Kyoto’s Amazing Architectural Heritage
Japan’s indigenous kami, or gods, live not inside shrines but within the towering cypress trees, sacred springs and waterfalls that surround the buildings. There, in nature, devotees can stand in the spiritual presence of the gods while seeking favor and guidance. The simplicity of a Shinto shrine never competes with its natural setting.
Under Shintoism, Japanese have stood in awe of the power and beauty of nature and the religion’s simple shrines embody this reverence. The torii that marks the shrine entrance is often marked by four pieces of timber. These gates invite those closest to the gods, their feathery messengers the birds, to sit on the crossbeams, ready to wing supplicants’ prayers heavenward.
Temples are an entirely different affair. When Buddhism arrived in Japan in the 6th century, Japan, still without an alphabet, relied on written Chinese to convey the tenets of religion, law and philosophy. Scholars, diplomats and artisans were invited to the Nara court (60 kilometers away) to impart a culture distinctly different from and admired as superior to Japan’s. With its sophisticated philosophy and texts, Buddhism immediately appealed to Japan’s courtiers who controlled the privilege of literacy, but the religion rapidly reached even illiterate peasants and merchants.
The Chinese adaptation of the Indian religion brought new dimensions of the understanding of the universe and life beyond this one. This new theology was not grounded in the immensity Far left The vermilion doors of Jikido Hall at Toji Temple, a World Heritage Site, glow in the sunset. Center left Elaborate metal fretwork marks the eaves of the sloping cypress bark palace roofs. The Imperial chrysanthemum crest and multilayer roof tiles denote the building’s imperial status. Left The Phoenix Hall at Byodo in Temple, a World Heritage Site. Below left Billowy cherry blossoms and fresh green pines frame the gleaming gold layered Golden Pavilion (Kinkaku ji). of a cypress tree or the roar of a waterfall. It demanded humanmade artifacts a written text, a myriad of implements, statuary and, grandest of all, huge structures to accommodate believers.
By 596, temple construction had begun. Chinese carpenters were invited to Nara and introduced their techniques to a wonderstruck population. The temples we see today in Kyoto, although fairly faithful descendants of Japan’s 6th 10th century originals, differ greatly from those still in existence in China. Japan’s climate and earthquake prone land made elevated buildings a necessity. Its rich supply of zelkova, cypress, oak and cedar forests lent itself to increasingly mammoth worship halls as the population embraced the comfort of salvation within a Buddhist paradise.
Not only did places of worship begin to be shaped in Kyoto, but some of the world’s greatest collections of Buddhist images are found here. One of Asia’s most iconic forms, the pagoda, continues to pierce the ancient skyline, serving as a reliquary for Buddha’s remains and as a revered landmark for Kyoto residents.
The buildings themselves, tested by earthquakes, fire and war, withstood all sorts of disaster, and when they fell into disrepair, skilled carpenters, known as miyadaiku, restored them. With new sects entering Japan, new temple compounds were established. The last Buddhist sect to come was Zen, which entered in the late 12th century, and played a major role in Kyoto’s architectural, political and religious heritage. Thus, one of Asia’s most resplendent cities developed and matured, along with the skills of its craftsmen and artists.