Paper short abstract:

This paper examines the relationship between local prayer temples and the central government in the early 15th century. It argues that this relationship contributed to the establishment of local temples as ritual centers in the local society, and their fame and significance there.

Paper long abstract:

This paper examines hitherto neglected connections between local temples and the central political authority in the Muromachi period (1368-1467). Local Buddhist temples are valuable for understanding medieval Japanese society (ca. 1100-1600) because of their important religious, economic, political, and cultural roles in local communities. Recent scholarship pays attention to the local temples particularly in the Muromachi period. This era saw active interactions between the capital and country-side as indicated by the increased number of local temples being designated as prayer temples (kiganji). It is common to see that local temples took the initiative in building up connections with the shogunate and other powers in order to be designated as prayer temples because the designation could secure several benefits from the shogun such as the confirmation of the ownership of land property. To be designated as prayer temples, it is necessarily to form good relationships with head temples in Kyoto in the first place. However, both Japanese and English language scholarships have not to date clarified how the monks in Kyoto took part in the formulation of rituals that were conducted at local temples and were essential for the designation as prayer temples.

This paper seeks to remedy this state of research by exploring ritual performance at prayer temples in Echizen Province and the roles of monks—both in central Kyoto and the local society—in maintaining capital-countryside relationship. By analyzing medieval documents persevered at local temples in Echizen Province, the paper contends that monks in the local temples made a concerted effort to perform the memorial rituals held for the shogun on a regular basis with the support of priests in Kyoto. Moreover, this paper reveals that this cooperation and other interactions between the capital and local monastic communities contributed to the establishment of local temples as ritual centers, earning them reputation for memorial services in the local society.