A History of Japanese Art
Page 32
On entering the Phoenix Hall one will find a large image of Amida, the most representative work carved by Jōchō in the eleventh century. (Fig. 266) It is made of wood and entirely overlaid with gold foil. He sits cross-legged on a lotus pedestal with his hands on his knees. The attitude is called meditative mudra.
Fig. 266. Image of Amida (N.T.)
Phoenix Hall, Uji
He looks straight to the front, but with slightly downcast eyes, narrowly opened. His eyebrows are composed of delicate lines. The nose is of medium height. A straight line extended from both ends of the ridge of the nose passes through the middle of the figure, halo, canopy, pedestal, and the platform in a perpendicular direction, the upper end of the line finally reaching the highest point of the canopy hung over the head of the figure. It is indeed a guiding line of unity and harmony, making perfect equilibrium in its whole construction.
On the frieze around the main statue hang wonderful group figures representing fifty-two Bodhisattvas coming down from heaven, riding on clouds, dancing, or playing music. (Fig. 268) They are also attributed to Jōchō. They look very picturesque, each of them having its own peculiarity and grace of posture and movement, a similar type never being repeated. One of them is shown in Fig. 267, looking like a dancing girl poised on a cloud. How wonderful and beautiful are the body lines and motions! This is one of the best specimens of feminine beauty expressed in wood. It is indeed to the ability of Jōchō that we owe the complete nationalization of the various Buddhist types that had come over from China before his time, and also the Amida of later times, which was frankly after his manner.
Fig. 267. Dancing Bodhisattva (N.T.)
Phoenix Hall, Uji
On the walls and door panels of the hall are painted pictures representing different manifestations of Amida, coming down from heaven over a green range of hills, and attended by a number of Bodhisattvas, to welcome the faithful at the moment of their death. The picture is said to have been painted by Takuma Tamenari, the most famous painter of the age. In Fig. 269 we have reproduced a host of Bodhisattvas who follow Amida in worshipping attitudes. The picture is painted first in outline on gesso applied to the surface of plane wood; and then the colors are added. The composition is grand and the landscape background is most appropriate and full of meaning in connection with the doctrine of Amida expounded by Eshin Sōzu. The brush stroke is extremely delicate and fine, entirely in Japanese style. The color tones also are wonderful—blue, green, purple, and redemphasized here and there with gold color of cut gold.
Fig. 268. Bodhisattvas Playing Music (N.T.)
Phoenix Hall, Uji
19. DAIGO-JI MONASTERY, ITS GARDEN AND ARCHITECTURE, KYOTO
The Daigo-ji is one of the head monasteries of the Shingon sect, and is situated in the southern suburb of Kyoto.
The monastery was founded in 874 by Shōbō (Rigen Daishi), and because of the faith of the Emperor Daigo (897-929) it added many buildings, which are grouped in two places; one on a mountain, which is called Kami Daigo, and another under the mountain, which is called Shimo Daigo. The monastery once declined, but its former prosperity was greatly restored by the Lord Abbot Gien, through the pious wish of Taiko Hideyoshi late in the sixteenth century. The Taiko's flower-viewing party at Daigo, held here in the monastery towards the end of the sixteenth century, was the most famous given in Japan for the enjoyment of cherry blossoms, and showed the last glory of the luxurious life of Taikō.
In the lower group, the most important are the Sambo-in, or the Monastery of Three Treasures, the Kon-do, or Golden Hall, and the Five-storied Stupa.
Fig. 269. Bodhisattvas Painted on a Door Panel (N.T.)
Phoenix Hall, Uji
The present buildings of the Sambō-in were rebuilt in 1606 by the order of Hideyoshi. The ground plan is very complicated, consisting of Dai-genkwan, or Grand Porch, Aoi-no-ma, or the Room of Hollyhocks, Akikusa-noma, or the Room of Autumnal Grasses, the Omote-shoin, or the Front Reception Hall, Junjō-kwan, or the Temple of Purity, Miroku-dō, or the Hall of Buddha Maitreya, Oku-shoin, or Inner Reception Hall, and so forth. They stand in a splendid garden which was laid out under the personal direction of Hideyoshi. Among them the Front Reception Hall and the Inner Reception Hall are important examples of dwelling houses of the late sixteenth century.
