Iwama-dera

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Main hall

The Iwama-dera ( Japanese 岩 間 寺 ), actually Shōhō-ji ( 正法 寺 ), with the mountain name Iwama-san ( 岩 間 山 ) is a temple of the Daigo branch ( 醍醐 派 Daigo-ha ) of the Shingon direction of Buddhism. The temple is located in Ōtsu ( Shiga Prefecture ), Japan, below Iwama Mountain (Iwama-san). It is the 12th temple of the Saigoku pilgrimage route in traditional counting .

history

According to tradition, the temple was created in Yōrō 6 (722) by priest Taichō (682-767) at the request of the Empress Genshō . The main cult figure , a thousand-armed Kannon ( 木造 千手 観 音 菩薩 像Mokuzo senju Kannon bosatsu-zō ) is said to have carved Taichō from a piece of Katsura wood. This Kannon is supposed to rush around at night to help those who suffer in Hell. And since she then returns to the temple bathed in sweat in the morning, she is also called the "sweating Kannon" ( 汗 か き 観 音Asekaki Kannon ).

Behind the main hall is the abbot and monk area (A).

The attachment

Plan of the temple (see text)

You first get to the hall, which is dedicated to the temple founder, the Daishi-dō ( 大師 .; 2). The main hall ( 本 堂 Hondō ; 1) behind it has a cross roof. To the right of the main hall there is the “Bashō pond” ( 芭蕉 の 池 Bashōno ike ; 3), which is associated with the famous verse about a frog jumping into the water, written by the haiku poet Matsuo Bashō .

Temple treasures

Among the temple treasures there is a wooden Jizō sculpture from the late Heian period ( 木造 地 蔵 菩薩 立 像 Mokuzō Jizō bosatsu ritsuzō ) and the holy Fudō with two child companions ( 木造 不 動 明王 二 童子立 像 3 躯 Mokuzō Fudōuankō ) from the Kamakura period . Both objects are registered as an important cultural asset of Japan .

Remarks

  1. ↑ Japanese: 古 池 や 蛙 飛 び こ む 水 の 音 Furuike-ya / kawazu tobikomu / mizu no oto ). Gerolf Coudenhove reproduces the verse as follows: “Old pond in peace - / little frog jumps from the bank. / And the water sounds. "

literature

  • Shiga-ken rekishi sampo henshu iinkai (Ed.): Iwama-dera . In: Shiga-ken no rekishi sampo (jo). Yamakawa Shuppan, 2008. ISBN 978-4-634-24625-6 . P. 105.

Web links

Commons : Iwama-dera  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 34 ° 55 '58.3 "  N , 135 ° 52' 43.5"  E