What if I told you that the name of a whole district in Tokyo came from this very temple? Welcome to Ryokusen-ji. This Buddhist temple has a fascinating story. It is deeply intertwined with the history of Tokyo.
Ryokusen-ji is also known as Meguro Fudo. The temple’s main image is a hibutsu statue of Fudo-myoo. Ryokusen-ji is the 18th temple on the Kanto Sanjuroku Fudo pilgrimage. This route includes 36 temples in the Kanto region. All of these temples are dedicated to Fudo-myoo.
Legend says that Ryokusen-ji was built in 808. A monk named Ennin enshrined a Fudo-myoo statue here. He was traveling from Shimotsuke province to Mount Hiei at the time. Many temples in eastern Japan claim to be founded by Ennin. The truth of these claims is often uncertain. However, records show that in 860, Emperor Seiwa changed the temple’s mountain name to “Taeisan.” After that, Ryokusen-ji vanished from historical records for centuries. It reappeared in the early Edo period.
In 1615, a fire destroyed Ryokusen-ji’s main hall. By 1630, it became a subsidiary of Kanei-ji temple. Tenkai restored and enlarged Ryokusen-ji. He had the support of Shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu. The surrounding district got its name “Meguro” from Ryokusen-ji’s black-eyed statue of Fudo-myoo. This statue was one of five protective Fudo-myoo statues around Edo. Each statue had different colored eyes. Another Tokyo ward Mejiro is named for the white-eyed Fudo-myoo.
During the Edo period, Ryokusen-ji was famous for its lottery. People believed that bathing in the temple’s springs or waterfall could cure illnesses. Guidebooks like the Edo meisho zue showed Ryokusen-ji as a major sightseeing spot. The temple town around Ryokusen-ji was known for bamboo products. Dishes used bamboo shoots or were shaped like bamboo. The Shimazu clan of Satsuma Domain introduced bamboo to Edo as a commercial crop.
Ryokusen-ji is the burial place of Hirai Gonpachi and Komurasaki. They were a romantic couple. Their story appeared in Kabuki plays and A.B. Mitford’s Tales of Old Japan. Ryokusen-ji is also important for the friendship between Jose Rizal. He was a Filipino national hero and Seiko Usui. Osei-san was the daughter of a samurai.
Sadly, a fire in May 1978 destroyed much of Ryokusen-ji. Most of the current structures are modern.
One Edo period structure survived the fire. It is the Seishi-do chapel. This chapel is a Designated Tangible Cultural Property of Meguro Ward. Near this chapel is a memorial to the composer Nagayo Motoori. There is also a monument to the pre-war political philosopher Ikki Kita. His grave is at Ryokusen-ji too. The cemetery holds the grave of Aoki Konyo. He was a Confucian scholar who popularized sweet potato cultivation in Japan. The tomb is a simple stone monument. It says “Konyo-sensei’s tomb.” Konyo erected it during his lifetime. It became a National Historic Site in 1943.
Ryokusen-ji is more than just a temple. It’s a place where history, legend, and culture come together. Take a moment to appreciate the stories and traditions held within these walls.