Temple stay? Japan ?

A giant temple of the Sodo sect opened in 1394. It worships a tengu (a legendary creature with a long nose). In this temple, Buddhism events at which many general people can attend are held. The Sunday zazen practice is held from 1:00 in the afternoon on the 2nd and the 4th Sunday.

Nichiren, a founder of the Nichiren sect performed ascetic practices in this temple. Although the shukubo's building is modern reinforced concrete construction, it is located inside the precinct and commands a view of the main hall. The service in the morning is conducted in the main hall and the Soshido hall.

This shukubo is located closest to the mountain gate of Zenko-ji temple. A shukubo staff member said, "The head priest or the vice-head priest usually guides guests around the precinct. Many of the guests are repeat visitors and we have a family relationship with them."

Many of the shukubo of Zenko-ji temple guide you to the morning service. When I stayed at Gyokusyo-in, the head priest directly guided me there. The room where I stayed was a Japanese style room (eight tatami mats). They serve shojin vegetarian dishes.

This is also a shukubo of Zenko-ji temple; it is also called Dainichi-do and enshrines the main principle of the two images of Dainichinyorai (Mahavairocana), called Taizo and Kongo. They serve shojin vegetarian cuisine and they use pesticide-free vegetables harvested from their own fields.

I stayed here at the time when the principal image of Zenkoji-temple was open to the general public (this is only held once every seven years). I was able to attend the morning services and the kaidan tour as well as the guided tour of the precinct of Zenko-ji temple.

Konokon-bo is the oldest and highest among the many temple lodgings of Zenko-ji temple. Its special shojin vegetable dish, "Muryojyu" is very popular among guests. In the morning, you can observe the morning services held in Zenko-ji temple. The guest rooms are comfortable Japanese style room.

Daizenji Temple introduced grapes to Katsunuma for the first time; Katsunuma is now a grape production site. main hall (Yakushido), a national treasure is a typical main hall of esoteric Buddhism that represents the Kamakura period (1185 to 1333). In this hall, I received zazen instruction.

This is the shukubo where Shingen Takeda (1521-1573), a great feudal load and warrior prayed for victory. I had Togakushi soba (buckwheat noodles) for dinner (on an all-you-can-eat soba plan). They served fresh soba noodles using soba harvested in their own fields.

This is a shukubo of the Togakushi Shrine. It used to be called Enmei-in in ancient times. Inside the building is a Shinto altar dedicated to Kuzuryu-no-Okami, Togakushi-no-Okami, ujigami and Fudomyo-o (Cetaka). Prayers are taken place in this place and it is open to general public to come and pray.