Taiseki-ji

Taiseki-ji (大石寺 (多宝富士大日蓮華山大石寺), Tahō Fuji Dainichirenge-zan Taiseki-ji) is the head temple (総本山, sōhonzan) of the Nichiren Shōshū school of the Nikko branch of Nichiren Buddhism. It is located on the lower slopes of Mount Fuji in Fujinomiya, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. Taiseki-ji was founded in 1290 CE by Nikkō Shōnin, one of Nichiren's immediate disciples.

Taiseki-ji today

Nichiren Shōshū’s head temple is the administrative center, and its chief abbot (貫主, kanzu) is simultaneously the high priest (法主, Hossu) of Nichiren Shōshū. The current High Priest is Nichinyo Hayase (1935–), who assumed the position on December 16, 2005, and is the 68th in a lineage that Nichiren Shōshū traces back to Nichiren (1222–1282). The formal reference to the current high priest is commonly styled as 68th High Priest Nichinyo Shōnin in English.

Because it is the head temple of Nichiren Shōshū and therefore home of the Dai Gohonzon, Nichiren Shōshū’s ultimate object of veneration, Taiseki-ji is visited by believers from all around the world who come on personal pilgrimages, to participate in regular ceremonies, or to take part in large events such as temple-group pilgrimages, workshop-like study programs, and large rally-like meetings. The temple is visited by several hundred thousand pilgrims a year, and its compound is known for several historically significant buildings, its gardens, and the old weeping cherry trees that line its tatchū (main path lined with lodging temples). Map of Taisekiji

Nichiren Shōshū

Nichiren Shōshū (日蓮正宗) is a branch of Nichiren Buddhism based on the teachings of the 13th-century Japanese monk Nichiren (1222–1282). Nichiren Shōshū claims Nichiren as its founder through his disciple Nikkō (1246–1333), the founder of the school's Head Temple Taiseki-ji. It has adherents throughout the world, with the largest concentrations in Indonesia and Japan and many more in Taiwan, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong, Ghana, the Philippines, Europe, and North, Central, and South America.

Overview

Nichiren Shōshū is a school of Mahayana Buddhism. Its head temple, the Taiseki-ji, is located on the lower slopes of Mount Fuji in Japan. Taiseki-ji is visited regularly by Nichiren Shōshū believers from around the world who come to chant to the Dai Gohonzon, which was described by Nichiren as "the essence of my Buddahood written in Sumi Ink". Unlike other Mahayana Buddhist practices, Nichiren expounded the Lotus Sutra and chanting Nam-myōhō-renge-kyō as a way for anyone to obtain Enlightenment.