Jinkoin Temple Guest Hall

A Nine-Room Guest Hall of 1826

The Jinkoin Temple Guest Hall (神光院客殿) is a fine guest hall of nine rooms of 1826 in Nishigamo Jinkoincho, Kita Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on February 26, 2021 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

The Agency records a single-storey timber building with a tiled roof and a building area of 188 square metres; registration number 26-0629.

Nine Rooms in Three Rows

According to Kyoto City, Jinkoin is said to have been founded in 1217 after an oracle received by a priest of Kamigamo Shrine, which gave the temple its name; it is counted with To-ji and Ninna-ji as one of the three Kobo temples of Kyoto and is known locally as the Kobo-san of Nishigamo.

The guest hall, of 1826, stands east of the main hall facing south and is linked to it by a corridor (Agency for Cultural Affairs). It has a tiled roof, with a hip-and-gable formal entrance projecting in the middle of the south front.

Nine rooms in three rows of three are wrapped by a veranda: at the back of the upper, western row is a raised room with alcove and shelves, the abbot's room lies at the back of the middle row, and a Buddha room is in the lower, eastern row (Agency for Cultural Affairs). The Agency describes it as a finely built hall for receiving guests.

Why It Was Registered

The Agency registered it for its contribution to the historic landscape.

What to Look For

Look for the formal entrance in the middle of the front and the nine-room plan with its raised room (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

Visiting

It is owned by Jinkoin Temple (Agency for Cultural Affairs). No official information on visiting hours or fees was found. The main hall, guest hall, Chukodo, Rengetsuan and gate are introduced together on the Jinkoin Temple page.