Tosho-ji
Encyclopedia
was the Hōjō clan
's family temple (bodaiji
) in Kamakura
during the Kamakura period
. Its founder was Taikō Gyōyū and it was constructed in 1237 by Hōjō Yasutoki
in memory of his mother, who had her tomb there. According to the Taiheiki
, from its foundation until the end of the Kamakura shogunate
every regent (shikken
) was buried there. The temple no longer exists, since it was set on fire by the Hōjō themselves when the entire family committed suicide after Nitta Yoshisada
's invasion of Kamakura on July 4, 1333. Its ruins were found in the Kasaigayatsu valley in today's Ōmachi
. Tōshō-ji very probably used to occupy the entire valley. Standing at the top of a narrow valley shut off at its base by the Namerigawa river's deep gorge and by steep hills on the other three sides, and besides offering a clear view of the only road that crossed the river, it was a fortress surely valuable to the family also from the military point of view.
At the site there's a plaque that reads:
Excavations in situ have revealed the basic structure of the temple, shards of Chinese pottery, and roof tiles bearing the Hōjō family crest. Stones and other surfaces singed by fire were also found, confirming the presence of a fire.
About a hundred meters uphill after the temple, inside the forest lies the Hōjō Takatoki Harakiri Yagura
, the cave where, according to tradition, the last of the Hōjō regents disemboweled himself. There are however other locations in Kamakura that make the same claim.
The black stele in front of Takatoki's yagura reads:.
Ashikaga Takauji
, the first of the Ashikaga shoguns, was ordered by Emperor Go-Daigo to transfer the temple and the Hōjō's remains to a new location, renaming it Hōkai-ji
. Because the neighborhood was said to be still haunted by the ghosts of the Hōjō, a shrine called Tokusō Gongen
was erected within the new temple to placate them. The shrine still exists and can be seen to the right of Hōkai-ji's main hall.
On the Shakadōgayatsu side of the Shakadō Pass, just before the first houses, a small street to the left takes to a large group of yagura called Shakadōgayatsu Yagura-gun. There rest the bones of some of the Hōjō who killed themselves at Tōshō-ji that day. Their identity has been confirmed by the presence of a gorintō
dated exactly eight days after the invasion, eight days being the time required by Buddhism before a funeral can be performed.
Hojo clan
See the late Hōjō clan for the Hōjō clan of the Sengoku Period.The in the history of Japan was a family who controlled the hereditary title of shikken of the Kamakura Shogunate. In practice, the family had actual governmental power, many times dictatorial, rather than Kamakura shoguns, or the...
's family temple (bodaiji
Bodaiji
A , in Japanese Buddhism is a temple which, generation after generation, takes care of a family's dead giving them burial and performing ceremonies in their soul's favor. The name is because in Japan the term , which originally meant just Buddhist enlightenment , has also come to mean either the...
) in Kamakura
Kamakura, Kanagawa
is a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, about south-south-west of Tokyo. It used to be also called .Although Kamakura proper is today rather small, it is often described in history books as a former de facto capital of Japan as the seat of the Shogunate and of the Regency during the...
during the Kamakura period
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
. Its founder was Taikō Gyōyū and it was constructed in 1237 by Hōjō Yasutoki
Hojo Yasutoki
Hōjō Yasutoki was the third shikken of the Kamakura shogunate in Japan. He strengthened the political system of the Hōjō regency.He was the eldest son of second shikken Yoshitoki...
in memory of his mother, who had her tomb there. According to the Taiheiki
Taiheiki
The is a Japanese historical epic , written in the late 14th century. It deals primarily with the Nanboku-chō, the period of war between the Northern Court of Ashikaga Takauji in Kyoto, and the Southern Court of Emperor Go-Daigo in Yoshino....
, from its foundation until the end of the Kamakura shogunate
Kamakura shogunate
The Kamakura shogunate was a military dictatorship in Japan headed by the shoguns from 1185 to 1333. It was based in Kamakura. The Kamakura period draws its name from the capital of the shogunate...
every regent (shikken
Shikken
The was the regent for the shogun in the Kamakura shogunate in Japan. The post was monopolized by the Hōjō clan, and this system only existed once in Japanese history, between 1203 and 1333...
) was buried there. The temple no longer exists, since it was set on fire by the Hōjō themselves when the entire family committed suicide after Nitta Yoshisada
Nitta Yoshisada
was the head of the Nitta family in the early fourteenth century, and supported the Southern Court of Emperor Go-Daigo in the Nanboku-chō period, capturing Kamakura from the Hōjō clan in 1333....
's invasion of Kamakura on July 4, 1333. Its ruins were found in the Kasaigayatsu valley in today's Ōmachi
Omachi (Kanagawa)
is a locality in Kamakura, Kanagawa prefecture, Japan, defined as the part of town south of the Ebisubashi bridge on the Namerigawa. The part of town north of the same bridge is called .- References :...
. Tōshō-ji very probably used to occupy the entire valley. Standing at the top of a narrow valley shut off at its base by the Namerigawa river's deep gorge and by steep hills on the other three sides, and besides offering a clear view of the only road that crossed the river, it was a fortress surely valuable to the family also from the military point of view.
At the site there's a plaque that reads:
National Historic Sites - The remains of Toshoji as designated on July 31, 1998
Toshoji is a Buddhist temple founded in the first half of the 13th Century by Yasutoki HojoHojo YasutokiHōjō Yasutoki was the third shikken of the Kamakura shogunate in Japan. He strengthened the political system of the Hōjō regency.He was the eldest son of second shikken Yoshitoki...
