Tōkō-ji, Buddhist temple in Nishio, Japan
Tōkō-ji, formally Sekihōzan Raigō-in Tōkō-ji, is a Jōdo-shū Seizan Fukakusa-ha temple in Komaba-chō, Nishio, Aichi Prefecture. Its grounds hold a hōkyōintō stupa said to be the head mound of Imagawa Yoshimoto, and a 33 Kannon pilgrimage path with stone statues climbs the hill east of the temple, topped by a large Kannon statue.
Founded in the early Heian period during the Jōgan era by Ennin (Jikaku Daishi), the temple was originally Tendai. After a period of decline, Kōyū Etoku, a disciple of Tenyū of Nakajima Sōfuku-ji, entered it in the Meiō era and converted it to the Jōdo sect. It now belongs to the Jōdo-shū Seizan Fukakusa-ha. Its fourth abbot, Tokujun, is said to have been an uncle of Imagawa Yoshimoto.
The temple belongs to the Jōdo-shū Seizan Fukakusa school, converted from Tendai in the Meiō era by Kōyū Ketoku, a disciple of Tenyū of Nakajima Sōfukuji. Its fourth abbot, Tokujun, is said to have been an uncle of Imagawa Yoshimoto, who issued a ban protecting the temple. A standing Kannon from the late Heian period, once shown only every twelve years, is displayed each April at the Kannon festival.
The temple stands in Komaba-chō, Nishio, and the thirty-three Kannon stone statues are set along a mountain path east of the main grounds, with a large Kannon statue at the top. The path climbs, so allow time for the walk. The Kannon Bodhisattva statue is shown publicly once a year, at the April Kannon festival.
The temple's fourth abbot, Tokujun, is said to have been an uncle of Imagawa Yoshimoto, who issued a ban protecting the temple. After Yoshimoto was killed at Okehazama on 12 June 1560, his head was returned to the Imagawa side and carried toward Suruga; the summer heat forced a stop, and a mound was built here to bury it. Two warriors stayed as grave keepers, one named Imamura, whose family served as major patrons until the Showa era.
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