HistoryKuri(the living quarters of the priests)
Rebuilt in 1815

At the end of the steps along the stone
wall reminiscent of a castle wall stands abeautiful building, measuring 16.2
meters × 25.2 meters. These are theliving quarters for the priests. The roofof Kuri , at the entrance, has a grandstately “gable” unique to zen temples.

1989 Iinoya,Inasa-cho,kita-ku,
Hamamatsu-shi,Shizuoka
Telephone(053)542-0480
Shopping store(053)542-1293

RYOTANJI
is a farmous temple in ENSHU

SpringHISTORY OF RYOTANJI
Ryotanji is a temple of the Rinzai sect of Zen Buddhism, belonging to theMyoshinji school. Kokuzo Dai Bosatsu “Great Kokuzo Bodhisattva” isenshrined as the main Buddhist image of worship. It is a family temple of theIi family. The grave of Prince Munenaga, a son of Emperor Go-Daigo whodied about 630 years ago, is buried in the temple.

SummerAutumn
WinterOtamaya (the mausoleum) for the Ii family
The wooden statues of Tomoyasu(thefounder of the family),Naomori (the22nd lord) and Naomasa (the 24thlord) are enshrined in the mausoleum.

History
Ryotanji was founded in 733 by the priest Gyoki. In 1010, a baby
boy was found lying beside a well in front of the temple, and he waswashed there for purification. He was raised at the temple until he
was seven years old. He then spent some time away from the temple.
Later he moved back here at Ii-no-ya (meaning the valley of Ii) andwas named Ii Tomoyasu after the name of this area. He became thefirst lord of the Ii family. When he died in 1093, he was buried in thistemple. The Ii family governed this region for approximately 600years until Ii Naomasa(the 24th lord) moved to Hikone City in Shiga
Prefecture around 1600. Ryotanji has served as their family
ancestral temple for more than 1000 years.
Ii Naosuke, a feudal lord and statesman, who was responsible forJapan’s signing the first treaty of commerce with the United States(1858), was descended from the Ii family. In 1572, this temple wasburned down by the Takeda clan, but during the Edo period all thebuildings were rebuilt by the Ii family.

KaisandoBuilt in 1702

Kaisan-do, a two-story building invermilion stands to the west of the mainbuilding. It was constructed to enshrine
the priest who opened this temple.

San-mon (the main gate)
Rebuilt in 1656

As you approach the temple, you see themain gate at the end of the white plasterwall.

HighlightIi familyʼs Mausoleum
Ryotanji Garden
Tearoom

Grave ofthe Ii family

Kaisan-do

InaridoMain Hall

Kuri and Reception Oﬃce
To-monGuest Hall

Nio-monBell Tower

Restroom

San-monShop

RYOTANJI
Map

RYOTANJI GARDEN

The floor in the Main Hall is the “Nightingale Floor” made from pine trees.
It makes special sounds like a nightingale’s singing when walked on. It wasconstructed by Hidari Jingoro, a famous sculptor. The wooden carving of thedragon was also made by Hidari Jingoro.

BY ENSHU KOBORIThis temple is designated asnational culture asset.

Western
Mountain Range

The garden is designated as a nationalcultural asset. It was designed and built
by Enshu Kobori, a famous multi-talented artist of the early Edo period.
He designed the garden in the chisen
kansho style, in which the garden is best
appreciated looking from the room infront of the garden. Local mountainrocks (red chert) are beautifullyarranged. Having the rock formations
and the pond, Ryotanji Garden fulfills
characteristics of a typical zen temple
garden. The garden intrigues visitorswith beautiful colors depending oneach season.

MiddleMountain Range
1

2

POINTS OF SPECIAL INTEREST

Eastern
Mountain Range

The treasures are open to the public only during the special exhibition period.

Kanazawa Bunko

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The birth well of Ii Tomoyasu(the ﬁrst generation of the Ii family)

Kanazawa Bunko, designated as animportant national cultural treasure, are theoldest printed books in the world. They
belonged to Oda Nobunaga originally.

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Ryotanji Byobu

A ROUGH SKETCH OF THE GARDEN
1. Shugo seki (the symbol stone of the garden)
2. Nioh seki (the guard stone)
3. Kame dejima (the turtle shaped rock formation) A
turtle symbolizes long life.
4. Tsuru dejima (the crane shaped rock formation) A
crane represents happiness.
5. Horai gan toh (the Isle of the Immortals)
6. Shinji ike (The pond itself is in the shape oftheChinese character for heart.)
7. Raihai seki (the stone for worshipping)• Dry waterfalls and a dry stream: methods unique todry Japanese gardens (•)• Garden rocks: richly covered with moss (Theycomplement the garden.)• Garden plants: satsuki azalea (May), dodan azalea(during the time for autumn colors)

Ryotanji Byobu (the folding screen)is entitled as “Yuraku no Zu” and issupposedly the work of Iwasa
Matabei. This folding screen portrays
the customs and recreations of thetownspeople of the Edo period.

The wood caving of the dragon
Joroku-no-Daibutsu(the great image of Buddha)This is the largest of all the images of Buddha in theEnshu district. The hall for this great image ofBuddha was destroyed in the early Meiji period when
the anti-Buddhist movement took place. The image
now resides in the main building of the temple.

The Main Hallwith Nightingale floor
Rebuilt in 1676