is an ancient

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

, that was once one of the powerful Seven Great Temples, in

Nara The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It i ...

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 ...

History

The original foundation of the temple was by

Soga no Umako was the son of Soga no Iname and a member of the powerful Soga clan of Japan. Umako conducted political reforms with Prince Shōtoku during the rules of Emperor Bidatsu and Empress Suiko and established the Soga clan's stronghold in the go ...

Asuka Asuka may refer to: People * Asuka (name), a list of people * Asuka (wrestler), professional wrestler * Asuka (wrestler, born 1998), professional wrestler also known as Veny outside of Japan Places In Japan * , an area in Yamato Province (now ...

, as

Asuka-dera , also known as , is a Buddhist temple in Asuka, Nara. Asuka-dera is regarded as one of the oldest temples in Japan. Temple complex A number of records refer to the origin of the temple, such as the '' Nihongi'' and ''Fusō-ryakuki''. The o ...

. The temple was moved to Nara in 718, following the capital relocation to Heijō-kyō. Gangō-ji initially held as many as seven halls and pagodas in its precincts, which occupied a wide area within what is now Naramachi, the preserved district of modern Nara city. The original architecture was lost in fires during the 15th through 19th centuries (

Muromachi The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate (''Muromachi bakufu'' or ''Ashikaga bakufu''), which was officially established in 1338 by t ...

and

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...

s respectively).

Architecture

The best preserved part of the temple is known as and belongs to the Shingon-risshū school. This site is a part of a group of temples, shrines and other places in Nara that

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

has designated as

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara The UNESCO World Heritage Site Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara encompasses eight places in the old capital Nara in Nara Prefecture, Japan. Five are Buddhist temples, one is a Shinto shrine, one is a Palace and one a primeval forest. The pro ...

", and holds three national treasures: * the , which is one of the few well-preserved structures of the temple, * the

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

room * the miniature (5.5 meters tall) five-story pagoda Most of the destroyed complex ground has been altered and melded with parts of Naramachi over the course of time. Another small part of the temple remains today as the other Gangō-ji, of a

Kegon The Huayan or Flower Garland school of Buddhism (, from sa, अवतंसक, Avataṃsaka) is a tradition of Mahayana Buddhist philosophy that first flourished in China during the Tang dynasty (618-907). The Huayan worldview is based prima ...

school but with few remainders in terms of architecture.

In the ''Man'yōshū''

The ''

Man'yōshū The is the oldest extant collection of Japanese (poetry in Classical Japanese), compiled sometime after AD 759 during the Nara period. The anthology is one of the most revered of Japan's poetic compilations. The compiler, or the last in ...

'' includes a poem attributed to a monk of Gango-ji. This poet laments that, having attained enlightenment, his greater understanding remains unnoticed by others in the streets of Nara. His poem may perhaps bemoan his undervalued condition—and yet, in a modest way, his words transport contemporary readers momentarily back to share his quiet, 8th century perspective: :::A White gem unknown of men – ::: Be it so if no one knows! :::Since I myself know its worth :::Although no other – :::Be it so if no one knows! :::: – A monk of the Gango-ji TempleNippon Gakujutsu Shinkokai. (1969). ''The Manyōshū,'' p. 237.

Notes

External links

Gangoji Temple, from The Official Nara Travel Guide
Shingon Ritsu temples World Heritage Sites in Japan National Treasures of Japan Buddhist temples in Nara, Nara Historic Sites of Japan 6th-century establishments in Japan Sanron-shū Religious buildings and structures completed in 593 6th-century Buddhist temples {{Zen-stub

History

Architecture

In the ''Man'yōshū''

See also

Notes

External links