The Daikomyo-ji Temple was originally built in Fushimi-ku in southern Kyoto city. It served as the family temple of the Fushimi-no-Miya Family since the burial of Prince Yoshihito (1351-1416), the first generation of the oldest branch of the Japanese Imperial Family. Since its construction, the Temple has been repeatedly destroyed by fire and wars, and preserved with the help of generous patrons such as Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537-98) and Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543-1616).

The Temple was unfortunately abandoned entirely in 1868 due to the anti-Buddhist movement during the Meiji Revolution. Its operations resumed five years later at the Shinge-in Temple, which is located in the centre of Kyoto city and was later integrated into the present-day Daikomyo-ji Temple. The Daikomyo-ji Temple is revered and well respected for its long history, and its successive abbots have devoted themselves to missionary work, salvation and enlightenment of sentient beings (Shujo Saido), and the propagation of Buddhist culture.

As the current abbot of the Temple, it is my obligation to ensure the history and legacy of the Temple is passed down to future generations. Therefore, it is of great urgency to construct a new residence hall (Kuri), as the existing building has survived for more than two hundred years since its construction, rendering its aged structure to become fragile and vulnerable to earthquakes of level four intensity.

The new building will serve as a peaceful and safe place for devotees and worshippers. In order to raise essential funds for the construction of the Kuri, selected artworks and tea ceremony utensils that were dutifully and carefully stored in the Temple are offered at this auction. We humbly request connoisseurs and discerning collectors to understand the purpose of this auction, and we sincerely ask for your faithful support for our cause.

September 2023
Eighteenth Abbot of The Daikomyo-ji Temple
Kendo Yano

Commissioned by the Empress of the 93rd Emperor Go-Fushimi (1288-1336) as a memorial to the Emperor, the Daikomyo-ji Temple was built in 1339 and named after the Empress' Buddhist name, with Muso Kokushi (1275-1351) as the founder. The image of the Fugen Bodhisattva of the Northern and Southern Courts period is enshrined as the principal image.

The Temple belongs to the Shokoku-ji Temple, which is the head temple of the Shokoku-ji School of the Rinzai sect of Zen Buddhism, founded by Ashikaga Yoshimitsu (1358-1408), the third shogun of the Muromachi Period. The Shokoku-ji namesake originated from the Daishokoku-ji Temple in China, located in the Kaifeng City of Henan Province. In 1992, the Daishokoku-ji Temple in China and the Shokoku-ji Temple in Japan established the first-ever cross-border friendship temple agreement.

Many exceptional tea utensils, pottery and paintings are preserved at the Daikomyo-ji Temple; among them is the Arhat on Silk, which is formally recognised as an Important Cultural Property of Japan, and the calligraphy of Zen monks from the Muromachi period of Japan and the Southern Song dynasty of China. In addition, the Jotenkaku Museum in the Shokoku-ji Temple houses Buddhist artwork handed down from the Shokoku-ji Temple, as well as temple treasures from the Kinkaku Rokuon-ji Temple and the Ginkaku Jisho-ji Temple, which are situated outside the Shokoku-ji Temple.