Confidence
| Field | Confidence | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Temple name | 97% | Bottom-left red square seal reads 東長寺 (Tōchō-ji); the central Sanskrit Bonji "キリーク (Hriḥ)" enclosed in a flame-and-lotus mandorla represents Senju Kannon (千手観音), the temple's hidden honzon. The right side handwritten phrase "ふくおか大仏" (Fukuoka Daibutsu) explicitly identifies the temple as the home of the Fukuoka Big Buddha. |
| Pilgrimage circuit | 80% | Top-right red oval seal reads 「九州二十四観音◯◯霊場」(Kyūshū 24 Kannon ◯◯ Reijō) — Tōchō-ji's pilgrimage credit on the 九州二十四ヶ所観音霊場 (Kyushu 24 Kannon Pilgrimage). The exact pilgrimage number on the seal is partially obscured by overstamping. |
| Date | 97% | 令和七年三月廿三日 = 23 March 2025 (Reiwa 7) |
Identification
- Name (Japanese): 南岳山 東長寺
- Name (Romanized): Nangakuzan Tōchō-ji
- Type: Buddhist temple — 真言宗九州教団 (Shingon-shū Kyūshū Kyōdan) head temple
- Honzon (principal image): 千手観音菩薩 (Senju Kannon Bosatsu), a Heian-period Important Cultural Property (一木造 wood, ~80 cm), kept as a hidden statue (秘仏)
- Famous secondary image: 福岡大仏 (Fukuoka Daibutsu) — Japan's largest wooden seated Buddha (10.8 m tall, 16.1 m halo), completed 1992
- Location: Gokushō-machi 2-4, Hakata Ward, Fukuoka City
- Date received: 令和七年三月廿三日 = 23 March 2025 (Reiwa 7)
Reading the goshuin
| Element | Reading | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 奉拝 (top, partially overstamped) | Hōhai — "humbly worshipped" | Top right corner |
| キリーク (Sanskrit Bonji "Hriḥ") | Bonji syllable representing Senju Kannon | Center, large red Sanskrit |
| 千手観音 (calligraphy) | Senju Kannon — the principal image | Center, large brush over the Bonji |
| 九州二十四観音 (red oval) | Kyushu 24 Kannon Pilgrimage seal | Top right, red oval |
| ふくおか大仏 | Fukuoka Daibutsu — handwritten note | Right column, brush |
| 東長寺 (red square) | Tōchō-ji — temple name seal | Bottom left, red square |
| 別格本山 (red square at top) | Bekkaku-honzan — "special-rank head temple" | Top, small red |
| 令和七年三月廿三日 | Reiwa 7, 3rd month, 23rd day = 23 March 2025 | Right column, brush |
About the temple
Tōchō-ji is one of the oldest Shingon Buddhist temples in Japan. According to temple tradition, it was founded in 806 CE by Kōbō Daishi (Kūkai, 774–835) immediately upon his return from Tang-dynasty China, where he had received transmission of the Shingon esoteric tradition from Master Huiguo. Kūkai prayed for the eastward propagation of Mikkyō (密教東漸 / mikkyō tōzen) in Japan, carved an image of Fudō Myō-ō with his own hands as the original honzon, and founded a temple compound on this site, making Tōchō-ji the very first Shingon temple Kūkai established on Japanese soil.
The original honzon, the wooden Senju Kannon (千手観音菩薩) statue still kept in the main hall, dates from the late Heian period and is designated a National Important Cultural Property. It is enshrined as a hidden Buddha (秘仏) and is generally not shown to the public.
The Fukuoka Daibutsu
The 福岡大仏 (Fukuoka Daibutsu) is the temple's modern signature image — the largest wooden seated Buddha statue in Japan. Constructed over four years and completed in 1992 (Heisei 4), the great Buddha is 10.8 meters tall, with a 16.1-meter-tall halo (光背). The Buddha sits on a multi-tiered lotus pedestal, and behind it on the wall are numerous smaller Buddha and Bodhisattva figures.
A famous feature is the 地獄極楽めぐり (Jigoku-Gokuraku-meguri / "Hell-Paradise Tour") — a dark passageway behind the Daibutsu that visitors enter, walking through a pitch-black corridor as a brief Buddhist meditation on the soul's progress through Hell into Paradise.
What it's known for / the blessing
- 諸願成就 (shogan jōju) — fulfillment of all wishes, traditional to Senju Kannon (literally "thousand-handed Kannon" — each hand can grant a different wish)
- 東漸 (tōzen) — eastward propagation of Buddhist Dharma; Tōchō-ji is the symbolic origin point of Shingon's spread eastward through Japan from Kyushu
- 諸悪消滅 / 厄除け (shoaku shōmetsu / yakuyoke) — eradication of evil, protection from misfortune (via Fudō Myō-ō, the original honzon)
- Kyushu 24 Kannon Pilgrimage credit — pilgrims can collect 24 Kannon-themed temple goshuin across Kyushu
About the goshuin
The central red Sanskrit syllable キリーク (Hriḥ, Devanagari ह्रीः) is the bonji (梵字 / Sanskrit seed-syllable) corresponding to Senju Kannon. Many Shingon-tradition temple goshuin use bonji prominently, which differentiates them visually from Shinto-shrine goshuin and from Zen-tradition Buddhist goshuin. The flame-and-lotus mandorla around the bonji is standard Shingon iconography.
Sources
- Tōchō-ji goshuin (Sennencho): https://sennencho.jp/tochoji-goshuin
- Tōchō-ji official guide (Crossroad Fukuoka): https://www.crossroadfukuoka.jp/spot/12556
- Fukuoka Daibutsu reportage: https://fukuoka-yokamon.com/powerspot/touchouji
- Tōchō-ji Wikipedia: https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/東長寺
- Tōchō-ji goshuin gallery: https://omairi.club/spots/82240/goshuin
- Tōchō-ji Hotokami: https://hotokami.jp/area/fukuoka/Hyttk/Hyttktk/Drtkt/26427/