Heirinji Temple

This temple is of the Rinzai sect of Buddhism, Myoshinji school, located in Nobidome, Niiza City, Saitama Prefecture. Its official name is Kinpozan Heirin Zenji. The principal image of the temple is Shaka Nyorai. It was built in 1375 (Tenju 1/Eiwa 1) by Ota Doshin (father of Dokan), lord of Iwatsuki Castle in Bushu, in Hirabayashi Village, Iwatsuki (present-day Kanashige, Iwatsuki Ward, Saitama City), and Ishimuro Zenkyu (Zen master Jikishikensho) was invited to be the founding priest. During the Tensho era (1573-92), the temple was burned down in a fire, but during the Edo period, Tokugawa Ieyasu invited Tetsuzan from Rinzai-ji Temple (present-day Oiwa, Aoi Ward, Shizuoka City) to re-found the temple. Later, in 1663 (Kanbun 3), Terutsuna, son of Matsudaira Nobutsuna, lord of Kawagoe Castle, moved the temple from Iwatsuki to its current location as Bodai-ji Temple and used it as a lodging for visitors to Edo Castle. It has the largest training hall in the Kanto region. The Nobidome irrigation canal runs through the temple grounds, and there are the mountain gate, Buddha hall, main hall, and the graves of Matsudaira (Okochi) Nobutsuna and Masuda Nagamori. The remaining mixed forest of sawtooth oak and konara oak is a national natural monument as the forest within the Heirinji temple grounds.

[Akira Suganuma]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

埼玉県新座(にいざ)市野火止(のびどめ)にある臨済(りんざい)宗妙心寺派の寺。正式には金鳳山(きんぽうざん)平林禅寺という。本尊は釈迦如来(しゃかにょらい)。1375年（天授1・永和1）に武州岩槻(いわつき)城主の太田道真(どうしん)（道灌(どうかん)の父）が岩槻在平林邑(むら)（現さいたま市岩槻区金重(かなしげ)）に建立し、石室善玖(いしむろぜんきゅう)（直指見性(じきしけんしょう)禅師）を招いて開山としたのが始まりである。天正(てんしょう)年間（1573～92）兵火によって堂宇は焼失したが、江戸時代に徳川家康は臨済寺（現静岡市葵(あおい)区大岩）の鉄山(てつざん)を招いて中興開山とした。のち1663年（寛文3）川越(かわごえ)城主松平信綱(のぶつな)の子輝綱(てるつな)が岩槻より現在の地に移して菩提(ぼだい)寺とし、江戸登城のときの宿坊とした。関東随一の専門道場をもつ。境内には野火止用水が流れ、山門、仏殿、本堂、松平（大河内(おおこうち)）信綱・増田(ました)長盛の墓などがある。クヌギ、コナラなどの残る雑木林は平林寺境内林として国の天然記念物である。

［菅沼　晃］

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例