Flushing the Negative at Mantokuji

Before modern divorce, the Mantokuji temple in Japan was known as the “divorce temple” — a place where women could separate from their husbands before law granted them the legal right to do so.  Historically, until the 19th century, Mantokuji was a women-only convent that assisted women in ending their marriages.  At the time, divorce was hard to come by when instigated by the woman and the temple offered a degree of legal protection. Read more.