Lit. great master hall. Daishidō are temple buildings particularly important to the Shingon 真言 sect, established by *Kūkai 空海 (774-835, posthumously named *Kōbō Daishi 弘法大師). However, there are some daishidō at temples belonging to the Tendai 天台 sect, established in Japan by Saichō 最澄 (767-822; posthumously called Dengyō Daishi 傳教大師). Both sects use the term daishi 大師 meaning Great Master. There are seven extant daishidō six of which have been designated as important cultural properties. They can be found at Jingoji 神護寺, also called *Nōryōbō 納涼房 (Momoyama period) in Kyoto; Ōkuraji 大蔵寺 (Kamakura period) in Nara; Negoroji 根来寺 (1391) in Wakayama Prefecture; Shitennōji Ganzan 四天寺元山, formerly known as Shiidera Fumon'in 椎寺普門院 (1623) in Osaka; Honganji 本願寺 (1636) in Kyoto; Onjōji 園城寺 (1598) in Shiga Prefecture, and Shinchōgokuji 新長谷寺 (Muromachi period) in Gifu Prefecture. Four of the Daishidō have boat-shaped bracket arms *funahijiki 舟肘木, two have 3-on-1 non-projecting bracket arms *mitsudo tokyō 三斗斗きょう, and one building has 1-stepped bracket complexes *degumi 出組. All the daishidō except Negoroji have double eaves *futanoki 二軒. Closely spaced rafters are used at Ōkuraji, Negoroji, Honganji, and Shitennōji Ganzan. Two locations have hipped roofs *yosemune-zukuri 寄棟造, three are pyramidal *hōgyō-zukuri 宝形造, and two have hipped-and-gabled roofs *irimoya-zukuri 入母屋造. Three halls have tiled roofing *hongawarabuki 本瓦葺. Other roofs have thinly cut, thickly layered wood shingles or cypress bark shingles *hiwadabuki 桧皮葺.
