Ryōsen-ji (Nara)
Encyclopedia
is a Buddhist temple
in Nara
, Japan
. Founded in the eighth century, the Hondō
is a National Treasure
and a number of other buildings and temple treasures have been designated Important Cultural Properties
.
Shōmu
instructed Gyōki
to erect a hall on the site, and two years later the Indian monk Bodhisena
, noticing a resemblance to the Vulture Peak, founded the Ryōsen-ji. The Hondō was rebuilt in 1283. Toyotomi Hideyoshi
granted the temple lands valued at a hundred koku
. In the Meiji period
many of the monk's quarters were abandoned and over two hundred images were burned. Restored in 1940, the temple has been revived.
served Ryōsen-ji in a tutelary capacity. The Honden
(1384) and subordinate
Sumiyoshi
Jinja Honden
and Ryūō
Jinja Honden
(both 1386) have been designated Important Cultural Properties.
Buddhist temples in Japan
Along with Shinto shrines, Buddhist temples are the most numerous, famous, and important religious buildings in Japan.The term "Shinto shrine" is used in opposition to "Buddhist temple" to mirror in English the distinction made in Japanese between Shinto and Buddhist religious structures. In...
in 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...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. Founded in the eighth century, the Hondō
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,...
is a National Treasure
National treasures of Japan
National Treasures are the most precious of Japan's Tangible Cultural Properties, as determined and designated by the Agency for Cultural Affairs...
and a number of other buildings and temple treasures have been designated Important Cultural Properties
Important Cultural Properties of Japan
The term is often shortened into just are items officially already classified as Tangible Cultural Properties of Japan by the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs and judged to be of particular importance to the Japanese people....
.
History
In the late seventh century Ono no Tobito erected a set of public baths on Mount Tomi outside Nara and enshrined an image of Yakushi. In 734 EmperorEmperor of Japan
The Emperor of Japan is, according to the 1947 Constitution of Japan, "the symbol of the state and of the unity of the people." He is a ceremonial figurehead under a form of constitutional monarchy and is head of the Japanese Imperial Family with functions as head of state. He is also the highest...
Shōmu
Emperor Shomu
was the 45th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.Shōmu's reign spanned the years 724 through 723.-Traditional narrative:...
instructed Gyōki
Gyoki
was a Japanese Buddhist priest of the Nara period, born in Ōtori county, Kawachi Province , to family of Korean Baekje descent. Gyōki became a monk at Asuka-dera temple in Nara at the age of 15, and studied under master Dōshō as one of his first pupils. Gyōki studied Yogacara , a core doctrine of...
to erect a hall on the site, and two years later the Indian monk Bodhisena
Bodhisena
Bodhisena was an Indian Buddhist scholar and monk, known for traveling to Japan and establishing the Kegon school, the Japanese transmission of the Huayan school of Chinese Buddhism....
, noticing a resemblance to the Vulture Peak, founded the Ryōsen-ji. The Hondō was rebuilt in 1283. Toyotomi Hideyoshi
Toyotomi Hideyoshi
was a daimyo warrior, general and politician of the Sengoku period. He unified the political factions of Japan. He succeeded his former liege lord, Oda Nobunaga, and brought an end to the Sengoku period. The period of his rule is often called the Momoyama period, named after Hideyoshi's castle...
granted the temple lands valued at a hundred koku
Koku
The is a Japanese unit of volume, equal to ten cubic shaku. In this definition, 3.5937 koku equal one cubic metre, i.e. 1 koku is approximately 278.3 litres. The koku was originally defined as a quantity of rice, historically defined as enough rice to feed one person for one year...
. In the Meiji period
Meiji period
The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...
many of the monk's quarters were abandoned and over two hundred images were burned. Restored in 1940, the temple has been revived.
Buildings
- HondōMain 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,...
(1283), 5x6 bayKen (architecture)A is a measurement in Japanese architecture. It has two principal uses:* As a proportion for intervals between the pillars of traditional-style buildings. The word is translated in this case in English as "bay". Traditional buildings usually measure an odd number of bays, for example 3×3 or 5×5...
, irimoya-zukuri, tiled roof (National TreasureNational treasures of JapanNational Treasures are the most precious of Japan's Tangible Cultural Properties, as determined and designated by the Agency for Cultural Affairs...
) - NiōmonNiōmonThe is the Japanese name of a Buddhist temple gate guarded by two wooden warriors called Niō . The gate is called Heng Ha Er Jiang in China and Geumgangmun in Korea. The two statues are inside the two posts of the gate itself, one at the left, one at the right...
(1516), three bayKen (architecture)A is a measurement in Japanese architecture. It has two principal uses:* As a proportion for intervals between the pillars of traditional-style buildings. The word is translated in this case in English as "bay". Traditional buildings usually measure an odd number of bays, for example 3×3 or 5×5...
, one door (Important Cultural PropertyImportant Cultural Properties of JapanThe term is often shortened into just are items officially already classified as Tangible Cultural Properties of Japan by the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs and judged to be of particular importance to the Japanese people....
