Gokokuji Temple Main Hall

A Kannon Hall Built for the Shogun's Mother

The Gokokuji Temple Main Hall (護国寺本堂) is a Kannon hall built on the orders of the shogun Tsunayoshi of 1697 in Otsuka, Bunkyo City, Tokyo, and was designated an Important Cultural Property on January 19, 1931 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

The Agency records seven bays square, single-storey, with a hip-and-gable roof of seamed copper sheet and a three-bay porch; designation number 00867.

The 1931 date in the Agency record is that of its designation under the former law.

A Kannon Hall Built on the Shogun's Orders

The Gokokuji Temple Main Hall is seven bays square, with a hip-and-gable roof of seamed copper sheet and a three-bay porch (Agency for Cultural Affairs). According to the Bunkyo City tourist guide, Gokokuji was founded in 1681 by the fifth shogun, Tokugawa Tsunayoshi, at the wish of his mother Keishoin, and the main hall, a Kannon hall, was built on his orders in 1697.

The guide notes that the principal image, a Nyoirin Kannon that was Keishoin's personal devotional figure, is kept hidden, and a stand-in image from its shrine cabinet is shown on the temple fair day, the 18th of each month. Visitors can go up into the hall to see the plaque reading Shitchiin in Tsunayoshi's own hand and many statues, including thirty-three forms of Kannon.

Why It Is an Important Cultural Property

The Agency record has no commentary; the structure and date set out what was designated. It is a large Kannon hall seven bays square, built in 1697 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

What to Look For

Look for the copper hip-and-gable roof over the seven-bay hall, the three-bay porch and the Shitchiin plaque in Tsunayoshi's hand (Agency for Cultural Affairs; Bunkyo City).

Visiting

It is owned by Gokokuji Temple (Agency for Cultural Affairs). According to Bunkyo City, it is a 1-minute walk from Gokokuji Station on the Tokyo Metro Yurakucho Line. No official information on visiting hours was found. The main hall and the Gekkoden are introduced together on the Gokokuji Temple page.