is a

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...

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

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

, Japan. The temple is the national headquarters of the Hossō school. It is part of

Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara is a UNESCO World Heritage Site consisting of 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 pr ...

, a

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

History

Kōfuku-ji has its origin as a temple that was established in 669 by Kagami-no-Ōkimi (), the wife of

Fujiwara no Kamatari , also known as , was a Japanese politician and aristocrat who, together with Prince Naka no Ōe (later Emperor Tenji), carried out the Taika Reform. He was the founder of the Fujiwara clan, the most powerful aristocratic family in Japan durin ...

, wishing for her husband's recovery from illness. Its original site was in Yamashina,

Yamashiro Province was a province of Japan, located in Kinai. It overlaps the southern part of modern Kyoto Prefecture on Honshū. Aliases include , the rare , and . It is classified as an upper province in the '' Engishiki''. Yamashiro Province included Kyoto it ...

(present-day

Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. , the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it t ...

). In 672, the temple was moved to Fujiwara-kyō, the first planned Japanese capital to copy the orthogonal grid pattern of

Chang'an Chang'an (; zh, t=長安, s=长安, p=Cháng'ān, first=t) is the traditional name of the city now named Xi'an and was the capital of several Chinese dynasties, ranging from 202 BCE to 907 CE. The site has been inhabited since Neolithic time ...

. In 710, the temple was dismantled for the second time and moved to its present location, on the east side of the newly constructed capital, Heijō-kyō, today's Nara. Kōfuku-ji was the Fujiwara's tutelary temple, and enjoyed prosperity for as long as the family did. The temple was not only an important center for the Buddhist religion, but also retained influence over the imperial government, and even by "aggressive means" in some cases.John Bowring, pp.218–219 When many of the

Nanto Shichi Daiji Nanto Shichi Daiji (南都七大寺), literally "the seven great temples of the southern capital (meaning the city of Nara)", is a historical common name generally referring to the powerful and influential seven Buddhist temples located in the Na ...

, such as

Tōdai-ji is a Buddhist temple complex that was once one of the powerful Nanto Shichi Daiji, Seven Great Temples, located in the city of Nara, Nara, Nara, Japan. The construction of the temple was an attempt to imitate Chinese temples from the much-admir ...

, declined after the move of capital to Heian-kyō (Kyoto), Kōfuku-ji kept its significance because of its connection to the Fujiwara. The temple was damaged and destroyed by civil wars and fires many times, and was rebuilt as many times as well, although finally some of the important buildings, such as one of the three golden halls, the Nandaimon, Chūmon and the corridor were never reconstructed and are missing today. The rebuilding of the Central Golden Hall was completed in 2018. was a ''

chashitsu ''Chashitsu'' (, "tea room") in Japanese tradition is an architectural space designed to be used for Japanese tea ceremony, tea ceremony (''chanoyu'') gatherings. The architectural style that developed for ''chashitsu'' is referred to as the '' ...

'' formerly located at the temple and considered one of the . It was relocated due its deteriorated state and is now in the gardens of the

Tokyo National Museum The or TNM is an art museum in Ueno Park in the Taitō wards of Tokyo, ward of Tokyo, Japan. It is one of the four museums operated by the , is considered the oldest national museum and the largest art museum in Japan. The museum collects, prese ...

Architecture and treasures

The following are some of the temple's buildings and treasures of note.

Architecture

* , 1425, one of the former three golden halls ( National Treasure) *, 2018, reconstructed, the former temporary Central Golden Hall building (仮金堂) now serves as the temporary Lecture Hall (仮講堂) * , 1426 (National Treasure) * , 1185 (National Treasure) * , 1210 (National Treasure) * , 1741, Site No.9 of Saigoku 33 Pilgrimage ( Important Cultural Property) * , 1394–1427 (Important Cultural Property)

Treasures

* (Statue) The Devas of the Eight Classes, including dry-lacquer

Ashura Ashura (, , ) is a day of commemoration in Islam. It occurs annually on the tenth of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar. For Sunni Muslims, Ashura marks the parting of the Red Sea by Moses and the salvation of the Israelites ...

(National Treasure) * (Statue) The Ten Great Disciples (National Treasure) * (Statue) Thousand-armed Kannon (National Treasure) * (Statue) attributed to Kōkei, is housed in Nan'endō (National Treasure)

Plan

Showing the original layout of the temple, with the later three-storied pagoda, Nan'en-dō, and Ōyūya superimposed. Of the buildings marked, only these three together with the five-storied pagoda, Tōkon-dō and Hoku'en-dō remain.

Gallery

File:Golden Buddha in Kōfuku-ji.jpg, Golden Buddha in Kōfuku-ji inside Tō-kondō File:Goldenbuddha.jpg,

Yakushi Nyorai Bhaiṣajyaguru (, zh, t= , , , , ), or ''Bhaishajyaguru'', formally Bhaiṣajya-guru-vaiḍūrya-prabha-rāja ("Medicine Master and King of Lapis Lazuli Light"; zh, t=藥師琉璃光(王)如來, , , ), is the Buddha of healing and medicine i ...

(Important Cultural Property) inside Tō-kondō File:Kofukuji06s3872.jpg, Hoku'endō, older of the two octagonal halls File:Kofukuji13s5s3200.jpg, Gojū-no-tō five-storied

pagoda A pagoda is a tiered tower with multiple eaves common to Thailand, Cambodia, Nepal, India, China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most often Buddhist, but some ...

File:Kōfuku-ji at night.jpg, Pagoda at night File:Kofukuji03s3200.jpg, The Sanjū-no-tō stands behind Nan'endō File:Five-roof pagoda in Nara.JPG, Gojū-no-tō five-storied

from below File:Kofukuji Monastery Jikokuten of Tokondo (306).jpg,

Virūpākṣa Virūpākṣa (Sanskrit; Pali: Virūpakkha; traditional Chinese: 廣目天王; simplified Chinese: 广目天王; pinyin: ''Guǎngmù Tiānwáng''; Japanese: 広目天 ''Kōmokuten'') is a major deity in Buddhism. He is one of the Four Heavenly ...

(Kōmokuten) File:Tokyo National Museum Rokusoan P3303189.jpg, ''Rokusō-an'' tea house File:Kofukuji Statue Collection.jpg, Collection of statues File:Kofukuji Statue Collection2.jpg, Collection of statues File:Kofukuji Amida.jpg, Amida Nyorai File:Kofukuji Kagenkei.jpg, Kagenkei Gong File:Kofukuji Yuima Koji.jpg, Yuima Koji

Notes

References

* *

External links

Kōfuku-ji web site

Kōfuku-ji web site

Kohfukuji Temple, from The Official Nara Travel Guide

UNESCO

Exhibition of artifacts from Kofukuji reviewed in The Japan Times
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kofuku-Ji Buddhist temples in Nara, Nara National Treasures of Japan World Heritage Sites in Japan Important Cultural Properties of Japan Pagodas in Japan Asuka period Historic Sites of Japan Maitreya Jingū-ji 669 establishments Religious buildings and structures completed in the 660s 7th-century Buddhist temples 7th-century establishments in Japan