha, Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture |
| Designation | Important Cultural Property |
| Year Designated | 22 June 1955 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 15 bays wide, 4 bays deep, two storeys (about 40 metres long) |
| Owner | Engyoji Temple |
| Public Access | Open; sutra-copying hall on the ground floor, treasure display above |
References
- National Cultural Properties Database, Engyoji Jikido (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/102/2259
- Engyoji Jikido (Himeji City)
- https://www.city.himeji.lg.jp/kanko/0000001711.html
- Engyoji Keidai, the temple grounds (Himeji City)
- https://www.city.himeji.lg.jp/kanko/0000001716.html
Last verified: 2026.09.13
