Founded in 724 as nyakuoji temple by imperial decree of emperor shomu, it is said that the iron bowl brought back by empress jingu appeared to the monk gyoki after he received a divine message in a dream. it is affectionately known as "sonbachi yakujin-san," a place for warding off evil. after being destroyed by fire during nobunaga's campaigns, it was rebuilt under the name shakain. it is said that hideyoshi's wife, nene, prayed here for victory in the korean campaign. in the past, there was a memorial tower (hokyoin-to) indicating the origins of the ikeda clan, with the donor fujiwara kagemasa inscribed on it.