A History of Japanese Art
Page 31
Fig. 252. Garden of Golden Pavilion
Rokuon-ji, Kyoto
The new characteristic of this garden lies in the erection of a high pavilion of three stories on the edge of the extensive pond. In the pond are several small islands, and rocks of attractive shapes. (Fig. 252) The garden is no doubt a unique extant example of the gardens built in the early years of the Muromachi Period and it was indeed a place of repose, of contemplation and of spiritual communion with nature for the Shogun Yoshimitsu.
14. KITANO-JINJA, THE SHRINE DEDICATED TO THE STATESMAN, SUGAWARA MICHIZANE
The Kitano-jinja is one of the most famous Shinto shrines in Japan and it is dedicated to Sugawara Michizane, the celebrated unfortunate statesman-scholar, who died in 903 in Kyushu where he was exiled. After his death he was regarded as a superman who possessed miraculous virtues. The shrine was founded in 947 and the Emperor paid a visit to it in 1004. Since that time the shrine has been often honored with Imperial visits.
The present buildings were erected in the twelfth year of Keichō (1607) by Toyotomi Hideyori, the son of Hideyoshi. They consist of the main hall, the oratory, the middle gate (Chūmon), the eastern gate (Tō-mon), the cloister, and the open-work fence.
The middle gate, a national treasure, known as Sankwō-mon, or Gate of Three Luminaries, is a beautiful example of the gorgeous gates of the Momoyama Period. The gate is in kara-mon style with four leg-pillars. The front and rear eaves have two kara-hafu gables over which are the chidori-hafu gables of triangular shape, and at either side is the irimoya gables. Thus the roof is very complicated. In the tympanums and in the frog-leg supporters richly colored carvings of different kinds of birds and animals are inserted. The most attractive among them is a Chinese lion (kara-shishi) in the middle of the lintel. It is roaring with its hip raised. Its active movement and rich color well represent the broad chivalrous spirit of the early seventeenth century.
The main hall and oratory, a national treasure, are the foremost examples of the style of Shinto architecture called gongen-zukuri. The main hall and the oratory are connected by a stone-floored chamber, all of which make one group, with an additional stage for sacred dance on each side of the oratory. These features form what is called yatsumune-zukuri, or eight-ridged construction. The ground plan is highly complicated. The roofs, of various sizes, heights, and forms, are grouped together, presenting an agreeable variety. They are thatched with shingles of hinoki bark. In construction they are quite impressive, and not lacking in elegance. For decoration, inside and outside, a great deal of moulding and carving is applied, mixed here and there with color. Altogether it is grand and vigorous, displaying features characteristic of the Momoyama Period.
The following are national treasures owned by the shrine, and are placed on view in the treasury which stands on the right as one enters the two-storied gate:
Illustrated History of Kitano Shrine or Kitano Tenjin Engi. Mounted as nine makimono. Colored on paper. Kamakura Period. The picture illustrates the life of Michizane, the traditions told of him after his death, and the origin of this shrine which is dedicated to his soul. The picture was painted in the interval between 1219-1221 and the style is purely of the Yamato-e School. The freedom of the drawing and the decorative value of the composition make this the most remarkable of many pictures dealing with the same subject. It won a very high rank among the master picture scrolls produced in the Kamakura Period. This is called the Kompon Engi (Original History) Scroll, to distinguish it from later reproductions or imitations of the present original. The artist is commonly supposed to be Nobuzane, but there is nothing to support this judgement. One of the interesting dramatic scenes is shown in Fig. 253. It illustrates his apparition. He is now transformed into a god of thunder and lightning, and is enabled to give vent to his unforgettable indignation against his enemies who are still living.
Fig. 253. Part of Kitano Tenjin Engi (N.T.)
Kitano Shrine, Kyoto
Illustrated History of Kitano Shrine or Kitano Tenjin Engi. Mounted as two makimono. Colored on paper. This is one of the reproductions produced in the Kamakura Period. The picture is attributed to Tosa Yukimitsu, but is older than his time.
Illustrated History of Kitano Shrine or Kitano Tenjin Engi, by Tosa Mitsunobu. Mounted as three makimono. Colored on paper. The picture is one of the masterpieces by Mitsunobu (1434-1525).
