Eihei-ji

photo by 雷太 · CC BY 2.0

photo by 小石川人晃 · CC BY-SA 4.0

Seventy buildings in the complex, nineteen of them Important Cultural Properties: Zen since 1244.

Covered corridors link seventy buildings climbing the mountainside, nineteen of which are designated Important Cultural Properties: meditation halls, the refectory, the Dharma hall. The monks in training still follow the rule of shikantaza, ‘just sitting’, laid down by Dōgen almost eight centuries ago, and visitors walking the corridors come across real monastic life, not a reconstruction.

Founded in 1244 by the Zen master Dōgen at the invitation of the samurai Hatano Yoshishige, it is one of the two head temples (together with Sōji-ji) of the Sōtō Zen school of Buddhism. In 1372 the emperor granted it the title of first Dharma place of the Sōtō school in Japan, a recognition that consolidated its role as the reference point for the whole order.

ℹ️ Open all year 8:30–16:30 (last entry 16:00); adult ticket 700 yen, elementary/junior high 300, with a disability certificate 300, free for preschool children. Reachable on the direct Eiheiji Liner from Fukui Station (about 30 minutes) or by Echizen Railway train to Eiheiji-guchi plus a bus (13 minutes); three public car parks on site.

Sources: ja.wikipedia.org · daihonzan-eiheiji.com · daihonzan-eiheiji.com

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