A History of Japanese Art

by Noritake Tsuda

  Fig. 230. Celadon Flower Vase (N.T.)

  Kyoto Onshi Museum of Art

  Fig. 231. Incense Burner (N.T.)

  Kyoto Onshi Museum of Art

  2. MYŌHŌ-IN MONASTERY AND THREE HISTORICAL BUILDINGS, KYOTO

  The Myōhō-in is one of the famous Buddhist monasteries of the Tendai sect. In the monastery still remain three historical buildings: Dai-Shoin or Great Reception Hall, Genkwan or Entrance Hall, and Great Kitchen, which are all enrolled as national treasures.

  The Dai-shoin was originally built at the Imperial court in 1619 in honor of Tōfuku-mon-in, the consort of the Emperor Go-mizu-no-o, and was later given to this monastery. The walls and sliding screens at the partitions of its rooms are all painted with Chinese figures, flowers, or trees in rich colors on gold leaf. The painting is attributed to Kanō Eishō and Eitoku. This is one of the magnificent examples of the shoin-zukuri architecture developed in the early Yedo Period.

  Fig. 232. Great Kitchen (N.T.)

  Myōhō-in, Kyoto

  The Genkwan, or Entrance Hall, was also built in the early Yedo Period. The interior is divided into three rooms and on the walls and sliding screens are painted gigantic pine trees in rich colors on gold leaf. The picture is attributed to Kanō Eitoku.

  The Great Kitchen (Fig. 232) is traditionally said to be a place where a dinner was once prepared for one thousand monks. It is a stupendous wooden structure; and all the roof constructions are seen from below. It has a large chimney at the top of the roof. Its bold massive structure represents the idea of Momoyama architecture.

  3. CHISHAKU-IN MONASTERY AND ITS PALATIAL BUILDINGS, KYOTO

  The Chishaku-in is the headquarters of the Chizan-ha branch of the Shingi-Shingon sect of Buddhism. The main Buddhist hall was lost by fire, and at present the Hōjō (residence of the abbot) is temporarily used as the main hall. It was originally a palatial building erected in honor of Tōfukumon-in, the consort of the Emperor Go-mizu-no-o. It is said that later the building was given to the monastery and transferred here in the second year of Kyōwa (1802).

  Fig. 233. Interior of the Great Reception Hall (N.T.)

  Chishaku-in, Kyoto

  The Dai-shoin, or the Great Reception Hall, is said to have been a palatial building in the Momoyama castle erected by Taikō Hideyoshi. The building itself is quite simple but its walls and sliding screens are decorated with gorgeous paintings (Fig. 233) which are all listed as national treasures. They are the most gorgeous among many famous examples which still remain in many temples of Kyoto. The pictures are generally composed of large pines, cherries, or maples, among which are many kinds of flowering plants of all seasons on gold ground.

  The Shinden or Residential Building. The west and east rooms of this building are also magnificently decorated with similar gorgeous paintings in the Momoyama style. They are likewise listed as national treasures.

  4. SANJUSANGEN-DŌ TEMPLE AND ITS ONE THOUSAND GOLDEN STATUES, KYOTO

  The Sanjusangen-dō is the main temple of the Renge-ō-in monastery which was founded by the ex-Emperor Goshirakawa in the year 1165. But being destroyed by fire in 1249, the present temple was rebuilt in 1266. It is an immense work of architecture of thirty-five span frontage with a side of five spans, built in the wayō or native style. (Fig. 234) It is one-storied, and the side-view of the building is more pleasing than the front-view of the long façade. Although it was rebuilt in the Kamakura Period, the architects seem to have followed the original style of the Fujiwara Period.

  Fig. 234. Sanjusangen-dō (N.T.)

  Renge-ō-in, Kyoto

  Fig. 235. Interior of Sanjusangen-do Temple (N.T.)

  Renge-ō-in, Kyoto

  Various colors are used for the decoration of the interior. But except for the windows which are painted blue the outside is coated only with the usual red oxide of lead. The center of the ceiling is coved; the rest shows the bare rafters.

  Upon the central dais of the inside are placed the main image, the Thousand-armed Kwannon, and the twenty-eight attendants, all of the same date as the building itself. The rest of the interior space is taken up by one thousand smaller images of Kwannon on a wooden flooring below the level of the dais. It is a grand sight (Fig. 235); and they are all works of art.

  5. KIYOMIZU-DERA, THE FAMOUS MONASTERY OF KWANNON, KYOTO

  The Kiyomizu-dera monastery stands on a hill with beautiful surroundings, and can be approached through a terrace street in which famous porcelain wares called Kiyomizu-yaki are sold in shops on both sides.

