11111 11111111

ISBN4-7700-1992-0
C0052 ¥3500E (2)
9784770019929

11111 1 1 1111
1920052035005

What is JAPANESE ARCHITECTURE�

• Map of Japanese architecture A sprvey of traditional
• Travel directions to sites
• Architectural chronology
Japanese architecture
• Museums and architectural parks

"A useful, concise compendium of information ... copiously

illustrated. Encyclopedic in approach."
-Library Journal

"A well structured, clearly illustrated study of Japanese

architecture that is accessible to a general readership."
-Los Angeles Times

"Provides a valuable contribution to a rather sparse shelf of

books on Japan's rich architectural history."
-Chanoyu Quarterly

"Unusual among English language books on

Japanese architecture."
-Design Book Review

Kazuo Nishi and Kazuo Hozumi

ENGLISH slTE, www.thejapanpage.com
JAPANESE s1TE, www.koda11sha-intl.c0Jp
MAP OF JAPANESE ARCHITECTURE

-- ---Kinkakuji
-----Kamowakeikazuchi Shrine
Ryoanji ushian/Zangetsutei Teahouses
Tenryiiji tonnichian Teahouse
Sento Palace iiin Teahouse
Nijo Castle
"----=>-�-•Hie Shrine
Saihoii
·==1--.i-nryakuji
Katsura Detached
\•�!«t��L--1111 anshuin
Palace
Kamo Mioya Shrine
Sumiya i'ii',,-'-r.--11-0aitokuji
Wachigaiya '---I---';j nkakuji
Kaijiisenji----l-_,,_...,..___---,,,,4....____j Heian Shrine
Chokyiiji----1-------,_-,_b-.---r--,,.,t.:.__ Kenninji Se a 0 f Japan
Todaiji--1--------'',--t½.C---- ---­ Kiyomizudera
Kofukuii ---t----'-s-➔----� Rengeoin
/'-.,'----.�
Horyiiji-1--1-----��__..,­ '---i�---1-Daigoji
Miwa Shrine--t------:J ½=--�t-11-Mampukuji
Taimadera ----1-----­
"
�-----"--><yodoin
lmanishi House--+�­
=i-�---+---Ujigami Shrine Hirosaki Castle
Nakamura House,---1----1
'-,1--'.-----'=-�-"ushimi lnari Shri_ne
Asukadera ---f""""---,,I.'._. _
Kawa radera,----1---""'---- njoji
Kuriyama House
Hyakumangoku Bunkaen EdoMura

Taku school Yakushiji

}
Kawauchi House
lzumo Shrine Maruoka Castle
Matsue Castle ""-......�---Kikuchi House
�o oJ.- ---1'-'-----Chiisonji
Bitchii-Matsuyama Castle

Toshogii
..---t--- ( Rinnoji
Futarasan Shrine Pacific Ocean
_1-----Ganjoji
()

�'-f 1.._-�==------Torinokosanjo Shrine

=

V-- -------Kodokan school

Kokin Denju noMa

Uwajima Castle Shizutaniko academy

ShikokuMinzoku Hakubutsukan
NihonMinkaen This map shows the locations of all sites

Toro site !Kitamura House mentioned in the book, in addition to ma­

Sakuta House jor regional subdivisions and principal cit­
Onjoji Daizen/ Emukai House ies. In the case of smaller sites contained
Sankeien Park within larger ones-such as subtemples
Takenaka Daiku Dogukan Chojuji
Umpoji
0
} } within temple complexes-only the lar­
Hakogi House Jorakuji Engakuji
ger entity is listed. Addresses and brief
Kenchoji
0

lse Shrine directions on how to reach these sites

OKI:� Hikone Castle are given in the appendix "Sites Mention­
Meirindo school ed in the Text." Descriptions of all sites
NihonMinka Shiiraku Hakubutsukan can be located in the text by referring to
Joan Teahouse
lnuyama Castle the index.
fJ.
ARCHITECTURAL CHRONOLOGY Heian Nagaoka Capital Westminster Abbey Villa Rotonda,
784 (784) (begun 1245) Vicenza (begun 1550)
Palace Chapel of Cologne Cathedral Momo- destruction of
WEST
JAPANESE JAPAN Charlemagne (begun 1248) yama Ashikaga shogunate
PERIODS
(792-805) 1573 (1573)
Florence Cathedral Rengeoin (1266)
Jamon Heian Capital (794) (begun 1296) II Gesu, Rome
10000 Santa Maria de (c. 1575-84) Maruoka Castle
B.C. Palazzo Vecchio,
Naranco, Florence (begun 1298) donjon (1576)
1st pit dwellings Oviedo (c. 848) Azuchi Castle
(c. 5000-c.3500) Daigoji pagoda (952) Eihoji Kannon Hall (1576-77)
Great Sphinx at Giza St. Michael's, (1314) Myokian (c. 1582)
(c. 2530) Hildesheim ( 1001-33) Gloucester Cathedral Hideyoshi's
Stonehedge (c. 1800) Cathedral of St. (1332-57) Jurakudai (1587)
Parthenon (447-432) Sophia, Novgorod Muromachi Fushimi Castle
(1045-52) (Ashikaga) (begun 1594)
Colossus of Rhodes
St. Mark's, Venice Byodoin Phoenix Hall regime (1336)
(292-280) Edo Onjoji Kangakuin
(begun 1063) (1053) Northern & Southern 1600 (1600)
Yayoi
Hoshoji (1075) courts (1336-92)
200 B.C. Inuyama Castle
Tower of London Muro- (begun 1601)
Temple of the Sibyl,
(1078-97) machi
Tivoli (1st c. B.C.) Himeji Castle
1338
1 A.D. Durham Cathedral (1601-9)
(1093-1130) Ki.tayama culture Nijo Castle
Pont du Gard, Nimes
(c. 14) Ishiyamadera Main (1367-1408) (c.1601-3)
Hall (1096) Milan Cathedral Kakurinji Main Hall Joan Teahouse
Colosseum, Rome
(72-80) Chiisonji Golden (1385-1485) (c. 1397) (c. 1615)
Hall (1126) Kinkakuji (1398) Nishi Honganji
Pompeii destroyed
(79) Chartres Cathedral San Lorenzo, Kibitsu Shrine Main Hiunkaku (c. 1615-
(begun 1145) Florence (1421-69) Hall (1425) 24)
Pantheon, Rome Toro site (100-300)
(120-24) Notre-Dame, Paris St.Maclou, Rouen, Kofukuji pagoda Katsura (begun
(begun 1163) west facade (1426) C.1616)
Tumulus Leaning Tower of (begun 1434) Nij6 Ninomaru
250 A.D. Pisa (begun 1174) Higashiyama culture Palace (c. 1624-26)
Basilica of Can- Canterbury Cathedral Palazzo Medici- (1443-90) San Carlo alle Nikko Toshogu
stantine (310-20) (begun 1175) Riccardi, Florence Quattro Fontane, (begun 1634)
T6daiji & Kofukuji (begun 1444) Rome (begun 1638)
Hagia Sophia
(532-37) destroyed (1180) Onin war (1467-77) Palace of Versailles Shugakuin Palace
S. Apollinare in destruction of Heike Ginkakuji (1484) (begun c.1661) (1659)
Classe, Ravenna clan (1185)
St. Maria delle Togudo (1485) St.Paul's Cathedral Shizutaniko (begun
(533-49) Kama- (1675-1710) 1670)
Carceri, Prato (1485)
Asuka Buddhism to Japan kura
Ryoanji garden Sofukuji Daiipomon
552 (538 or 552) 1185
(1499) gate (1694)
temple carpenter Kamakura shogunate
arrives from (1192) Henry VII's Chapel,
Westminster Abbey Brandenburg Gate,
Paekche, Korea (577) Jodoji Jododo (1192) Berlin (1788-91)
(c. 1503)
Asukadera (588) Ishiyamadera Monticello, Char-
St. Peter's, Rome
orig. Horyuji (607) tahi5to (1194) (begun 1506) lottesville (begun
1779)
Horyiiji rebuilt reconstruction of Daisen'in garden
(C.670) Todaiji Great (1513) White House,
Buddha Hall (1195) Washington, D.C.
Hokkiji pagoda (685) Chateau at Chambord (rebuilt 1814-17)
reconstruction of (1519-47)
Fujiwara Captial
Todaiji Nandaimon Kyoto Imperial
(694) gate (1199) Cathedral of Basil
Palace (1855)
Nara Heijo Capital (710) the Blessed, Moscow
Kenninji (1202) (1532)
710 Yakushiji pagoda The Opera, Paris
Reims Cathedral
(730) (begun 1211) firearms introduced (1861-74)
by Portuguese (1543) Edo shogunate falls
Horyuji east Amiens Cathedral
precinct (739) (begun 1220) The Louvre, Paris (1867)
(begun 1546) Meiji opening of Japan
Todaiji orig. Great Salisbury Cathedral
Buddha Hall (760) (1220-70) Negoroji tahi5to (1547) 1868 to West
What is JAPANESE
ARCHITECTURE?

Kazuo Nishi and Kazuo Hozumi

translated, adapted, and with an introduction by
H. Mack Horton

KODANSHA INTERNATIONAL
Tokyo• New York• London
CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION 7
WORSHIP: The Architecture of Buddh-ist Temples and Shinto Shrines 12
Horyuji Temple and Its Symbol, the P,agoda 14
The Great Eighth-Century Temples 1.6
\
Architecture of the Pure Land Sect 18 �
New Medieval Forms: The Great Buddha Style 20
New Medieval Forms: The Zen Style 22
Details of the Great Buddha Style 24
Details of the Zen Style 26
The Medieval Japanese Style 28
The Golden and Silver Pavilions 30
Medieval Construction Methods 32
Temple Architecture in the Early Modern Period 34
Buddhist Architecture: Structure and Detail 36
Shinto Shrines 40
Common Shrine Styles 42
The Yomeimon Gate: Nikko T6sh6gii Shrine 44
Japanese Baroque 46
The Neighborhood Shrine 48
The World of the Craftsmen 49
Construction Techniques of the Edo Period 51 .

