Ishiyama-dera
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Shingon file:Koyasan (Mount Koya) monks.jpg, 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 suc ...
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 ...
in
Ōtsu file:Otsu City Hall.JPG, 270px, Ōtsu City Hall is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Shiga Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 343,991 in 153458 households and a population density of 740 persons per km². The total a ...
in
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 ...
's
Shiga Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Shiga Prefecture has a population of 1,412,916 (1 October 2015) and has a geographic area of . Shiga Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the north, Gifu Prefecture to the nort ...
. This temple is the thirteenth of the
Kansai Kannon Pilgrimage The is a pilgrimage of thirty-three Buddhist temples throughout the Kansai region of Japan, similar to the Shikoku Pilgrimage. In addition to the official thirty-three temples, there are an additional three known as . The principal image in each ...
.


History

It was constructed around 747 CE, and is said to have been founded by
Rōben (689 – 773), also known as Ryōben, was a Japanese Buddhist monk of the Kegon sect, and clerical founder of the Tōdai-ji temple in Nara, Nara Prefecture, Japan. He is popularly known as the . His life spanned the late Asuka period (538 &nd ...
. The temple contains a number of cultural assets. The temple possesses two fragments of manuscripts of the ''Records of the Grand Historian'' (''Shiji'' 史記), the first of China's 24 dynastic histories, which are the only known extant fragments that pre-date the
Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
(618907). According to literature available at the temple complex, the guardian carvings at Sanmon/Todaimon are by
Tankei Tankei (湛慶 1173 – June 13, 1256) was a Japanese sculptor of the Kei school, which flourished in the Kamakura period. He was the student of and eldest son of the master sculptor Unkei. Famous Works *Statue of ''Sahasrabhuja-arya-avalokiteś ...
and
Unkei Unkei ( ja, 運慶;  – 1223) was a Japanese sculptor of the Kei school, which flourished in the Kamakura period. He specialized in statues of the Buddha and other important Buddhist figures. Unkei's early works are fairly traditional, simil ...
. Allegedly,
Murasaki Shikibu was a Japanese novelist, poet and lady-in-waiting at the Imperial court in the Heian period. She is best known as the author of '' The Tale of Genji,'' widely considered to be one of the world's first novels, written in Japanese between abou ...
began writing '' The Tale of Genji'' at Ishiyama-dera during a full moon night in August 1004. In commemoration, the temple maintains a Genji room featuring a life-size figure of Lady Murasaki and displays a statue in her honor. The temple features as "The Autumn Moon at Ishiyama" ( ') in the ''
Eight Views of Ōmi 8 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 8 or eight may also refer to: Years * AD 8, the eighth year of the AD era * 8 BC, the eighth year before the AD era Art * The Eight (Ashcan School), a group of twentieth century painters associated with the ...
'' thematic series in art and literature; examples include
ukiyo-e Ukiyo-e is a genre of Japanese art which flourished from the 17th through 19th centuries. Its artists produced woodblock prints and paintings Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surfac ...
prints by Harunobu in the 18th century and
Hiroshige Utagawa Hiroshige (, also ; ja, 歌川 広重 ), born Andō Tokutarō (; 1797 – 12 October 1858), was a Japanese ''ukiyo-e'' artist, considered the last great master of that tradition. Hiroshige is best known for his horizontal-format l ...
in the 19th century.


See also

*
Glossary of Japanese Buddhism This is the glossary of Japanese Buddhism, including major terms the casual (or brand-new) reader might find useful in understanding articles on the subject. Words followed by an asterisk (*) are illustrated by an image in one of the photo galle ...
- For an explanation of the terms on Japanese Buddhism, Japanese Buddhist art, and Japanese Buddhist temple architecture. *
List of National Treasures of Japan (temples) A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby uni ...
*
List of National Treasures of Japan (ancient documents) The term "National Treasure" has been used in Japan to denote cultural properties since 1897. The definition and the criteria have changed since the introduction of the term. These ancient documents adhere to the current definition, and have bee ...
*
List of National Treasures of Japan (writings) Lists of National Treasures of Japan cover different types of National Treasure of Japan. They include buildings and fine arts and crafts. Buildings and structures * List of National Treasures of Japan (castles), for structures that are part of ...


References


Sources

* *
Kōjien is a single-volume Japanese dictionary first published by Iwanami Shoten in 1955. It is widely regarded as the most authoritative dictionary of Japanese, and newspaper editorials frequently cite its definitions. As of 2007, it had sold 11 mil ...
, 5th edition 8th-century Buddhist temples Tōji Shingon temples Buddhist temples in Shiga Prefecture Buildings and structures in Ōtsu National Treasures of Japan Important Cultural Properties of Japan Pagodas in Japan Religious buildings and structures completed in 747 {{Japan-religious-struct-stub