Dojoji

Dojo-ji is a Tendai temple in Hidakagawa Town, Hidaka District, Wakayama Prefecture, on the lower Hidaka River. According to the Konjaku Monogatarishu (early 12th century) and the noh play Dojoji, the temple is the setting of the medieval Anchin-Kiyohime legend, in which the young woman Kiyohime, betrayed by the monk Anchin, transformed into a serpent at the Hidaka River and burned Anchin to death under the temple bell. The legend continues to be performed in the noh play Dojoji and in the kabuki dance Musume Dojoji. According to temple tradition, the temple was founded in 701 CE by Gicho Shonin during the reign of Empress Genmei, traditionally identified as the oldest temple in Kii Province. The principal image is a seated Senju Kannon, designated a National Treasure as a representative Nara-period Buddhist sculpture. The Konjaku Monogatarishu version of the legend (volume 14) is the earliest extant written form of the narrative.