NOTE: With the exception of the authors' names on the title DAILY LIFE: Residential and Urban Architecture 53
page, all Japanese names in this book are given in the Japanese Houses of the J6mon and Yayoi Periods 54
fashion, surname before given name. Reconstructing Yayoi and Tumulus-Period Dwellings 55
The Ancient Capitals 56
Distributed in the United States by Kodansha America, Inc.,
575 Lexington Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10022, and in the The Heijo and Heian Capitals 57
United Kingdom and continental Europe by Kodansha Europe Heijo: First of the Great Capitals 58
Ltd., Tavern Quay, Rope Street, London SE16 7TX. Published Residences of the Nara Period 60
by Kodansha International Ltd., 17-14 Otowa 1-chome, The Heian Capital 62
Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 112-8652, and Kodansha America, Inc. The Shinden Style 64
Originally published under the title Nikon kenchiku no katachi: Daily Life in a Shinden Mansion 66
_ _ Commoners' Dwellings 68
seikatsu to kenchiku-z6kei no rekishi by Shokokusha Pubhshmg Co.,
Ltd. Residences of the Samurai 70
Copyright© 1983 by Shokokusha Publishing Co., Ltd. A Formal Audience in a Warrior Residence 72
English-language copyright © 1985 by Kodansha International .
The Shoin Style: Early Modern Residential Architecture 74
Ltd.
The Design System of the Shoin 76
All rights reserved. Printed in Japan.
LCC 84-48695 Katsura Detached Palace and the Sukiya Style 78
ISBN 4-7700-1992-0 Sukiya-Style Decor 80
First English edition, 1985 Minka: Dwellings of the Common People 82
First paperback edition, 1996 Minka Diversity 84
03 04 05 06 1110 9 Provincial Towns in the Edo Period 86
Japan's Premodern Cities 88
www.thejapanpage.com
INTRODUCTION

Ruth Benedict, in her early but influential introduction to Japanese culture,

The Edo Metropolis 90
Schools in the Edo Period 92 The Chrysanthemum and the Sword, spoke of the tenclency to see Japan and its peo­
ple in terms of "but also's"-pacific but also at times warlike, conservative
BATTLE: Castles and Castle Towns 93 but also given to innovation. She· might have made reference to their architec­
Himeji: The Grandest of the Surviving Castles 94
ture as well, for the Japanese thro'½gh the ages have evolved a building art that
The Historical Development of Castles 96
seems to delight in opposites and contradictions. In reading through this over­
Castles in Wartime 98
view of Japan's secular and sacred architecture, from it origins to the end of
Castle Defense 99
The Twelve Surviving Donjons 100 the Edo period in the nineteenth century, one i� struck again and again by the
Castle Towns 102 extremes that seem to characterize the country's traditional building arts.
Castle Palaces 104 Perhaps size is the most obvious case in point. In the realm of religious
architecture, there is the Great Buddha Hall of Todaiji temple, the largest
ENTERTAINMENT: Architecture in the Sukiya Spirit 105
wooden structure on earth after having been rebuilt at only two-thirds of its
The Architecture of the Tea Ceremony 106
eighth-century dimensions. Nearly fifty meters in height, it houses a bronze
Designing the Teahouse 108
Buddha large enough to hold a person in the palm of its hand. But also there is
Soan Teahouses 116
The Tea Garden 118 Kasuga, the shrine of the great Fujiwara family, which is centered on four
Staging the No Drama 120 main structures each only two meters wide by less than three meters deep.
The Structure of the No Stage 122 There are even miniature shrines that fit on a shelf in a corner of a private
The Architecture of the Kabuki Theater 124 residence or in a niche in a roadside wall. In residential architecture, the
Improvements in Kabuki Theater Design 126 spacious Imperial Palace complex of the Heijo Capital in Nara once contained
The Architecture of the Pleasure Quarters 128 more than five hundred buildings on grounds over a square kilometer in area,
Design in the Pleasure Quarters 130 and the Palace of the Heian Capital was e·ven larger in size. Consider, too, the
Gracious Pastimes at a Sukiya Complex 132 sprawling castle and palace of the Tokugawa shoguns in Edo, whose acres of
Entertainment Fit for an Emperor 134 grounds still define the center of modern Tokyo and house the present palace
SITES MENTIONED IN THE TEXT 136 of the imperial family. Standing against this expansiveness, there are the rows
MUSEUMS AND OTHER FACILITIES OF ARCHITECTURAL INTEREST 139 of simple and unassuming townhouses that were the norm for medieval city
BIBLIOGRAPHY 140 dwellers. And at the lower end of the scale is the teahouse, whose influence on
Japanese architecture has been inversely proportionate to its tiny size. The
INDEX 142
Konnichian Teahouse, for instance, has a plan containing only one and three­
quarters tatami mats ( one mat is about one by two meters in size), yet it
has been viewed since its creation in the seventeenth century as one of the
monuments of tea taste.
Gardens, too, seem almost infinitely variable, from the tiny, enclosed court­
yards in such temples as the Daisen'in of Daitokuji to the gracious parks of
Katsura and Shugakuin Detached Palaces, which include winding paths for
leisurely walks as well as ponds large enough for boating. Thus, on the one
hand, the garden can be reduced to an almost incorporeal entity, as in the
single flower in the decorative alcove of a teahouse or the raked sand of a Zen­
style "dry landscape." On the other, it can be expanded nearly infinitely by
means of "borrowed scenery," as at the Shugakuin Palace or at Entsuji tem­
ple in Kyoto, whose gardens incorporate distant mountains into their designs.
No less extreme are differences in height, from the pair of seven-story From one perspective, the entire course of Japanese architectural develop­
pagodas at Todaiji that once soared one hundred meters above the temple ment through the ages can be characterized in terms of two poles, the native
precinct-nearly twice the height of the tallest pagoda left today-to a tea­ and the foreign. Buddhist architecture was, of course, introduced from China,
house door so low one must crouch to pass through it. To be sure, most Jap­ and subsequent developments on the Asian continent were imported into
anese architecture is only one story in height, but that one story is sur­ Japan by Chinese emigres or Japanese traveling monks, often with little lapse
prisingly elastic: the Great Buddha Hall of T6daiji contains only one story, in time. Chinese architectural styles from the Six Dynasties to the Qing thus
though the pent roof on the exterior makes it appear from the outside to have have their Japanese representations, with the added irony that Japan is often
two. the only place where examples of those Chinese forms still remain.
Then again there are extremes in plans, from the Sinitic ideal of bilateral But the heavy influence of Chinese culture and the determination of the
symmetry seen at Asukadera or Shitenn6ji temples to the almost random Japanese to stay abreast of Continental stylistic change were continually
layouts of mountain temples of the Esoteric Buddhist sects, which are influ­ tempered by indigenous developments. An outstanding example of this tenden­
enced by the exigencies of their terrain. Residential plans include both the rela­ cy is the invention by native builders of tpe hidden roof, an innovation which
tive symmetry of the ideal Shinden complex and the rambling mansions of the gives a characteristic Japanese cast to-the structures using it. And not long
later courtly and warrior elites, which meander through their> grounds with as after the Great Buddha and Zen styles of architecture were introduced, Jap­
little regard for symmetry as has a mountain brook. anese carpenters were already combining elements from them with those of
A more profound set of extremes is seen in the Japanese treatment of ar­ earlier architecture to new, eclectic� effect. Indeed, the constant dialectic be­
chitectural surfaces. At one pole is the Sukiya style with its simplicity and tween the native and the foreign has engaged the Japanese throughout their
understatement, its refined sense of design and exploitation of natural, un­ written history ( a history itself first recorded in Chinese) and inspired con­
adorned materials. At the other is the T6sh6gu Shrine at Nikko, a riot of tinual efforts to isolate, or create, a purely Japanese cultural counterpart to
polychromy and sculpture that covers nearly every inch of available surface. that which was imported. In the case of architecture, the problem of self-defini­
The taste for ornament, moreover, is not an isolated phenomenon-the seven­ tion has been complicated by the fact that even Ise Shrine, considered the
teenth-century T6sh6gu was foreshadowed in the twelfth century by the touchstone of native architectural attitudes, reached its present form only after
Golden Hall of Chusonji with its gold-leaf walls and its interior of lacquer and the introduction of Chinese styles into the country and itself shows some
mother-of-pearl, and in the fourteenth century by the Golden Pavilion of Chinese influence.
Rokuonji, its two upper stories likewise finished in sheets of gold. A mixture of The reader can, if he or she wishes, expand the list of opposing architectural
the two tastes is seen at Nishi Honganji temple, where a huge audience hall elements. There remains, however, one last "but also" that should be men­
lavishly fitted with intricately carved transoms and polychromed screens tioned here, perhaps the most important of all. This is the fact that despite ex­
with gold backgrounds is connected by a few meters of corridor to a cozy set tremes in size, plan, decoration, age, and historical development in various ex­
of private rooms th :;it are the epitome of understatement, incorporating as they amples of Japanese architecture, there is a bedrock of basic similarities that, if
do subdued ink paintings, plain paper screens, rough-hewn posts, and not universal, still apply in a great majority of cases. It is this core of shared
unpainted woodwork. This bipolarity in the treatment of surfaces hints at traits that allows us to speak of "Japanese architecture" in general, instead of
underlying extremes of attitude toward artifice itself. The teahouse de­ isolated Japanese buildings. These fundamental consistencies are particularly
emphasizes the hand of the builder; the Toshogu flaunts it. remarkable considering the variety of climates that characterize the Japanese
The "but also" theme holds true in the matter of age and time-Japan is archipelago and the millennium and more that separates the earliest and latest
known both for the oldest extant wooden buildings in the world, the Golden examples of the nation's traditional architecture. The authors of What is
Hall, Pagoda, and Inner Gate ofHoryuji, which are thought to date to the end Japanese Architecture? assume a basic familiarity with many of these shared
of the seventh century, and for the regularity with which great parts of cities characteristics, and it is accordingly worthwhile to consider some of them
and temple compounds have been laid waste by fire. One is struck too by the here.
irony that buildings devoted to Buddhism, a religion that stresses the eva­ Perhaps the most fundamental point of commonality between buildings
nescence of all things, are the oidest in the country, whereas only a handful both magnificent and humble, secular and sacred, is the choice of materials.
of the hundreds of castles built for impregnability and permanence now sur­ Though treated in different ways and with varying degrees of skill, nearly all
vive as originally built. Then there is the case of Shinto shrines, ancient in structures are made primarily of wood, with paper for screens, straw for mats,
history and design but traditionally dismantled and rebuilt of fresh materials plaster and clay for fixed walls, and reeds, wood shingles or planks, or tile for
at set intervals to ensure ritual purity. The structures at Ise Shrine have been roofs. The main point of departure from Western architecture, and indeed
rebuilt sixty times, the last occurring in 1973, making them not only very old, some Chinese structures as well, is that stone is largely avoided, save in temple
but also very new. Among residential structures there is on the one extreme podia, castle foundations, miniature pagodas, and the like.
Katsura Palace, which was expanded and redesigned for decades under its suc­ In addition, the basic structure of most buildings is the same, being based
cessive princely owners, and on the other Kamo no Chomei's "ten foot square on the post and lintel system, with thin, non-bearing walls, either movable or
hut," which the owner could dismantle and reassemble elsewhere as the spirit fixed, in the intercolumnar bays. The only major variations are the thick, pro­
moved him. tective walls of wood, usually covered with plaster, in storehouses and castles.

