Saikyoji Temple Ossuary

A Taishō Ossuary of Layered Roofs Beside the Main Hall

Saikyoji Temple Ossuary (西教寺納骨堂, Saikyō-ji Nōkotsudō) is a small timber hall of around 1917 at Saikyō-ji, the head temple of the Tendai Shinsei school in Sakamoto-honmachi, Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property of Japan on August 28, 2001. A nōkotsudō is a hall where the ashes of the dead are placed and memorial services are held.

It stands southeast of the Main Hall, a little off its axis. The year 1917 is when Saikyō-ji held its great assembly of unceasing nenbutsu, and the Ossuary appears to belong to the same wave of building as the Shoin of 1916 and the gates of the Founder's Hall.

It is single-storey, with a hip-and-gable roof (Irimoya-zukuri) of interlocking pantiles and a building area of 20 square metres. Inside, an outer hall for worshippers (Gejin) leads to an inner sanctum (Naijin), at the back of which a continuous altar runs the full width of the room.

Why the Ossuary Was Registered

The Saikyoji Temple Ossuary was registered under the criterion of contributing to the historic landscape of the country. Of the eighteen registered buildings at the temple, only the Mausoleum and the two water pavilions share that criterion; in each case it was the building's part in the view of the grounds that counted.

Here the reason is the roof. The central core rises higher than the rest and carries its own hip-and-gable roof, with a lean-to roof running around it at a lower level. Ridges are also set at right angles to one another, so the roof outline changes as you walk around. The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes the result as an accent in the temple landscape.

Both the upper and lower eaves use a single layer of widely spaced rafters (Taruki) with thin battens, a light finish that keeps the stacked roofs from looking heavy next to the Main Hall.

What to Look For at the Saikyoji Temple Ossuary

Walk round it. From the front the roofs read as two tiers; from the side a cross ridge joins in and the silhouette breaks into a more complicated set of angles.

Look too at the side walls. According to the temple's heritage guide, the upper parts are latticed paper screens and the lower parts plank doors, with a low railing around the veranda. The change of material from top to bottom suits the light eaves above.

A large ginkgo stands near the Saikyoji Temple Ossuary, with cherry and maple around it, so the backdrop changes with the seasons. In late autumn, with the ginkgo turned yellow behind it, you can see for yourself why the hall was registered for its place in the landscape.

Seeing the Ossuary

The Saikyoji Temple Ossuary stands in the open grounds around the Main Hall and is listed as one of the stops in the temple's heritage guide. Walk southeast from the Main Hall after visiting it and the exterior is in plain view.

The interior is a place for remains and memorial rites, and it is the exterior that the guide presents to visitors. Services may be under way, so approach quietly.