, often abbreviated to ''Gangōji Garan Engi'', is a Japanese
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 ...
text. It is one volume in length and was compiled by an unnamed Buddhist monk in 747.
[Nihon Koten Bungaku Daijiten Henshū Iinkai (1983:60-61)]
Contents
The text is made up of four major sections. The first relates the early history of Japanese Buddhism. It states that in 538
King Seong of
Baekje
Baekje or Paekche (; ) was a Korean kingdom located in southwestern Korea from 18 BCE to 660 CE. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla. While the three kingdoms were in separate existence, Baekje had the h ...
introduced Buddhism to Japan.
[Sakurai (1975:7-22)] It tells of a struggle between pro-Buddhist
Soga no Iname
was a leader of the Soga clan, an early proponent of Buddhism in Japan, and a statesman during the reign of Emperor Kinmei, Emperors Kinmei and Emperor Senka, Senka in the Asuka period. He was the first person to hold the position of Omi (title), ...
and an anti-Buddhist faction. This is followed by the construction of several temples, including
Gangō-ji
290px, Model of Gangō-ji in the Nara period; the temple at the top of the photo is Kofuku-ji
290px, Site of the Five-story Pagoda
was one of the first Buddhist temples in Japan, and was ranked as one of the powerful Seven Great Temples ...
from which the text takes its title.
[Sakurai (1975:7-22)]
The second and third sections reproduce the
Asuka period
The was a period in the history of Japan lasting from 538 to 710, although its beginning could be said to overlap with the preceding Kofun period. The Yamato period, Yamato polity evolved greatly during the Asuka period, which is named after the ...
stone inscriptions found on the tower
finial
A finial () or hip-knob is an element marking the top or end of some object, often formed to be a decorative feature.
In architecture, it is a small decorative device, employed to emphasize the Apex (geometry), apex of a dome, spire, tower, roo ...
as well as those found on a Buddhist statue.
The final section is a list of the temple assets. This includes population, rice paddies, and wells.
Importance
The text is a primary source for early Buddhist history in Japan. Particularly well known is that the date given for the introduction of Buddhism from Baekje, 538, differs from that given in the ''
Nihon Shoki
The or , sometimes translated as ''The Chronicles of Japan'', is the second-oldest book of classical Japanese history. It is more elaborate and detailed than the , the oldest, and has proven to be an important tool for historians and archaeol ...
'', 552.
In addition, the reproduction of the stone inscriptions are considered valuable resource for the study of
Old Japanese
is the oldest attested stage of the Japanese language, recorded in documents from the Nara period (8th century). It became Early Middle Japanese in the succeeding Heian period, but the precise delimitation of the stages is controversial.
Old Ja ...
.
Notes
References
*
*
External links
* Origina
text
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gangoji Garan Engi
Old Japanese texts
Japanese Buddhist texts
8th-century Japanese books