H 9
In most cases, the posts also support a raised floor. vironment. Not only are these wooden structures made of the same natural
Resting on the post and lintel skeleton is a great roof, which is usually the material that form their surroundings, but they are set out on their grounds to
most arresting aspect of the exterior design. It often accounts for half the take best advantage of the immediate terrain. Where a scenic vista is not
height of the exterior elevation. The eaves, supported by complex brackets in available, as with a city dwelling or some urban temple compounds, care is
most temples but by simpler constructions in domestic structures, extend out taken to incorporate a reminder of the natural world in the form of a garden,
well beyond the sides of the building to protect verandas beneath. The inner no matter how small. The authors point out that even the row houses of the
format of most buildings is centered on an interior core, from which secondary common people in medieval towns often included gardens in the rear to pro­
spaces may radiate. vide both culinary and aesthetic refreshment. In the case of temples, even Ken­
It is perhaps because of the reliance on wood as the primary material and choji, with its highly unnatural axial plan, has a pond at its north end and
the post and lintel system as the basic structural technique that Japanese ar­ junipers to both sides of its central walk. Likewise, the shrines at Nikko, for all
chitecture usually favors the rectilinear over curves and arches. Though one their effusive decoration, are laid out among rows of cedar trees and contain
does see curvilinear forms in coved ceilings, cusped windows, and such, these mountain paths designed to take artis.tic adva·ntage of the natural terrain.
are decorative details of otherwise planar constructions, and the curves that Though such do exist, the building -or complex that makes no nod to the
grace the gables or tips of the eaves on many Japanese buildings are, with few natural environment is rare, indeed.
exceptions, much more gentle than examples found in China. Barrel vaults One element in most Japanese ·�_rchitecture that keeps the fluidity of design
are absent, and the entasis (convexity) on posts of early temples diminishes in and concern for natural integration from playing havoc with artistic unity of
later styles. expression is the system of proportional design developed over the centu­
The deep eave overhang, aside from its exterior visual effect, lends a ries. The authors devote ample space to the manner in which each structural
characteristic dimness to interiors. The quality of inside illumination does member is related by formula to the others through the use of modules,
vary, it is true, according to the season and the location of each room in the thereby ensuring a structural harmony within single buildings and from one
structure, and it also changes to some extent over the centuries, as exterior building to another in a complex.
partitions develop from wooden shutters or screens to paper partitions. Another quality that keeps the design of even the most heavily ornamented
Nonetheless, a diffused, mellow light, darkening toward the ceiling, remains buildings from completely losing artistic integrity is the fact that decoration
almost universal. In his essay "In Praise of Shadows" (In 'ei raisan), the tends to embellish rather than disguise basic construction. This is most ap­
modern novelist Tanizaki J un'ichiro emphasizes the importance of this parent in the spare, naturalistic buildings influenced by tea taste. But even at
characteristic in the formation and maintenance of all aspects of traditional Nikko, which seems to have been decorated wherever humanly possible, the
Japanese culture. basic structure is unmistakably evident despite the ornament. The shrine does
Fluidity of interior partitioning, another outstanding feature of Japanese ar­ not use massive false fronts promising a completely different style from that
chitecture, is perhaps derived from its reliance on the post and lintel system. which one actually finds upon entering, nor does it attempt to deny the pres­
Large spaces can be subdivided by not only fixed walls, but also by either free­ ence or the function of the structure beneath the applique.
standing screens or removable ones set on built-in rails. And vice versa, a These various features shared by most j apanese architecture allow in turn a
small space such as the Taian Teahouse can be enlarged to accommodate extra fluidity of yet a different sort-that between the secular and the sacred. Par­
guests by the simple expedient of removing one of its interior partitions. In ticularly in the Nara and Heian periods (the eighth through twelfth centuries),
temple architecture, while fluidity is not universal, it is present in large private buildings and complexes were turned into temple structures with little
enough measure to be noteworthy. It is particularly apparent in many temple difficulty. In that way Lady Tachibana's mansion was incorporated as a
buildings in and after the medieval period, in which a number of different func­ religious building into Horyuji temple, and Fujiwara no Tamemitsu's com­
tions, such as ritual observances and sermonizing, are carried out in a single plex became a temple compound in its own right. Even the eastern of the two
main hall that accordingly requires spaces that can be selectively opened and Imperial Assembly Halls of the Heijo Palace was later transformed into the
closed off. The abbot's quarters too, which may serve as a residence and lec­ Lecture Hall at Toshodaiji temple. This characteristic recalls the close rela­
ture hall for the abbot during his lifetime and as a temple to his memory after tionship between Buddhist structures and palace architecture in China. In
his death, is characterized by this same internal fluidity. even earlier times there was a corresponding similarity between Shinto shrines
There is, moreover, a fluidity in Japanese architecture between inside and and the palaces of Japan's emperors, as the rulers were themselves considered
out. Though fixed walls are frequently used, the distinction between wall and Shinto deities. Echoes of this bond still exist, intermingled with later Buddhist
door is very elastic, and whole facades in both temples and residences can be influences, in the present Imperial Palace in Kyoto.
opened to the elements at will by folding open or swinging up the panels be­ All these shared characteristics lend an underlying unity to Japanese ar­
tween the posts or by sliding open, or even removing entirely, the wooden or chitecture despite the extreme variations we have outlined. They constitute in
paper screens. The veranda therefore serves as a transitional space, regarded sum a continuing tradition that builders have turned to different social, re­
as part of the building when viewed from the exterior, and as part of the out­ ligious, and artistic purposes through the ages, and that continue to exert a
side world when viewed from within. In this way Japanese buildings usually powerful influence on Japanese architects today.
demonstrate a highly attuned concern for integration with their natural en- H. Mack Horton

10 ll
WORSHIP
The Architecture of Buddhist Temples
and Shinto Shrines
The Shoun Pagoda ofKannoJi temple towered at long last in completed splendor. As each course
of scaffolding was removed another of the pagoda's five stories appeared, untilfinally it stood
revealed in all its lofty glory.