Illustrated History of Kitano Shrine, or Kitano Tenjin Engi. By Tosa Mitsuoki. Mounted as three makimono. Colored on paper. This is one of the representative works by Mitsuoki (1617-1691).
Dragon and Cloud, by Kaihoku Yūshō. Mounted as pair of byobu. Painted in ink on paper. Momoyama Period. Yūshō, 1633-1715, is a master painter in the Momoyama Period. In this picture we see the magificence of his brush in ink.
15. NIJO CASTLE, THE FORMER PALACE OF THE SHOGUN IN KYOTO
Nijo Castle was built by Ieyasu, the first Shogun of the Tokugawa, in the eighth year of Keichō (1603). From that time the castle served as the residence of the Shogun on the occasion of his visits to Kyoto, during a period of more than two centuries. The castle ground is rectangular in shape, covering an area of about 70 acres. The castle is surrounded by walls of masonry, with towers at the corners. (Fig. 254) Within the enclosure there are five important palace buildings. These are the Kara-mon Gate, Waiting Hall (Tō-samurai), Audience Hall (Ō-hiroma), Black Hall (Kuro-shoin), and White Hall (Shiro-shoin); and all are connected by galleries except the gate.
The Kara-mon Gate is decorated richly with elaborate carvings, and is said to have been transferred here from the Momoyama castle which was built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in the latter part of the sixteenth century.
Fig. 254. Nijo Castle
Kyoto
The Waiting Hall is approached immediately through a large porch (kuruma-yose). It is divided into six rooms, the largest of which has 75 mats on the floor; and the sliding screens on the three sides are painted by a Kanō master with tigers in bamboo groves on a ground of gold leaf. They are not a masterpiece, but bold and gorgeous. All the other rooms also are decorated with paintings in rich colors.
The Audience Hall was the place where the Shogun's reception was held. It contains four large rooms. Their interior is sumptuously decorated in gold and rich colors with painting and carving representing large pine trees and such birds as peacocks or pheasants which have colorful plumages. The finest of these is the elevated room (Jōdan-no-ma) where the Shogun had his seat. The west side of the room opens into a garden which is built with a number of rare rocks of fantastic shapes arranged along a pond. (Fig. 255) Its design is attributed to Enshū.
The Black Hall (Fig. 256) is the finest architecture among these palace buildings. Its elevated room, or Jōdan-no-ma (Fig. 257), is most gorgeously decorated with pine trees with snow on their trunks, the green leaves of which are contrasted with the deep crimson blossoms of a plum tree; and on the panel screens are painted cherry trees, in full bloom.
Fig. 255. Garden of Nijo Castle
Kyoto
The gilt or cloisonné metal fittings used in many places and the design painted on each coffer of the coved ceiling make the room most gorgeous and decorative with pictures painted in rich colors on the walls and sliding screens.
The White Hall was used as the bedchamber of the Shogun. Its interior decoration is much simpler and more restful.
An admission card from the Imperial Household is required to see the Nijo Castle.
16. NISHI-HONGWAN-JI, THE GREAT MONASTERY OF THE SHINSHŪ SECT
The monastery was founded by Kakushin-ni, the daughter of Shinran Shōnin, the founder of the Shinshū sect of Buddhism, when she erected the mausoleum of her father at Ōtani in Kyoto and enshrined his statue in the year 1272. However, the actual foundation of the monastery was consolidated for the first time when Toyotomi Hideyoshi gave it its present site, an extensive piece of land, for the monastery in the Tenshō Era (1575-1591).
The monastery is the headquarters of the Hongwan-ji branch of the
Shinshu sect, which has about 7,000,000 adherents and 10,000 temples throughout Japan.
Fig. 256. BlackHall of Nijo Castle
Kyoto
Fig. 257. Jōdan-no-ma of Black Hall
Nijo Castle, Kyoto
When we enter either of the two front gates, there stand two large buildings, facing the east, side by side, connected by a corridor. The one on the right, is the Hon-dō which was dedicated in 1760 to the statue of Amida who is worshipped as the most important Buddha in the Shinshū sect. The other building on the left, larger than the Hondō, is the Daishi-dō, or Founder's Hall (Fig. 258), which was dedicated to Shinran Shonin in the year 1636 to enshrine his statue. These two buildings are typical architecture of the Shinshū sect of Buddhism. They were built in the Yedo Period, and are enrolled as national treasures.
