Enryaku-ji
- Co-ordinates: 35°04′14″N 135°50′28″E
- Region: Kansai Region
- Prefecture: Shiga Prefecture
- Founded: 788AD
- Affiliation: Buddhism
Enryaku-ji
Enryaku-ji (延暦寺) is a Buddhist Temple overlooking Kyoto. The temple itself is build upon Mount Hiei, situated in the old Province of Omi. Built during the Heian Period, the temple gained control of many estate lands (shoen) in Omi. By the Kamakura Period, territorial struggles between the Sasaki Family and Enryaku-ji ended up tearing the province apart.2
Supernatural Connections
It has connections to the Yōkai known as Tesso, the reborn spirit of the Buddhist monk Raigō. As Tesso (a plague of rats) the libraries of the temple were ravaged and largely destroyed.1
Footnotes
1. Yoda, H. and Alt, M. (2016) “Japandemonium: Illustrated: The Yokai Encyclopaedia of Toriyama Sekien.”. New York: Dover Publications, Inc.
2. Kodansha. (1993) ”Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia”. Tokyo: Kodansha Ltd.
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