Bansho-ji Temple

The full name of this temple is Kigakusan ( Turtle-Peak-Mountain) Bansho-ji ( Temple of Ten Thousand Pines ). It is mentioned in an 1844 guide book titled Famous Places in the Owari Area by Hishiya Hisabe and Hisahachiro: " This temple stands at Uramonzen-cho ( now Osu, 3-chome ). Its affiliation is with the Sodo Sect of Buddhism that originated in Note ( now Ishikawa Prefecture ). It was built by Oda Bingo no Kami Nobuhide who invited Daiun to take over as chief priest. When Nobuhide died in Suemori Castle in 1552, he was buried in the Oda family plot in Bansho-ji Cenetery." According to existing records, the original site of the Bansho-ji Temple was in Sakura Machi ( next to the Sakura public bath) where the neighboring citizens considered Bansho-ji as a source of divine protection. In another document, The Sun of Owari, Bansho-ji was described as once being at Fuda no Tsuji with the main gate at Mizuguchi ( now Nishiki and Marunouchi 2-3-chome in Naka-ku ). Later, when Nagoya Catsle was built in 1610, Bansho-ji was relocated at Osu 3-chome. In other words, Bansho-ji was moved from the site at Nagoya Castle where Nobuhide once lived to the former site of Kobayashi Castle where his daughter once lived. The feelings of the Owari-Tokugawa clan ( the rulers of Owari at this time ) were that Bansho-ji ( the Oda clan temple and cemetery ) should not be in the shadow of Nagoya Castle for political reasons. They suggested that Bansho-ji be moved to a more remote place ( now called Gokiso). The eighth abbot of Bansho-ji ( since Daiun ), Meikoku was famed for his insight. Haru-hime, the wife of Yoshinao, was an admirer of Meikoku in addition to her devotion to the temple. Accordingly, the wise abbot insisted that even though he had to accept a smaller compound, it would be better to choose a site closer to Nagoya Castle at Kamimaezu ( Osu 3-chome). (Courtesy of Bansho-ji website)