Beside these sacred buildings are a number of palatial buildings, once built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in his Castle of Momoyama and in his residence at Juraku, all in the late sixteenth century, which have been transferred here from the original places; and all are now national treasures.
Of the palatial buildings, there stand the Room of Tigers (Tora-no-ma), the Room of Drums (Taiko-no-ma), the Room of Waves (Nami-no-ma), the Audience Hall (Taimen-jo), the White Hall (Shiro-shoin), and the Black Hall (Kuro-shoin). A noted pavilion called Hiun-kaku occupies its own quarter in the southeast corner of the ground. At the southern entrance of the monastery stands the famous gate called Kara-mon, which was once the gate of a palace building in the Momoyama castle. (See page 217 and Fig. 135)
The White Hall includes three rooms. In Fig. 259 we have reproduced part of its interior, decorated with cherry blossoms, and a white peacock which is proud of its plumage as if to vie with the gorgeous blossoms of the cherry trees.
However, the most important of these buildings is the Audience Hall which was used by Hideyoshi for receiving his generals. The room is so spacious that its floor has 200 mats; and the interior is divided into two sections, upper and lower. The upper part is furnished with an alcove or toko-no-ma, with shelves, cupboards, and sliding panels called chūdai-karzari. In the left hand corner is a still more raised platform under the "writing window" with its desk ledge. Near this is a small alcove, lacquered and painted, in front of which is a bell-shaped window of unusual proportions. The panels, or ramma, over the dividing line between the two levels of the room are elaborately carved with storks, rushes, and clouds. Down through the center of the lower room run two rows of large columns which support the roof. The walls of the larger alcove are decorated with paintings by Kanō Tannyu on gold leaf. The wall of the lower room is decorated with storks and large pine trees painted by Kanō Ryōkei on gold leaf; and the ceiling is decorated with round patterns composed of dragons and flowers painted by the same artist in rich colors.
Fig. 258. Founder's Hall (N.T.)
Nishi-Hongwan-ji, Kyoto
Fig. 259. Interior of White Hall
Nishi-Hongwan-ji, Kyoto
The Hiun-kaku, the noted pavilion, is quite a different kind of architecture from that of the palatial buildings just described above. Its construction and interior decoration are simple but reposeful for a residential building. (Fig. 260) The pavilion originally formed part of the residential buildings erected in the late 16th century by Hideyoshi, which are known under the name of Juraku-dai (Residence of Collected Luxuries) and transferred here in the early seventeenth century. It is a three-storied structure erected near a pond in a garden which was designed with stones and trees originally belonging to the Residence of Collected Luxuries. Its timbers are comparatively slender and the roof is thatched with the bark of hinoki wood. The whole appearance of the building is quite original and rich in variety. Purposely avoiding a symmetrical construction, it endeavors to enhance its beauty by contrast and balance. On each side it assumes a different aspect, giving a fresh surprise.
The interior decoration is also very quiet and reposeful. It is never sensuous but rather meditative. The walls of the alcove and the large sliding screens of the state room of the first floor are painted with large snow-clad willow trees on a paper ground slightly tinted with golden color. So this room is called the Room of Willows. The painting is attributed to Kanō Eitoku. In the next room are painted, in black and white, eight famous Chinese landscapes on sliding screens. The entrance opens from this room on to the pond, where a boat can be let in.
Fig. 260. Hiun-kaku (N.T.)
Nishi-Hongwan-ji, Kyoto
The interior decoration of each room is intrinsically harmonious with the simplicity of the architecture.
