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Nagarasan Onjōji, also known as just Onjo-ji, or 三井寺, is a Buddhist temple in Japan located at the foot of Mount Hiei, in the city of Ōtsu in Shiga Prefecture. It is a short distance from both Kyoto, and Lake Biwa, Japan's largest lake. The head temple of the Jimon sect of Tendai, it is a sister temple to Enryaku-ji, at the top of the mountain, and is one of the four largest temples in Japan. Altogether, there are 40 named buildings in the Mii-dera complex.
Mii-dera is temple 14 in the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage.
The name Mii-dera ("Temple of Three Wells") came about nearly two centuries later. It was given this name by Enchin, one of the earliest abbots of the Tendai Sect. The name comes from the springs at the temple which were used for the ritual bathing of newborns, and in honor of Emperors Emperor Tenji and Emperor Tenmu, and Empress Jitō, who contributed to the founding of the temple. Today, the Kondō, or Main Hall, houses a spring of Sacred waters. Under Enchin's guidance, from 859 to his death in 891, Mii-dera gained power and importance, eventually becoming (along with Tōdai-ji, Kōfuku-ji, and Enryaku-ji) one of the four chief temples charged with the spiritual guidance and protection of the capital. It was during this time also that Enryaku-ji and Mii-dera split away from one another, developing two branches of the Tendai sect, called Jimon and Sanmon. For the most part, this was more a geographic rivalry than an ideological schism, but it was an intense one nonetheless, and only grew more severe after Enchin's death.
The rivalry turned violent in the second half of the 10th century, over a series of official appointments to other temples, and similar slights. The zasu of Enryaku-ji in 970 formed the first permanent standing army to be recruited by a religious body. Mii-dera can be assumed to have established one very soon afterwards. In 989, a former abbot of Mii-dera by the name of Yokei was to become abbot of Enryaku-ji; but none of the monks of Enryaku-ji would perform services under his direction. He soon resigned. But in 993, the monks of Mii-dera took revenge, destroying a temple where Ennin, founder of Enryaku-ji's Sanmon sect, had once lived. The monks from Enryaku-ji retaliated, destroying more than 40 places associated with Enchin. In the end, over 1,000 monks of Enchin's Jimon sect fled permanently to Mii-dera, cementing the split between the two Sects. Over the course of the 10th, 11th and 12th centuries, there continued to be similar incidents, over the appointment of abbots ( zasu), involving many sōhei, or warrior monks. Mii-dera was burned to the ground by the sōhei of Enryaku-ji four times in the 11th century alone. There were, however, times that the two united against a common enemy, including an attack on the Kōfuku-ji in Nara in 1081 (avenging the burning of the Mii-dera by Kōfuku-ji monks that same year), and a united attack on Nara once more in 1117.
Angered at the Mii-dera/Minamoto alliance, Taira no Kiyomori ordered the destruction of Mii-dera, and of many of the temples of Nara (see Siege of Nara).
The monks of Mii-dera figured once more in the Genpei War, fighting alongside Taira sympathisers against Minamoto no Yoshinaka, who invaded Kyoto in 1184, setting fire to the Hōjūjidono Palace and kidnapping the retired emperor, Shirakawa II.
Following the Genpei War, there was a long period of relative peace, as the temples of Kyoto and Nara, including the Mii-dera, were rebuilt. As the temples regained strength, rivalries reappeared, though little to no violence actually erupted between Mii-dera and Enryaku-ji. In 1367, when a novice from Mii-dera was killed at a toll barrier established by the temple of Nanzen-ji, warrior monks from Mii-dera set out to attack Nanzen-ji; when the shōguns forces were sent to quell the rebellion, they discovered Mii-dera's monks to be supported by sōhei from Enryaku-ji and Kōfuku-ji as well. A year later, another battle erupted, over comments made by the abbot of Nanzen-ji; the monks of Mii-dera, along with their allies, defeated the shogun's forces once again.
Following these attacks, the monks of Mount Hiei were finally granted a reprieve, and rebuilt their temples once more. Mii-dera has never been attacked or destroyed since then.
Mii-dera also has a Kannon-do, built in 1072.
The evening bell of Mii-dera appears in many tales and legends, including one of the warrior monk Musashibo Benkei and another of a vainglorious woman who dared to touch the forbidden bell.
The gardens was designated a National Place of Scenic Beauty in 1934. The layout of the garden is attributed to Sōami, who is also responsible by for the rock garden at Ginkaku-ji in Kyoto.
Within the grounds of Enman-in is also the Otsu-e bijutsukan with a collection of Otsu-e votive prints which were popular with travelers on the Tōkaidō and Nakasendō roads in the Edo Period.
The Kōjō-in is noteworthy for its Kyakuden, or Guest Hall, which was completed in 1601. This six by seven bay structure with a wood-shingled irimoya-zukuri roof has been designated as a National Treasure as a representative example of Shoin architecture of the late Muromachi period. It is decorated inside with paintings by the Kano school, notably fusuma paintings by Kanō Sanraku. These painting were designated an Important Cultural Property in 1976.
The gardens was designated a National Place of Scenic Beauty in 1934. The gardens contain a large pond which extends almost to the edge of the verandah of the Kyakuden. The pond contains a central island and a number of monoliths, as a grouping of stones forming a dry waterfall giving a sense of depth. The garden is planted with trees and flowers which reflect the composition of the paintings within the Kyakuden.
The Kōjō-in and its gardens are open to the public only by reservation at least a week in advance.
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