, the third vice-shogun of the Kamakura shogunate. In 1333, when Yoshisada NittaNitta Yoshisadawas the head of the Nitta family in the early fourteenth century, and supported the Southern Court of Emperor Go-Daigo in the Nanboku-chō period, capturing Kamakura from the Hōjō clan in 1333....
and his troops attacked Kamakura, Takatoki HōjōHojo TakatokiHōjō Takatoki was the last Tokuso and ruling Shikken of Japan's Kamakura shogunate; the latter ones were his puppets, a member of the Hōjō clan, he was the son of Hōjō Sadatoki, and was preceded as shikken by Hōjō Morotoki.Takatoki became regent at the age of eight, and thus actual power was...
, all members of his clan, and his followers shut themselves up in this temple, set it on fire, and there, met their death.
The temple was restored soon after this incident, and in the Muromachi EraMuromachi periodThe is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate, which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi shogun, Ashikaga Takauji, two years after the brief Kemmu restoration of imperial...
(1392-1467) it came to rank third among the ten most renowned temples in the Kanto area. However, it was said to have been later abandoned in the Sengoku Era (1467-1573).
The site is extremely important from an historical viewpoint as the remains of the main temple of the Hojo dynasty, and as the final resting place of the Kamakura Shogunate. By a series of excavations conducted in 1976, 1996, and 1997, part of the remains of the temple has been confirmed.
Board of Education, Kamakura City, March 2000
Excavations in situ have revealed the basic structure of the temple, shards of Chinese pottery, and roof tiles bearing the Hōjō family crest. Stones and other surfaces singed by fire were also found, confirming the presence of a fire.
Yagura (tombs)
are artificial caves used during the Middle Ages in Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, as tombs and cenotaphs. It is likely that they were used only as tombs in the beginning, and that later they started being used as cenotaphs too. The dead are usually samurai, but priests and even artisans...
, the cave where, according to tradition, the last of the Hōjō regents disemboweled himself. There are however other locations in Kamakura that make the same claim.
The black stele in front of Takatoki's yagura reads:.
In May 1333, when Nitta Yoshisada invaded Kamakura, Regent Hōjō TakatokiHojo TakatokiHōjō Takatoki was the last Tokuso and ruling Shikken of Japan's Kamakura shogunate; the latter ones were his puppets, a member of the Hōjō clan, he was the son of Hōjō Sadatoki, and was preceded as shikken by Hōjō Morotoki.Takatoki became regent at the age of eight, and thus actual power was...
left his residence in Komachi and barricaded himself in Tōshō-ji, the family temple where all his ancestors were buried. After that, while watching from afar the lights and smoke of the fires consuming the shops and residences of the entire city of Kamakura that his family had ruled for 150 years, he and his whole family, composed of over 870 people, committed suicide. This tragic act that ended the HojoHojoHōjō may refer to:*Hōjō clan, a family of regents of the Kamakura Shogunate*Late Hōjō clan, daimyo in the Sengoku Period*Hōjō, Ehime, a city in Japan*Hōjō, one of the five kata of Kashima Shinden Jikishinkage-ryū...
's power forever took place here.
Erected in March 1918 by the Kamakuracho Seinendan
Ashikaga Takauji
Ashikaga Takauji
was the founder and first shogun of the Ashikaga shogunate. His rule began in 1338, beginning the Muromachi period of Japan, and ended with his death in 1358...
, the first of the Ashikaga shoguns, was ordered by Emperor Go-Daigo to transfer the temple and the Hōjō's remains to a new location, renaming it Hōkai-ji
Hōkai-ji (Kamakura)
is a Buddhist temple in Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Often called , or "bush-clover temple", because those flowers are numerous in its garden, its existence is directly linked to a famous tragedy that on July 4, 1333 wiped out almost the entire Hōjō clan, ruler of Japan for 135 years...
. Because the neighborhood was said to be still haunted by the ghosts of the Hōjō, a shrine called Tokusō Gongen
Gongen
During the era of shinbutsu shūgō , in Japan a During the era of shinbutsu shūgō (religious syncretism of kami and buddhas), in Japan a During the era of shinbutsu shūgō (religious syncretism of kami and buddhas), in Japan a ( was believed to be a Japanese kami which was really just the local...
was erected within the new temple to placate them. The shrine still exists and can be seen to the right of Hōkai-ji's main hall.
On the Shakadōgayatsu side of the Shakadō Pass, just before the first houses, a small street to the left takes to a large group of yagura called Shakadōgayatsu Yagura-gun. There rest the bones of some of the Hōjō who killed themselves at Tōshō-ji that day. Their identity has been confirmed by the presence of a gorintō
Gorinto
is the name of a Japanese type of Buddhist pagoda believed to have been first adopted by the Shingon and Tendai sects during the mid Heian period. It is used for memorial or funerary purposes and is therefore common in Buddhist temples and cemeteries. It is also called or , where the term sotoba...
dated exactly eight days after the invasion, eight days being the time required by Buddhism before a funeral can be performed.
See also
- For an explanation of terms concerning Japanese Buddhism, Japanese Buddhist art, and Japanese Buddhist temple architecture, see the Glossary of Japanese BuddhismGlossary of Japanese BuddhismThis is the glossary of Japanese Buddhism, including major terms the casual reader might find useful in understanding articles on the subject. Words followed by an asterisk are illustrated by an image in one of the photo galleries...
.