Zentsuji, Kagawa
Encyclopedia
Cities of Japan
||A is a local administrative unit in Japan. Cities are ranked on the same level as and , with the difference that they are not a component of...
in Kagawa Prefecture
Kagawa Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on Shikoku island. The capital is Takamatsu.- History :Kagawa was formerly known as Sanuki Province.For a brief period between August 1876 and December 1888, Kagawa was made a part of Ehime Prefecture.-Battle of Yashima:...
, Japan.
As of June 1, 2011, the city has an estimated population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of 34,114 with 13,079 household
Household
The household is "the basic residential unit in which economic production, consumption, inheritance, child rearing, and shelter are organized and carried out"; [the household] "may or may not be synonymous with family"....
d and a population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
of 855.42 persons per km². The total area is 39.88 km².
The city was founded on March 31, 1954. The origin of the city name is Zentsū-ji
Zentsū-ji
The is a temple of the Shingon sect in Zentsūji, Kagawa, Japan.It was established by Zentsū Saeki who was Kūkai's father in 813.The east academy and the west academy exist un Zentsu-ji precincts. The west academy is Kūkai's birthplace....
Buddhist temple.
The city is the place where Kūkai
Kukai
Kūkai , also known posthumously as , 774–835, was a Japanese monk, civil servant, scholar, poet, and artist, founder of the Shingon or "True Word" school of Buddhism. Shingon followers usually refer to him by the honorific titles of and ....
(also known as Kōbō Daishi) was born. Zentsuji is also home to Shikokugakuin University.
The Zentsuji temple, from which the town gets its name, is the 75th temple on the 88-temple Shikoku Pilgrimage
Shikoku Pilgrimage
The or is a multi-site pilgrimage of 88 temples associated with the Buddhist monk Kūkai on the island of Shikoku, Japan. A popular and distinctive feature of the island's cultural landscape, and with a long history, large numbers of pilgrims still undertake the journey for a variety of ascetic,...
. It is also one of the three temples on the tour, that Kukai visited, the others being Tairyuji and Muroto Misaki, as Kukai mentioned them by name in his writings.
Farmers of the Zentsuji region found a way to grow cubic watermelons, by growing the fruits in glass boxes and letting them naturally assume the shape of the receptacle. The square shape is designed to make the melons easier to stack and store, but the square watermelons are often more than double the price of normal ones. Pyramid shaped watermelons have also been developed.
Famous places
- Shikoku PilgrimageShikoku PilgrimageThe or is a multi-site pilgrimage of 88 temples associated with the Buddhist monk Kūkai on the island of Shikoku, Japan. A popular and distinctive feature of the island's cultural landscape, and with a long history, large numbers of pilgrims still undertake the journey for a variety of ascetic,...
- Mandaraji
- Shusshakaji
- Kōyamaji
- Zentsū-jiZentsū-jiThe is a temple of the Shingon sect in Zentsūji, Kagawa, Japan.It was established by Zentsū Saeki who was Kūkai's father in 813.The east academy and the west academy exist un Zentsu-ji precincts. The west academy is Kūkai's birthplace....
- Konzōji