Kōen-ji, Buddhist temple in Kōenji, Tokyo, Japan.

Kōen-ji is a Sōtō Zen temple in Kōenji-minami, Tokyo, founded in 1555 by Kenshitsu Sōshō of Nakano Jōgan-ji. Its main hall was rebuilt in 1953 by shrine carpenter Nakamura Seiun after fires in 1742, 1847, 1900 and 1945. The grounds include a stone torii with dragon carvings called the Sōryū Torii, an Inari shrine and a tea tree said to have been planted by Tokugawa Iemitsu.

Kōen-ji was founded in 1555 by Kenshitsu Sōshō, third abbot of Jōgan-ji in Nakano. Shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu stopped here to shelter from rain during falconry and was served as an ordinary guest, not as shogun; pleased, he returned on later hunts, and the temple became widely known. The village of Ozawa was renamed Kōenji-mura after the temple, giving the present district its name. The hall burned in 1742, 1847, 1900 and 1945; the current main hall was rebuilt in 1953 by shrine carpenter Nakamura Seiun.

The neighbourhood and the temple share a name: the area was called Ozawa-mura until Tokugawa Iemitsu renamed it Kōenji-mura after the temple, and peach trees once grew around the grounds, giving the main image the name Tōen Kannon and the stream in front the Momoen River. Look for the triple hollyhock crest of the Tokugawa on the precinct buildings.

Kōen-ji stands in Kōenji-minami 4-chōme, a short walk from Kōenji Station on the JR Chūō line. The grounds are open to walkers, and the main hall rebuilt in 1953 by shrine carpenter Nakamura Seiun is the focal point. Look for the tea tree said to have been planted by Tokugawa Iemitsu and the dragon-carved stone torii gate.

The stone torii at the gate is carved with two dragons, the Sōryū Torii. A twin stands about a kilometre west at Umabashi Inari Shrine, and the same stonemason's name is cut into the foundation stones of both; a third is at Shinagawa Shrine, and the three are counted among Tokyo's Three Torii.