What the Hokoji Temple Founder's Hall is
The Hokoji Temple Founder's Hall (方広寺開山堂), at Hokoji in the Okuyama district of Inasa-cho, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, was completed in 1935 and entered the national register as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 10 September 2019. It faces south from a site west of the Kannon Hall and enshrines Mumon Gensen, who founded the monastery.
The hall is single-storey timber with a roof of round-and-flat tiles and a floor area of 141 square metres. Its plan is close to square at three bays by three, and a worship bay projects from the centre of the rear wall to meet the Shodo behind. Hall of enshrinement and hall of service are locked together as one unit.
Zen style, built in 1935
Folding panelled doors and cusped windows are set into every face. Both are hallmarks of Zen style, the vocabulary that reached Japan from the continent in the Kamakura period, handled here with care in a building of the Showa era.
Why the Hokoji Temple Founder's Hall was registered
The registration criterion is contribution to the historic landscape of the country, and the number is 22-269.
The reasoning turns on the finish of the details. The bracket sets are double-stepped with tail rafters and are packed along the whole eave rather than sitting only above the columns, with square strut blocks between them. The gable carries a beam and a bottle-shaped strut. Continuous bracketing of this kind multiplies the number of pieces and the labour they demand, and to commission it in 1935 was a deliberate choice.
Inside, the floor is earthen, laid with square tiles set diagonally. That treatment too has been carried down within Zen practice from much earlier halls.
What to look for at the Hokoji Temple Founder's Hall
Follow the line under the eaves from one end to the other. Because brackets fill the spaces between the columns as well as standing on them, the blocks and arms run without a break. When the light comes round, the row reads as a fine band of stripes.
Look next at the outline of the windows. The cusped heads rise and fall like flame, and their size and placement are held consistent across the walls. The doors fold in two, a form that was worked out so the leaves stow neatly when open.
From the rear, the short projecting bay that ties the Hokoji Temple Founder's Hall to the Shodo becomes clear. The two are registered separately but are used as a single route by worshippers.
Visiting the Hokoji Temple Founder's Hall
The Hokoji Temple Founder's Hall is normally closed. The temple's website states that it opens during the autumn foliage season. At other times viewing is from the outside only.
The south front gives the best view. Standing east of the Kannon Hall and looking west sets the roofs of the two buildings in one frame, and their tiling can be compared at close range: heavy round-and-flat tiles here, lighter pantiles on the smaller hall.
Opening dates in the autumn vary from year to year, so check with the temple before travelling. Directions and admission are covered on the Hokoji Temple page.
Q&A
- Who is enshrined in the Hokoji Temple Founder's Hall?
- Mumon Gensen, the priest who founded the monastery in 1371. He was a son of Emperor Go-Daigo.
- When was the Hokoji Temple Founder's Hall built?
- In 1935, near the end of the long rebuilding that followed the forest fire of 1881.
- Can visitors go inside the Hokoji Temple Founder's Hall?
- Not usually. The temple opens it during the autumn foliage season, and the dates change from year to year, so it is worth checking in advance.
- What are the architectural features of the Hokoji Temple Founder's Hall?
- Three bays square, hipped-and-gabled with heavy tiles, folding panelled doors and cusped windows on every face, continuous double-stepped bracketing and an earthen floor laid with diagonal tiles.
- What cultural property status does the Hokoji Temple Founder's Hall hold?
- It became a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 10 September 2019, registration number 22-269.
Basic Information
| Name | Hokoji Temple Founder's Hall |
|---|---|
| Location | 1577-1 Okuyama, Inasa-cho, Hamana-ku, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure), registration number 22-269 |
| Year Designated | Registered on 10 September 2019 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Single-storey timber building, tiled roof, floor area 141 square metres |
| Owner | Hokoji Temple (religious corporation) |
| Public Access | Normally closed; opened in the autumn foliage season. Exterior viewing at any time |
References
- National Cultural Properties Database, Agency for Cultural Affairs: Hokoji Temple Founder's Hall
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00012919
- Daihonzan Hokoji: Grounds guide
- https://www.houkouji.or.jp/guide/
- Daihonzan Hokoji: About the temple
- https://www.houkouji.or.jp/about/
Last verified: 2026.09.17
