Yasaka Pagoda
{{short description|Pagoda in Kyoto, Japan}}
{{Infobox religious building
| name = Yasaka Pagoda
| native_name = 八坂の塔
| native_name_lang = ja
| image = File:Yasaka-dori early morning with street lanterns and the Tower of Yasaka (Hokan-ji Temple), Kyoto, Japan.jpg
| image_upright =
| alt =
| caption = The Yasaka Pagoda as seen from {{transl|ja|Yasaka-dori}}
| map_type = Japan Kyoto Prefecture#Japan
| relief = 1
| map_size =
| map_alt = The Yasaka Pagoda located in central Japan.
| map_caption =
| coordinates = {{coord|34.99855|135.77925|format=dms|type:landmark_region:JP|display=inline,title}}
| religious_affiliation = Zen Buddhism
| sect = Kennin-ji Rinzai
| location = Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto
| country = Japan
| established = 7th century
| year_completed = 7th century (original)
1440 (reconstruction)
| footnotes =
| website =
}}
The Yasaka Pagoda ({{langx|ja|八坂の塔|Yasaka-no-to}}), also known as the Tower of Yasaka, is a Buddhist pagoda located in Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto, Japan.{{Cite book |last1=Oevermann |first1=Heike |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f8unDwAAQBAJ&dq=Yasaka-no-to&pg=PT71 |title=Securing Urban Heritage: Agents, Access, and Securitization |last2=Gantner |first2=Eszter |date=2019-08-08 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-429-62435-3 |language=en}} The 5-story tall pagoda is the last remaining structure of a 6th-century temple complex known as Hōkan-ji ({{lang|ja|法観寺}}).{{Cite web|title=Hokan-ji Temple|url=https://kyoto.travel/shrine_temple/155.html|website=Kyoto City Official Travel Guide|language=en|access-date=2020-05-25}}{{Cite web|title=Yasaka-no-to Pagoda|url=https://www.insidekyoto.com/yasaka-no-to-pagoda|website=Inside Kyoto|language=en-US|access-date=2020-05-25}} The pagoda is now a tourist attraction.{{Cite news|title=Why your next vacation should be in Japan|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/travel/why-your-next-vacation-should-be-in-japan/2020/01/15/48537774-33db-11ea-91fd-82d4e04a3fac_story.html|last=Jenkins|first=Mark|newspaper=Washington Post|language=en|access-date=2020-05-25}}
History
Archaeological evidence dates the foundation of the Yasaka Pagoda to the 7th Century. The founding date is disputed between the reign of Prince Shotoku and the sixth year of the Tenmu period (678 CE).{{Cite web |url=https://www.kyoto-arc.or.jp/news/chousahoukoku/2009-11honbun.pdf |title=Historic site Hokanji precincts |lang=ja |publisher=Kyoto City Archaeological Research Institute |date=2010-03-31 |access-date=2021-11-06}} The pagoda and the associated temple were destroyed and reconstructed several times up to 1440, of which the current pagoda stands to this day.
Control of the pagoda was historically disputed between the nearby Shinto Gion Shrine and the Buddhist temple of Kiyomizu-dera, to the point the pagoda was burnt down in May of 1179. It was later rebuilt in 1191 with funding from Kawachi Genji noble Minamoto no Yoritomo. In 1240, the head priest of the nearby Buddhist temple of Kennin-ji affiliated the pagoda with Zen Buddhism, which remains the official designation of the Yasaka Pagoda to the present day.