Fig. 261. Sliding Screen of the Fumon-in Chapel
Tofuku-ji, Kyoto
17. TŌFUKU-JI, THE GREAT MONASTERY OF ZEN BUDDHISM, KYOTO
The Tōfuku-ji is the head monastery of the Rinzai branch of the Zen sect. It was founded by Fujiwara Michi-ie in 1239, and the priest Shōichi Kokushi was appointed the first abbot. It was one of the five main Zen monasteries (Go-san) in Kyoto, and is still one of greatest monasteries in the city. About fifty years ago the Buddha Hall and Preaching Hall were reduced to ashes, but they are now under reconstruction. However, there still remain some historic buildings which were erected in the Muromachi Period and they are enrolled as national treasures. They are the Sam-mon gate, toilet or Tōsu, and Zendō where monks sit and meditate. Besides these buildings there remains another historic building called Fumon-in in which are beautiful pictures of Momoyama style, painted on the sliding screens. (Fig. 261)
The Sam-mon gate (Fig. 262) stands imposingly at the entrance of the monastery. It is a two-storied gate of five spans and three doorways and both sides are provided with staircases leading to the upper story. This is the earliest gate remaining of the Zen monasteries, and the general style of construction is a mixture of kara-yō and tenjiku-yō styles. In the bracket system tenjiku-yō is combined with the kara-yō; and also in other respects tenjiku-yō is harmoniously combined with kara-yō. The interior of the upper story is painted in bright colors. (Fig. 263) The flat board ceiling is painted with angels. The rafters, beams, and pillars are all decorated with flowers, dragons, clouds, and waves, in colors. Such bright decoration applied to the constructive members is quite a contrast to the general principle of a Zen monastery. This is shown only in the interior of the upper story of the gate. Against the rear wall is enshrined a figure of Shaka with a crown, attended on both sides by the sixteen Rakan.
18. HŌ-Ō-DŌ, THE FINEST TEMPLE OF THE FUJIWARA NOBILITY
The Hō-ō-dō or Phoenix Hall is the main temple of the Byōdō-in monastery. It stands in a small town called Uji which is in a southern suburb of Kyoto. Through the town runs a broad river of the same name, and beyond the river softly rises a beautifully undulated range of hills. Surrounded with such a picturesque landscape, the Phoenix Hall has stood at the same place ever since it was erected in the year 1053.
The place was one of the famous country resorts selected by the nobilities of the Fujiwara family, before it was converted to a temple by Yorimichi of the same family to enshrine the Buddha Amida.
The original building erected here was in the style of shinden-zukuri as in other cases. The shinden-zukuri was the architectural type of building erected as nobles' residences. Its principal apartment called shinden or bed-chamber fronted south to take in the full brightness of the sun and opened on the pond of a beautiful garden. In a word, the shinden-zukuri was landscape architecture beautifully set in a garden of a conventional type.
Fig. 262. Sam-mon Gate (N.T.)
Tōfuku-ji, Kyoto
Fig. 263. Interior of the Sam-mon Gate
Tōfuku-ji, Kyoto
Fig. 264. Phoenix Hall (N.T.)
Byōdō-in, Uji
Now our Phoenix Hall (Fig. 264) is the only existing example which retains much of the type of shinden-zukuri. Here we may see the finest architecture of the Fujiwara nobility dignified as a temple to the Buddha Amida. The plan is really wonderful. It consists of a main hall, wing corridors, and a r
ear corridor. The main hall has three column intervals in the façade and two at the sides, and is surrounded with a penthouse. Two-storied wing corridors stretch out on each side of the main hall and bend toward the front. At each angle stands a pavilion. The rear corridor is one-storied. The main roof, of irimoya style, extends further than the penthouse which has the central part of the façade raised higher than the rest, thus breaking the monotonous stretch of the roof. The exterior parts have a red coating, and are decorated with gilt metal work. The decoration of the interior of the main hall is most refinedly elaborate. Pillars, walls, ceiling, and all the other spaces are filled with painted designs, mother-of-pearl inlaid work, metal fittings, and open carving. The perforated work of the wooden canopy suspended over the image of Buddha will never be surpassed by any other perforated carvings in wood. (Fig. 265)
Fig. 265. Wooden Canopy (N.T.)
Phoenix Hall, Uji
The whole effect is indeed a marvellous example of architectural symmetry and beauty and it looks as though it could fly up to heaven whenever it wished. The beautifully curved lines of the roofs and the soft straight lines of the pillars supporting the roofs have a wonderful harmony and unity with the two phoenixes of bronze on the gables of the main roof. It also beautifully harmonizes with the surrounding landscape, which is Natures masterpiece. After all, no words can adequately describe the noble conception and masterly execution of all these pieces of work; the elegant and dignified appearance which the whole mass presents elicits unstinted admiration from visitors, both Japanese and foreign.