Sōhei
Videos
Sōhei were Buddhist warrior monks of both classical and feudal Japan. At certain points in history, they held considerable power, obliging the imperial and military governments to collaborate.
The sōhei Benkei with Minamoto no Yoshitsune
Kamakura-period statue of Thousand-armed Kannon at Sanjūsangen-dō in Kyoto, Japan.
Oda Nobunaga forces setting fire to Enryaku-ji and massacring the monks in the 1571 Siege of Mount Hiei (depiction in the Ehon taikōki)
Sōhei weapons and dress during the Kamakura period
Enryaku-ji
Videos
Enryaku-ji is a Tendai monastery located on Mount Hiei in Ōtsu, overlooking Kyoto. It was first founded in 788 during the early Heian period by Saichō, also known as Dengyō Daishi, who introduced the
Sōhei
…have had several, if not dozens or a hundred, smaller monasteries, training halls, and subordinate temples connected to it. A famous sōhei monastery is Enryaku-ji on Mount Hiei, just outside Kyoto, while Kōfuku-ji in Nara also fielded a large sōhei army. Warrior monks first appeared during the Heian period, when…
Konpon-chūdō (根本中堂), Enryaku-ji's main hall)
Ruri-dō (瑠璃堂, "Lapis Lazuli Hall") is the only building that survived the siege of 1571.
Great Lecture Hall (大講堂, Daikō-dō)