Chion-in Temple Seishido Hall

Where Chion-in Began

The Chion-in Temple Seishido Hall (知恩院勢至堂) is the late Muromachi Seishido hall on the upper level of Chion-in in Rinka-cho, Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, which in 1899 was designated an Important Cultural Property.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs records a single-storey hip-and-gable hall seven bays square with a traditional tile roof.

Chion-in explains that the site was Honen's hermitage at Otani, where he spread the practice of the nembutsu, and is where Chion-in began.

History

According to Chion-in, the present hall was rebuilt in 1530, a single-storey hip-and-gable tiled hall seven bays square, 21 by 20 metres, and the oldest surviving building at Chion-in.

The plaque reading Chion Kyoin at the front of the interior is in the hand of Emperor Gonara, and is the origin of the name Chion-in.

What to Look For

Chion-in explains that the principal image was originally a statue of Honen, moved when the present main hall was built; since then the hall has enshrined Seishi Bosatsu, regarded as Honen's original Buddhist form, hence its name.

The temple notes that forest green tree frogs, a natural monument, come to spawn each May and June in the small Shiunsui pond below the mausoleum cliff, and that the Santei guest hall has an early-modern garden overlooking Kyoto.

Visiting the Chion-in Temple Seishido Hall

Chion-in notes that the Seishido is under repair, during which the mausoleum is open 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

The temple layout and visiting information are on the Chion-in group page.