The Front Reception Hall, or the Omote-shoin (Fig. 270), takes in a full view of the garden. It is a representative example of shoin-zukuri architecture, although it retains a trace of shinden-zukuri architecture in its projecting verandah at the western end. The interior of the building is divided into three rooms, each of which opens on the garden, and all the sliding screens (fusuma) are painted with pictures. The room at the eastern end is raised and has an alcove and ornamental shelves in the recess. On the wall of the alcove is painted a gigantic pine tree, and on the sliding screen are painted willow trees in four seasons. The lines of the brush are broad and strenuous but the composition is simple, and the color scheme quiet and elegant. The simple construction of this building and the elegant ornamentation of the interior harmonize most happily with the garden on which it opens.
Fig. 270. Omote-shoin (N.T.)
Sambō-in, Daigo
Fig. 271. Sambō-in Garden (I)
Daigo-ji, Daigo
Fig. 272. Sambō-in Garden (II)
Daigo-ji, Daigo
The garden is most famous, for it was laid out under the actual direction of Hideyoshi, and represents one of the most luxurious gardens built in the Momoyama Period. (Figs. 271, 272) The garden is not laid out for the purpose of strolling, but for viewing it from the inside of the Front Reception Hall all the year round. It faces the south, stretching from east to west, with plenty of light and warmth, as plants thrive best and show their living beauty in the sun. In the middle of the garden is a large pond with an island, and beyond the pond is a thick grove of large trees that gives a forest-like feeling. In its southeastern corner a waterfall tumbles over rocks.
In the planting of trees the utmost care has been taken to get evergreen leaves all the year round; to get spring charm with some flowers among the green; and to have a great embellishment of golden foliage in autumn. All along the water edge there are a great number of rocks. This is the most notable aspect of the garden. It is said that Hideyoshi ordered many a famous stone to be brought from his own garden of the Grand Mansion at Kyoto, which was called Juraku-dai, or Mansion of Collected Luxuries. The variety of shape in these natural rocks must have appealed strongly to his finest feelings. According to the diary written by Gien, the Lord Abbot, Hideyoshi seems to have been deeply interested in the art of rock gardening. It no doubt gave him ample scope for the liveliest imagination. Indeed it must have been valuable mental training, for his constructive faculties were called upon, sharpened, and polished.
The Inner Reception Hall, or Oku-shoin, stands at the rear of the Front Reception Hall. The interior is divided into four rooms. The walls and sliding screens of each room are decorated with pictures of the Kanō School in black and white on paper. The Jōdan-no-ma, or raised room for the seat of honor, has an alcove, decorative shelves and chōdai-kazari, or decorative panelled doors. The decorative shelves are most beautifully designed. The building is one of the best representative dwelling houses of the late sixteenth century. (Fig. 273)
The Kon-dō, or Golden Hall, stands inside the Niō-mon gate. It is a one-storied building of the Kamakura Period with a façade of seven spans, and sides of five spans. (Fig. 274) Its massive structure and magnificent pitch of roof represent the characteristic features of the Kamakura architecture.
The Five-storied Stupa stands near the Golden Hall, and was erected in 951 according to the devoted wishes of the Emperor Murakami. (Fig. 275) Its height measures about 34 meters. The sight slope of each roof, the horizontal members of the balustrade at each story and the upward curve of each corner of the roofs, have a beautiful rhythm and proportion, which give a restful atmosphere to the stupa. The inside of the first story is decor
ated beautifully with paintings which represent Buddhist figures and eight patriarchs of the Shingon sect. They are painted on gesso applied to the panels and pillars. Although most of the pictures are erased, the central capital is in good condition with its original pictures. The chiaroscuro, shade, gradation, and cut-gold work applied to the picture are worthy of note. It is indeed a rare example of interior decoration of the early Fujiwara Period.
Fig. 273. Interior of Oku-shoin (N.T.)
Sambō-in, Daigo
Fig. 274. Golden Hall of Daigo-ji (N.T.)
Daigo
In this monastery are preserved a great number of Buddhist paintings produced in the later Fujiwara and early Kamakura periods by priest-painters, most of which are excellent works of art and religion. These paintings and other treasures are placed on view in the treasury recently built in the precincts of the monastery.
