is an art museum on Kōya-san,

Wakayama Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Wakayama Prefecture has a population of 876,030 () and a geographic area of . Wakayama Prefecture borders Osaka Prefecture to the north, and Mie Prefecture and Nara Prefecture to ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, preserving and displaying Buddhist art owned by temples on Kōya-san. The collection is centered around articles from the

Heian The Japanese word Heian (平安, lit. "peace") may refer to: * Heian period, an era of Japanese history * Heian-kyō, the Heian-period capital of Japan that has become the present-day city of Kyoto * Heian series, a group of karate kata (forms) * ...

and

Kamakura period The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...

s and includes paintings, calligraphy, sutras, sculpture and Buddhist ritual objects. Among these are a set of the complete Buddhist canon (''issaikyō''), writings of

Kūkai , born posthumously called , was a Japanese Buddhist monk, calligrapher, and poet who founded the Vajrayana, esoteric Shingon Buddhism, Shingon school of Buddhism. He travelled to China, where he studied Tangmi (Chinese Vajrayana Buddhism) und ...

and

Minamoto no Yoritomo was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate, ruling from 1192 until 1199, also the first ruling shogun in the history of Japan.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Minamoto no Yoriie" in . He was the husband of Hōjō Masako ...

, founder of the

Kamakura Shogunate The was the feudal military government of Japan during the Kamakura period from 1185 to 1333. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Kamakura-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 459. The Kamakura shogunate was established by Minamoto no Yori ...

, mandalas and portraits of priests. The most valuable objects have been designated as National Treasure or Important Cultural Property.

History

Kōbō-Daishi, founder of

Shingon Buddhism is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asian Buddhism. It is a form of Japanese Esoteric Buddhism and is sometimes called "Tōmitsu" (東密 lit. "Esoteric uddhismof Tō-j ...

was a proponent of religious art as a way to enlightenment. Consequently, Shingon temples such as on Koyasan are among Japan's greatest repositories of Buddhist art. Initially, Koyasan's religious treasures were spread among the various subtemples with the highest concentration at

Kongōbu-ji is the ecclesiastic head temple of Kōyasan Shingon Buddhism, located on , Wakayama Prefecture, Japan. Its name means ''Temple of the Diamond Mountain Peak''. It is part of the " Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range" UN ...

. Valuable objects were either locked away or — if used liturgically — placed at a distance from the viewer and often poorly lit. Repeatedly unrolling handscrolls or paintings on scrolls on request of visitors caused further damage. Following the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...

, at the end of the 19th century, the government introduced a policy of separation of

Shinto , also called Shintoism, is a religion originating in Japan. Classified as an East Asian religions, East Asian religion by Religious studies, scholars of religion, it is often regarded by its practitioners as Japan's indigenous religion and as ...

and

Buddhism 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 ...

(''

Shinbutsu bunri The Japanese term indicates the separation of Shinto from Buddhism, introduced after the Meiji Restoration which separated Shinto ''kami'' from buddhas, and also Buddhist temples from Shinto shrines, which were originally amalgamated. It is a ...

'') and many Buddhist temples became destitute. Some of Koyasan's artworks ended up in collections of museums in Tokyo, Kyoto or Nara or were sold to private persons, both domestically and to foreigners. In order to stop the outflow of cultural properties the government passed a series of laws starting with the in 1897 and continuing with the in 1929 and the from 1950 which, after a number of revisions and extension, is still effective today. The Koyasan Reihōkan was established with the help of volunteers by

, the head temple at Koyasan, with the aim to preserve and exhibit the precious religious and cultural heritage of Koyasan. Construction of the building in a wooded area southwest of ''Daishi Kyōkai'', the administrative center of Shingon Buddhism, was completed on 30 September 1920. This first museum consisted of two connected halls and was designed to vaguely resemble the Phoenix Hall at

Byōdō-in is a Buddhist temple in the city of Uji in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan, built in the late Heian period. It is jointly a temple of the Jōdo-shū (Pure Land) and Tendai-shū (Heavenly Level) sects. History This temple was originally built ...

, Uji. The opening of the museum was celebrated on 15 May 1921 and the head priest of Kongōbu-ji, Hōryū Doki (土宜法龍) assumed the position of first director. Subsequently, the temple's head priests continued to work as museum director. On 16 September 1957, the was established and the museum put under its control. On 1 May 1961, the museum was expanded with the construction of the , at the time the biggest of its kind in Japan and used mainly for nationally designated tangible cultural properties of the fine arts and crafts type. In 1984, on the 1150th anniversary of Kōbō-Daishi entering the state of eternal

meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique to train attention and awareness and detach from reflexive, "discursive thinking", achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state, while not judging the meditat ...

