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Buddhist temple in Nara Prefecture, Japan
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Hokke-ji (法華寺, Hokke-ji) is a Buddhist temple located in the Hokkeji neighborhood of the city of Nara, Nara Prefecture, Japan. It is the head temple of the Kōmyō sect (光明宗), named after the temple's founder, Empress Kōmyō. The honzon of the temple is a Heian period standing statue of Jūichimen Kannon, which is a designated National Treasure.
The Shoku Nihongi records that in 741, as the country recovered from a major smallpox epidemic, Emperor Shōmu ordered that a monastery and nunnery be established in every province, the kokubunji (国分寺). These temples were built to a semi-standardized template, and served both to spread Buddhist orthodoxy to the provinces, and to emphasize the power of the Nara period centralized government under the Ritsuryō system. The great national monastery of Tōdai-ji was the head temple for this system of kokubunji monasteries, and the monzeki nunnery of Hokke-ji became the head of all the kokubun-niji nunneries.
The site of Hokke-ji was originally the residence of Fujiwara no Fuhito, and after his death, his daughter Empress Kōmyō, inherited it and made it the Imperial Palace. Per the Shoku Nihongi, the empress made it into a temple in May 745; however, two years later, in 747, was when the name "Hokke-ji" appears in historical documentation. There are many unknowns about the details of the founding of the temple, and about the kokubun-niji system itself, including the locations of many of the nunneries, or even if they were all actually constructed. Hokke-ji itself, despite its imperial connections and prestige, took a long time to complete, and it was not until 782 that the government office responsible for its construction abolished.
Archaeological excavations have revealed that the temple grounds occupied a three by two chō area, or one full city block in the city plan of Heijō-kyō, and that it bordered the Tōgū Palace of the Heijō Palace grounds. The original main hall and lecture hall were located further south of the current temple's South Gate, and to the south of the main hall was a Middle Gate and two pagodas south of that. Furthermore, in the southwestern part of the grounds was a sub-temple, the Amida Jōdō-in, which (per the Shoku Nihongi) had an 18-foot tall Amida triad as its honzon, and which was where the first anniversary services after the death of Empress Kōmyō were held in 761.
After the capital was relocated to Heian-kyō Hokke-ji gradually declined, and it was in considerable disrepair by the end of the Heian period. It was damaged in 1180 during Taira no Shigehira's Siege of Nara, but was restored by the monk Chōgen in 1203. A Kamakura period head of the Vairocana Buddha at the temple is believed to be a surviving portion of the honzon statue of that time. Towards the end of the Kamakura period, the temple was restored by Eison and converted to the Shingon Ritsu sect. In the Sengoku period, the temple was burned in 1499 and 1506 by military conflicts, and was also severely damaged by the 1596 Keichō–Fushimi earthquake. The current Main Hall and South Gate were rebuilt in 1601 by Toyotomi Hideyori and his mother, Lady Yodo, and was the bell tower in 1602. During the Edo period, the temple once again became a monzeki nunnery, when Emperor Go-Mizunoo's adopted daughter Takanori took holy orders. The East Pagoda of the temple collapsed in the 1707 Hōei earthquake. In 1999, the temple reverted to its original status as an independent temple and left the Shingon Ritsu sect to become head temple of the Komyō sect, named after Empress Komyō.
The temple houses numerous National Treasures and Important Cultural Properties. The precincts of Hokke-ji, including the remains of the Amida Jōdō-in, were designated a National Historic Site in 2001, with the area under protection expanded in 2015. The remains of a Pure Land garden with a pond have been discovered at the remains of Amida Jodo-in, which the oldest known garden of this kind in Japan. It is also protected as a Nationally Designated Place of Scenic Beauty.
The honzon of Hokke-ji is a one-meter tall wooden statue of Jūichimen Kannon, which is designated a National Treasure. A hibutsu hidden image, it is open for public viewing on certain days in spring and autumn. The temple legend states that it was made in the Nara period by a Buddhist sculptor from Gandara in the likeness of Empress Kōmyō, but it is believed to have actually been made in the early Heian period, in the first half of the 9th century.
The statue is made of a single piece of Japanese kaya wood. It is in good condition and is one of the most representative pieces of sculpture from the Heian period. It was made without any coloring or gold leaf from the beginning, and the hair, eyebrows, and beard were painted ultramarine, the lips were painted vermilion, and the whites of the eyes were painted white. Copper plates were used for the eyes, the hair hanging down the shoulders, the crown, and the bracelets, and the rest of the statue is finished in a natural state that makes the most of the beauty of the wood. Apart from a few parts made of different materials, such as the wrists and the loose parts of the heavenly garment, the main parts of the head and body, the center of the lotus throne, and the core below it are carved from a single piece of wood.
The pedestal is an unusual type, with a single thin stem supporting the lotus flower of the statue from the bottom. The halo is also a rare style, depicting the unopened lotus flowers and leaves. It was added in 1905 was based on old drawings. The statue's center of gravity is on the left leg, the right leg is loose, and the first toe of the right foot is slightly raised, as if expressing the moment of taking a step. The extremely long right arm represents the "standing hand and knees upright position," one of the 80 types of Buddha's mudra. The facial expression of this statue, the proportions that emphasize the volume of the chest and thighs, and the fluttering wave pattern of clothing with thick folds alternating with thin, sharp folds are all styles unique to early Heian sculpture.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Hokke-ji”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.