Mound for the Hair and Teeth of
Emperor Gomizunoo

The retired Emperor Gomizunoo (r. 1611-1629), who had become a monk after stepping down from the throne, was responsible for the reconstruction of Shôkoku-ji's Great Pagoda (Daitô) after it burned down in 1653 (Jôô 2). At that time, he placed some of the hair that he had shaven at the time he took the tonsure, as well as some of his own teeth, inside a pillar on the upper story. Later, the Great Pagoda burned down again in the fires of 1788 (Tenmei 8), after which the site was made into a sacred Hair and Tooth Mound.