  Fig. 236. Main Temple (N.T.)

  Kiyomizu-dera, Kyoto

  The monastery is said to have been founded at the beginning of the ninth century by Saka-no-ue Tamuramaro, a famous general.

  The present buildings were all rebuilt in much later ages. Its main temple has been dedicated to Kwannon and it has become one of the most popular Buddhist temples in Kyoto.

  When one comes to the upper extremity of the terrace avenue he approaches a tall red gate called Niō-mon where two statues of Buddhist guardian kings are placed. On the other side of the gate, there stand at the hillside a belfry the Sam-mon gate, a three-storied stupa, a sutra depository, the Tamura Hall, the Main Temple, Shaka-dō Hall and Amida-dō Hall, each having a beautiful spot for its environment.

  The belfry, a national treasure, is situated on the left as one enters the Niō-mon gate. It was erected in 1607, and its powerful construction represents the style of the Momoyama architecture.

  The Sam-mon gate, a national treasure, standing at the top of the stone steps, was built at the same time as the belfry. Its design is rare and beautiful.

  The Main Temple, a national treasure, was rebuilt by the third Shogun, Iemitsu, in the year 1633. (Fig. 236) It stands on the top of a cliff. The principal part of the building is nine spans by seven, to which are added pentroofs, an entrance porch, and two wings between which a stage is constructed with a passage extending from either side. The stage and the passages have railings and are supported by many long columns connected with the horizontal members over a deep precipice. They present a unique feature as will be seen in our photographic reproduction. The roofs are all covered with the bark of the hinoki wood and have variety in size, shape, and height, making a beautiful harmony with their natural environment. As a whole the building is an excellent example of renaissance architecture built in the early Yedo Period, and is highly admired for its beauty.

  6. CHION-IN, THE HEAD MONASTERY OF THE JŌDO SECT, KYOTO

  The Chion-in is situated at the eastern foot of Higashiyama mountain. The monastery was founded by the famous priest Hōnen who founded the Jōdo sect of Buddhism in Japan in the second half of the twelfth century, and wrote a famous treatise called Senjaku Hongwan Nenbutsu Shū, on the doctrine of the Jōdo sect for the Minister on the Right, Fujiwara Kanesane. The treatise is still highly esteemed by the adherents of this sect which is one of the influential Buddhist sects in Japan. The sect has about 6,900,000 believers and 58,000 priests.

  The monastery is composed of the Sam-mon, or the main gate, the Miei-dō, or Main Hall, the Shū-e-dō or the Assembly Hall, the Amida Hall, the Sutra depository, Kara-mon gate, the larger and smaller Hōjō Halls, the Belfry, and the Seishi-dō Hall. These buildings are arranged on a magnificent scale in the extensive precinct of the monastery as we see them now. They were mostly rebuilt under the patronage of the Tokugawa Shoguns in the Yedo Period.

  The Sam-mon, a two-storied gate, stands high upon the top of the stone steps at the entrance of the monastery. The pious people, looking upon the gate, feel uplifted and think that they are approaching the Pure Land of Buddha Amida. The gate was erected by the second Shogun Hidetada in the year 1619. It is constructed of plain, massive wood with complicated bracket groups under the eaves. However, the interior of the second story is decorated in rich colors. All the beams are painted with Chinese mystic animals, and the ceiling is painted with a dragon in clouds and Buddhist angels. Upon the dais along the inner wall are enthroned
the image of Shaka-muni with sixteen figures of Rakan, or Buddhist disciples, and some other figures.

  Fig. 237. Main Hall (N.T.)

  Chion-in, Kyoto

  This is a typical example of the largest kind of Buddhist gate built in the early Yedo Period.

  The Main Hall (Hon-dō or Miei-dō) is dedicated to the priest Hōnen, and is the largest and the most important temple of this monastery. (Fig. 237) The building was erected in the tenth year of Kwan-ei (1633) by the third Shogun, Tokugawa Iemitsu. The temple has a façade of eleven spans with nine spans on each side, and a single-story with a tiled roof in irimoya style. Its massive pitch in front is quite suggestive of the greatness of the sacred building. At the inside of the entrance porches, in the front and at the rear, will be seen some beautiful carvings of such sacred beings as dragons, angels, and phoenixes; and some conventionalized flowers, such as the peony, chrysanthemums, and paulownia, all in plain wood. The interior is divided into two halves, front and rear. The outer half is the place where the adorants sit and hear sermons; and in the inner half is the apse where the statue of the priest Hōnen is enshrined. In his book entitled "Impressions of Japanese Architecture," Mr. R. A. Cram said of the interior decoration of this temple, "Apart from St. Mark's in Venice and the Capella Palatina in Palermo, I know of no religious interiors that can vie with such caves of glory as Chion-in."

