Sonshō-ji


Sonshō-ji is a Tendai Buddhist temple in northeastern Kyoto, Japan, established by Emperor Horikawa in fulfillment of a sacred vow. It is known as one of the "Six Victorious Temples", which encompass monasteries enjoying extravagant Imperial patronage from their inception. They are sometimes identified as the "Superlative Temples" or the "Shō Temples" because of the middle syllable of the temple name.

History

Sonshō-ji was founded in the early Heian period. Saishō-ji and the other Rokushō-ji establishments had a particular function within the Imperial Cloistered rule. The Rokushō-ji were "sacred vow temples" built by imperial command following a precedent established by Emperor Shirakawa's
Hosshō-ji. Although these temple complexes were ostensibly established for a presumptively pious purpose,
The Rokushō-ji were also called the six "Superiority Temples;" and each were uniquely dedicated to an aspect of esoteric Buddhist ontology, as in
  • the "Superiority of Buddhist Law" --
  • the "Superiority of Worship" --
  • the "Most Superior" --
  • the "Superiority of Perfection" --
  • the "Superiority of Becoming" --
  • the "Superiority of Duration" --
Construction of the main Amitabha Hall at Sonshō-ji in Kyoto took two years.