 When first built, the temple contained seven principal buildings.It has suffered from fires through the centuries, and was rebuilt in the mid-thirteenth century by Zen master Enni, and again in the sixteenth century with donations of buildings from nearby temples Ankoku-ji and Tōfuku-ji.Today Kennin-ji's buildings include the Abbot's Quarters ("Hōjō"), given by Ankoku-ji in 1599; the Dharma Hall ("Hatto"), built in 1765; a tea house built in 1587 to designs by tea master Sen no Rikyū for Toyotomi Hideyoshi; and the Imperial Messenger Gate ("Chokushimon"), said to date from the Kamakura period, and still showing marks from arrows.