tant temple in Japan, Horyiiji, and use it as a start­ breakdown of the regular temple plan, the growth
The novel from which this passage is quoted (The granaries of the preliterary age, and its simple
ing point for an introduction to the temple complex of elegant_ private· tem!)le complexes for Kyoto
Five-story Pagoda by Koda Rohan) takes as its theme grandeur excites the same admiration as the best of
and its main structures-the pagoda and image aristocrats, then the introduction of the Zen and the
the imperishability of artistic inspiration. The choice the Buddhist tradition. The designs of most of the
hall-together with the corridor and inner gate that Great Buddha styles from Sung-dynasty China and
of a pagoda to symbolize this message is particularly shrine types we know today, however, took their
enclose them, and the subsidiary structures outside the it;ievitable eclecticism that resulted in the medieval
acute, as this structure has been the central identify­ mature forms only in the eighth century, at which
that corridor (figs. 1-2). Thereafter we will trace era. We will end the chapter with a look at the origins
ing element of the temple complex ever since the in­ time Japan had already been heavily influenced by
the changes that affected the temple plan and the and developments of Shinto architecture, paying
troduction of Buddhism into Japan over fourteen Buddhism. The history of the architecture of these
styles of the constituent structures as religious and special attention to both its unique features and those
hundred years ago. two faiths is thus tightly interwoven. For example,
engineering innovations occurred at home or were that show the influence of Buddhist building con­
Japan's religious architecture centers on Buddhist the Toshogu shrine at Nikko, the mausoleum of the
introduced from China. These include the rise of the cepts.
temples and Shinto shrines. Temple architecture was first Tokugawa shogun, looks at first glance to be
imported very soon after the introduction of the basic more of a Buddhist temple than a Shinto shrine, and so-called Esoteric mountain sects and the concurrent
doctrines of the faith in the mid sixth century from in sheer opulence and display it rivals or surpasses
the Korean Kingdom of Paekche. For the early any Buddhist structure in Japan (figs. 77-79). The
Japanese, the Buddhist creed represented not only German architect Bruno Taut praised the purity and
a new and immensely profound world view, but also simplicity oflse Shrine, but condemned Nikko's or­
one of the most impressive expressions of highly namentation as artificial. His criticism is by no means
developed culture from the Asian continent. The incontestable, but it does suggests the range and h1sash1 moya
Buddhist religion and its attendant art and architec­ richness of the body of Shinto architecture.
ture was for the early Japanese a route to higher Religious architecture, particularly that of Bud­
civilization and international prestige. By the end of dhist temples, is a fitting place to begin our dis­
the sixteenth century Japan was building imposing cussion, for many of the basic concepts introduced
monasteries on the Continental model, and by the will apply to other Japanese building types. The moya
mid eighth century a national system of provincial temple, constructed by and large of wood but often
temples had been established with a well-developed resting on a podium faced with stone, is generally
ecclesiastical organization to maintain it. designed on the post and lintel principle, with non­
Together with sculptural and painted images, the bearing walls in the bays (ken) between each pair of hisashi
pagoda and the other buildings in the temple com­ posts. Resting above is a grand roof, originally of tile
plex have served as the tangible correlatives of the but later with variations such as wood shingle, whose
idea of faith. Indeed, throughout Japanese history eaves are cantilevered far out over the verandas by
much of the best of the country's human and eco­ means of a system of brackets. The brackets rest on
nomic resources has been lavished on their con­ the posts beneath and sometimes in the intercolum­
struction. Especially in the classical period (eighth nar spaces as well. The core of the temple, the moya,
through twelfth centuries) and the medieval period is usually one, three, five, or some other odd number
(thirteenth through sixteenth centuries), Buddhist of bays in width by two in depth. Surrounding this hisashi moya hisashi
architecture took the lead in introducing new struc­ central core on most structures are peripheral sec­
tural and ornamental features. Buddhist buildings tions called hisashi, usually one bay in width. Hisashi
are thus of critical importance not only to all other with separate pent roofs beneath the main roof are
Japanese architecture but to the entire corpus of called mokoshi, and they may surround the moya hisashi
Japanese art. directly or, as is more frequently the case, serve as
Shinto, "the Way of the Gods," is Japan's indig­ tertiary spaces and border the hisashi that are under .c:[:]
�
.!Q
moya
l�
enous religion. Not surprisingly, the roots of Shin­ the main roof (figs. 1, 16). A building with a moya -<:: ::,-
-.
to architecture go back to the very beginnings of three bays wide will thus usually have a five-bay
hisashi
Japanese civilization, and Shinto shrines have their facade (in the absence of mokoshi or other additions)
own unique forms. The configuration of the Grand as it includes the hisashi widths on both sides.
Shrine at Ise, for example, hearkens back to the We will begin our discussion with the oldest ex-
13
12
The Horyuji they built, however, was consumed by of what was then a perfectly rectangular enclosure diminution, with some seeming nearly straight from
HORYUJI TEMPLE AND fire in 670, and it is the rebuilt version that stands (see fig. 7). top to bottom. Indeed, the Horyuji pagoda has the
ITS SYMBOL, THE PAGODA today. Origins of the Pagoda The pagoda enshrines sym­ most marked diminution of any extant example, giv­
The Asuka Style The exact years of the reconstruc­ bolic relics of the Buddha, and the golden hall houses ing it a sense of great stability.
tion of Horyuji remain conjectural, with some sug­ his image. Running through the center of the pagoda But though the pagoda, as reliquary, was the
gesting a date as late as the Nara period (710-84). from uppermost roof to base is a single massive col­ central structure of the monastic compound in the
Japan's Oldest Extant Temple Complex On the But the style of the extant structures is different from umn that rests on a foundation stone, beneath which early years of Japanese Buddhism, it gradually relin­
plain of Ikaruga, just outside the ancient capital most other Nara works and shows a number of fea­ are interred the relics which represent the bones of quished its primary position as Buddhist images and
of Nara, Horyuji temple stands in serene silence. tures that clearly belong to the Asuka era (552- the historical Buddha. the golden hall housing them gained in importance.
Backed by gentle hills, the temple presents an im­ 710). These include marked entasis (a slight convex­ The prototype of the Japanese pagoda is the In­ The pagoda became in consequence more ornamen­
age of beauty and strength synonymous with the ity) on the columns as well as cloud-pattern bracket dian stupa, a hemisphere of stone and earth with an tal than functional, as suggested by the appearance
best in Japanese Buddhist architecture. Horyuji's arms supporting the eaves (fig. 2). The style also umbrella-shaped spire above, built for the same pur­ of temples such as Yakushiji and Todaiji, where
Five-story Pagoda (Gojii no To; figs. 1-2) together incorporates a thin block plate (sarato) between the pose of venerating the relics of the Buddha. These two pagodas were built in front of a central image
with the Golden Hall (Kondo) next to it, the Inner tops of the columns and the main bearing block relics and the stupa housing them were the only hall (see figs. 3, 8, 10).
Gate (Chiimon), and most of the surrounding Corri­ (daito) supporting the bracketing (visible in the cor­ monuments allowed by the early Indian Buddhist
dor (Kairo; fig. 2) are the oldest surviving wooden ridor in the foreground of fig. 2). Also indicative of church; Buddhist anthropomorphic images did not
buildings in the world and a logical starting point the ''Asuka style'' are the stylized Buddhist swastika begin to appear until centuries later. The pagodas
for a discussion of Buddhist architecture in Japan. pattern in the ornamental railings (fig. 2) and the in­ of China and Japan are said to have developed from
The history of Horyuji began in A.D. 587, when verted V-shaped struts beneath them (see fig. 65). the Indian stupa spire.
the Emperor Yomei, suffering from an illness, set The four oldest Horyuji structures mentioned The Pagoda as Symbol As pointed out in the in­
about to construct a temple for the worship of Bud­ above incorporate these Asuka-period elements. troduction, the pagoda is the symbol of the Buddhist
dhist images. His piety proved fruitless and he died Though the present corridor connects the Sutra sacred precinct. Its lofty height and distinctive shape
in the same year, but the Empress Suiko and her Repository (Kyozo), Belfry (Shuro), and Lecture are entirely in keeping with this role. The five stories
regent, Prince Shotoku, carried out his wishes and Hall (Kodo) at the north of the Golden Hall and pa­ of the Horyuji pagoda gradually decrease in size
saw the temple project through to completion in 607. goda, these three structures were originally outside toward the top, though later pagodas show less

cloud-pattern
bracket arm

2. Five-story Pagoda from Corridor,

Horyiiji ���::;;::;�

area area
1. Five-story Pagoda, Horyiiji

14 15
3 □ 3
THE GREAT EIGHTH-CENTURY TEMPLES

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9. Kofukuji

8. Yakushiji

From One Pagoda to Two From its introduction

in the mid sixth century, Japanese Buddhism re­
century, then, multiple golden halls have in general
disappeared, but the single hall has achieved a posi­
3. Todaiji temple (conjectural)

century. There, the pagoda was moved completely

outside the main corridor (lig. 9).
rn rn
ceived the support of the central government. Thus tion of parity with the pagoda. This configuration Todaiji: The Great Center of State Buddhism 6
when sculptors and carpenters arrived in Japan in was standard thereafter, until the capital, which was By the time of the Emperor Shomu (reigned 724-
577, temple construction proceeded at a fast pace. traditionally relocated for reasons of ritual purity on 49), Japan had come in many respects to resemble 10. Todaiji
Asukadera, generally thought to have been the first the death of each sovereign, was moved to the Fu­ a theocracy, with the emperor proclaiming himself
temple complex constructed in Japan (no longer ex­ jiwara Capital in 694 (see p. 56). There, as we have to be a servant .of the "Three Treasures"-the 1. Golden Hall 5. Inner Gate
tant), was begun in 588 and completed in 596. The seen, Yakushiji temple was built with not one but Buddha, the Buddhist law, and the monastic com­ 2. Pagoda 6. Great South Gate
pagoda was located in the center of the compound, two pagodas in the inner precinct (fig. 8). When the munity. Shomu decreed that a nationally sponsored 3. Lecture Hall 7. Refectory
4. Corridor 8. Monks' Quarters
with golden halls surrounding it on three sides and first truly permanent capital, Heijo, was established temple (kokubunjz) be established in each province,
a corridor enclosing the whole (fig. 4). in 710 at Nara, Yakushiji was rebuilt there accord­ and that a great central temple be raised in the
The pagoda is still located in a position of ing to the same plan. Where multiple golden halls, capital to oversee them. Todaiji temple was begun the original, the Great Buddha Hall is still the lar­
preeminence at Shitennoji (early seventh century; fig. then, had surrounded a central pagoda in the late accordingly, and in 760 the Lecture Hall (Kodo) and gest wooden structure on earth.) Several decades
5) in front of a single golden hall, but at Kawaradera sixth century at Asukadera, multiple pagodas now Great Buddha Hall (Daibutsuden) were completed thereafter, two seven-story pagodas, each one-hun­
(mid seventh century; fig. 6) it stands beside the framed a more important central golden hall a cen­ (figs. 3, 10). The latter structure was of truly dred meters tall, were built to either side of the
southern of two golden halls. At Horyuji (built in 607 tury later. monumental proportions, and housed a huge gilt front of the main precinct. The Great Buddha Hall
on a different plan, burned, then rebuilt on the pres­ The pagoda further declined in importance at Ko­ bronze image ofVairocana, the Cosmic Buddha, that stands at the center of the compound, with the Lec­
ent plan from 670; fig. 7) a single pagoda flanks a fukuji, a temple thought to have been moved to its took two years to cast and three more to polish and ture Hall and Monks' Quarters (Sobo) to the north
single golden hall. By the latter part of the seventh present location in the second decade of the eighth gild. (Today, rebuilt at only two-thirds the size of and the Refectory Uikido) to the east.

l(i 17
creating the "many jewelled pagoda" (tahoto; fig. 12). state-sponsored monasticism of the older Nara sects,
ARCHITECTURE OF Thereafter the hemispherical portion was removed, which continued to survive concurrently.
THE PURE LAND save for a rounded vestige above the pent roof and The most famous of the Byodoin structures is the
below the main roof. Phoenix Hall (Hoodo), completed in 1053 (fig. 11).
The World of Heian Buddhism In 794 the capital The Phoenix Hall of the Byodoin It was also in Inside is housed a gilded statue of Amida on a lotus
was moved to Heian, present-day Kyoto. It would the Heian period that Pure Land Qodo) Buddhism throne, backed by a swirling gilt mandorla (fig. 14).
remain there for the next thousand years and more first achieved popularity. Originally closely tied to Above hangs an opulent canopy, and carvings of
and witness the efflorescence of classical Japanese the Tendai sect in Japan, it captured the imagina­ heavenly musicians are in attendance on the sur­
culture. Appropriately enough, this epoch is called tion of aristocrats and, later, of commoners as well rounding walls. Members of the Fujiwara family
the Heian period (784-1185), after the name of the with its simple doctrine of salvation and rebirth in would sit across the pond to the east and look west at
capital. Soon after the Heian Capital was founded, the '' Pure Land'' through prayer to the Amida Bud­ the seated Buddha, imagining themselves reborn in
two brilliant clerics, Saicho (767-822) and Ku­ dha. Court nobles took to building private Buddha Amida's "Western Paradise." The structure hous­
kai (774-835), introduced new Buddhist teach­ halls (jibutsudo) on their manors so as to have an im­ ing the statue is designed as a stylized phoenix, with
ings that rivalled the old "Six Sects" of the former age of Amida near at all times and encourage pious winglike raised corridors to both sides and a tail to
Nara capital. Saicho's sect, Tendai, was founded meditation. the rear (fig. 13). The building is as elegant and light
atop Mt. Hiei to the northeast of the Heian Capi­ In the latter half of the Heian period, the imperial as its appointments, the overall effect providing a fine
tal, and its first temple was named Hieizanji (later family and the high nobility began building entire example of the elegant ''Fujiwara style.''
renamed Enryakuji). Kukai founded his new sect, temple complexes around a garden and pond, follow­ Amida Halls and the "Latter Days of the Law"
Shingon, atop Mt. Koya in present-day Waka­ ing the same practice used at their private villas (see The year 1051 was believed to be the fifteen-hun­ 12. Tahiitii, Ishiyamadera
yama Prefecture, calling his temple Kongobuji. Tem­ pp. 64-67). The villa-temples were still Esoteric in dredth anniversary of the death of the Buddha and
ples of these two sects, which together are now orientation, as Pure Land doctrines had yet to give the beginning of the final decline of the Buddha's
grouped under the rubric of Esoteric Buddhism rise to independent sects, but they were designed to teachings. At that time, it was believed, only the
(Mikkyo), were frequently located in mountain re­ reproduce on earth Amida's paradise, and fortunes Amida Buddha had the power to save mankind, and
gions, in keeping with their rigorous, ascetic doc­ were lavished on them in pursuit of this ideal. halls dedicated to Amida flourished in consequence.
trines. These Esoteric temples often abandoned the One of the finest extant examples of this Pure Land The Phoenix Hall is one example of this trend, as
symmetrical temple plan owing to the uneven ter­ villa architecture is the Byodoin. Located in Uji, just is the Golden Hall (Konjikido) of Chusonji, a tem­
rain of their mountain settings. They also adopted to the south of Kyoto, it was originally the villa of ple built in 1126 by a wealthy provincial clan in nor­
a new type of pagoda, the ''jewelled pagoda'' (hoto), Yorimichi (990-1074), head of the most powerful of thernJapan. The gilded exterior and the lacquerwork
characterized by a roughly hemispherical body with all Heian noble clans, the Fujiwara. The fact that and mother-of-pearl appointments make the Golden
a pyramidal roof and spire atop it. Later the central a villa could be changed into a place of private fami­ Hall equal to the most magnificent Kyoto monu­
hemispherical area was enclosed by subsidiary sec­ ly worship with only a few monks in attendance sug­ ments and show how far into the hinterlands Pure
tions with pent roofs (mokoshz) on the four sides, gests how different was this type of faith from the Land belief had penetrated.

