Shomyoji Temple (Kanazawa-style Hojo clan family temple) August 2023

Once we memorize incorrect information, we will often be embarrassed later on, but for a long time I believed that Kanasawa Bunko could be pronunciated "Kanazawa Bunko".

Currently, the Prefectural Kanazawa Bunko stands next to Shomyoji Temple, and many valuable items are still stored there. After the fall of the Hojo clan, Shomyo-ji Temple seems to have protected these books, but after that, many books were taken out and scattered by the Hojo clan who ruled the area, and by Ieyasu Tokugawa and the Maeda family of the Kaga domain in the Edo period.

I think it would be difficult to preserve such valuable cultural properties in high quality and pass them on to future generations unless the wealthy protect them as a hobby.

Even though the country of Japan changed rulers, many ancient documents, arts, and buildings were left behind, but it is very important how much value the public and private sectors can find and protect such cultural heritage when our nation's class is gauged.

Now, speaking of Shomyo-ji Temple, I wanted to see the Jodo-style garden that was restored in 1987, but the Somon, Niomon, and Kondo halls, which were rebuilt in the latter half of the Edo period, are also interesting. Although the building was rebuilt during the Edo period, the Buddhist statues, portraits, and other items stored inside are full of national treasures and important cultural properties.

We took a walk while remembering the Kanazawa-ryu Hojo clan, which died out 700 years ago.

The Kanazawa school was a family of academics who actively collected Japanese and Chinese books and served in important positions in the shogunate, but in the late Kamakura period, the family also expanded to Kyushu and Chugoku, resisting the overthrowing forces to the end and resisting the shogunate. The rise and fall of the Kamakura Shogunate and the Hojo clan is very interesting, so I will discuss it in another article.

It was difficult to find a parking lot because it was surrounded by residential areas. Let's investigate it carefully.