Zendouji

Zendoji, also known as Fujita Zendoji, is an ancient temple of the Jodo sect located in Yorii, Osato District, Saitama Prefecture. It was founded in 1297 (Einin 5) by Priest Fujita Jia Ryoshin as the family temple of the Fujita clan, a powerful local family who dominated northern Musashi Province. The temple flourished under the patronage of Hojo Ujikuni, lord of Hachigatajo Castle, but was destroyed in 1590 during Toyotomi Hideyoshi's Odawara campaign. It was later revived by Priest Jakuyo Jundo of Kawagoe, and the current main hall was rebuilt around 1750. The hall's ceiling is strikingly decorated with a vivid set of 100-poem illustrations dating from 1629, a rare surviving treasure that testifies to the temple's former prosperity.