(''nyūjō'' ( 入定)), a new large standalone and fireproof building was constructed to the east of the old structure, effectively doubling the display space. It also provided the museum with modern features such as proper lighting, full temperature and humidity control; things that are still lacking in the old structure today. On 5 May 1988 five buildings of the museum were designated as registered tangible cultural property. The storage space was further extended in 2003. The admission office and the three museum buildings are connected by sheltered walkways.

Collection

The museum stores more than 50,000 artifacts of which more than 28,000 have been designated as valuable. This includes 186 objects or sets of objects designated as 21 National Treasures (about 4800 articles), 147 Important Cultural Properties (about 20,000 articles), 16 Important Cultural Properties of

(about 2850 articles) and 2 Important Works of Art.

National Treasures

Paintings

Eight National Treasure paintings owned by six of Koyasan's temples are stored at the Reihōkan. A

hanging scroll A hanging scroll is one of the many traditional ways to display and exhibit East Asian painting and calligraphy. They are different from handscrolls, which are narrower and designed to be viewed flat on a table. Hanging scrolls are generally i ...

showing the has been designated as National Treasure. Painted by in 1145

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means in Japanese. It is a ...

with color on silk, the scroll is owned by Kongōbu-ji. , owned by Kongōbu-ji is a large scale, hanging scroll painted with color on silk. Dated to 1086,

, it is a type of Nirvana painting (''nehan-zu'') depicting the death and entrance to

nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...

of the historical Buddha (Shaka). Typical for this kid of paintings, Shaka is shown lying on his deathbed surrounded by mourners. This painting is the oldest extant and finest of its type. Gonso

The is a 12th-century Heian period hanging scroll owned by . The scroll painted in colors on silk measures . An inscription on the top tells of a wooden sculpture of Gonsō being created after his death by his pupils praying for happiness in the next world and praising Gonsō's learning and virtue. AmidaRaigo

The

triptych A triptych ( ) is a work of art (usually a panel painting) that is divided into three sections, or three carved panels that are hinged together and can be folded shut or displayed open. It is therefore a type of polyptych, the term for all m ...

depicts Amida Nyorai, surrounded by Buddhist saints playing musical instruments, come to greet the spirits of the deceased to escort them to the

Pure Land Pure Land is a Mahayana, Mahayana Buddhist concept referring to a transcendent realm emanated by a buddhahood, buddha or bodhisattva which has been purified by their activity and Other power, sustaining power. Pure lands are said to be places ...

, a topic known as ''raigō-zu'' (来迎図). Painted on three hanging scrolls with color on silk, this work dates to around 1200, the turn from the

to the

and is owned by . Originally consisting of five scrolls, the mid-Heian period treasure known as now consists of only three hanging scrolls after two were destroyed by fire in 1888. Painted with color on silk, the remaining scrolls show (), () and (). Owned by , they are in custody at the Reihōkan. owns a 12th-century, Heian period hanging scroll painted with color on silk showing the , a manifestation of Kannon who calms the raging waters. Literally the term Senchū Yūgen means ''inspired vision while on a boat''. It is said that this Kannon appeared to the monk and founder of

in 806 while on a boat to China. Having the appearance of a

deva Deva may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Deva, List of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition monsters, an ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' 2nd edition monster * Deva, in the 2023 Indian film ''Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefir ...

and crowned with flowers, Senchū Yūgen Kannon is shown calming the waves with the hands. Amida Trinity

hanging scroll of an is held at the museum. Painted with color on silk, the scroll measures . Sansui jinbutsuzu

Ike no Taiga, among the most famous

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

painters, decorated fusuma sliding partitions with landscape scenes in the nanga style. The designated National Treasure known as consists of ten paintings with color on paper.

Sculptures

There are two National Treasures in the sculpture category, both owned by

. An 8th century

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...

brought back from China by

is stored at the museum. This

sandalwood Sandalwood is a class of woods from trees in the genus ''Santalum''. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and, unlike many other aromatic woods, they retain their fragrance for decades. Sandalwood oil is extracted from the woods. Sanda ...

, carving contains various Buddhist images. Seitaka Doji Kongobuji

Six of the group of , the oldest, dating to 1197

by Unkei are National Treasures: , , , , , . The remaining two (, ) were produced in the 14th century and are not included in this nomination. The group, made of colored

hinoki ''Chamaecyparis obtusa'' (Japanese cypress, hinoki cypress or hinoki; or , ) is a species of cypress native to central Japan in East Asia, and widely cultivated in the temperate northern hemisphere for its high-quality timber and ornamental qu ...

wood with crystal eyes, was formerly enshrined in the . All sculptures are around in size, specifically: (Ekō), (Eki), (Ukubaga), (Shōjō), (Kongara), (Seitaka).

