栖賢寺, Zen temple in Sakyo ward, Kyoto, Japan.
Seikenji is a Rinzai-sect temple whose grounds hold a main hall (hondō), the Kinhōkaku pavilion, the Nyoirindō hall, an inryō, a kuri, a storehouse and a bell tower. The temple was moved here from Amagasaki in 1932, and its bronze bell, the Senjin Bell, was cast in 1931 with contributions from over 1,100 people.
Founded in the Kangen era (1342–1345) by Jikudo, the temple was one of the ten Zen temples of Settsu Province and was built by the Akamatsu clan, like its parent temple Daitokuji. It stood in Omotemachi during the medieval period, then moved to Teramachi in the Genna era (1615–1624) when Amagasaki Castle was built. In 1932 it was relocated from Amagasaki to its present site in Kyoto's Sakyo ward.
The temple's name appears in the Settsu Meisho Zue, which records that Toyotomi Hideyoshi rested on a pine here and set his battle orders for the Battle of Yamazaki. The tree was called the Koshikake Matsu, the sitting pine. The wooden seated statue of Chikudo Enkaku, a Nanbokucho-period work, is a Kyoto Prefecture-designated cultural property.
The site is easily reached on foot, roughly 7 minutes east of Miyake-Hachiman Station on the Eizan Electric Railway. From there, the path crosses the Takano River to reach the temple grounds.
The temple bell dates from 1931 and is called the Thousand People Bell because it was created through donations from over 1,100 people. This communal creation shows a special connection between the temple and those who supported it.
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