page_title: Taiseki-ji
section_title: Mieidō
hierarchical_section_title: Taiseki-ji / List of buildings / Mieidō
caption_attribution_description: English: The front decoration of the Mieido temple in Taisekiji, National asset that is currently under restoration. Italiano: La decorazione d'ingresso del Tempio Mieido al Taisekiji, bene di importanza nazionale attualmente in fase di restauro
context_page_description: Tahō Fuji Dainichirenge-zan Taiseki-ji; more commonly just Sōhonzan Taiseki-ji, informally known as Head Temple Taiseki-ji is the administrative center of Nichiren Shoshu Buddhism. It is located in the foothills of Mount Fuji in Kamijo, Fujinomiya, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan.
  Taiseki-ji was founded in 1290 by Nikkō Shōnin, one of Nichiren's immediate disciples, on a land parcel donated by the believer, Nanjo Shichiro Jiro Taira-no Tokimitsu, commonly known as Nanjo Tokimitsu.
  The temple is the home of the Dai Gohonzon, Nichiren Shoshu's object of worship, which draws pilgrim believers from various countries. The temple's vast open grounds are also open to the public for sightseeing, though its religious buildings are restricted to non-believers. Accordingly, adherents of the Soka Gakkai are not permitted entry to the Head Temple buildings.
context_section_description: The Mieido (English: Image Hall Kanji: 御 影 堂) traces its history to a building called the Mido (Midō: 御堂) erected by Nikko Shonin when he founded Taisekiji in 1290. It takes its name from a lifesize image of Nichiren sculpted by Japanese Buddhist artisan Echizen Hōkyō Kaikei, a carver of Buddhist images. This image was enshrined in the year 1388 in a building that was then replaced in 1522. The current, classical structure was erected in 1632 with donations from Kyōdai-in, wife of Hachisuka Yoshishige, Lord of the Tokushima Castle. Several rounds of expansions, improvements, and repairs have been undertaken since then, and it was designated a prefectural tangible cultural property by Shizuoka Prefecture after major repairs in 1971. The most recent overhaul was finished in November 2013. The seven-year project entailed completely breaking down and reassembling the building piece by piece. All the parts were cataloged, mapped, and their condition recorded. Damaged structural members were repaired or replaced, and decorative fixtures such as transom carvings and other artwork, were painstaking restored. When the building was reassembled, aseismic structural augmentation (dampers) was installed to protect it from earthquake damage. New gold leaf was applied to the indoor pillars, and all exposed surfaces were finished with vermilion using traditional methods. The building is known for its decorative transoms that depict various Buddhist deities that are believed to occupy the Treasure Tower of the Lotus Sutra.
caption: A carving of a Fenghuang rooster on an Image Hall transom
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