central hall
1.3. Phoenix Hall, Byiidoin

11. Phoenix Hall, Byiidiiin

14. Statue of Amida, Phoenix Hall, Byodiiin

18 19
NEW MEDIEVAL FORMS­
THE GREAT BUDDHA STYLE

The Rebuilding of Todaiji The Heian period

came to an end when two great military houses, the
Taira and the Minamoto, contended with each other
to wrest power from the court aristocracy. The en­
suing struggle, known as the Gempei War (1180-
85), ended in victory for Minamoto no Yoritomo
(1147-99). Yoritomo received imperial appoint­
ment as shogun (generalissimo) in 1192 and estab­
lished his administration in Kamakura, far to the
north of Kyoto. Thereafter the emperor and his
court in the capital would reign, but the shogunate
would wield actual power. The change put an end
to Japan's classical period and ushered in the
medieval age.
Todaiji, the greatest temple of the old Nara sects,
had been destroyed early in the Gempei conflict in
1180. Reconstruction was begun the next year,
though, by the great prelate Shunjobo Chogen (?-
1195). Chogen had made the perilous crossing to
Song China a remarkable three times to bring back
new Buddhist thought as well as the latest de­
velopments in Chinese culture. He thus chose a
Song architectural style for the Todaiji rebuilding.
Chogen was thereafter supported in his innovative
choice by the equally daring shogun Yoritomo. The
priest made use not only of such native carpenters
as Mononobe no Tamesato and Sakurajima Kuni­
mune, but of the Chinese sculptor and carpenter
Chen Heqing, which suggests the close contact he
maintained with the Continent.
The Great Buddha Style (Daibutsuyo) The Great
South Gate (Nandaimon; fig. 15), through which one 15. Great South Gate, Todaiji
enters the Todaiji complex, was completed in 1199
as part ofChogen's reconstruction. Two other struc­ same location and plan as the original, and despite 19). It is a square structure with three six-meter-wide of the effect of the Great Buddha style than even the
tures at the complex remain fromChogen's time, the its innovative design it was perfectly in keeping with bays per side and a central altar area one bay square. Great South Gate.
Founder's Hall (Kaizando) and the worship section the grandiose style of its predecessor. The Great Bud­ The low, pyr·amidal roof has no curve, and the rafter Decline of the Great Buddha Style The Great
(raido) of the Lotus Hall (Hokkedo), but the Great dha Hall was also rebuilt in the new manner and gave ends are hidden by long fascia (rafter-end covering Buddha style did not long survive its chief advocate,
South Gate is the best example ofChogen's architec­ its name to the style as a whole. It was again burned boards, hanakakushiita; for other examples, see figs. Chogen. Possibly it was linked too strongly in peo­
tural style at Todaiji. The gate's most immediately in 1567 and rebuilt in the same style in about 1700. 15, 20), which obviate the necessity of finishing each ple's minds with the regime of the shogun and its
apparent characteristic is the multiple tiers of brackets This mode also used to be referred to as the '' Indian rafter-end separately and thereby increase construc­ policies. More importantly, its severity apparently
sunk directly into the great columns and stabilized Style" (Tenjikuyo), though it has no connection with tion efficiency. Inside there is no ceiling, in order that did not harmonize with Japanese tastes. But elements
primarily by lateral ties extending the entire length that country. the complex pattern of columns, "rainbow" beams of the style, such as its very rational structural pro­
of the facade (figs. 15, 20-21). The style is simple Besides Todaiji, Chogen built a number of other (ko ryo), and struts may be displayed (see fig. 18). In gram and its characteristic detailing, were absorbed
yet dignified and well suited to rebuilding on a quick temples in the Great Buddha style near the capital the center of the structure stand three gilt images, into other building styles and were long-lived and
and massive scale, since many of the structural and to the west. One fine extant example is the Pure which strikingly contrast with the vermilion color of influential.
members are of the same size and thus easily mass­ Land Hall CTododo) ofJodoji temple (OnoCity, Hyo­ the wooden structural members. The boldness and
produced. The Great South Gate was rebuilt on the go Prefecture), which Chogen built in 1192 (see fig. vitality of the building may give a more complete idea

20 21
NEW MEDIEVAL FORMS­
THE ZEN STYLE

17. Jiziidii of Shiifukuji

area area

has a stone floor. The posts sit on carved stone blocks, The Shariden of Enkakuji ternpie in Kamakura is
or plinths (soban), rather than directly on base stones, very similar in appearance to the Jizodo, and is
and are beveled at both top and bottom. The brackets likewise famous. The original burned in 1563, and
rest not only above each post, as in the Great Bud­ the present structure is believed to have been moved
dha style, but in the intercolumnar spaces as well from Taiheiji, one of the five Kamakura nunneries.
(compare figs. 15, 16). But the history of Taiheiji is unclear, and a precise
Though Sennyuji, a Ritsu-sect temple in Kyoto, date cannot be fixed to the Shariden.
also uses the Zen style, the mode was by and large Naturalized Design Though the Zen style was im­
limited to Zen temple complexes, from which it takes ported from Sung China, it would be a mistake to
its name. It is also known as the "Chinese style" assume thatjapan's extant Zen structures are perfect
(Karayo) in contradistinction to the earlier style of replicas of Chinese prototypes. Over the years Jap­
Buddhist architecture, which by the twelfth century anese carpenters altered the original designs to suit
had come to be thought of as indigenous and ac­ native preferences. One obvious example is the roof,
cordingly called the "Japanese style" (Wayo). Like which in Japan is often covered with wood shingles
the Great Buddha style of Chogen, many of its in­ rather than the more Chinese-style tiles and is sup­
novations were adopted piecemeal into the build­ ported by a double-tiered system of rafters (fig. 17).
ings of other sects, but unlike Chogen's style, the The lower layer of rafters (keshodaruki) is exposed,
16. Jiziidii of Shiifukuji
Zen type thrived on its own as well. and the second layer (nodaruki), which actually sup­
The Shofukuji Jizodo According to an inked in­ ports the roof above, is hidden and set at a steeper
The Architecture of the Zen Sect (Zenshiiyo) At not monopolized by the court, which the shogunal scription on one of its bracket members, the Jizodo pitch than the exposed rafters beneath. Later, the
the same time that Chogen was rebuilding Todaiji, regime viewed with suspicion. of Shofukuji temple dates to 1407 and is thus the construction was further strengthened by the addi­
another monk, Myoan Eisai (1141-1215), was in­ Together with new doctrines, the Zen sect also in­ oldest Zen temple in eastern Japan to which an ex­ tion of a cantilever (hanegi) between the two rafter
troducing the Rinzai sect of Zen Buddhism to Ja.pan troduced a new architectural style into Japan, one act date can be affixed. The structure is three bays sets.
from China. Soon thereafter, a second Zen sect, that, like the Great Buddha style, was developed in wide by three deep and is one story tall, but the sur­ Until this "hidden" or "double" roof system was
Soto, was brought to Japan by Eihei Dogen Sung China, but which is quite different in design. rounding area with pent roof(mokoshi; fig. 16) gives developed in the tenth century, it had been impossi­
(1200-1253). Eisai received the patronage of the sec­ The Zen complex is in general axial in plan and it the appearance of a five-by-five-bay, two-story ble to build wide spaces without having a steep drop
ond Kamakura shogun, Yoritomo's son Yoriie, and roughly bilaterally symmetrical. This reflects the building. Atop rests a hip-and-gable (irimoya) roof. in the angle of the rafters over the peripheral sections
was able to establish temples in Kamakura and in regimentation of the Zen monk's daily life, in which At the core of the Jizodo is a one-bay-square section (hisash1) of a building that surrounded the core (moya).
Kyoto. But Dogen declined the invitation of the each act is expected to contribute to an overall at­ within which stands the altar. The hidden roof made it possible for the pitch of the
shogunal regent, Hojo Tokiyori, and went instead titude of religious discipline. The Zen sect sets out In comparison to the Great Buddha style and the underside of the roof to be set independently of that
deep into the mountains of present-day Fukui Prefec­ rules for not only the shape and appointments of each earlier so-called Japanese style, the Zen-style mem­ of the exterior, thus allowing gently inclined ex­
ture, where he built the temple Eiheiji, the Soto head­ structure, but also the scale and placement of each bers are proportionately thinner and give the exterior posed rafters over the periphery. This eliminated
quarters. Both sects were able to expand, partly building in the complex. an attenuated appearance. This entails no sacrifice heavy shadows and gave a feeling of horizontality
because their stern self-discipline and respect for in­ It is, however, in the structure and ornamenta­ in stability, however, thanks to a more efficient use and calmness to the outlying spaces. The hidden roof
tuitive understanding appealed to the warrior mind, tion of the individual buildings that the identifying of the tie beams (nuki) that pierced the columns was a Japanese innovation and its use made Japa­
and partly because the new Zen organization had characteristics of the Zen style are most apparent. they connected. (For further discussion of details nese temple spaces quite different in feeling from
deep ties with Chinese culture and learning and was Each hall is set on a stone podium (fig. 16), and each of the Zen style, see pp. 26-27.) their Chinese antecedents.

