A storehouse built around a turning bookcase
Chokokuji Temple Sutra Repository is a late Edo period scripture store in Hase, Sado City, Niigata Prefecture, built in 1799 and listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2009.
It stands west of the Kannon Hall and faces east. The plan is almost square, 4.9 metres by 4.9 metres, built as a Dozo-zukuri earthen-walled store with a floor area of 24 square metres. Pantiles on an independent outer roof cover the building, and a small gabled roof projects over the entrance. The walls are boarded at the base and finished above in white plaster.
Inside there are no partitions. A hexagonal revolving bookcase stands at the centre of the single room, and within that case a platform enshrines Fu Daishi. The bookcase forms part of the listing.
Turning the shelves instead of reading them
A rinzo is a bookcase that revolves. Scriptures are stacked in a hexagonal or octagonal frame mounted on a central shaft, and worshippers push it round. One full turn is held to earn the merit of reading the entire canon, and Chokokuji Temple teaches the same. The temple puts the number of volumes kept here at three thousand.
Chokokuji Temple Sutra Repository was listed for its contribution to the historic landscape, its position west of the Kannon Hall forming part of the view at the top of the approach.
Fu Daishi, the Chinese layman credited with inventing the revolving case, is enshrined inside the device itself. Pushing the shelves round therefore means circling the figure at their centre, which is a neat piece of religious engineering.
Plasterwork above the door
The detail that catches the eye at Chokokuji Temple Sutra Repository is the Kote-e relief in the shape of an undulating gable set above the entrance. Such reliefs are modelled in raised plaster, so the plasterer's craft that builds the wall also decorates it. Placing one on a store of 24 square metres announces the standing of what is kept inside.
Look also at the line where the boarding stops and the white plaster begins. Boards cover the height that rain reaches; plaster takes over above. The division is practical rather than decorative, made to keep the wall sound.
If you get inside, look at the shaft of the bookcase. The whole hexagonal frame turns on a single post rising from the floor.
Seeing Chokokuji Temple Sutra Repository
The interior is opened on the one-hour guided route. The 50-minute route stops at an explanation given from beside the Kannon Hall, so ask for the longer visit when booking if you want to see the revolving case itself.
The exterior is visible at any time from the west side of the Kannon Hall. Since the front faces east, morning light suits it.
Whether visitors may turn the case is not stated on the temple website; ask the priest during the visit. Directions and reception hours are on the Chokokuji Temple page.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Niigata
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Chokokuji Temple Sutra Repository
- [ Sado Island & Echigo-Yuzawa Ski Resort Tours ]
Q&A
- When was Chokokuji Temple Sutra Repository built?
- In 1799. The national database records that year as the date of the building.
- What is the revolving case in Chokokuji Temple Sutra Repository?
- A hexagonal rotating bookcase holding the scriptures. One full turn is traditionally held to earn the merit of reading the whole canon.
- Can I go inside Chokokuji Temple Sutra Repository?
- Yes, on the one-hour guided route. Shorter routes give only an explanation from outside.
- How many volumes are kept in Chokokuji Temple Sutra Repository?
- The temple gives the figure as three thousand. A platform inside the revolving case enshrines Fu Daishi.
- How large is Chokokuji Temple Sutra Repository?
- 4.9 metres by 4.9 metres, a floor area of 24 square metres, single-storeyed with earthen walls.
Basic Information
| Name | Chokokuji Temple Sutra Repository |
|---|---|
| Location | 13 Hase Toyo, Sado City, Niigata Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered in 2009 (Heisei 21) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 4.9 metres by 4.9 metres, floor area 24 square metres, with revolving bookcase |
| Owner | Chokokuji Temple, a religious corporation |
| Public Access | Exterior viewable at any time; interior opened on the booked one-hour route |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, National Cultural Properties Database: Chokokuji Temple Sutra Repository
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00007739
- Sado City: Registered Tangible Cultural Properties, Chokokuji Temple
- https://www.city.sado.niigata.jp/site/bunkazai/4964.html
- Chokokuji Temple: Highlights of the Precinct
- https://sado-choukokuji.jp/midokoro/
- Chokokuji Temple: Visitor Information
- https://sado-choukokuji.jp/guidance/
Last verified: 2026.09.14
