Narita-san (成田山 "Narita mountain") Shinshō-ji ( 新勝寺 "New victory temple") is a

Shingon Buddhist Shingon monks at Mount Koya is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asia, originally spread from India to China through traveling monks such as Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra. Kn ...

temple located in central

Narita, Chiba is a city in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 131,852 in 63,098 households and a population density of 620 persons per km². The total area of the city is . It is the site of Narita International Airport, one o ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. It was founded in 940 by Kanchō Daisōjō, a disciple of Kōbō Daishi. It is a lead temple in the Chisan branch (Chisan-ha 智山派) of New Shingon (Shingi Shingon 新義真言宗), includes a large complex of buildings and grounds, and is one of the best-known temples in the

Kantō region The is a geographical area of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. In a common definition, the region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures: Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Saitama, Tokyo, Chiba and Kanagawa. Slight ...

. It is dedicated to Ācala (Japanese: Fudō myōō ("Unmovable Wisdom King")) who is usually depicted holding a sword and rope and surrounded by flames. Often called a fire god, he is associated with fire rituals.

Founding

The temple was established in 940 to commemorate the victory of the forces dispatched from the Heian capital to suppress a revolt by the powerful

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

, Taira no Masakado. The Shingon priest Kanchō accompanied the force, bringing with him an image of Acala from the Gomadō (Fire Offering Hall) of Takao-san Jingo-ji in Kyōtō. Shingon founder Kōbō Daishi himself was said to have carved the image and used it in

Goma Goma is the capital of North Kivu province in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is located on the northern shore of Lake Kivu, next to the Rwandan city of Gisenyi. The lake and the two cities are in the Albertine Rift, the weste ...

sacred fire rituals that helped stop a rebellion during his era. The rebellion in 940 also came to an end just as Kanchō completed a three-week Goma ritual with the same image. According to legend, the image of Acala became too heavy after the victory to move back to its home base, so a new temple on Narita-san, named Shinshō-ji (New Victory Temple), was built to enshrine it on the spot. The temple maintains that the original image is enshrined in the Main Hall, where it is displayed on special occasions, but art historians date the current image to no earlier than the 13th century.

Expansion

For over 600 years, Narita-san remained a remote, humble, provincial temple—until

Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and fellow ...

moved his capital to

Edo Edo ( ja, , , "bay-entrance" or "estuary"), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a ''jōkamachi'' (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the ''de facto'' capital of ...

in 1603. Ieyasu himself credited its abbot with converting him to Buddhism, and assigned the local

Sakura Domain was a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, located in Shimōsa Province (modern-day Chiba Prefecture), Japan. It was centered on Sakura Castle in what is now the city of Sakura, Chiba. It was ruled for most of its hi ...

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and n ...

'' to be responsible for its upkeep. The military and political success associated with the temple may also have appealed to him, and the location of the temple, protecting the unlucky northeast approach to his new capital, corresponded to the position of the head temple of the

Tendai , also known as the Tendai Lotus School (天台法華宗 ''Tendai hokke shū,'' sometimes just "''hokke shū''") is a Mahāyāna Buddhist tradition (with significant esoteric elements) officially established in Japan in 806 by the Japanese m ...

sect, Enryaku-ji, relative to the old Heian capital of

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...

. However, the shogunate did little to support the temple until

Tokugawa Ietsuna was the fourth ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa dynasty of Japan who was in office from 1651 to 1680. He is considered the eldest son of Tokugawa Iemitsu, which makes him the grandson of Tokugawa Hidetada and the great-grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. E ...

reconstructed its Main Hall in 1655. That building now serves as a calligraphy classroom. Shingon founder Kōbō Daishi ( Kūkai) was famous for his

Japanese calligraphy also called is a form of calligraphy, or artistic writing, of the Japanese language. Written Japanese was originally based on Chinese characters only, but the advent of the hiragana and katakana Japanese syllabaries resulted in intrin ...

. But the person most responsible for promoting and enriching Narita-san was

Ichikawa Danjūrō I was an early kabuki actor in Japan. He remains today one of the most famous of all kabuki actors and is considered one of the most influential. His many influences include the pioneering of the ''aragoto'' style of acting which came to be larg ...

(1660–1704), one of the most influential actors of the golden age of

kabuki is a classical form of Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily-stylised performances, the often-glamorous costumes worn by performers, and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers. Kabuki is thought to ...