20. DAIKAKU-JI, THE GREAT MONASTERY OF THE SHINGON SECT, KYOTO
This monastery is in a western suburb of Kyoto. On this site there was once a detached palace of the Emperor Saga, who reigned in the ninth century. Later, in the year 876, the palace was converted into a monastery under the name of Daikaku-ji, and one of the Imperial princes was appointed as the first abbot. As ex-Emperors sometimes retired here after they had entered the priesthood, the monastery had a close relationship with the Imperial family.
At present there remain two residential halls that are enrolled as national treasures, one of which is called Kyaku-den, and the other, Shin-den. The former was built in the late sixteenth century and the latter in the seventeenth century. The walls and sliding screens of both buildings are decorated with pictures in rich colors, to which we invite the attention of students who are interested in the interior decoration of Japanese houses.
Fig. 275. Five-storied Stupa (N.T.)
Daigo-ji, Daigo
The Kyaku-den Hall has a façade of seven spans and sides of four spans each, and a single-story with a roof in irimoya style, covered with the bark of hinoki wood. The interior is divided into six rooms and the walls and sliding screens that constitute the partitions of the rooms are decorated with paintings in rich colors. The finest of them is the Crown Room. In this room is a landscape painting attributed to Kanō Motonobu. The panelled screens are decorated with the phoenix, paulownia, and bamboo in gold lacquer, which is known as the famous "Saga maki-e." The rest of the rooms are called the Maple Room, the Bamboo Room, the Snow Room, the Hawk Room, and the Landscape Room in accordance with the pictures painted on the sliding screens of each room. These pictures are painted in the gorgeous style of the Momoyama Period.
Fig. 276. Picture on a Sliding Screen
Daikaku-ji, Kyoto
On the lower wooden panels of the sliding screens in the Bamboo and Maple Room are painted flowers and animals in rich colors, which are attributed to Kōrin. (Fig. 276)
The Shin-den Hall has a façade of nine spans with sides of five spans and a single story with a tiled roof in irimoya style. The building was probably erected in the middle of the seventeenth century; according to the temple tradition, it was given by the retired Emperor Gomizu-no-o. The interior is decorated as gorgeously as that of the Kyaku-den Hall. The largest room is decorated with peonies bigger than natural size in full bloom on a gold ground. (Fig. 277) The picture is attributed to Kanō Sanraku. The other two rooms are decorated with willows, pine trees, and plum trees, all in rich colors on gold leaf; but a room in the rear is decorated with pictures of cranes and bamboos, painted in monochrome, and attributed to Kanō Tannyū.
Close to the east of the monastery is an extensive pond in attractive surroundings. It was part of a garden attached to the detached palace of the Emperor Saga in the ninth century, and is now preserved by the government as a historic site.
Fig. 277. Interior of the Shin-den Hall
Daikaku-ji, Kyoto
21. KATSURA IMPERIAL VILLA, KYOTO
The Katsura Imperial Villa is situated near the Katsura bridge in the southwestern suburb of Kyoto. The villa is said to have been laid out in the later Tenshō Era (1577-1591) by Hideyoshi for Prince Tomohito, the grandson of the Emperor Ōgimachi; and the house and gardens were mostly designed by Kobori Enshū, the great master of the tea-ceremony
However, Enshū was at this time only a boy of about twelve years old. Therefore it seems most probable that the garden was considerably changed according to the design of Enshū on the occasion of the visit of the ex-Emperor Gomizu-no-o in the Kwan-ei Era (1624-1643) when the villa was completed and Enshū had reached maturity.
Anyhow, the buildings, gardens and all the accessories are typical examples in which the ideas of the tea-ceremony are highly expressed with the studied simplicity of technical excellence.
The visitors are first allowed to see the interior of the buildings which are grouped at the north side of the garden. (Fig. 278) There are three houses: the Old Sho-in Hall (Ko-sho-in), the Middle Sho-in Hall (Chu-sho-in), and the New Sho-in Hall (Shin-sho-in). Of these the New Sho-in Hall is the finest, which was originally built on the occasion of a visit by the ex-Emperor Gomizu-no-o with his consort in the Kwan-ei Era (1624-1643). To commemorate this occasion the hall is also called Miyukiden, or the Hall for Imperial Visit.
