early buddhist architecture in japan. kyoto, japan, 9 th cen. a.d. ii. a. xi’an, china 6 th...
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Kyoto, Japan, 9th cen. A.D.
II. A.
Xi’an, China 6th cen. Nara, Japan, 8th century
East Asian Imperial Capitals
I. Some basic values in East Asian urbanism influence the design of many Buddhist monasteries
Xi’an, China 6th cen.
I. A. An ideal city: Confucian geomancy in city plans (Nara, Japan, inspired by the city of Xi’an, China)
I. A. 1. How did Chinese cosmology picture the earth?
Ideal Chinese capital cityCosmic diagram in Four Deities tile, 200 BC
East Green
Dragon
West: White Tiger
South: Red Bird
II. A. 2. What meaning does Confucian geomancy attribute to the four cardinal directions?
Xi’an, China, 6th cen.
North: Dark Turtle & Snake
II. A. 3. What position would the virtuous ruler occupy in a Confucian city?
Confucius (551-449 B.C.)
II. Context: Buddhism enters Japan in AD552 from China (through Korea) as a quality of higher civilization, including the ideal of the centralized state
The Horyuji, near Nara, Japan, 7th cen. AD (670-714)
II. A. Parts of the Horyuji Gakumonju (its full name, meaning Learning Temple) as reflection of the fact that temples at this time were more intent on studying the faith than disseminating it
The Horyuji
II. B. What is the orientation of East Asian monasteries like Horyuji?
Cosmic diagram in Four Deities tile, 200 BC
III. A pantheistic world view (the divine is everywhere) in the pagoda and the image hall
The Horyuji
III. A. 1. What was the purpose of the pagoda in East Asian Buddhist monasteries?
Pagoda of the Horyuji, AD 670Brick Pagoda, Dengfeng, China, AD 523
III. A. 2. Like stupas, pagodas presented an image of clarity of Buddhism. How did pagodas come to look so different from the Indian stupa?
The Yungang Caves, Buddhist sanctuary, China, 5th-6th century AD
III. A. 3. How was the pagoda filled with the divinity of the Buddha, becoming an autonomous entity within the monastic complex?
Pagoda of the Horyuji
III. A. 4. What was the eventual destiny of the pagoda in future Buddhist temple designs?
The Shitennoji, Osaka, Japan, 592-628
The Horyuji, Nara, 670
The Asuka-dera, Nara, Japan, 588
The Yakushiji, Nara, Japan, 688
The Great Stupa at Sanchi
II. B. A deified Buddha: the purpose of the image hall (kondo or golden hall) in East Asian Buddhism
The Image Hall at HoryujiBorobudur – terrace with sculpted frieze
II. B. 1. How was the image hall filled with the divinity of the Buddha, becoming an autonomous entity within the monastery like the pagoda?
The Image Hall (Kondo) of the Horyuji
III. B. 2. Monumentality: Creating the grandeur of the temple with wood a. How do the posts at Horyuji contribute to the sense of imposing dignity?
The Image Hall (Kondo) of the Horyuji
entasis - swelling
Image hall of Horyuji Buddhist temple
III. B. 2. b. Why is the bracketing system key to the structure and ornament of the Buddhist temple in East Asia?
Deity hall of the Shinto shrine at Ise
highersimple bracket system
three-block bracket
farther outward
projecting three-block
III. B. 2. b.
highersimple bracket system
three-block bracket
farther outward
projecting three-block
III. B. 2. b.
farther outward
projecting three-block
one-step
two-step
still higher and farther outward
one-step projecting complexor
two-step projecting complex
steeper, higher, farther
III. B. 2. b.
Cloud brackets of the Nara style in the Image Hall (Kondo) of the Horyuji
III. B. 2. c. How does the massive roof appear to be effortlessly buoyant?
III. C. Eliade’s sacred and profane space in the East Asian monastery
Xi’an, China Shinto Shrine at Ise The Horyuji
III. C. 2. How does the enveloping kairo also strengthen the sense of the divine Buddha as the subject filling the monastery with his presence?
the Horyuji
III. C. 3. Why was the inner or middle gate threshold in south side of enclosure not simply an entrance?
The Horyuji