Seiryō-ji
Encyclopedia
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
temple in the Saga district of Ukyō-ku, Kyoto
Ukyo-ku, Kyoto
is one of the eleven wards in the city of Kyoto, in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. The word , as opposed to , refers to the western half of the ancient capital of Heiankyō – the palace faced south, hence west was to the right...
, Japan. It is also known as Saga Shaka-dō. It is devoted to the practice of Yūzū Nenbutsu
Yuzu Nembutsu
is a school of Pure Land Buddhism that focuses on the ritual recitation of the Nianfo , the name of the Amitabha Buddha.Followers believe this recitation benefits not just the speaker, but the entire world as well...
. Initially, the temple belonged to the Kegon
Kegon
Kegon is the name of the Japanese transmission of the Huayan school of Chinese Buddhism.Huayan studies were founded in Japan when, in 736, the scholar-priest Rōben originally a monk of the Hossō tradition invited Shinshō to give lectures on the Avatamsaka Sutra at...
sect; then it became a Pure Land
Pure Land Buddhism
Pure Land Buddhism , also referred to as Amidism in English, is a broad branch of Mahāyāna Buddhism and currently one of the most popular traditions of Buddhism in East Asia. Pure Land is a branch of Buddhism focused on Amitābha Buddha...
temple. The honzon is an image of Gautama Buddha
Gautama Buddha
Siddhārtha Gautama was a spiritual teacher from the Indian subcontinent, on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. In most Buddhist traditions, he is regarded as the Supreme Buddha Siddhārtha Gautama (Sanskrit: सिद्धार्थ गौतम; Pali: Siddhattha Gotama) was a spiritual teacher from the Indian...
(Shaka-nyorai). The wooden statue is a National Treasure of Japan
National treasures of Japan
National Treasures are the most precious of Japan's Tangible Cultural Properties, as determined and designated by the Agency for Cultural Affairs...
. Seiryō-ji also possesses National Treasure statues of the Amitābha
Amitabha
Amitābha is a celestial buddha described in the scriptures of the Mahāyāna school of Buddhism...
(Amida) trinity, and other National Treasures and Important Cultural Properties
Important Cultural Properties of Japan
The term is often shortened into just are items officially already classified as Tangible Cultural Properties of Japan by the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs and judged to be of particular importance to the Japanese people....
.