  The temple is no doubt a typical piece of architecture of the Jōdo sect in the early Yedo Period.

  The larger Hōjō, a national treasure, was built in the tenth year of Kwan-ei (1633). It has a façade of nine spans with sides of six spans each, and a single-story with an irimoya roof thatched with the bark of hinoki wood. The interior is divided into two sections, front and rear; and either section includes four rooms. The partitions of the rooms are mostly made by sliding screens. The walls and sliding screens are painted with pictures in colors. The jōdan-no-ma is the finest among them. The wall of its toko-no-ma or the large recess is painted with a picture representating a Chinese poet looking at a waterfall, which is slightly colored on gold ground. On the sliding screens are painted landscapes. The pictures are all ascribed to Kanō Naonobu, a master painter of the Kanō School. The sliding screens of the largest room, called Butsuzen-no-ma, are painted with large pine trees and cranes on a golden ground, which are also ascribed to Kanō Naonobu.

  The smaller Hōjō, a national treasure, was also built in the tenth year of Kwan-ei (1633). It has five spans at the façade and side, and a single-story with an irimoya roof thatched with the bark of hinoki wood. The interior is divided into six rooms, and the walls and sliding screens of each room are painted with landscapes in black and white. These rooms are simpler and quieter than those of the larger, richly decorated Hōjō. These two Hōjō buildings are typical of the residential architecture of the monasteries erected in the early Yedo Period.

  The following are national treasures owned by the monastery:

  Illustrated History of the Priest Hōnen. Attributed to Tosa Yoshimitsu. Mounted as forty-eight scrolls. Colored on silk. Late Kamakura Period. Ten out of forty-eight scrolls are preserved in the Kyoto Onshi Museum of Art.

  Amida and Twenty-five Bodhisattvas, who are coming down to welcome the souls of the dead, popularly known as "Haya Raigō." Mounted as kakemono. Colored on silk. Kamakura Period. Preserved in the Kyoto Onshi Museum of Art.

  Kwangyō Mandara. Mounted as kakemono. Colored on silk. Muromachi Period.

  Amidagyō Mandara. Mounted as kakemono. Colored on silk. Muromachi Period.

  Gubari Amida, or Amitayus in red cloth. Mounted as kakemono. Colored on silk. Kamakura Period.

  Jizō Bodhisattva. Mounted as kakemono. Colored on silk. Preserved in the Tokyo Imperial Household Museum.

  Bishamon-ten. Mounted as kakemono. Colored on silk. Kamakura Period.

  Peony flowers. Attributed to Senshun-Kyō. Mounted as kakemono. Colored on silk. Sung Dynasty. Preserved in Kyoto Onshi Museum of Art.

  Lotus flowers and herons. Attributed to Jōki. Mounted as two kakemono. Colored on silk. Sung Dynasty.

  Two Chinese Elysian gardens or "Tōri-en and Kinkoku-en." Attributed to Kyū Ei. Mounted as two kakemono. Colored on silk. Ming Dynasty. Preserved in the Kyoto Onshi Museum of Art.

  7. NANZEN-JI, THE FAMOUS MONASTERY OF ZEN BUDDHISM, KYOTO

  The Nanzen-ji is one of the head-temples of the Rinzai sect. The site was originally occupied by an Imperial detached palace, belonging to the ex-Emperor Kameyama, which he gave to a temple in 1293; and the temple became the first of the five main Zen Monasteries (Go-san) in Kyoto. The monastery was several times destroyed by fire, and declined during a long period of years. However, when Konchi-in Sōden was appointed abbot, he was able to restore the monastery to its former prosperity because he had the great confidence of Ieyasu, the first Shogun of the Tokugawa family. In the sixteenth year of Keichō (1611) a palace building called Seiryōden was given to him, which he transferred to this temple as his Hōjō, or residence. He also received a palatial residence in the castle of Fushimi, which is called Ko-hōjō, or smaller Hōjō. In 1620 Tōdō Takatora rebuilt the Sam-mon gate. These three buildings still remain and are all enrolled as national treasures.

  The Sam-mon is the magnificent two-storied gate in Zen style built in the early Yedo Period. The whole outside is of plain wood. But the interior of the upper story is decorated beautifully. The pillars and beams are painted with waves, dragons, giraffes, and clouds in rich colors; and on the dais are placed the image of Shaka-muni and sixteen figures of rakan, or arhats.

  Fig. 238. Tiger Room (N.T.)