22 23
DETAILS OF THE GREAT BUDDHA STYLE

bracket
ties

Ca se
frog-leg
bracket strut
complex

bracket
complex

nose
20. Great South Gate, Todaiji
t==========l 1=====
O

18. Underside of roof, core

Pure Land Hall, Jodoji penetrating post
bracket
arms

19. Pure Land Hall, Jodoji 21. Great South Gate, Todaiji

Structural Characteristics As mentioned earlier, By and large, the brackets themselves face only front ble from the interior as there is no ceiling, and the before finding trees tall and thick enough to serve.
the Great South Gate ofTodaiji and the Pure Land to back, and lateral arms are in general eschewed in structural members thus take on an added ornamen­ The Great Buddha style also uses a unique french­
Hall of Jodoji are the two finest extant examples of favor of unbroken bracket ties (torihijiki) that provide tal function. The interior "rainbow" tie beams (fig. curved design at the beam tips (called kibana or
the Great Buddha style. Figures 20 and 21 show how the necessary lateral support (compare figs. 20, 23). 21), referred to as such because they are slightly "wooden noses"; barely visible in figs. 15, 20-21)
the bracketing system is arranged. The bracket arms Further structural simplification is seen in the sin­ curved and tapered at the ends, have a configuration as well as in the "frog-leg" struts (the curve not visi­
( c:alled sashi hijiki) are set directly into the posts (fig. gle layer of rafters that carry the roof but are masked unique to the Great Buddha style, being nearly ble in fig. 21); for "wooden noses" in Zen-style struc­
21), making them quite different from the conven­ at the ends by the fascia mentioned previously (figs. round in section and bearing a groove on the under­ tures, see figures 23-24, and for other frog-leg
tional brackets which were simply placed atop the 15, 20). Nor is the more complex double roof sys­ side in the shape of a monk's staff (shakujo). struts, see page 39. Paneled doors of simple design
posts (see fig. 48 for comparison). The posts are tem in evidence. Economy is exercised too in the Decorative Details The Great Buddha style uses are used as well, and they are hung from large
laterally stabilized by penetrating tie beams (nuki) rafter placement, unique to the Great Buddha style, structural members that are proportionately much wooden hinges (waraza) attached to penetrating tie
which pierce the center of the posts (fig. 21). These which is in fan pattern (ogidaruki) on the corners (fig. thicker than those used in Zen buildings. Moreover, beams at top and bottom. Similar doors, but more
beams provide stronger structural support than 18)-thus providing more corner support than the the Great Buddha design demands main columns ornamented, are used in Zen-style structures (see fig.
the common non-penetrating tie beams (nageshi), parallel style (heikodaruki) of standard "Japanese­ that run the entire height of the structure. Obtain­ 25).
which are pinned to the posts' sides. The posts are style" roofs-but is parallel in the center of each side ing the requisite lumber for the building campaign
strengthened back to front by more penetrating (compare this arrangement with figs. 22, 28). As in­ atTodaiji was a challenging process as a result, and
beams tied into the posts at the core of the structure. dicated earlier, the complex roof construction is visi- Chogen's laborers went deep into the mountains

24 25
DETAILS OF THE ZEN STYLE

flying
rafters
I:

1fitifTI !'
base
rafters

. !��,;, P.
24. Cusped window, :l:ir
Jiziidii, Shofuk:�ji
•,

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22. Underside of roof, Jizodii, Shofukuji

transo111
tail
afters hinge 3 4

26. Kenchoji: 1) bridge, 2) main gate, 3) latrine,

4) baths, 5) Enlightenment Gate, 6) central court,
7) Monks' Quarters, 8) kitchen, 9) Buddha Hall,
10) Founder's Hall, 11) Tochido, 12) Dharma Hall,
13) Guest Hall, 14) pond

25. Paneled doors,

23. Bracketing system, Jizodo, Shofukuji Jiziido, Shofukuji

The Typical Zen Monastic Plan We have already Monks' Quarters (called Soda in Zen complexes). typical of Zen structures (figs. 23-24). out around the entire structure, not simply at the cor­
seen that the Zen complex employs a characteristic North again is the Dharma Hall (Hatto), originally The roofing system is a marvel of complex en­ ners as in the Great Buddha style. At the periphery
axial layout. One fine example is that found in an for lectures on doctrine. At the northern extremity gineering. Inside, it visually radiates from a cen­ of the underside of the roof are two types of exposed
extant plan of Kenchoji dated 1331, showing the tem­ of the compound is the Guest Hall (Kyakuden) for tral square ceiling (kagamitenjo) that hangs above the rafters, the base rafters (jidaruki) and flying rafters
ple as it was rebuilt after a fire in 1315 (fig. 26). One the entertainment of important personages. It over­ one-bay-square central section of the structure where (hiendarukt) beyond them (figs. 17, 22). Together they
enters the temple ground over an arched bridge. looks an elegant pond. In other Zen complexes this the altar stands (see fig. 17). The rear end of the ceil­ form the visible lower roof and mask the hidden roof
Then, once through the Main Gate (Somon), one space is occupied by a hi!jo, the residence of the ab­ ing is supported by two posts (raigobashira) that reach pitched at a steeper angle above them. A third type
passes between rows of junipers that stand before the bot and a second area for lectures and doctrinal up from the back of the altar beneath, but the two of rafter, the "tail rafter" (odaruki), is cantilevered
Enlightenment Gate (Sammon), which corresponds discussion. posts one would suppose to be necessary to hold up into the brackets themselves (figs. 17, 22-23; for an
to the inner gate (chumon) of other sects. To the east Structural and Ornamental Details Thejizodo of the ceiling front are cut out, to provide an unblock­ example of a tail rafter in a Japanese-style temple,
are the bathing facilities (Yokushitsu); to the west, Shofukuji (see fig. 16) is a fine specimen of Zen-style ed view of the altar from the entrance. Instead, the see fig. 55). The carved noses of these rafters con­
the latrine (Seichin). Beyond is the corridor-bordered detail. The windows are cusped (katomado; fig. 24), front end of the ceiling is supported by two short tribute to the visual complexity of the bracket system
central court, planted again with junipers, with the and the paneled and ornamented doors (sankarado) "bottle-shaped struts" (taiheizuka) that rest on two (figs. 16, 23). The rafters of the pent roof do not
Buddha Hall (Butsuden) at the north. To the east are, like those of the Great Buddha style, fixed to the giant transverse beams. These beams span two bays radiate, but are instead parallel, as in the Japanese
of the Buddha Hall is the Tochido (hall for the wor­ penetrating tie beams by hinges (waraza; fig. 25). front to back, from the two rear raigobashira posts out style.
ship of local deities) and to the west is the Founder's Above both windows and doors runs the transom that to where the front of the building proper meets the
Hall (Soshido). Outside the central court to the east admits light through its "bow-shaped" members. peripheral pent-roof section. The rafters radiate from
are the temple kitchens (Kuri), and to the west the Beam ends are carved in a french-curved design above this central square ceiling (fig. 22), fanning

26 27
THE MEDIEVAL JAPANESE STYLE

28. Underside of roof, cantilever

Main Hall, Chojuji

ex posed roofs

30. Main Hall, Chojuji

shrimplike
rainbow
beam

�27. Main Hall, Chojuji 29. Main Hall, Chojuji

31. Main Hall, Kakurinji

Chojuji Despite the introduction of the newer section of Zen structures to the central portion (see od (1338-1573). One such structure is the Golden
Todaiji in 1180. Kofukuji was not rebuilt in Cho­
Great Buddha and Zen styles in the Kamakura fig. 17 for an example). In fact, the number of pure Hall (Kondo) of Kofukuji, dated 1415. As was the
gen's new Great Buddha style because the aristo­
period (1185-1333), the older so-called Japanese Japanese-style buildings dramatically declined in this case with the North Octagonal Hall and Three­
cratic Fujiwara family, creators of the Phoenix Hall,
style continued to be used. One particularly fine ex­ period. The degree of stylistic mixture thus deter­ story Pagoda discussed earlier that survive from
was by this time a venerable and conservative house,
ample of the medieval Japanese style is the Main Hall and they favored traditional design. Some struc­ mines whether a building is to be identified as Jap­ the early Kamakura rebuilding of the temple, the
(Hondo) of Chojuji temple (Koka District, Sniga anese style or Eclectic style (Settchuyo). style was deliberately chosen because of the tem­
tural improvements were incorporated, however.
Prefecture; fig. 27). A temple of the Tendai sect, it An Example of the Eclectic Style The Main Hall ple's ancient history and its location in the old Nara
Today, only two buildings at Kofukuji remain
is composed of an Inner Sanctum (Naijin) and an (Hondo) of Kakurinji temple (Kakogawa City, Capital. All in all, however, the introduction of the
from the post-1180 reconstruction campaign. They
Outer Sanctuary (Gejin; figs. 29-30), separated by are the North Octagonal Hall (Hokuendo) and Hyogo Prefecture) is a particularly well-known Eclec­ Great Buddha and Zen styles made a profound im­
lattice doors with a diamond-pattern transom above. the Three-story Pagoda. The former was rebuilt by tic style structure (fig. 31). The hall, thought to have pact on medieval builders and influenced the devel­
The cross-section illustration shows how each of been built in 1397, is basically of the Japanese style, opment of a variety of new architectural effects.
Nara-area carpenters associated with the temple, and
the two areas has its own exposed roof (keshoyaneura) they used the original Nara-period foundation stones. with details of the Great Buddha style selectively add­ Kamakura-period architecture was therefore much
above it, with a single hidden roof(noyane) built over ed, such as the nearly round Great-Buddha-style more stylistically varied than that of earlier periods.
The design of the North Octagonal Hall consequently
both, visually unifying the structure from the ex­ bears a great debt to the eighth-century prototype. "rainbow" beams. The combination of these two In succeeding centuries Buddhist architectural types
terior. This shows that originally the building was The pagoda was rebuilt by Kyoto carpenters styles occurs so frequently that some architectural settled into more or less fixed forms.
composed of two more-or-less separate structures, the trained under the influence of Heian courtly taste historians refer to it as the New Japanese style (Shin A large number of impressive medieval buildings
rear one called the Principal Hall (Shodo) and the Wayo). In the case of the Kakurinji Main Hall, still survive, including the thirty-three-bay Main Hall
and is accordingly more delicate and refined.
front one, the Worship Hall (Raido). The Main Hall however, Zen-style elements were also blended into (Hondo) of the Rengeoin (also called the Sanju­
The Eclectic Style Toward the end of the Kama­
of Chojuji has a calm appearance, thanks to the thick the design, as in the above-mentioned "shrimplike sangendo; Kyoto, 1266), which is constructed in the
kura period, the Japanese style began adopting
structural members, simple bracketing, and low roof. elements from the two newer building types. The rainbow beams" (fig. 31). The Main Hall (Hondo) Japanese style with some details in the Great Bud­
The traditional paralleled rafter system (fig. 28) clear­ of the Myooin temple (Fukuyama City, Hiroshima dha style. Also notable is the Five-story Pagoda of
wooden noses of beams and bracket arms might
ly contrasts with the fan raftering used in the Great Prefecture), built in 1321, is another example where Kofukuji (Nara, 1442), a separate structure from the
adopt the Great Buddha style, or the posts support­
Buddha and Zen styles. all three main medieval styles are used in combi­ even older Three-story Pagoda of the same complex,
ing the porch roof (kohaz) might stand on Zen-style
The Rebuilding of Kofukuji The Japanese style nation. mentioned earlier.
carved plinths or be connected to the building prop­
was also used in the project to rebuild the Fujiwara er by the bulbous S-shaped "shrimplike rainbow A small number of pure Japanese-style buildings
temple of Kofukuji, which was destroyed along with beams" (ebi ko ryo) that often connect the pent-roof did continue to be built even in the Muromachi peri-

