ZOJO JI TEMPLE, Introduction

Hi, my name’s Scott, and I’m your personal guide. Along with MyWoWo, I’d like to welcome you to one of the Wonders of the World: the Zojoji Buddhist Temple.

The Zojoji is the most visited temple in Tokyo.

It was founded in the 9th century, but in 1393 became a Buddhist seminary of the Jodo school. The Jodo, or “Pure Land” doctrine was established in 1175, with the aim of spreading the teachings of Buddhism among the middle classes and no longer just among members of the government and the nobility.

The Zojoji Temple did not, however, move to its present-day location until 1598, after Tokugawa Ieyasu, the samurai who founded the Tokugawa shogunate, came to power in Edo, present-day Tokyo.

When Japan was governed by the Tokugawa, Zojoji became the family temple, and you can find six Tokugawa shoguns buried here, in the Taitoku Mausoleum....