Registered Tangible Cultural Properties · Kagawa

Zentsuji Tanjoin Temple Goma Hall

A 1940 Fire Ritual Hall at Zentsuji With a Two-Tier Copper Roof

A three-bay-square hall of 1940 at Zentsuji Tanjoin in Kagawa, with a two-tier copper pyramidal roof and deliberately archaic carving. Registered in 2010.

Designation Registered Tangible Cultural Properties

Location Kagawa

A Fire Ritual Hall Under a Double Roof

Zentsuji Tanjoin Temple Goma Hall is a single-storey wooden Buddhist hall in Zentsujicho, Zentsuji City, Kagawa Prefecture, built in 1940 and listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2010.

It faces south, northeast of the Shoryoden Hall. The plan is three bays by three, the interior divides into an inner and an outer sanctuary, and a veranda runs around the outside. The Hōgyō-zukuri pyramidal roof is sheathed in copper and built up in two tiers rather than one, with a one-bay Kōhai canopy projecting at the front. The building covers 79 square metres.

Goma is the Shingon fire ritual, in which offerings are burned before an altar, and the hall named for it occupies the northern quarter of the precinct. The Jizo Hall lies to the west of Zentsuji Tanjoin Temple Goma Hall and the Shoryoden Hall to the southwest, the three linked by a covered corridor.

Old Forms in a Modern Building

Zentsuji Tanjoin Temple Goma Hall was registered under the criterion of contributing to the historic landscape of the country, as number 37-0343.

The official description dwells on the detailing. The posts are round, the bracket sets are of the Mitsudo-gumi type, and short struts stand between them. The eaves carry two tiers of widely spaced rafters. Nose pieces, Kaerumata frog-leg struts and bracket arms are all cut in forms borrowed from earlier centuries. A building of 1940 was finished in a deliberately archaic idiom, and that is the substance of the case for listing it.

Japan's registration system covers buildings more than 50 years old, so a good deal of modern work falls within it. This hall shows how far traditional carpentry techniques were still being practised in the years before the Second World War.

What to Look For

Seen head on, the roof clearly rises in two stages, the lower covering the body of the hall and a smaller upper tier sitting above it. Against a single pyramidal roof the arrangement gains shadow and apparent height.

Then step in and look up under the eaves. Bracket sets and struts alternate at regular intervals above the posts, with rafters running in two layers behind them. The carving on the nose pieces and frog-leg struts is deep, set off against the settled green of the copper. The densest concentration of timber on Zentsuji Tanjoin Temple Goma Hall is directly under the front canopy, which is where it pays to stop.

Visiting Zentsuji Tanjoin Temple Goma Hall

The hall stands north of the Mieido Hall at the end of the covered corridor. Its south face is clear of other buildings, making it one of the few structures in the precinct that can be seen whole from directly in front.

The temple publishes opening hours for the main hall and the Mieido Hall; no interior visit is advertised here. When a fire ritual is held, people gather in front of the building and it is better viewed from a distance. Nothing is posted about photography, so ask at the desk inside the Mieido Hall if you intend to shoot into the interior.

📍 Plan Your Visit to Kagawa: Find tours, activities & transport passes near Zentsuji Tanjoin Temple Goma Hall; [ Naoshima Art Island & Kotohiragu Shrine Visit ]

Q&A

QWhen was Zentsuji Tanjoin Temple Goma Hall built?: AIn 1940, the same year as the Jizo Hall and the Shoryoden Hall, to which it is joined by a covered corridor.

QWhat is the roof of Zentsuji Tanjoin Temple Goma Hall like?: AA copper-sheathed pyramidal roof built in two tiers, with a one-bay canopy projecting over the entrance.

QCan visitors go inside Zentsuji Tanjoin Temple Goma Hall?: ANo interior visit is offered, but the open south side allows a full view of the front from outside.

QWhat should visitors notice at Zentsuji Tanjoin Temple Goma Hall?: AThe underside of the eaves seen from below the front canopy, where bracket sets, struts and deeply carved nose pieces are packed together.

QHow big is Zentsuji Tanjoin Temple Goma Hall?: AThree bays by three, covering 79 square metres, with a veranda running around all four sides.

Basic Information

Name	Zentsuji Tanjoin Temple Goma Hall
Location	3-615 Zentsujicho, Zentsuji City, Kagawa Prefecture
Designation	Registered Tangible Cultural Property
Year Designated	Registered in 2010
Quantity	1 building
Dimensions	Single-storey wooden structure, copper roof, building area 79 square metres
Owner	Zentsuji Religious Corporation
Public Access	Exterior visible at any time; no interior visit offered