. Born into a wealthy merchant family with ties to the Narita area, Danjūrō relished his family's former

status by playing heroic characters doing noble deeds, developing in the process a rough, manly style known as ''

aragoto , or 'rough style', is a style of kabuki acting that uses exaggerated, dynamic (forms or movements) and speech. roles are characterised by the bold red or blue makeup () worn by actors, as well as their enlarged and padded costumes. The term i ...

''. He was also a devout Buddhist with a particular devotion to Fudō myōō, to whom he gave credit for the safe birth of his son Kuzō, who went on to become

Ichikawa Danjūrō II was a Japanese kabuki performer in the lineage of a celebrated family of actors from the Edo region.Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric ''et al.'' (2005). "Ichikawa Danjūrō" in Ichikawa Danjūrō is a stage name. Career The earnestly prayed-for son ...

(1688–1758). Kuzō played such a ferocious and convincing Fudō in his stage debut in 1697 that the audience responded with prayers and offerings as if they were before a temple deity. In 1703, Danjūrō I wrote and starred in another play specifically about the Fudō at Shinshō-ji, ''The Avatars of the Fudō of Narita Temple,'' whose opening was timed to coincide with the traveling exhibit (出開帳 ''degaichō'') of sacred images from Narita-san in Edo. Danjūrō's immense popularity and his attachment to Fudō myōō at Shinshō-ji prompted many commoners of all classes to make regular pilgrimages from Edo to Narita-san.

Important buildings

Several of the structures at Narita-san temple have been designated National Important Cultural Properties: the Kōmyō-dō, built in 1701 and dedicated to the Dainichi Nyorai Buddha ( Vairocana), the principal image of Shingon Buddhism; the three-storied, 25-meter high pagoda built in 1712; the '' Niōmon'' main gate, built in 1830; the Shaka-dō ( Shakyamuni Hall), built in 1858; and the Gaku-dō (Votive Tablet Hall), built in 1861. The Kaizan-dō (Open Mountain Hall) shrine to Kanchō Daisōjō was built in 1938, in time for the temple's 1000th anniversary.On-site signage viewed 27 June 2009. Narita-san Park (16.5 hectares) opened in 1928, the current Great Main Hall dates from 1968, a 58-meter high Great Pagoda (Daitō) was added in 1984, and a hall dedicated to Prince Shōtoku, regarded as the father of Japanese Buddhism, was erected in 1992.

Regular events

Large crowds attend the major annual events at Narita-san:

Oshogatsu The is an annual festival with its own customs. Since 1873, the official Japanese New Year has been celebrated according to the Gregorian calendar, on January 1 of each year, . However, some traditional events of the Japanese New Year are par ...

in January,

Setsubun is the day before the beginning of spring in the old calendar in Japan. The name literally means 'seasonal division', referring to the day just before the first day of spring in the traditional calendar, known as ; though previously referri ...

in February, the

taiko are a broad range of Japanese percussion instruments. In Japanese, the term refers to any kind of drum, but outside Japan, it is used specifically to refer to any of the various Japanese drums called and to the form of ensemble drumming m ...

drum festival in April, firelight performances of

Noh play is a major form of classical Japanese dance-drama that has been performed since the 14th century. Developed by Kan'ami and his son Zeami, it is the oldest major theatre art that is still regularly performed today. Although the terms Noh and ' ...

s in May, the Gion Festival in July, Obon in August;

Shichigosan is a traditional Japanese rite of passage and festival day for three- and seven-year-old girls, five-year-old and sometimes three-year-old boys, held annually on November 15 to celebrate the growth and well-being of young children. As it is n ...

in November; and the annual burning of

amulet An amulet, also known as a good luck charm or phylactery, is an object believed to confer protection upon its possessor. The word "amulet" comes from the Latin word amuletum, which Pliny's ''Natural History'' describes as "an object that protects ...

s in late December. People come to Narita-san Park to view

ume ''Prunus mume'' is an East Asian and Southeast Asian tree species classified in the ''Armeniaca'' section of the genus ''Prunus'' subgenus ''Prunus''. Its common names include Chinese plum, Japanese plum, and Japanese apricot. The flower, long ...

blossoms in the early spring and autumn leaves in the late fall. In addition, there are chantings of the Sutra of Great Wisdom (Daihannya-e) in January, May, and September; and temple fairs are held on the 1st, 15th, and 28th day of each month. Several times a day, wooden amulets are ceremonially burned in

rituals.

