Following Shousenkyou Valley, we visited Erinji Buddhist Temple of the Rinzai zen sect in Koushuu City. There are a couple of must sees in this temple founded in the 14th century which is also the burial place of Shingen Takeda. We paid the admission fee of 300 yen to enter the main temple. It is a worthwhile visit to view the interior of the main temple, and in particular to enjoy the beautiful promenade garden designed by Soseki Musou, a zen high priest and master landscapist that designed the garden of Tenryuuji in Kyoto which has been designated a World Heritage. You should not miss the red Shikyakumon (four pillar gate) entry gate to the temple grounds. After the fall of the Takeda Family, Nobunaga Oda’s army set fire to Erinji. This gate was reconstructed by Ieyasu Tokugawa in 1606, and has been designated as a national cultural property.

This place is famous in association with Shingen Takeda who was a great war time general. He invited his mentor; a great Monk Kaisen to this Temple. So you can see and enjoy association of Shingen and Kaisen here. Temple and its garden is beautiful and very authentic. You can also enjoy some Shingen related items in a small museum nearby. This place is interesting from several aspects and it is worth to visit. However, it is not easy for international tourists to get to and there are only 1 bus every hour from the nearest train station (little English support). The train is also not so convenient from Tokyo. You really need to prepare if you are going there.