Founded between 1321 and 1324 by Uchitsune ICHIJO, chief advisor to the emperor, in memory of his father and is also known as Sesshu-ji Temple after its gardens that are said to have been created by the renowned India-ink painter Sesshu.
元亨年間(1321-1324)に当時の関白であった一条内経が父の菩提を弔うために創建した塔頭で、水墨画を大成した雪舟の作と伝えられる名庭があることから雪舟寺とも呼ばれている。