Fig. 278. General View of the Buildings
Katsura Imperial Villa, Kyoto
The Miyuki-den Hall contains about seven rooms. Its structure is quite simple, and it attempts to express the atmosphere of a mountain villa. The room of honor, or Jōdan-no-ma is the smallest, covering only three mats. Its floor is elevated and furnished with a cluster of shelves of different sizes, which are made of precious wood, affording highly interesting examples for study by the devotee of the tea-ceremony in later ages. The shelves are well known among the masters of tea-ceremony by the name "Katsura-no-tana" or the "Shelves of Katsura." (Fig. 279) The doors of cupboards, and the sliding screens of the other rooms are decorated with pictures by Kanō Tannyū in black and white. The metal fittings used to conceal nail-heads and the handles of doors and sliding screens are all made after imaginative designs of the great tea-master. Some represent crescent, flower, or oars. For example, the wooden doors at the entrance have handles shaped into the flowers of the four seasons kept in vases, which were made by Gotō Yujō, the famous craftsman of metal work. (Fig. 280)
Fig. 279. "Shelves of Katsura"
Katsura Imperial Villa, Kyoto
These buildings are harmoniously arranged at the northern part of the garden. The floors of these buildings are exceptionally high, and seem to have been specially designed to offer a better view of the garden from the interior. The roof is rather low, having a variety of shapes, and beautifully harmonizes with its environment when seen from the opposite of the garden.
Fig. 280. Metal Handles of the Doors Katsura Imperial Villa, Kyoto
The garden is laid out at the south of these buildings, and covers an area of about 16 acres. It has an extensive pond of complicated shape, five isles, and a number of inlets and capes. The garden is shut off from the environmental landscapes by a high fence of a bamboo grove around the outer edges. This seems to have been intended to seclude the garden from the outside world in order that one might intrinsically enjoy everything in the garden. The garden contains four tea-ceremony houses which occupy beautiful spots in the garden. The garden path is most thoughtfully laid out to connect these tea-ceremony houses through the garden so that one may appreciate the garden from every corner.
When we enter the garden through the gate, we come soon to a quiet and beautiful part of the garden, where there is an admirable rock construction along the shore of the pond. (Fig. 281) Then stepping over a stone bridge, we come to an isle where stands a tea-ceremony house, called Shōkin-tei, or the House of Pine Tree Music. (Fig. 282) This is said to have been designed by Enshu. From here the path leads to the Middle Isle (Naka-no-shima). Here stands a hut called Shōkwa-tei, or the Flower Viewing Arbor. Here are planted many cherry trees and a grove of maples, which assume bea
utiful raiments in spring and autumn. In the western part of the grounds is the Shōiken, a tea-ceremony house which contain about six rooms. The house is noted, as one of its windows is left incomplete.
Fig. 281.Garden of Katsura Imperial Villa
Katsura, Kyoto
Fig. 282. Shōkin-tei Tea-ceremony House
Katsura Imperial Villa, Kyoto
Each of these different buildings for tea-ceremony is set in its appropriate environment to make it an essential part of the garden, completely harmonized with the beauty of the garden, at the same time serving a practical use in the tea-ceremony This is a characteristic feature of the garden.
22. CHIKUBU-SHIMA SHRINE AT THE ISLAND IN LAKE BIWA
As is already well known abroad, Lake Biwa is the largest lake in Japan. It has an area of 257 square miles and a circumference of 140 miles. At its southern end lies a lakeside town called Ōtsu where the Tokaido railway line passes, at a point five miles east from Kyoto.
The lake boasts of beautiful scenery along its shores with surrounding mountains, inlets, and country villages. From ancient times this beautiful scenery attracted the attention of people. They selected the eight most beautiful views and gave them poetic names, as follows: "Curfew-toll from the temple Mi-i; clear mist throughout the village of Awazu; evening glow upon the bridge of Seta; harvest-moon shining over Ishi-yama; sailing back to the port of Yabase; night rain over the great pine tree of Karasaki; wild geese flying down upon the beach of Katata; and late spring snow on the peak of Hira."