Daibutsuyō
Encyclopedia
Wayō
is the name given to a style developed in art and architecture in Japan during the Heian period, mainly by the esoteric sects Tendai and Shingon. Together with Zenshūyō and Daibutsuyō, it is one of the three most significant styles developed by Japanese Buddhism on the basis of Chinese models.The...
and Zenshūyō, it is one of the three most significant styles developed by Japanese Buddhism on the basis of Chinese models.
Originally called , because it had nothing to do with India it was rechristened by scholar Ōta Hirotarō during the 20th century, and the new term stuck. Ōta derived the name from Chōgen's work, particularly Tōdai-ji
Todai-ji
, is a Buddhist temple complex located in the city of Nara, Japan. Its Great Buddha Hall , the largest wooden building in the world, houses the world's largest bronze statue of the Buddha Vairocana, known in Japanese simply as Daibutsu . The temple also serves as the Japanese headquarters of the ...
's Daibutsuden.
Soon abandoned after its creator's death, probably because it didn't harmonize with Japanese tastes, it nonetheless influenced other building styles with its rational solutions. The combination of wayō and daibutsuyō in particular became so frequent that sometimes it is classed separately by scholars under the name . This grandiose and monumental style is the antithesis of the simple and traditional wayō
Wayō
is the name given to a style developed in art and architecture in Japan during the Heian period, mainly by the esoteric sects Tendai and Shingon. Together with Zenshūyō and Daibutsuyō, it is one of the three most significant styles developed by Japanese Buddhism on the basis of Chinese models.The...
style. The Nandaimon at Tōdai-ji
Todai-ji
, is a Buddhist temple complex located in the city of Nara, Japan. Its Great Buddha Hall , the largest wooden building in the world, houses the world's largest bronze statue of the Buddha Vairocana, known in Japanese simply as Daibutsu . The temple also serves as the Japanese headquarters of the ...
and the Amida-dō
Dō (architecture)
is a Japanese word for building. It is very often used in Japanese Buddhism as a suffix in the name of some of the many buildings that can be part of a Japanese temple compound. The prefix can be the name of a deity associated with it is a Japanese word for building. It is very often used in...
at Jōdo-ji
Jōdo-ji (Ono)
The is a temple of the Shingon sect in Ono, Hyōgo, Japan.It was established by Chōgen in 1190 - 1198.Jōdo-ji's Jōdodō completed in 1194 is a National Treasure of Japan.The architecture is in the Daibutsu style that combines Japanese and Chinese elements....
in Ono are its best extant examples., p=737
History
The style was introduced by priest ChōgenChogen
was a after Manju and before Chōryaku. This period spanned the years from July 1028 through April 1037. The reigning emperors were and .-Change of era:* 1028 : The new era name Chōgen was created to mark and event or series of events...
, who in 1180 directed the reconstruction of Tōdai-ji
Todai-ji
, is a Buddhist temple complex located in the city of Nara, Japan. Its Great Buddha Hall , the largest wooden building in the world, houses the world's largest bronze statue of the Buddha Vairocana, known in Japanese simply as Daibutsu . The temple also serves as the Japanese headquarters of the ...
, which had been destroyed during the Genpei war
Genpei War
The was a conflict between the Taira and Minamoto clans during the late-Heian period of Japan. It resulted in the fall of the Taira clan and the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate under Minamoto Yoritomo in 1192....
. Chōgen had just come back from the last of his three travels to China and therefore chose as a basis for the work Song Dynasty
Song Dynasty
The Song Dynasty was a ruling dynasty in China between 960 and 1279; it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, and was followed by the Yuan Dynasty. It was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or paper money, and the first Chinese government to establish a...
architecture. He was supported in his innovative work by first shōgun Minamoto no Yoritomo
Minamoto no Yoritomo
was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura Shogunate of Japan. He ruled from 1192 until 1199.-Early life and exile :Yoritomo was the third son of Minamoto no Yoshitomo, heir of the Minamoto clan, and his official wife, a daughter of Fujiwara no Suenori, who was a member of the...
.
Of his work at the temple only three structures remain, the already mentioned Nandaimon, which remains the best Daibutsuyō example, the Kaizandō
Do
Do may refer to:*The verb "to do", which may serve as an auxiliary verb*Do or Dao, a political division in Japan, North Korea, South Korea, and ancient China*Dō , a number of spiritual, martial, or aesthetic disciplines...
and the Hokkedō
Do
Do may refer to:*The verb "to do", which may serve as an auxiliary verb*Do or Dao, a political division in Japan, North Korea, South Korea, and ancient China*Dō , a number of spiritual, martial, or aesthetic disciplines...
