Chohoji Temple Main Hall

Chohoji Temple Main Hall: A Late Kamakura Blend of Styles

The Chohoji Temple Main Hall (長保寺本堂, Chohoji Hondo) is a Buddhist hall built in 1311 at Chohoji in Kami, Shimotsu-cho, Kainan City, Wakayama Prefecture, designated a National Treasure under the old system in 1904 and a National Treasure in 1953.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs records the Chohoji Temple Main Hall as five bays by five, single-storey, with a hip-and-gable (Irimoya-zukuri) roof of tiles and a porch one bay wide at the front. Kainan City gives the porch as two bays, a discrepancy between the sources.

Why It Was Designated

The Agency describes the Chohoji Temple Main Hall as using Zen-style techniques in its pillars and brackets while mixing in traditional Japanese methods in the details, harmonising the two styles well. Wakayama Prefecture calls it a leading example of the medieval eclectic style, Japanese-style outside with Zen-style elements prominent in the inner sanctuary.

According to the prefecture, the hall uses a framing system common in the region's Buddhist halls to create a spacious outer worship area. Built in 1311, it is the oldest of the temple's buildings.

What to Look For

Outside the hall looks restrained and traditional; inside, Zen-style construction appears around the inner sanctuary. The switch of style between exterior and interior is the key to the building.

In the precinct, compare the three National Treasures: the eclectic main hall against the purely Japanese-style pagoda.

Visiting the Main Hall

Chohoji is currently closed to visitors while repairs continue after a landslide caused by torrential rain in June 2023. The temple's website expects the closure to last another 2 to 3 years. The reopening status and normal visiting conditions are on the Chohoji Temple page.