Kyoto. John H. Martin
has been placed upon its chest. In its left hand it holds the magic jewel associated with Jizo.
3. A seated painted wooden image of the sculptor Unkei, a rosary in his hands. It is thought that this may also be a self-portrait.
4. A 13th century seated image of Taira-no-Kiyomori (1118–81) reading a sutra scroll is here realistically represented—but as a monk, a role beyond his moral capabilities. The sutra scroll is held in both his hands as he peruses it, and his sleeves flow in rich drapery from his arms.
5. A life-sized Jizo by the 11th century sculptor Jocho. The deity appears in the form of a young monk with long sleeves, a fly whisk of hair in his left hand. His empty right hand would once have held the mystic gem which Jizo normally holds. The eyes of the image are of glass. A fretwork aureole with small Buddhas stands behind the image.
6. The famed painted wood image of Priest Kuya by Kosho, the fourth of Unkei’s sons, is preserved in the Treasury. Kuya is seen as the itinerant priest that he was in life: he is clothed in his short, shabby deerskin covering, his feet shod with straw sandals. A round gong hangs down his chest, supported from a harness around his neck. In his right hand he holds a T-shaped wooden hammer to beat the gong as he dances and sings the praises of Amida, and in his left hand he holds his wooden staff with its antler top. From his mouth, on a wire, issues a row of six tiny Amida images, symbolizing Kuya’s constant repetition of the Nembutsu in praise of Amida. These six images represent the six characters of the spoken Nembutsu (na-mu-a-mi-da-butsu). Thus Kosho has, in a sense, carved the voice of Kuya as he chants the Nembutsu while on a pilgrimage.
A realistic portrait, down to the wrinkled and worn deerskin, the prominent Adam’s apple of his neck, the veins in his arms and legs, and even the seams on the inside of his sleeves—all are portrayed in a life-like manner. Here, the “Saint of the People” is represented as he would have appeared to the people of his time. An innovative and original presentation, it was created in a novel and successful manner and represents the climax of Kamakura realism in sculpture.
7. An image of a member of the Taira era wearing an eboshi (nobleman’s tall hat) on his head, a formal representation of a governmental figure of the middle ages.
8. A figure of Kobo Daishi (Kukai) seated on a Chinese chair, his shoes beneath the chair. This realistic but restrained portrait was created by Chokai, a disciple of the master sculptor Kaikei, between 1249 and 1256. In his right hand Kukai holds a rosary and in his left hand is a thunderbolt. This portrait sculpture is modeled after an image in the To-ji Temple created by Kosho, but it is a stiffer presentation of the great Buddhist priest.
3 EBISU SHRINE
The Rokuhara district has developed as a commercial center through the years, and thus it is only appropriate that a shrine to Ebisu, the Shinto patron of success in business, should be enshrined here. Thus we move from a saint, who was concerned with helping people to Amida’s Western Paradise after death, to a deity whose concern is wealth in this life. (Ebisu Shrine is located west and then north of Matsubara-dori. After returning to Matsubara-dori, turn left and then make a right (north) turn on Yamato-oji-dori, the next through street. Ebisu Shrine is on the left hand side just ahead. The shrine is open during daylight hours without entry fee.)
Ebisu, the god of wealth, depicted at Ebisu Shrine.
Ebisu is one of the seven gods of good fortune, the only one of the seven to originate from Japan. He is the patron of business and merchants, thereby making him a very popular deity. A chubby fellow, he appears with a fishing line and a fish in his hand. His shrine in the Gion district is behind two torii, with the usual stone lanterns and the guardian koma-inu (lion-dogs) before the second torii. Shrine buildings line the left (south) side of the precincts, while a dragon fountain at the water purification basin is on the right. Straight ahead is the Heiden (Offertory), behind a wooden fence, on which is a large drum. The Honden (Main Building) enshrining the god spirit is behind the Heiden. To the left of the rear portion of the Honden is a life-sized statue of a white horse; white horses are often found at Shinto shrines since they are said to be favorites of the gods. Beyond is a formal gateway to the street on the west.
The Ebisu Shrine is most noted for its ceremonies, which occur throughout the year. The festival-loving Ebisu and his joyous ceremonies reflect one aspect of the Japanese temperament when it comes to religion: the acceptance of the life of this world and the pleasure that can be enjoyed while one is here. On the other hand, there is the contemplative aspect of the Japanese nature as well, and it can be realized at the Kennin-ji Zen monastery, just a short walk north along Yamato-oji-dori.
4 KENNIN-JI TEMPLE
As an active monastery, the interior of the monastic buildings of the Kennin-ji Temple and its subtemples are generally not open to the public, but they may be visited in the morning if permission is obtained in advance in writing from the temple office. Generally, permission is granted for morning visits if one’s purpose is of a serious nature. (The temple Hondo, a few subtemples, and the temple Treasury are open to the public from November 1st to 10th from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The grounds are open to the public daily without charge.)
Kennin-ji was the first Zen temple established in Japan and, as such, it was the head temple for Zen monasteries in Kyoto for many years. The temple was begun by Priest Eisai in 1202 at the request of the Shogun, and it is here that Eisei (1141–1215) established the Rinzai sect of Zen Buddhism in Japan.
When he was 14 years old, Eisai went to the monastic community of Mount Hiei to enter the religious life. Here he studied the Tendai version of Buddhism. Achieving the goal of many Japanese monks, he journeyed to China, the source of Japanese Buddhism, in 1168 to study at Tendai monasteries. He made a second trip in 1187, not returning to Japan until 1191 when he settled at a temple in Kyushu, where he began to teach the doctrines of Zen Buddhism that he had encountered in China. With his belief that Zen would protect the state during Mappo (see below), his doctrines attracted the attention of Shogun Minamoto-no-Yoriie, and the Shogun invited him to Kyoto to head Kennin-ji and to establish the Rinzai sect of Bud-dhism there. In time, Eisai was to establish Zen monasteries in Kamakura as well, the seat of government of the Shoguns. At his death, Eisai was buried at Kennin-ji.
Chouontei Garden, nestled behind the main building at Kennin-ji, the oldest Zen temple in Kyoto.
Eisai lived during Mappo (The Age of the Disappearance of the Buddhist Law), a degenerate period that was thought to have begun about 1050, a period in which men would realize the inability of man to understand Buddhist doctrine or belief. In those degenerate days, one could no longer depend on one’s own mind or one’s own efforts, nor could one call on Amida or on scripture or ceremonies for help. What was needed, according to Eisai, was an intuitive method of spiritual training in order to obtain a lofty transcendence over worldly care, a transcendence of the individual that would permit the religious seeker to reach the fundamental unity that pervades all existence and the universe. The mental discipline involved in this method would develop a mind receptive to the basic truths of the universe, a mind which was under control and free from the fear of physical danger from without or passion from within. A mind under such control was worthy of an abbot— or a soldier, as the military of the Kamakura period (1192–1333) came to believe.
The encouragement of the growth of Zen monasteries was one aspect of the Shoguns’ policy. In the case of Kennin-ji, its physical size was so huge that it was made a national project. Its construction was completed in 1205. Unfortunately, the growth of military government would in time lead to war and the fall of the Kamakura government. Burned in 1256, rebuilt in 1257–9, the monastery was enriched by the Minamoto, the Hojo and the Ashikaga rulers in turn. At the height of its power, it had 53 subtemples. The wars of the Sengoku Jidai (Age of the Country at War) in the 15th and 16th centuries, particularly the Onin Wars of 1467–77, led to the virtual destruction of Kyoto. Kennin-ji was spared during this time, but in 1556, in another outbreak of fighting, the temple was almost completely destroyed.