. The gate's most characteristic features are the six-tier bracket groups (tokyō
Tokyō
The Dougong in Chinese is a system of and supporting the eaves of a Japanese building, usually part of a Buddhist temple or Shinto shrine. The use of tokyō is made necessary by the extent to which the eaves protrude, a functionally essential element of Japanese Buddhist architecture. The system...
) projecting directly out of the columns and connected to each other by ties as long as the facade. During the Edo period
Edo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
the temple's Main Hall
Main Hall (Japanese Buddhism)
Main hall is the term used in English for the building within a Japanese Buddhist temple compound which enshrines the main object of veneration. Because the various denominations deliberately use different terms, this single English term translates several Japanese words, among them Butsuden,...
, the Daibutsuden, was also rebuilt in the style, to which it would give its name.
Chōgen built other buildings in this style near and around Nara
Nara, Nara
is the capital city of Nara Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. The city occupies the northern part of Nara Prefecture, directly bordering Kyoto Prefecture...
, of which the Amida-dō
Dō (architecture)
is a Japanese word for building. It is very often used in Japanese Buddhism as a suffix in the name of some of the many buildings that can be part of a Japanese temple compound. The prefix can be the name of a deity associated with it is a Japanese word for building. It is very often used in...
at Jōdo-ji
Jōdo-ji (Ono)
The is a temple of the Shingon sect in Ono, Hyōgo, Japan.It was established by Chōgen in 1190 - 1198.Jōdo-ji's Jōdodō completed in 1194 is a National Treasure of Japan.The architecture is in the Daibutsu style that combines Japanese and Chinese elements....
in Ono is a good extant example.
The style declined quickly after its creator's death, probably because it did not agree with Japanese tastes. Structural elements are treated as design elements, and the building's deliberate roughness is supposed to be part of its beauty, but the concept was probably too alien to Chōgen's contemporaries, and was rejected.
Features
The Daibutsuyō style was short-lived but innovative, and many of the ideas it introduced were adopted by other styles as well. In particular, during the Muromachi periodMuromachi period
The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate, which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi shogun, Ashikaga Takauji, two years after the brief Kemmu restoration of imperial...
the traditional Wayō
Wayō
is the name given to a style developed in art and architecture in Japan during the Heian period, mainly by the esoteric sects Tendai and Shingon. Together with Zenshūyō and Daibutsuyō, it is one of the three most significant styles developed by Japanese Buddhism on the basis of Chinese models.The...
style was so heavily influenced that the mix of the two is sometimes called Shin-wayō.
- Thick woodwork and imposing general look
- Use of penetrating tie beams
During the Heian period temples were built using only non-penetrating tie beams made to fit around columns and pillars and nailed. The daibutsuyō style, first, and the zenshūyō style, later, replaced them with penetrating tie-beams , which actually pierced the column, and were therefore much more effective against earthquakes. The nageshi was however retained as a purely decorative element.
- Thick, visible structural elements with decorative function
As already mentioned, many structural elements are left uncovered and have a decorative function. For example, the roof's supporting members are not covered by a ceiling and are therefore fully visible from within the temple. The Nandaimon's stabilizing bracket ties which run the entire width of the gate are also fully visible (see photo on the left). (Other styles hide them, at least partially.) Structural elements are much thicker than in Zen buildings.
- Sashihijiki
The is a bracket arm inserted directly into a pillar instead of resting onto a supporting block on top of a pillar, as was normal in the preceding wayō style (see photo on the right). At Tōdai-ji, both the Nandaimon and the Daibutsuden have six sashihijiki one on top of the other (mutesaki tokyō). (On the subject, see also the article Tokyō
Tokyō
The Dougong in Chinese is a system of and supporting the eaves of a Japanese building, usually part of a Buddhist temple or Shinto shrine. The use of tokyō is made necessary by the extent to which the eaves protrude, a functionally essential element of Japanese Buddhist architecture. The system...
).
- Ōgidaruki
Another detail unique to this style are the . The rafters supporting each roof corner spread from a single point, in a fan-like pattern.
- Kibana
The tips of each protruding beam ends in a nose-like structure called .
See also
- Japanese Buddhist architecture - Heian period
- WayōWayōis the name given to a style developed in art and architecture in Japan during the Heian period, mainly by the esoteric sects Tendai and Shingon. Together with Zenshūyō and Daibutsuyō, it is one of the three most significant styles developed by Japanese Buddhism on the basis of Chinese models.The...
- SetchūyōSetchūyōis an architectural style born in Japan during the Muromachi period from the fusion of elements from three different antecedent styles, namely the wayō, the daibutsuyō and zen'yō. It is exemplified by the main hall at Kakurin-ji. The combination of wayō and daibutsuyō in particular became so...
- Zenshūyō