Sutra Repository (Kyodo) 勝興寺/経堂

Official explanation

The Sutra Repository was built in 1805 to store sutras. The roof of the square, wooden structure is topped by a hoju, or sacred-gem finial—a bronze ball with rising flames—believed to ward off evil. Inside the building is an octagonal wooden cabinet, or rinzo, which holds the sutras.

The rinzo is around 4 meters high, and each of its 8 sides contains 36 drawers. The cabinet is enclosed with brightly painted doors and revolves on a central axis. It is said that turning the cabinet one revolution is equivalent to reciting all the sutras inside. The painted doors of the rinzo were completed in 1829 and depict bodhisattvas, lotus flowers, and phoenixes. The doors of the repository are kept closed to preserve the colors of the paintings, and the building is not open to the public. The Sutra Repository is designated an Important Cultural Property.

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.