  Nanzen-ji, Kyoto

  The Hōjō was originally erected in the Imperial Court in the Tenshō Era (1573-1591). It is a large one-storied building, thatched with shingles of hinoki bark and having an irimoya roof at either side. The exterior beauty of the building lies in the broad slope of large pitch of the roof, which is one of the characteristics in Japanese architecture. The inside is divided into eight rooms. All the sliding screens at the partitions of the rooms are painted with different pictures in rich colors by Kanō painters. The building is a very important example of the palace architecture of the late Muromachi Period, that is, the sixteenth century.

  The Ko-hōjō, which was originally built in the Fushimi castle, is also called the "Tiger Room" because each room is decorated with the pictures of tigers painted on sliding screens. (Fig. 238) The so-called "tiger rooms" remain in various historic buildings but none excels these pictures of tigers in magnitude of form and colors. They are most probably painted by Kanō Tannyū. A group of tigers is roaming among bamboo bushes painted on gold leaf. The deep green of the bamboos makes a fine sharp color contrast with the bright gold. One of the tigers, licking water from a stream, is especially famous for its ferocious look. Once it was believed that it really came out to drink water. For this fame the tiger lost its right eyesight. (Fig. 239) Tannyu, like all the other painters of the period, never saw any real tigers. It seems he studied them from the pictures imported from China and also from skins. Thus, it lacks natural reality, but the feeling of ferocity is very skilfully expressed.

  The paintings mentioned below are all national treasures owned by the Nanzen-ji monastery:

  Shaka and Sixteen Deities, or Shaka Jūroku Zenjin. Mounted as kakemono. Colored on silk. Kamakura Period.

  Buddha in Nirvana, or Butsu Nehan. Mounted as kakemono. Colored on silk. Muromachi Period.

  Fishing in a Pond, or Kōzan Gyoshū, by Shō-sanshō. Mounted as kakemono. Ink painting on silk. Ming Dynasty.

  Yakusan and Riko in discussion about Zen Buddhism. Mounted as kakemono. Slightly colored on silk. Southern Sung Dynasty. An excellent example of Chinese ink painting. (Fig. 91)

  Fig. 239 Tiger by Tannyu (N.T.)

  Nazonji, Kyoto

  Fig. 240. Silver Pavilion (N.T.)

  Jishō-ji, Kyoto

  Portrait of Monju. Mounted as kakemono. Ink painting on silk. Sung Dynasty.

  Portrait of
Daimin Kokushi, the first abbot of Nanzen-ji. Mounted as kakemono. Colored on silk. Fourteenth century.

  Portrait of Nan-in Kokushi, the second abbot of Nanzen-ji. Colored on paper. Early seventeenth century.

  Portrait of Daruma, by Keishoki. Mounted as kakemono. Ink painting on paper. Fourteenth century.

  8. GIN-KAKU-JI, OR SILVER PAVILION, KYOTO

  It was in the twelfth year of Bummei (1480) that the eighth Shogun Yoshimasa, had a villa built here as his retiring place. He erected a number of buildings and laid out an extensive garden. He had refined taste in tea-ceremony flower arrangement, and in other accomplishments. He collected rare objects of art and appreciated them with some selected friends and connoisseurs.

  His interest in art had much influence upon the development of art in his time. After his death the villa was given up for a Buddhist temple which now has the name Jishō-ji. The Silver Pavilion, Tōgu-dō Hall, and the garden are the only relics of the original.

  The Silver Pavilion is a two-storied building erected on the borders of a pond, commanding a beautiful garden scene. (Fig. 240) The general appearance resembles that of the Golden Pavilion of Kitayama. The construction is not so highly finished as that of the Golden Pavilion, but it has more simplicity and refinement. The first story is four spans by three, and the interior is divided into four rooms. There is a verandah in front; and one of the two front rooms is open to the garden, forming a lobby without any sliding screens between the front columns. The other front room is closed by sliding screens pasted over with transparent paper on the upper part, but it can easily be opened to the garden by sliding back the screens. All the construction and style of the first floor belong to the shoin-zukuri architecture. The upper floor, three spans square, is surrounded with piazzas and balustrades. All the sides are closed with panelled walls; the entrance is made through a paneled door at both sides and the light is allowed through bell-shaped windows made in each side. The construction of the upper story is that of the Zen sect architecture and is entirely different from that of the first story. The interior and exterior are lacquered, and was intended to be overlaid with silver leaf, but this was not done because of the death of Shogun Yoshimasa himself. But the name Silver Pavilion originated from this. Within the upper floor is enshrined a statue of Kwannon in an artificially constructed grotto.