Matsunoo-dera
[file:NDL-DC 1313505-Utagawa Kunisada and Hiroshige-観音霊験記 西国巡礼廿九番若狭国松尾寺 結城宗太夫-crd.jpg|right|thumb|Ukiyoe “Yūki Sōdayū, Matsunoo-dera, Wakasa Province, 29th Temple on the Saigoku Pilgrimage”, in Kan'on reigenki]
Matsunoo-dera is a Buddhist temple located in the Matsuo neighborhood of the city of Maizuru, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. It belongs to the Shingon-shū Daigo-ha sect of Japanese Buddhism and its honzon is a hibutsu hidden image, a statue of Batō Kannon Bosatsu. The temple's full name is Aoba-san Matsunoo-ji.The temple is the 29th stop on the 33 temple Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage route. The temple is located on the Sea of Japan, at an elevation of about 250 meters on the southern slope of Mount Aoba, which is 693 meters above sea level.
History
According to legend, during the Keiun era, the monk Iko from Tang China climbed Mount Aoba and perceived the spiritual force of Batō Kannon under a large tree. In 708, he built a small hermitage and carved an image of Batō Kannon as its main image.The temple first appears in the historical record in 1119, when Emperor Toba visited it, and awarded it estates with revenues of 4000 koku for its upkeep. The temple flourished, and at one time had 65 subsidiaries.
The temple was destroyed by fire on numerous occasions, but was rebuilt each time with the support of the Hosokawa clan, and later the Kyōgoku clan. The current main hall was renovated by Makino Hidenari, daimyō of Tango-Tanabe Domain in 1730.
Access
The temple is located approximately 10 minutes by car west of Matsunoodera Station on the JR West Obama Line.Honzon primary image
The honzon is a hibutsu hidden image of Batō Kannon Bosatsu It was open to the public from October 2008 to October 2009 to commemorate the 1000th anniversary of the death of cloistered Emperor Kazan, marking the first public viewing since 1931.Cultural Properties
National Treasures
- '''Colored silk painting of Samantabhadra, Heian period, said to have been owned by Fujiwara no Nariko.
National Important Cultural Properties
- Wooden statue of seated Amitābha, Kamakura period; attributed to Kaikei
- Colored silk painting of Mahamayuri. Kamakura period.
- Colored silk painting of Lotus Mandala. Kamakura period.
- Colored silk painting of Cintāmaṇicakra,Kamakura period ; by Yishan Yining
- Colored silk painting of Zhongnan Mountains Mandala''', Kamakura period.
Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property
- Matsunoo-dera Hotokemai .
Kyoto Prefecture Tangible Cultural Properties
- Matsunoo-dera Hondō, Edo period
- Matsunoo-dera Kyōzō, Edo period
- Matsunoo-dera Niōmon, Edo period
- Colored silking painting of Amida Triad, Goryeo
- Announcement of the restoration of Matsunoo-dera, Kamakura period with Origin of the Saigoku Thirty-three Temples Pilgrimage, Muromachi period
- Colored silk painting of Acala, Kamakura period
- Colored silk painting of Bhaisajyaguru, Kamakura period
Maizuru City Tangible Cultural Properties
- Wooden seated statue of Kṣitigarbha, Kamakura period
- Wooden standing statues of Nio, Kamakura period
- Map of Matsunoo-dera precincts, Muromachi period
Maizuru City Places of Scenic Beauty
- Matsunoo-dera gardens, Muromachi period