This Gotokuji Temple was originally a small hermitage built within the castle grounds in 1480 by Kira Masatada, the fifth lord of Setagaya Castle, for his aunt, Kotokuin.

Although it was a historically significant temple at the time of its establishment, it fell into disrepair and dilapidation after Setagaya Castle was surrendered during "the Siege of Odawara".

The head priest of Kotokuan would reportedly grumble to his beloved cat, Tama, saying things like, "I've treated you so well, you should do something to repay me," a rather un-religious complaint! years!

One day, Ii Naotaka, the lord of Hikone Castle in Omi Province, happened to be passing by the area on a falconry trip when this cat, Tama-chan, stood in front of him and his entourage, beckoning them with "come on pose" to K?toku-an (later G?toku-ji Temple).

Initially, Ii Naotaka and his group were unnerved, but for some reason, they followed the cat to Kotoku-an. Just then, a terrible thunderstorm broke out!

Ii Naotaka, overjoyed to have escaped the storm and deeply moved by a sermon he heard from the head priest while sheltering from the rain, later made the hermitage the Ii family's ancestral temple, renaming it Gotoku-ji.

Since then, Gotoku-ji has flourished, and even today, it occupies a large plot of land in a residential area of Setagaya. Amazing, Tama-chan! 　(Nihedon @ KesaranPasaran Lab)