Kongō Sanmai-in

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Aizen Myōō

The Kongō Sanmai Temple ( Kongo Sanmai-in Japanese 金剛 三昧 院 ) is a sub-temple of the Buddhist Kongōbu Temple (Japanese Kongōbu-ji , "Diamond Summit Temple") known today under the name Kōya-san on the peninsula Kii in Japan .

history

The temple was built in 1211 by order of Hōjō Masako ( 北 条 政 子 ) to comfort the soul of her deceased husband, the Shōgun Minamoto no Yoritomo ( 源 頼 朝 , 1147–1199), under the name Zenjō-in ( 禅定 院 , literally about Zen -Meditation Hall) was built. She invited the eminent Zen master Eisai ( 栄 西 ), who is close to the family, to found the foundation . In 1219, on the occasion of the murder of Minamoto no Sanetomo ( 源 実 朝 ), the son of Masako and Yoritomo, the name was changed to Kongō Sanmai-in. From then on, the temple served as a link between the Kōya-san and the rulers of the Kamakura shogunate .

In 1223, Hōjō Masako also had a 14.9 m high "treasure pagoda" ( tahōtō 多 宝塔 ) built. Since the temple is a bit out of the way, it was largely spared the devastation of the numerous fires of the Kōya-san. Said "Treasure Pagoda" is the second oldest of its kind in Japan today. It was registered as a national treasure in 1900 .

In 1234, the Zen monk Taikō Gyōyū ( 退耕 行 勇 ), a disciple of Eisai, was used as the abbot . A training facility ( kangaku-in ) was established in the temple grounds , in which, in addition to Shingon Buddhism, the Zen teachings of the Rinzai school , the Risshū school, and later even those of the Jōdo school were studied. In this respect, the temple had a peculiar status among the Shingon temples of Kōya-san. The abbots belonged to Zen Buddhism for twenty generations . The protection of the rulers and extensive lands with a travel income of over 100,000 koku secured this special position. It was not until the beginning of the Edo period that it was subordinated to the Kongōbu temple in the religious orientation as a sub-temple.

At the center of the worship is the “mantra king” Aizen Myōō ( 愛 染 明王 , Skr. Rāgarāja) as the main deity , who helps to transform earthly love and passion into spiritual awareness. The seat sculpture was created by the gifted sculptor Unkei on the order of Hōjō Masako . The Sutrenspeicher ( kyōzō 校 倉 造 ) also comes from the founding phase of the temple. It was built in 1223 in the style of the Kamakura period with cross beams ( azekurazukuri 校 倉 造 ) and contains a. a. 486 wooden printing plates of Buddhist texts from the Middle Ages, known because of their rarity as "Kōya plates" ( Kōya-ban ).

A spacious Rhododendron -Pflanzung and over 400 years old, giant Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) are among the protected natural monuments ( Tennen-kinenbutsu ) of Wakayama Prefecture .

  • Portal ( mountain gate , sanmon ) with a view of the main hall in the background

  • Main hall

  • Pilgrim accommodation and cuisine from the Ido period

  • Rhododenron group, crescent fir and Sutrenspeicher

  • Sutr memory

  • "Treasure Pagoda"

  • Inside the "treasure pagoda": in the center Vairocana (Japanese Dainichi Nyorai )

  • Shisho Myōjin Jinja, a Shintō shrine above the sutra store, built in 1522

Web links

References and comments

  1. ↑ About as much as Hall of flawless deep contemplation ( Kongō skr. Vajra ; sanmai , skr. Samadhi ).
  2. ↑ The oldest treasure pagoda was donated by Minamoto no Yoritomo to the Ishiyama temple ( Ishiyama-dera ) in Ōtsu .
  3. ↑ The Shingon school has a long tradition of syncretism of Shinto and Buddhism ( Shinbutsu-Shūgō )