Tourism

Narita-san has been a favorite site for excursions and pilgrimages by citizens of the nearby metropolitan area ever since the Tokugawa shōguns moved the national capital to Edo in 1603. After nearby

Narita International Airport Narita International Airport ( ja, 成田国際空港, Narita Kokusai Kūkō) , also known as Tokyo-Narita, formerly and originally known as , is one of two international airports serving the Greater Tokyo Area, the other one being Haneda Airport ...

became the primary international hub for Japanese air traffic in the late 1970s, Narita-san also began to attract increasing numbers of foreign tourists, especially those who have a long layovers in transit. The airport is just a short train ride from either

JR East The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and is the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are ...

Narita Station or

Keisei Keisei may refer to: *Keisei (monk) *Keisei Electric Railway *Keisei Bus The is a bus company within the Keisei Group which was established on 1 October 2003 to inherit all business of the Keisei Electric Railway bus department. Local bus ser ...

Narita Station. From each station, it is just a short walk to the temple, along picturesque streets with many small shops selling snacks and other foodstuffs, as well as good-luck charms and other souvenirs, such as Daruma dolls.

Gallery

File:120803 Narita-san Shinsho-ji Narita Chiba pref Japan02n.jpg, Great Main Hall, 1968 File:ShinshojiHeiwaDaito20131012.jpg, Great Peace Pagoda ('' Daitō''), 1984 File:Naritasan Temple angry god in Great Pagoda of Peace.jpg, ''Fudō Myōō'' (

Acala or Achala ( sa, अचल, "The Immovable", ), also known as (, "Immovable Lord") or (, "Noble Immovable Lord"), is a wrathful deity and ''dharmapala'' (protector of the Dharma) prominent in Vajrayana Buddhism and East Asian Buddhism., Jp. re ...

) in the Great Peace Pagoda File:Naritasan-pagoda.jpg, Three-storied pagoda, 1712 File:Shinsho-ji Shaka-do 201804.jpg, Shaka-

dō Dō may refer to: * Dō (architecture) * Dō (armour) * Dō (martial arts) * Dō (philosophy) ''Tao'' or ''Dao'' is the natural order of the universe, whose character one's intuition must discern to realize the potential for individual wisdom, ...

, 1858 File:ShinshojiKomyodo20131012.jpg, Kōmyō-dō, 1701 File:Naritasan Temple beside the 3 storied pagoda.jpg, Issaikyō-dō, 1722 File:shishoji_taishido.jpg, Prince Shōtoku Hall, 1992 File:Naritasan Temple building a.jpg,

Kaisan-dō A , also termed the Founder's Hall, is a temple structure in a Japanese Buddhist monastery complex or other temple where an image (or images) of the founding abbot and other significant teachers and Buddha ancestors are kept,Kinoshita, 58 along w ...

, 1938 File:Shinshoji seiryugongendo.jpg, Seiryūgongen-dō File:Naritasan-Somon 201203.jpg,

Sōmon is the gate at the entrance of a Buddhist temples in Japan, Buddhist temple in Japan.Iwanami Japanese dictionary, 6th Edition (2008), DVD version It often precedes the bigger and more important ''sanmon''. References Gates i ...

entrance, 2008 File:120803 Narita-san Shinsho-ji Narita Chiba pref Japan07n.jpg, Niōmon gate, 1831 File:新勝寺 - panoramio - くろふね (6).jpg, Gaku-dō, 1861 File:120803 Narita-san Shinsho-ji Narita Chiba pref Japan06n.jpg, Lantern on the Niōmon File:Naritasan-Shinshouji-offering-buckets.JPG, Bucket offerings File:Naritasan-dragon-and-sword.jpg, Sword & dragon File:Naritasan-Shinshouji-Kukai-statue.JPG, Statue of Kūkai File:Naritasan Shinshoji Temple 01.jpg

References

* Graham, Patricia J. (2007) ''Faith and Power in Japanese Buddhist Art'' (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press) .

External links

Official web site
in English
Narita-san Shinshō-ji temple walk, Chiba, Japan in 4K
Walk video through all the large complex of buildings and grounds of Narita-san Shinshō-ji

in English

in English
Photos of Narita-san Temple
{{Authority control Buddhist temples in Chiba Prefecture Shingon Buddhism Tourist attractions in Chiba Prefecture Narita, Chiba 10th-century establishments in Japan Religious buildings and structures completed in 940 10th-century Buddhist temples