Meigetsu-in 明月院 | |
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Main Hall
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Religion | |
Affiliation | Kenchō-ji Rinzai |
Deity | Shō Kannon (Avalokiteśvara) |
Location | |
Location | 189 Yamanouchi, Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture |
Country | Japan |
Geographic coordinates | 35°20′5.97″N 139°33′5.24″E / 35.3349917°N 139.5514556°E / 35.3349917; 139.5514556 |
Architecture | |
Founder | Uesugi Norikata |
Completed | 1394; 630 years ago (1394) |
Website | |
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Fugenzan Meigetsu-in (福源山明月院) is a Rinzai Zen temple of the Kenchō-ji school in Kita-Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan. Famous for its hydrangeas, it's also known as The Temple of Hydrangeas (ajisai-dera). The main object of worship is goddess Shō Kannon (聖観音).
Meigetsu-in was built by Uesugi Norikata of the powerful Uesugi clan, and the name itself derives from Norikata's own posthumous name (Meigetsu).[1] According to 350-year-old records it was originally just the guest rooms of a much bigger temple called Zenkō-ji (禅興寺) which was closed by the government during the Meiji period.[1] Zenkō-ji was a temple of considerable prestige, being one of the Rinzai Zen temples classified as (Kantō Jissetsu (関東十刹), which were second in importance only to Kamakura's so-called Five Mountains (Kamakura Gozan (鎌倉五山).[1] Zenkō-ji however didn't survive the anti-Buddhist clampdown (Haibutsu kishaku) that followed the Meiji Restoration.[1] Meigetsu-in is the owner of a famous 13th century statue of Uesugi Shigefusa, founder of the Uesugi clan.[1] He is dressed in the picturesque clothes of the dignitaries of the Kamakura period.[1] The statue is a National Treasure.[1]
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