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About the author:
About the author:
Welcome to my site ! I am Lorraine Xin Yuan Zhang, the creator of this website (Fathoming the Enigma of Buddhism in Ancient Japan). I was a senior at the University of Sydney, majoring in Asian Studies. This website was my final assignment for my core unit of study ASNS3111 (Material Culture of Asia). I aspire to apply the cross-disciplinary approaches to the investigation of the material cultures of the East Asian civilizations, particularly through the sociopolitical lens.
Deers in front of the Nandaimon Gate of Todaiji Temple
The Todaiji Temple is a Buddhist temple complex located in the city of Nara, Japan. It was constructed under the imperial degree of Emperor Shomu during the 8th century under the kokubunji (provincial temple) system. The Great Buddha Hall boasts the world's most colossal bronze statue of Buddha Vairocana. The temple complex was inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites together with seven other sites in the city of Nara, Japan. This section will look into the backdrop, the layout, as well as political intentions regarding the construction of the Todaiji Temple complex.
Examining the Todaiji Temple also provides numerous insights into the abundant material culture around Buddhist traditions in Japan. It sheds light on the context to reflect on a couple of sub-themes, to name a few, the history of Buddhism in Japan, the Buddhist iconography, the syncretic blending of Buddhism and Shinto, and Buddhism as a political tool throughout pre-modern Japanese history.
Access the links below to get insights into how the construction of the Todaiji temple reveals broader social and political traditions in Japanese culture and history. Upon completing your navigation through this website, you will get a grip of the basic paritculars about the Buddhist tradition in Japan.
Tips for navigation:
This site consists of five main sections. You can proceed from the pages at the top to the pages at the bottom. Although it is advisable that you follow the order as provided in the table of contents in the splash page, you can also navigate back and forth to consolidate your understanding of each page. You can also click on the home page bottom at the end of each page.
Sensoji Temple, Tokyo
Let us take a closer look at the history of Buddhism in Japan, namely how it offers insights into the historical development and sheds light on the burgeoning of Buddhism in later phases.
The Great Buddha at Kamakura
The bronze statue of the Buddha Vairocana embodies a multitude of crucial religious connotations in Buddhist symbolism, to name a few, mudra, physical representations and adornments. The Buddha is particularly indicative of a couple of important constituents in Buddhist iconography.
Meiji Shrine
In association, since the Buddha Vairocana was identified as the Sun Goddess Amaterasu, it brings us to the syncretic blending of Buddhism and the Japanese indigenous belief system -- Shinto. This section demonstrated the gradual localization or indigenization of the imported religion Buddhism into the local contexts. Notably, the blending of the two belief systems underwent purposive separation by the Meiji government upon Meiji restoration. With the 'Meiji filter', Shinto was hailed to be the state religion of Japan to underpin the political legitimacy of a nascent nation state.
Todaiji Temple, the head temple of kokubunji system in Nara, Japan.
Apart from spiritual functions, the political values of Buddhism abounded. Buddhism was exploited by politically savvy monarchs as their political rationales chiefly through the creation of religious-related administrative posts or constructions of Buddhist complexes.
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Page references:
Background image: https://www.kyuhoshi.com/buddhist-temples-to-visit-in-japan-in-winter/
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