Risshaku-ji (Yamadera)

Founded in 860 (Jogan 2) by Jikaku Daishi Ennin, the third chief abbot of the Tendai sect, this sacred mountain is a representative spiritual site of the Tohoku region.

It is also well known for the haiku by Matsuo Basho: “Such tranquility / The voice of cicadas / Penetrates the rocks.”
Blessed with abundant nature, it offers the chance to enjoy the changing atmosphere of the four seasons: spring, summer, autumn, and winter.

Known formally as Hojuzan Risshaku-ji, it is commonly called “Yamadera” (“Mountain Temple”). It belongs to the Tendai sect and was founded in 860 by Jikaku Daishi Ennin, the third chief abbot of Tendai.

At that time, Jikaku Daishi visited this area and purchased a surrounding area of ten ri square with 1,000 ryo of gold dust and 3,000 bolts of hemp cloth from the local lord, making it temple land and devoting himself to propagating Buddhism here with more than 300 halls and towers. At the time of the temple’s founding, the imperishable flame lit by Dengyo Daishi at the head temple Enryaku-ji was divided and brought here. Incense has also been kept burning without interruption in devotion to the spiritual presence of the founder, Jikaku Daishi, and the temple became one that preserves the continuous practice of copying sutras, which Daishi introduced here as a cycle of four years. Later, in the Kamakura period, the monks’ quarters prospered greatly, but in the Muromachi period the temple suffered decline due to war. In the Edo period, however, it was granted 1,420 koku of shuinchi land, and the halls and towers were rebuilt and restored. In 1689 (Genroku 2), the haiku master Matsuo Basho visited this place during his journey along the Narrow Road to the Deep North and left behind his famous verse, “Such tranquility / The voice of cicadas / Penetrates the rocks.”

Today, the temple grounds cover about 100 chobu (330,000 tsubo), within which more than 30 halls and towers of various sizes remain, and the three imperishables—flame, incense, and sutra-copying practice—are still protected.

Guide to the Halls
▶ Konpon Chudo: The Imperishable Flame
Konpon Chudo is the main hall of the entire temple complex of Risshaku-ji. The present Konpon Chudo was rebuilt in 1356 (Enbun 1) by Shiba Kaneyori, the first lord of Yamagata Castle. It is an irimoya-zukuri structure measuring five bays by four bays, and about 60% of the building uses beech wood, making it said to be Japan’s oldest wooden structure built primarily of beech.

Inside the hall, the principal image is a wooden seated Yakushi Nyorai statue said to have been made by Jikaku Daishi. As attendant deities, one can worship the Nikko and Gakko Bosatsu and the Twelve Divine Generals, with Monju Bosatsu and Bishamonten placed to the left and right.

▶ Semizuka
The haiku master Matsuo Basho is said to have visited Yamadera on May 27 of 1689 in the old calendar (July 13 in the modern calendar), and it is believed that he composed his travel writing and poem while staying at a temple lodging that once stood at the foot of the mountain.

Later, Basho’s disciples visited this place, reflecting on the great master and the atmosphere of his time. Believing this to be the place where Basho conceived the famous verse, they buried one of his surviving poem slips beneath the foundation stone and erected a mound here. This became Semizuka.

Since then, many haiku and waka poets, including Mokichi Saito, have visited Yamadera, and poems left by those who felt Basho’s presence in these unchanging landscapes can still be seen as stone monuments along the approach path.

▶ Kaisando
Standing atop Hyakujokai Rock, Kaisando is the hall dedicated to Jikaku Daishi, the founder of Risshaku-ji. Beneath the cliff on which this hall stands, the Daishi’s remains are buried in a natural cave inside a gold coffin. A wooden statue of the Daishi is enshrined in the hall, and meals and incense are offered morning and evening without interruption. Although the hall is usually closed, it is opened once a year on January 14, the anniversary of the Daishi’s death, when memorial services are held.

To the left, the small red hall on the rock is Nokyodo, the sutra repository and the oldest building on the mountain. The Lotus Sutra, copied over four years at Oku-no-in, is kept here. It is designated as a cultural property by the prefecture and underwent dismantling and repair work in 1987. Above and to the right of this is Godaido, which enshrines the Five Great Myo-o. From this stage-like hall, one can overlook all of Yamadera and enjoy spectacular views.

▶ Oku-no-in
Oku-no-in is the common name; its proper name is Nyohodo.

Nyohodo, whose principal images are the pair of Shaka Nyorai and Tahoto Nyorai said to have been carried by Jikaku Daishi in China, is called “Oku-no-in” because it stands at the end of the approach path.
The practice of Nyohogyo—copying sutras with inkstone and brush and bowing once for every character—which Jikaku Daishi began at this training hall is preserved here.

In the Daibutsuden to the left of Nyohodo, a 5-meter-tall golden Amida Nyorai is enshrined, and many people, regardless of sect, visit to offer prayers.

▶ Shoso-in
If you ascend from the Niomon Gate, you will reach Shoso-in.

This was once one of the twelve zodiac temples on the mountain. Its principal image is an Amida Nyorai said to have been made by Jikaku Daishi, and it also enshrines a Bishamonten statue attributed to Unkei. In 1868, it was merged with Gokuraku-in and Zenko-in on the mountain, and has remained in its present form since then.

▶ Konjoin
One of the twelve zodiac temples, its principal image is an Enmei Jizo Bosatsu. It also enshrines a thousand statues and Fudo Myoo. The temple was rebuilt in March 1840 (Tenpo 11) by Chomyo Kokai.

▶ Chuse-in
Its principal image is Amida Nyorai, and it was merged with Fudo-in in 1868.
In the rock cave behind it stand stone monuments of successive generations of the Tozawa clan of Shinjo Domain, and across the road there is also the mausoleum of Lord Mogami Yoshiaki, lord of Yamagata Castle. The spirits of the Mogami clan are worshipped there through a Jizo Bosatsu, one shaku and one sun in height, which serves as the main object of worship.

▶ Kazo-in
This is also one of the twelve zodiac temples. It is said that Jikaku Daishi stayed at this temple when he first founded the mountain temple, and its principal image is believed to be a Kannon Bosatsu made by Jikaku Daishi. In the cave to the right, a small three-story pagoda stands within a rock grotto, treating the grotto as a hall.

Built in 1519 (Eisho 16), this pagoda is a small structure with columns spaced about 1.5 shaku apart. Assembled through the same processes as larger pagodas, it is also considered the smallest three-story pagoda in Japan and has been designated an Important Cultural Property.