) - Three storey pagodaTōThe , sometimes also called or is the Japanese version of the Chinese pagoda, itself an interpretation of the Indian stupa. Pagodas are quintessentially Buddhist and an important component of Japanese Buddhist temple compounds but, because until the Kami and Buddhas Separation Act of 1868 a...
(1356), hinoki bark roof (ICP) - ShōrōShōrōThe or is the bell tower of a Buddhist temple in Japan. It can also be found at some Shinto shrines, as for example Nikkō Tōshō-gū. Two main types exist, the older , which has walls, and the more recent or , which does not.-History:...
(mid-Muromachi periodMuromachi periodThe 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...
), single bayKen (architecture)A is a measurement in Japanese architecture. It has two principal uses:* As a proportion for intervals between the pillars of traditional-style buildings. The word is translated in this case in English as "bay". Traditional buildings usually measure an odd number of bays, for example 3×3 or 5×5...
, irimoya-zukuri, hinoki bark roof (ICP)
Treasures
- Wall painting inside the three-storey pagoda (late Kamakura periodKamakura periodThe is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
to Nambokuchō period) (ICP) - Seated statue of Yakushi Nyorai (ICP)
- Statues of Nikkō BosatsuNikko bosatsuSuryaprabha Bodhisattva, or Nikkō Bosatsu in Japanese, is a bodhisattva whose specialty is sunlight and good health. Nikkō is often seen with Gakkō Bosatsu , as the two siblings serve Yakushi or the Medicine Buddha...
and Gakkō Bosatsu (ICP) - Zushi (1285) (ICP)
- Statues of Jūni Shinshō (Kamakura periodKamakura periodThe is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
) (ICP) - Plaque of Buddha triad (Hakuhō periodHakuhō periodThe was an unofficial of Emperor Temmu after Hakuchi and before Suchō. The duration of this discrete non-nengō timespan lasted from 673 through 686.The Hakuhō period is more often used as a general term which describe a wider range of years....
) (ICP) - Seated statue of Amida Nyorai (twelfth century) (ICP)
- Seated statue of Dainichi Nyorai (late Heian periodHeian periodThe is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
) (ICP) - Statue of Jūichimen Kannon (early Heian periodHeian periodThe is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
) (ICP) - Statue of Bishamonten (twelfth century) (ICP)
- Statues of Jikokuten and Bishamonten (late Kamakura periodKamakura periodThe is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
) (ICP) - Statue of Jizō Bosatsu (1256) (ICP)
- Pendant disc of Yakushi triad (1366) (ICP)
- Pendant disc (Kamakura periodKamakura periodThe is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
) (ICP) - Seated statue of GyōkiGyokiwas a Japanese Buddhist priest of the Nara period, born in Ōtori county, Kawachi Province , to family of Korean Baekje descent. Gyōki became a monk at Asuka-dera temple in Nara at the age of 15, and studied under master Dōshō as one of his first pupils. Gyōki studied Yogacara , a core doctrine of...
- Seated statue of BodhisenaBodhisenaBodhisena was an Indian Buddhist scholar and monk, known for traveling to Japan and establishing the Kegon school, the Japanese transmission of the Huayan school of Chinese Buddhism....
Jūrokusho Jinja
is now an independent shrine, but before the Meiji periodMeiji period
The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...
served Ryōsen-ji in a tutelary capacity. The Honden
Honden
The , is the most sacred building at a Shinto shrine, intended purely for the use of the enshrined kami, usually symbolized by a mirror or sometimes by a statue. The building is normally in the rear of the shrine and closed to the general public. In front of its usually stands the haiden, or...
(1384) and subordinate
Setsumatsusha
and , also called are small or miniature shrines having a deep historical relationship with a more important shrine or with the kami it enshrines, and fall under that shrine's jurisdiction. The two terms used to have legally different meanings, but are today synonyms...
Sumiyoshi
Sumiyoshi Taisha
, also known as Sumiyoshi Grand Shrine, is a Shinto shrine in Sumiyoshi ward in the city of Osaka, Japan. It is the main shrine of all the Sumiyoshi shrines in Japan...
Jinja Honden
Honden
The , is the most sacred building at a Shinto shrine, intended purely for the use of the enshrined kami, usually symbolized by a mirror or sometimes by a statue. The building is normally in the rear of the shrine and closed to the general public. In front of its usually stands the haiden, or...
and Ryūō
Ryuo
Ryūō may refer to:* Ryūō, Shiga, a town in Gamō District, Shiga, Japan.* Ryūō, Yamanashi, a former town in Nakakoma District, Yamanashi, Japan.* Ryu-oh , a title and tournament in Japanese professional shogi....
Jinja Honden
Honden
The , is the most sacred building at a Shinto shrine, intended purely for the use of the enshrined kami, usually symbolized by a mirror or sometimes by a statue. The building is normally in the rear of the shrine and closed to the general public. In front of its usually stands the haiden, or...
(both 1386) have been designated Important Cultural Properties.