Crafts

A and plover motifs from the 12th century

is the only crafts National Treasure at the museum. The chest is covered with black lacquer and gold dust has been sprinkled to form the image of plovers playing in the marsh. It is thought that the chest was once used to store Buddhist scriptures.

Writings

Koyasan Reihōkan holds ten National Treasures related to writing, including six that are copies of sutras or sets of sutras, one religious study, two Japanese manuscripts of parts of the Wenguan cilin and one large set of ancient documents related to

Mount Kōya is a large temple settlement in Wakayama Prefecture, Japan to the south of Osaka. In the strictest sense, ''Mount Kōya'' is the mountain name ( sangō) of Kongōbu-ji Temple, the ecclesiastical headquarters of the Kōyasan sect of Shingon Bu ...

. ;Buddhist writings ;;Sutras Chuzonji-kyo Kongobuji

Known as or is a large-scale collection of sutras, Buddhist regulations and sutra explanations initiated by

Fujiwara no Kiyohira was a samurai of mixed Japanese- Emishi parentage of the late Heian period (794–1185), who was the founder of the Hiraizumi or Northern Fujiwara dynasty that ruled Northern Japan from about 1100 to 1189. Biography Kiyohira was the son of Fuj ...

; dedicated to Chūson-ji and later presented to

Toyotomi Hidetsugu was a during the Sengoku period of Japan. He was the nephew and retainer of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the unifier and ruler of Japan from 1590 to 1598. Despite being Hideyoshi's closest adult, male relative, Hidetsugu was accused of atrocities and at ...

. The articles are decorated with various pictures in gold and silver paint. A set of 15 similar scrolls that were part of the same collection remained at Chūson-ji and are part of another National Treasure. The items date to the

from the second month 1117 to the third month 1126. In total there are 4,296 items: handscrolls with gold and silver letters on indigo blue paper. There are several National Treasures related to copies of specific sutras, including 18 handscrolls of the from the 8th century

Nara period The of the history of Japan covers the years from 710 to 794. Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō (present-day Nara). Except for a five-year period (740–745), when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the capita ...

held by ; seven scrolls of the (vol. 3 missing) from also from the 8th century, and one scroll, vol. 6 of the from the Heian period owned by Kongōbu-ji. The latter is notable for being written on colored paper. owns two treasures of the Konkōmyō Saishōō Sutra from the 8th century

: one, consisting of ten scrolls and known as was one of the sutras enshrined in the state-sponsored "Temples for the Protection of the State by the Golden Light (of the) Four Heavenly Kings" founded by

Emperor Shōmu was the 45th Emperor of Japan, emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 聖武天皇 (45)/ref> according to the traditional List of Emperors of Japan, order of succession. Shōmu's reign spanned the years 724 through 749, duri ...

. The other, , consisting of two scroll is unusual in having 34 characters per line instead of the usual 17. ;;Treatises, commentaries Rokoshiiki

Written in 797 by the 24 year old monk and founder of

(Kōbō-Daishi), with the aim of affirming the superiority of Buddhism, the or Sangō Shiiki is a comparative study of

Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China, and is variously described as a tradition, philosophy, Religious Confucianism, religion, theory of government, or way of li ...

Taoism Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ' ...

and

. The two scrolls at the museum are written in Kūkai's own handwriting and measure (18 pages) and (21 pages). ;Chinese books Wenguan cilin Shochiin

and own Japanese manuscripts of parts of the , a

imperial poetry collection. Other manuscripts of this work had been lost in China as early as the 9th century. The treasure from Shōchi-in amounts to twelve scrolls from the Tang dynasty and Heian period, 677–823; the one from Hōju-in consists of a single scroll. ;Ancient documents Hokanshu

A large set of documents on the history, territory, function, and other aspects of life at

from the

– Azuchi-Momoyama period has been designated as National Treasure in the category ''ancient documents''. This treasure consists of three parts: , , , consisting of 54/77/167 rolled

scroll A scroll (from the Old French ''escroe'' or ''escroue''), also known as a roll, is a roll of papyrus, parchment, or paper containing writing. Structure A scroll is usually partitioned into pages, which are sometimes separate sheets of papyru ...

s and 0/6/9 bound books respectively. Included in this collection are letters of notable historical figures such as

Minamoto no Yoshitsune was a commander of the Minamoto clan of Japan in the late Heian period, Heian and early Kamakura period, Kamakura periods. During the Genpei War, he led a series of battles that toppled the Ise-Heishi branch of the Taira clan, helping his half-br ...

and Saigyō Hōshi.

References

Bibliography

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Koyasan Reihokan Art museums and galleries in Wakayama Prefecture Kōya, Wakayama