29
28
BUDDHIST ARCHITECTURE­
STRUCTURE AND DETAIL
Development of the Three-Stepped Bracket
The three-step bracket is still at an early stage in its de­
demon block velopment at the Three-story Pagoda of Yakushiji (730;
fig. 55). The design has not reached the point where all
blocks are used in vertical rows of twos or threes. Bracket
arms still retain the slight tonguelike protuberance (zetsu)
on their lower corners and the understated concavity on
� 45. Demon block, West 46. Purlin-bearing their upper surfaces (sasaguri; fig. 55), both features of
� Pagoda, Taimadera bracket arm, West Pa­
goda, Taimadera 55. Three-step complex, brackets at such early sites as Horyuji. Later the zetsu and
Three-story Pagoda, Yakushi­ sasaguri cease to be used.
ji (730) By the tenth century, all the blocks at the Daigoji pagoda
appear in vertical g1"oups (fig. 56), and curved struts (shirin)
small are fit bet";'een the second and third steps of the bracket
blocks complex. A final development occurs in the fourteenth and
fifteenth ceri\uries, when each of the uppermost three-block
bracket arms·has exactly six rafters above it, two per block
(fig. 58). Though impossible to tell from fi gu re 57, this is
the case at the Three-story Pagoda atjorakuji. The system,
called "six-branch placement" (rokushigake), effects a more
organic relationship between the brackets and rafters.

47. Boat-shaped bracket 48. Large block and 49. Flat three block, 50. Projecting three
arm, Main Hall, Dai­ bracket arm, Dempodo, Great Lecture Hall, block, Main Hall,
sen'in, Daitokuji Horyiiji Horyiiji Chokyiiji

56. Three-step complex, Five­

story Pagoda, Daigoji (952)

57. Three-step complex,

Three-story Pagoda, Jorakuji
(1400)
D n nn □nn□

�
52. Two-step complex, 53. Two-step complex, 54. Three-step complex, Si>·bmch placemen<,
51. Projecting complex,
Hokkedo, Todaiji Five-story Pagoda, Main Hall, Daizenji West Pagoda, Taima­
Kongodo, Enkyoji (1544)
Kaijiisenji dera

Bracketing The Buddhist temple has manifold uses of two basic parts, the bearing block (masu) and the elbows (hiji), whence comes their Japanese name simplest of these is the "boat-shaped bracket arm"
-besides housing one or more images, it serves as bracket arm (hijiki; fig. 48). The bearing block is --'elbow wood" (hijiki; fig. 50). When the uppermost (junahij'iki), which directly supports the beam above
a place for ritual and worship, and as a symbol of basically a square or rectangular cube beveled at the bracket arm rests on the small blocks beneath and (fig. 47). When it rests on a large bearing block, it
the Buddhist faith. To serve these purposes, it re­ bottom (the ''block tail'' or tojirz). When set directly directly supports the purlin above without the agen­ is called a "large block and bracket arm" complex
quires imposing and permanent structures. The on a column, this component is known as a ''large cy of more small bearing blocks of its own, it is (daito hijiki; fig. 48). Mounting three small blocks atop
grandeur of the temple is in large part created by the block" (daito; fig. 48); on a bracket arm, it is called called a purlin-bearing bracket arm (sane hij'iki; fig. the bracket arm makes it a "flat three block" com­
deep eave overhang of the dignified roof, and the a "small block" (makito; fig. 49). Bearing blocks set 46). plex (hiramitsudo; mitsudo meaning "three blocks;" fig.
course of bracketing that supports it beneath. The on corner posts have more intricate bevel carving at Though the bracket complexes used in the Jap­ 49). When a second bracket arm projects from this
bracket system is thus one of the keys to both the the block tails and are called "demon blocks" (onito) anese, Great Buddha, and Zen styles are all differ­ assembly perpendicular to the wall to support a rafter
structure and the ornament of the temple, and it has in consequence (fig. 45). ent in configuration, that of the Japanese style is by means of a single bearing block, it is called a ''pro­
undergone a long series of refinements in conse­ The outward support of the bracket complex is the most basic, and its general characteristics apply jecting three-block" complex (demitsudo; fig. 50).
quence. provided by bracket arms. They too are beveled at to the other two as well. We will therefore concen­ Adding to that single block a second three-block
The bracket complex (kumimono or tokyo) consists their projecting ends, making them resemble human trate here on the Japanese-style bracket complex. The unit under a purlin creates the "projecting com-

37
36
Eave Construction
Eaves are supported by rafters (tarukz), which rest on pur­
lins (keta) and are cantilevered over the bracket complexes.
, purlin In early structures the load of the roof is supported direct­
ly by posts beneath. This is the case at the Higashimuro
of Horyuji (fig. 59) and the Dempodo of Horyuji (fig. 60),
both dating from the Nara period (710-84). Later,
however, the burden of supporting the roof was assumed �
59. Single eave, Higashimuro, primarily by a huge cantilever (hanegz) hidden from view.
Horytiji (late 7th cen., with One example is the Worship Hall (Raido) of the East
later remodeling) Precinct (Toin) of Horyuji, rebuilt in 1231 (fig. 61). The 64. Floriate bracket arm, 67. Open frog-leg strut,
Worship Hall uses two sets of rafters, the exposed base Two-story Gate, Enjoji Jizodii, Shin Yakushiji
rafters (keshodaruki) below and the hidden rafters (nodarukz) (1468) (1266)
above them, carrying the roof materials. The weight­
bearing cantilever in between enables the rafters to be made
thinner and extended out further. The two sets of rafters
allow the underside of the eave to haYe a more gentle pitch.
Note too the single-eave raftering (hitonokz) of the Hi­
gashimuro, which uses only base rafters (jidaruki; fig. 59),
and the double-eave raftering (futanokz) of the Dempodo
and Worship Hall, both of which have base rafters and fly­
ing rafters (hiendaruki) projecting beyond them (figs.
60-61). Flying rafters increase the curve of the eave ends.
60. Double eave, Dempodo, It is interesting as well that the Higashimuro uses no
Horytiji (739) bracketing at all (fig. 59). The Dempodo has simple boat­ 65. Split strut, Golden 68. Open frog-leg strut,
shaped brackets not visible in the cross section. Hall, Hiirytiji (c. Jiziido, Hiiryuji (1372)
680-94)

61. Double eave, Worship

Hall, East Precinct, Horytiji 66. Open frog-leg strut, 69. Closed frog-leg strut,
Main Hall, Ujigami Second Main Hall,
(rebuilt 1231) 62. Strut and block with 63. Collared strut, Main
filigree, North Octagonal Shrine (late 11th to ear­ Udamikumari Shrine
Hall, Umpoji (mid 15th
Hall, Kofukuji (1210) to mid 16th cen.) ly 12th cen.) (1320)

plex" (degumz) or "one-step complex" (hitotesaki; fig. fig. 56), to the Three-story Pagoda atjorakuji (Shiga and the "collared strut," named minozuka in Japanese nar member, the "frog-leg" strut (kaerumata), though
51). A bracket complex with a second such assembly Prefecture, 1400; fig. 57). for the collar's resemblance to the traditional straw the origins of the latter are not precisely known (figs.
projecting a second step outward to support a sec­ Intercolumnar Supports Additional support for raincoat (mino; fig. 63). Strut and block assemblies 66-69). First appearing in about the twelfth cen­
ond purlin is called a "two-step complex" (futatesaki; the wall purlin is provided by intercolumnar supports are sometimes used in vertical and/or horizontal pairs tury, the frog-leg strut became progressively more
figs. 52-53); with a third, a "three-step complex" (nakazonae) placed in the intervals between the bracket (fig. 64, top). decorative, incorporating intricate carvings of flora
(mitesaki; figs. 54-57), and so on. In the case of the complexes that have posts supporting them. In Zen­ The second general type ofintercolumnar member and fauna. In the Edo period in particular the strut
three-step complex, the third three-block assembly style structures, entire bracket complexes are used is the "floriate bracket arm" (hanahijiki), where a often nearly disappeared beneath coiling dragons or
is usually supported by a "tail rafter" (odaruki) can­ in these intercolumnar spaces as well as above the standard flat bracket arm with blocks has been styl­ other sumptuous ornamentation. There are two basic
tilevered out over another bracket arm beneath (figs. posts themselves (see fig. 23), but in other styles ized through floral carving (fig. 64, bottom). The types of frog-leg struts, the "open" (hon kaerumata or
54-57). A comparison of the illustrated examples of simpler members are used. The most basic of these third type is the "split strut" (warizuka), found either sukashi kaerumata), where the space between the legs
the three-step bracket complex shows the refinement simpler elements is the "strut and block" (kentozuka), with straight or with slightly curved legs (fig. 65). is either empty or filled to varying degrees with carv­
the design underwent over time, from the Three­ seen, for example, on the Phoenix Hall of the Byo­ The design, resembling the diagonal braces (sasu) ing (figs. 66-68), and the "closed" (ita kaerumata),
story Pagoda at Yakushiji (Nara City, 730; fig. 55), doin (see fig. 11). Ornamental variations of this in­ supporting the roof ridge (see fig. 30), may have been a solid piece bearing only the characteristic frog-leg
to the Five-story Pagoda at Daigoji (Kyoto City, 952; clude the strut and block with filigree (oigata; fig. 62) the forerunner of the last main type of intercolum- outline (fig. 69).

