Architecture of the Lecture Hall (Kōdō) 講堂の建築

Official explanation

The Lecture Hall stands at the exact center of the Tōji complex, a testament to its importance in the spiritual life of the temple. It was the first building to be reconstructed after the fire that devastated Tōji in 1486. Rebuilding was finished in just five years, in 1491, making the it one of the temple’s oldest surviving structures.

The focus of the Lecture Hall is the statues inside, which form a three-dimensional mandala designed by Kūkai (774–835) as an aid for meditation and study. The Lecture Hall has a single hip-and-gable roof and huge doors that can be opened to reveal the statues inside.

出典: 地域観光資源の多言語解説文データベース（観光庁） — www.mlit.go.jp/tagengo-db. この英語解説文は観光庁の地域観光資源の多言語解説整備支援事業で作成しました。
Source: Japan Tourism Agency, Multilingual Explanation Database. This English text was produced by the Japan Tourism Agency's multilingual explanation project and is shown unedited. Opening hours and services may have changed since it was written.