Eiryō-ji, Buddhist temple in Nagaoka, Japan.
Eiryō-ji is a Jōdo-shū Buddhist temple in Nagaoka, Niigata Prefecture, with the mountain name Kōki-san and the cloister name Gesshō-in. Its main image is Amida Buddha. The temple, also written 栄凉寺, stands in the former Kokei-chō east of Nagaoka Castle, an area once called "Obey no Machi" because of its walls.
Founded as Kōki-an during the Eiroku era (1558–1570) by Makino Shigesada at Ushikubo in Mikawa Province. The temple moved with the Makino clan through Ōgo Domain to Nagaoka, where it was renamed Eiryō-ji by Makino Tadanari after his parents' posthumous names. It burned in the Shunji fire of 1844 and again during the Boshin War, then was rebuilt.
The temple's name combines the posthumous names of Makino Tadanari's parents, Eikan-in and Ryōshin-in. As one of the Makino family's family temples, Eiryō-ji handled the paperwork for pardons of exiled convicts whose conduct improved during the lord's memorial services. The graves of Kawai Tsugunosuke and Mishima Okujirō lie in the cemetery.
Eiryō-ji stands in the Higashi-Kanda 3-chōme district of Nagaoka, on ground that was the Kokei-chō east quarter of the Edo-period castle town, nicknamed "Obey no Machi". The temple is one of the Makino family's family temples, so the graves of Nagaoka domain retainers such as Kawai Tsugunosuke and Mishima Okujirō lie on the grounds. Look for the bronze seated Jizō Bodhisattva in front of the temple gate, known as Kosodate Jizō.
The temple's name combines the posthumous names of Makino Tadanari's parents: Eikan-in (栄感院) and Ryōshin-in (涼心院). It was first called Kōki-an before receiving this name. The temple also served as the contact point where the parish temple of an exiled convict submitted a pardon petition during the Nagaoka domain lord's memorial services.
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