Last Updated: Jun 6, 2024

Kamakura’s Kencho-ji

Exploring the Heights of Zen Buddhism

This story was originally published on donnykimball.com and has been syndicated here on Medium.

It’s no secret that I am a big fan of the coastal town of Kamakura. Way back when I was getting started with sourcing content, the area was a regular haunt for me. Since then, I’ve watched the area sprout into a popular attraction with a fair bit of clout overseas. Seeing Kamakura become rather mainstream, though, it breaks my heart when people limit themselves only to the well-known spots. Tragically, people view this area of Japan (which used to be the country’s military capital for around two hundred years, by the way) as little more than a mere day trip from Tokyo. Little do they know how much they are missing out on by only visiting the popular shrine Tsurugaoka Hachimangu and the Great Kamakura Buddha at Kotoku-in.

On that note, in today’s article, we’ll be taking a look at a somewhat lesser-known allure in Kamakura. Known as Kencho-ji, this historic Buddhist temple is by no means obscure (at least not when compared to some of the other remote spots that I patronize on this blog). In fact, Kencho-ji is known to be one of the five great Zen centers in Kamakura. What’s more, this sprawling complex is regularly considered to occupy the top tier of this already exclusive list. Erected early in the Kamakura period (1185–1333), Kencho-ji has a longer…