Choukouzan Shoutai-ji Temple


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Choukouzan Shoutaiji is a family temple of The Inaba who ruled Odawara region in early Edo period (1600s). In 1669, Masanori Inaba, the son of Masakatsu Inaba, who was the second generation leader, built a temple to pray for his parents and his grandmother, Kasuga-no-Tsubone, a well known tutor for The Tokugawa's 3rd Shogun Iemitsu. Masakatsu asked Tetsugyu, a high level Buddhist priest in The Oubaku Sect, to establish the temple.
At the time of its establishment, this temple was a largest one in Kanto area as an Oubaku Sect's temple with the seven Buddhism buildings inside the wide temple area.

Passing the thatched roofed main temple building and walking along the stone pavement and stairs for approximately 15 minutes, there are the graves for The Inaba family and Kasuga-no-Tsubone on top of the hill overlooking Sagami gulf.  There stand seven historic graves which were built by Masanori, the son of Masakatsu who ruled Odawara region in early Edo era.
Walking through the grave site and the cider trees, there is a Tower for the Buddhist priest, Tetsugyu who established this temple.  It was built to celebrate his 60th birthday - Kanreki.  This area is surrounded by a natural forest which is now hard to find in Kanagawa prefecture.
The natural monument, the drooping cherry tree at Choukouzan was planted by Masanori Inaba over 300 years ago as a remembrance of joy of spring.  Its magnificent cherry blossoms entertain many visitors every spring for hundreds years, and it was selected as one of the best 100 trees in Kanagawa prefecture.

Oubaku-Fucha is a Buddhist cuisine brought from China in early Edo area by Ingen-Zenshi, a Zen Buddhist who established Oubaku-san Mampuku-ji Temple in Uji, Kyoto. At its origin, Oubaku-Fucha meant a vegetarian (shoujin) lunch for Zen Buddhists in a tea ceremony manner. The word "Fucha" is originated from the spirit of welcoming and treating everyone a tea, respecting them regardless of classes.
There have been changes in the way of preparing dishes as time passed through; however, there has not been a change in philosophy of cooking dishes honoring the flavor of fresh seasonal herbs and vegetables
The manner of the Fucha vegetarian cuisine is to enjoy the dishes respecting the ingredients and the effort for preparation of the dises in the comfortable setting with friends and family.

Reservation required with minimum party of 4.
The services start at 11:30am.
(Summer time between July and September, Lunch starts at 12:00pm and Dinner starts at 5:00pm.)

Fucha vegetarian cuisines:
	Fucha course	¥5,000 or ¥7,000 (excluding tax)
	Fucha Kaiseki full course	¥9,000 (excluding tax)

Course Menu sample:
	-Hors d'oeuvre
	-Steamed vegetables with miso and vinegar dressing
	-Steamed vegetables
	-Fried dishes (tofu)
	-Sesame bean curd (tofu)
	-Vegetable and Herbs Tempura
	-Miso Soup
	-Steamed rice with seasonal herbs and vegetables
	-Pickle
	-Seasonal Fruits
	-Deserts - Small tea cakes

Choukouzan Shoutaiji-Temple
	303 Iryuuda, Odawara-shi, Kanagawa 250-0031

	Tel.		0465-22-7760
	Fax.		0465-22-5262

5 minutes walk from Iryuuda station of Hakone Tozan line / Odakyu line.

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