Tenneiji-Temple in Kyoto where we can enjoy a garden of borrowed landscape. There is also hidden rom

Tramachi-Dori, a street in Kyoto has a lot of temples. Of course, not all of them are open to public, however there are many temples where we can stop by freely. One of them is Tenneiji-Temple. It has a beautiful garden, but also interesting connections to Japanese history.

There is a shadow of SAMURAI behind the history of Tenneiji-Temple!?

Tenneiji is a Soto sect temple. It used to be in Aidu castle town but was moved to the place where the temple is located now at the end of the 16th century. This was the era of Masamune DATE, a feudal warlord who lived during the Sengoku period and who invaded Aidu Domain. Many wars took place and the former temple was burned down as a result..

Tenneiji was then rebuilt in Kyoto. Kanetsugu NAOE, a military commander in the Sengoku period, supported the restoration. It is said that he did not get on well with Masamune DATE. It might have influenced the restoration, I imagine.

There are graves of Sowa KANAMORI, a master of tea ceremony, and monk Zenkitsu, who is called the founder of Jigen-ryu, a style of swordsmanship. I understand a master of tea ceremony, but what does the founder of Jigen-ryu mean??? So I checked.

About Jigen-ryu which is related to Tenneiji

Enthusiasts of the End of Edo period must know what it is. Jigen-ryu is an old style of swordsmanship inherited in Satsuma Domain (it is Kagoshima prefecture now).

The concept of the style is “killing with one thrashing”. It is said that “Never doubt the first stroke, the second stroke means the loss”. It seemed to scare even Shinsengumi, a special force that guarded Kyoto during the Tokugawa Shogunate. It is likely one of the strongest styles in End of Edo period even though there were many kinds of swordmanship. It is hard to believe that people lived in such a society where practical swordsmanship was needed.

The person who started the Jigen-ryu is Chui TOGO. He learned a style of swordsmanship called Tenshinsho Jigen-ryu in Kyoto. After he received a licence in the style, he kept training and established Jigen-ryu. Monk Zenkitsu who had inherited Tenshinsho Jigen-ryu taught Chui in Kyoto.

Why did the monk master the swordsmanship? I wondered. It turned out he became a monk after he avenged his father.

Tenneiji is a temple of Soto sect. What is Soto sect?

Speaking of Soto sect, it is a stoic sect where “Shikantaza”, doing only meditation as much as possible and how the posture of doing meditation itself is considered as the appearance of enlightenment.

Rinzai sect is also one of the temples in Zen Buddhism where people do meditation. People in Rinzai sect do meditation toward an aisle, on the other hand people in Soto sect face a wall. Well, Soto sect is indeed stoic. It might have impressed a swordman who earnestly faced himself and practiced hard to learn the style.

The reason why this temple is recommended not only to fans of Japanese history but also others

Yes, Tenneiji has the grave of the monk Zenkitsu, but I also recommend people who are not just interested in Japanese history to visit there. If you see the garden through the gate, it looks like a canvas, so the gate is called “Gakubuchi-mon”, a gate of a picture frame.

The garden is not so large, but it is beautifully designed to benefit from the landscape of Mt. Hiei. Please don’t forget to find the best distance from the gate to enjoy the special picture.

The garden inside is maintained well and the buildings are also beautiful. It is a hidden place. When I visited, there were not even staff of the temple there. So you can enjoy the scenery and take pictures in your own time. It is free to enter the garden.

If you have a chance to walk along Teramachi-Dori, please take the time to extend your journey a little. It is closed to Kuramaguchi-Dori and a little far from the centre of Kyoto though.

Tenryuji is a historical temple, but you can enter feeling at ease like it’s your home garden, if it is no exaggeration to say....That’s why it is the temple you should visit.

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