38 39
SHINTO SHRINES gable-end
pillar roof billet

70. Shimmei style: Main

Shrine of Ise Shrine o__3m

71. Taisha style: Main Shrine

of lzumo Shrine

72. Sumiyoshi style: one of Main 73. Inner Shrine of Ise Shrine
Shrines of Sumiyoshi Shrine 1/....___]m

Nature Worship Shinto, "the Way of the Gods," The confi guration of the early shrines is unknown, parallel to the roof ridge are called hirairi, "side­ mously costly. Ise, therefore, is the only shrine to­
is Japan's indigenous religion. Animistic in nature, but possibly resembled the portable shrines (mikosht) entered,'' as opposed to those entered at the gable day that is regularly rebuilt, though the practice was
it worships not only anthropomorphic deities, but still carried on poles during festivals today. Indeed, end (tsumairt). Visual support for the roof ridge is pro­ common at many shrine sites in the past.
also the spirits of awe-inspiring elements of nature, the arrangement of the foundation stones at Kasuga vided by two massive pillars, called munamochibashira, Izumo Shrine, built for the worship of Okuninushi
especially certain mountains and trees. Early shrines Shrine (see fig. 74b-d) and Kamo Shrine (see fig. 75) that stand independently beyond the gable sides of and four les&er gods, has a similarly ancient heritage
used none of the monumental architecture of later suggest that their principal structures were original­ the structure and lean slightly inward. Above the and was rebuilt twenty-five times. TheMain Shrine
Shinto structures. Some, like Miwa Shrine (Nara ly movable. plank walls is a miscanthus (kaya) roof topped by ten (Honden; fig. 71) is a gable-entrance structure of
Prefecture) and Kanasana Shrine (Saitama Prefec­ The Oldest Shinto Shrine Styles The main types roof billets (katsuogi) and, at either end, forked finials impressive size, hence the name Taisha, ''Great
ture) have as their central object of worship the of Shinto shrines in use today took their final forms (chigi) that are extensions of the bargeboards. The Shrine.'' Originally it may have been even larger­
mountain behind them, and thus even today have after the introduction of Buddhist architecture. floor is elevated on posts. Surrounding the Main shrine legends say the prototype stood nearly one
no central building corresponding to the "main hall" Though influenced to varying degrees by Buddhist Shrine and the two Treasure Houses (Hoden) to the hundred meters tall and was reached by a grand stair­
(honden) used in other Shinto complexes. Instead, in temple forms, they nevertheless remain stylistical­ north are concentric fences, the Mizugaki, Uchi (In­ case. In plan, the presentMain Shrine resembles that
the case ofMiwa Shrine, a massive rock called ayori­ ly separate and distinct. The three most venerable ner) Tamagaki, Tono (Outer) Tamagaki, and, sur­ of the Daijoe Shoden, built for the accession of each
shiro atop Mt. Miwa is the focus of the sacred pre­ Shinto shrine styles are the Shimmei (fig. 70), Taisha rounding the whole, the Itagaki. new emperor. TheMain Shrine at Izumo is thought,
cinct. At the base of the mountain is a small wor­ (fig. 71), and Sumiyoshi (fig. 72). Each is primarily To the east of the shrine complex in figure 73 therefore, to preserve a floor plan characteristic of
ship hall (haiden) and a torii, the characteristic post identified with one famous complex-Ise Shrine (Ise stands a second lot with a small structure at the ancient domestic architecture.
and lintel gate that indicates a Shinto sanctuary (see City,Mie Prefecture) for the Shimmei, Izumo Shrine center. As a rule, the shrine buildings are rebuilt on The third of these particularly ancient shrines,
fig. 83 for an illustration of a torii). (Hikawa District, Shimane Prefecture) for the Tai­ the contiguous lot every twenty years in order to en­ Sumiyoshi, consists of four nearly identical gable­
The Shrine Prototype Actual shrine structures sha, and Sumiyoshi Shrine (Osaka City) for the sure ritual purity for this, the shrine to the goddess entrance structures that originally overlooked the sea,
were probably built in response to the need to sum­ Sumiyoshi. of the sun, Amaterasu, primary in the Shinto pan­ as befit a place of worship of gods of sea voyages (fig.
mon a deity in order to offer prayers for a bountiful Ise Shrine actually consists of two shrine com­ theon. The sixtieth rebuilding took place in 1973. 72). Today, though, the site is surrounded by a
crop or express thanks for a good harvest. These early plexes, the Oute1· (Geku) and Inner (Naiku; fig. 73). Once the new shrine complex is completed, the older modern urban neighborhood. Whereas the Ise and
structures, the prototypes of the shrines we know to­ The most important structure is the Main Shrine one is dismantled, and a small structure is built over Izumo Shrines are left unpainted, the Sumiyoshi
day, are found either in a central location in a village (Shoden; figs. 70, 73) of the Naiku. Located in the the short "heart pillar" (shin no mihashira) over which buildings are finished in brilliant red and white.
or before mountains, boulders, and other places center of the complex, it has an entrance por­ theMain Hall used to stand. The rebuilding process,
where the gods were thought to dwell. These original tico projecting from its south side. Shrines (and other beginning with the cutting of special lumber far in
constructions were most likely temporary in nature. types of buildings as well) with entrances in the side the mountains, takes years to accomplish and is enor-

41
40
COMMON SHRINE STYLES

B
(a)

75. Nagare style: one of two Main Shrines �hisashi

at Kamo Mioya Shrine (Shimogamo Shrine)

o_,. �
76. Hachiman style: Main Shrine of Usa 77. Hie style: Main Shrine of East Precinct,
Shrine Hie Shrine
74a-d. Kasuga style: exterior of Kasugado,
(d) o_�6•
Enjoji; front, side, and plan of a Main
(b) Shrine, Kasuga Shrine

The Influence of Buddhist Architecture Shinto with a roof extended at one side and lacking roof temple (Ninnikusencho, Nara City), built between superb example of fine design coupled with tasteful­
structures began very early in their development to billets and forked finials. Its best examples are the 1197 and 1228. They are the oldest Kasuga-style ly added B1.-1ddhist concepts is Itsukushima Shrine.
adopt Buddhist temple characteristics. For example, two Main Halls (Honden) at the Kamo Mioya Shrine shrines extant and are thought to have been built First built on its present scale in 1168 by the great
the straight eaves, such as those at Sumiyoshi Shrine and the Main Hall and Provisional Hall (Gonden) originally as part of Kasuga Shrine, then moved to warrior Taira no Kiyomori (1118-81), Itsukushima
(see fig. 72), which are thought to have been the norm at the Kamo W akeikazuchi Shrine (both shrines in their present location when Kasuga was rebuilt. The Shrine (Hiroshima Prefecture) is built out over the
for early Shinto roofs, gradually adopted the gentle Kyoto City), which were last rebuilt in 1863. Kasuga style is the second most commonly used water (see fig. 244). At high tide its main buildings
curve of Buddhist buildings. But Buddhist influ­ The Kasuga style (fig. 74) is one bay in plan, with shrine type. and connecting corridors seem to float, their ver­
ence was not overbearing-the hip roofs and tiles the entrance and stairs on the gable side and pro­ Further Developments in Shinto Shrine Architec­ milion members reflecting on the shallow waves. The
common in Buddhist structures were not generally tected by a long porch roof. Kasuga Shrine (figs. 74b­ ture The Hachiman 'style (fig. 76) was created by use of connecting corridors is reminiscent of the
adopted by Shinto builders, and neither was the d), from which the style takes its name, is thought linking two Nagare-type shrines (fig. 75) back to Shinden style of aristocratic domestic architecture
wattle-and-daub temple wall construction. to have been first built in the 730s at the foot of Mt. front. The practice was first used in Buddhist struc­ (see pp. 64-67).
Further Buddhist influence entered in the Heian Mikasa east of the Heijo Capital, now Nara City (see tures to provide a separate space for worshippers. By the end of the Heian period in the twelfth cen­
period with the development of the honji suijaku doc­ p. 56). The present configuration of four identical Another well-known shrine configuration is the Hie tury the major shrine styles had reached maturity.
trine, which holds that Shinto deities are actually one-bay Main Shrines (Honden) in a line is believ­ style (fig. 77), a hip-and-gable variant of the Nagare Further developments were limited to minor varia­
avatars of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. This sectarian ed to go back to at least the Heian period. The shrine style, with a truncated rear roof. The design is the tions in configuration or style of ornamentation. Ki­
blending caused subsidiary Buddhist temples (jingu - was rebuilt every twenty years until modern times, result of adding subsidiary spaces (hisashz) around all bitsu Shrine (Okayama City), built in 1425, com­
ji) to be built on Shinto properties, and vice versa, and the present main structures date from 1863. but the rear side of the central core (moya) and ex­ bines its Main Hall (Honden) and Worship Hall
Shinto shrines (chinjusha) to be constructed in tem­ They resemble the Sumiyoshi style (see fig. 72) in tending the roof further over those additions. Hie (Haiden) under one hip-and-gable roof, but with the
ple complexes. their red and white color scheme, gable entry, and Shrine (Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture), after which the gables doubled to indicate the two spaces beneath.
The Nagare and Kasuga Styles The Nagare style use of roof billets and forked finials, but differ in their style is named, contains two nearly identical main Examples of the increasing use of ornamentation in­
is the most widely used shrine type (fig. 75) and is �,nailer size and hip-and-gable roof with long porch structures, one each in its east and west precincts. clude the Shinra Zenshindo of Onjoji temple (Shiga
characterized by a gable roof that slopes out over the overhang. Other Buddhist architectural elements continued Prefecture, late fourteenth century) and most notably
entrance on the non-gable side of the structure. The Two other fine examples of the Kasuga style are to be gradually incorporated as well. These includ­ the Toshogu at Nikko (Nikko City, Tochigi Prefec­
design suggests a Shimmei-style building (see fig. 70) the Kasugado (fig. 74a) and Hakusando of Enjoji ed corridors, two-story gates, and even pagodas. One ture; see pp. 44-47).

42 43