Kōfuku-ji ［興福寺］: One of the two head temples of the Dharma Characteristics (Hossō) school in Nara, Japan, the other being Yakushi-ji temple. Both were counted among the so-called seven major temples of Nara. The Fujiwara clan, which would come to dominate Japan’s imperial government from the ninth to the twelfth century, built the temple in 669. At that time it was known as Yamashina-dera. In 672 it was moved to Umayasaka and renamed Umayasaka-dera. In 710, when the capital moved to Nara, Umayasaka-dera temple was also moved to Nara and renamed Kōfuku-ji. There it prospered as the family temple of the Fujiwara clan. It also became an important center for the study of the doctrines of the Dharma Characteristics and Dharma Analysis Treasury (Kusha) schools, and produced many learned scholars. With the decline of the Fujiwara clan, Kōfuku-ji declined, and after the Meiji Restoration (1868), it was briefly linked with the True Word (Shingon) school. In 1882, however, Kōfuku-ji became independent as a head temple of the Dharma Characteristics school. It is known for its large collection of national art treasures.