Kikō-ji Temple
Kikō-ji is a Buddhist temple in Nara, Japan. Founded in the eighth century, its Muromachi-period Hondō and the Heian-period statue of Amida Nyorai enshrined within are Important Cultural Properties.
Kikō-ji Temple
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- Name
- Kikō-ji 喜光寺
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In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Kikō-ji 喜光寺 • Location — 508 Sugawara-chō, Nara, Nara Prefecture • Religious Affiliation — Hossō • Deity — Amida Nyorai (Amitābha) • Country — Japan • Website — http: www.kikouji.com/index.html • Founded By — Gyōki • Completed — 721
Name
Name
Initially known as Sugawara-dera, the temple is said to have been renamed after a visit in 731 by Emperor Shōmu, when a wondrous ray of light shone forth from the brow of the honzon.
History
History
Gyōki is said to have founded the temple in 721 and to have died there in 749. The Hondō was re-erected in the early Muromachi period. For a long time temple lay in the midst of rice fields.
Buildings
Buildings
The three by two bay Hondō, with tiled hipped roof and mokoshi, is unusual among wayō style buildings in being open, like the Tōdai-ji Daibutsuden, for its full height (without the need occasioned by the latter's daibutsu), in being so narrow and shallow relative to its height, and in having an open porch extending across its entire front. An early Muromachi period rebuild, it was dismantled for repair and reconstruction in 1933. It has been designated an Important Cultural Property.
Treasures
Treasures
In the Hondō are a seated wooden statue of Amida Nyorai dating from the Heian period (ICP), flanked by Kannon and Seishi of the Nanboku-chō period.
Text attribution
Licensing
Text attribution
Part of the biographical narrative on this page reuses licensed material. Its origin, revision and licence are recorded here.
The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article Kikō-ji, revision 1366906632 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Augustine, Jonathan Morris. Buddhist Hagiography in Early Japan: Images of Compassion in the Gyoki Tradition. Routledge. 2005. 978-0415322454.
- 2.Soper, Alexander Coburn III. The Evolution of Buddhist Architecture in Japan. Princeton University Press. 247, 248, 255. 1942.
- 3.Nabunken. 喜光寺の調査.
- 4.Parent, Mary Neighbour. The Roof in Japanese Buddhist Architecture. Weatherhill. 188, 189, 284. 1983.
- 5.Agency for Cultural Affairs.
- 6.Agency for Cultural Affairs.
- 7.Kikōji.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 27 September 2026.
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