Kanzeonji Temple

This Tendai sect temple is located in Kanzeonji, Dazaifu City, Fukuoka Prefecture. It is called Seisuizan Fumon-in. In 661 (7th year of the reign of Emperor Saimei), who was in Kyushu to provide relief to Baekje, Prince Nakano Oe (Emperor Tenji) founded the temple to pray for the soul of his mother. Construction work did not progress, and it was not until 723 (7th year of the Yoro era) that Manzei (Kasamaro) built the temple. In 745 (17th year of Tenpyo), Genbo, the fourth head of the Hosso sect, was demoted to oversee the construction of the main temple, and a memorial service was held the following year in 746. In 749 (Tenpyo Shoho 1), 500 chobu (496 hectares) of newly reclaimed land was donated to the temple. In 761 (or 762), an ordination platform was established at the temple, making it one of the three great ordination platforms in Japan alongside those at Todaiji Temple in Nara and Yakushiji Temple in Shimotsuke (Tochigi Prefecture), and a place for people in the western part of Japan to receive ordination. At its peak, it was the leading temple in the western part of Japan, with seven halls and buildings, 49 affiliated temples, and 500 chobu of temple land. However, in 1064 (Kohei 7), the temple suffered a fire and was rebuilt, but then suffered another fire and the buildings were destroyed, causing the temple to decline. The current lecture hall and main hall (Amida Hall) were rebuilt in 1688 (Genroku 1). During the Edo period, Kaidan-in became an independent temple. The temple bell (national treasure) from the Hakuho period, said to be the oldest in Japan, is famous for a poem by Sugawara no Michizane. Many Buddhist statues erected after the restoration of the Heian period remain, including three statues, the Eleven-Headed Kannon, the Bato Kannon, and the Fukukensaku Kannon, which are all five meters tall. Other statues include Bishamonten and Daikokuten, as well as 18 wooden statues, three Bugaku masks, a pair of stone Komainu (guardian lion dogs), and a copper canopy light heart, all of which are designated as Important Cultural Properties by the country. The Kanzeonji Asset Register (national treasure, owned by Tokyo University of the Arts) from 905 (Engi 5) is a valuable document that conveys the scale of the temple in its early days.

[Tamura Kosuke]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

福岡県太宰府(だざいふ)市観世音寺にある天台宗の寺。清水山普門院(せいすいざんふもんいん)と号する。661年（斉明天皇7）百済(くだら)救援のために九州に滞在していた斉明(さいめい)天皇が死去したため、中大兄皇子(なかのおおえのおうじ)（天智(てんじ)天皇）が母の菩提(ぼだい)を弔うために創建。造営工事は進まず、723年（養老7）に至って満誓(まんぜい)（笠麻呂(かさまろ)）によって造営された。745年（天平17）、法相(ほっそう)宗の第四伝、玄昉(げんぼう)が左遷されて本寺の工事を監督し、翌746年に落慶供養(くよう)が行われている。749年（天平勝宝1）500町歩（496ヘクタール）の墾田が寄せられた。761年（または762年）同寺に戒壇が設けられ、奈良の東大寺、下野(しもつけ)（栃木県）の薬師寺の戒壇と並んで天下の三戒壇の一つをなし、西国の人の受戒の場所となった。盛時は西国第一の寺となり、七堂伽藍(がらん)を完備、49院が所属し、500町歩の寺領をもった。しかし1064年（康平7）に火災にあい、その後再建されたが、ふたたび火災にあって諸堂を焼失して衰えた。現在の講堂、金堂（阿弥陀(あみだ)堂）は1688年（元禄1）の再建になる。戒壇院は江戸時代に独立した寺となった。日本最古といわれる白鳳(はくほう)期の梵鐘(ぼんしょう)（国宝）は菅原道真(すがわらのみちざね)の詩で有名。平安時代の復興以降に造立された仏像が多く残っており、十一面観音(かんのん)像、馬頭観音像、不空羂索(ふくうけんさく)観音像の3体は5メートルにも及ぶ。そのほか毘沙門天(びしゃもんてん)像、大黒天像などがあり、木像18躯(く)、舞楽面3面、石造狛犬(こまいぬ)1対、銅製天蓋(てんがい)光心などの国の重要文化財がある。なお、905年（延喜5）の『観世音寺資財帳』（国宝、東京芸術大学蔵）は草創期の寺の規模を伝える貴重な資料である。

［田村晃祐］

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