Genshoji Temple Priests' Quarters

What Is Genshoji Temple Priests' Quarters?

Genshoji Temple Priests' Quarters (源聖寺庫裏, Genshō-ji Kuri) is the residential and service building of Genshoji, a Jodo Shu (Pure Land) Buddhist temple in Shitaderamachi, Tennoji Ward, Osaka City; built in the later Edo period (1751 to 1829), it was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) of Japan in 2008. It is a single-story timber building with a tiled roof and a footprint of 223 square meters.

A Kuri combines a temple's kitchen and office with the home of the resident priest and his family, and Genshoji's own website describes its kuri in just those terms. Genshoji Temple Priests' Quarters stands toward the west of the grounds, close to Matsuyamachi-suji avenue, facing south, so its great roof is the first thing on your left once you pass through the gate. It survived the 1973 fire that destroyed the temple's early Edo main hall and is among the oldest buildings at Genshoji.

Why Genshoji Temple Priests' Quarters Was Registered

Genshoji Temple Priests' Quarters was registered for its contribution to Japan's historic landscape. Along the row of temples on the east side of Matsuyamachi-suji, this broad roof set close to the street gives depth to the view behind the line of gates.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes the exterior as plain yet substantial. Ornament is kept to a minimum; the building makes its impression through the shape of its roof and the way its posts and beams are put together. The temple notes that it was renovated before registration.

What to Look for at the Priests' Quarters

Start with the roof. Genshoji Temple Priests' Quarters has a roof of two different shapes: hip-and-gable (Irimoya-zukuri) on the south front and a plain gable (Kirizuma-zukuri) on the north back. From the approach you see the stepped, hipped ends of the irimoya front, while the rear is closed off with a simple triangular gable. It is covered in alternating round and flat tiles (Hongawarabuki). According to Osaka Bunkazai Navi, the building measures 7 bays across and 7 bays deep.

Toward the south end of the main ridge sits a smoke vent with its own small gabled roof. It let smoke out from the cooking hearths below, and it is the clearest outward sign that this is a working temple kitchen. Step back a little from the front to spot the miniature roof perched on the ridge.

The entrance lies a little east of center on the south front, sheltered by a projecting eave (Hisashi). The posts are square, and each carries a boat-shaped bracket (Funahijiki) under the purlin. In the gable, a curved tie beam (Kōryō) supports a vase-shaped strut (Taiheizuka). These are standard temple components, but here they are left unadorned and read simply as heavy timbers fitted together.

Visiting Genshoji Temple Priests' Quarters

Genshoji Temple Priests' Quarters is the home of the temple family, so the interior is not open to visitors. You can view the exterior from the grounds while the gate is open, from about 6:00 a.m. to about 7:00 p.m. The irimoya front and the sheltered entrance face the path from the gate, so the best place to stand is just inside it. Take a few steps back and the smoke vent comes into view on the ridge.

Please do not approach the doorway or look inside, and frame your photos so that the residence's interior is not in the shot. Directions to the temple and conditions for visiting the grounds are on the Genshoji Temple page.