Hokoku Shrine 豊国神社, Senjokaku 千畳閣, Itsukushima 厳島, Miyajima 宮島, Japan

Excerpt from miyajima.or.jp/english/spot/spot_other.html:

Designated as a National Important Cultural Property on August 29, 1910

Hokoku Shrine is dedicated to the warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi (one of the three unifiers of Japan in the 16th century) and his loyal aid Kato Kiyomasa. The reason for building this structure is clearly stated in a letter by Ankokuji Ekei, head monk of Ankokuji Temple. In 1587, Ekei asked Daiganji Temple, the temple in charge of construction and repair work in Miyajima including Itsukushima Shrine, to build a Buddhist library in which the chanting of Senbu-kyo sutras could be held every month. As there is no board ceiling or outer gate, it is believed that the construction of the building was not completed.

Originally, Amida Buddha and two subordinate Buddhist saints, Anan and Kasho-sonja, were enshrined in the Buddhist altar until the early Meiji era. Since that time, however, the altar has been used in Shinto rituals.

The building is called Senjokaku (Hall of One Thousand Tatami Mats), reflecting its standing as the largest structure on Miyajima Island. The shrine was a popular landmark in Miyajima where many people came to relax and cool themselves and to buy popular souvenirs such as tooth picks, and a variety of legends and traditions have been created here.

The fact that this structure, unique among the buildings belonging to Itsukushima Shrine, is unpainted and that its exact date of founding is recorded makes it a valuable gauge of the passage of time. The traces of weathering on its pillars and floor boards can be used to determine the approximate age of any other wooden structure on Miyajima.

A piece of wood used as a measuring device in the reconstruction work of the O-Torii in 1873 hangs on a pillar under the floor of the south part of the shrine. Countless votive picture tablets that had been hanging on the walls of Itsukushima Shrine buildings until the mid Meiji era decorate the walls inside the hall.

The shrine did not yet exist at the time of the Battle of Itsukushima in 1555 when the Mori clan defeated the Sue clan to unify the Chugoku region. The headquarters of the Sue clan was located on this hill, which was then called To-no-oka (Pagoda Hill). Starting in the Meiji era, the hill was developed through the establishment of stone steps, among other additions.

Excerpt from www.japan-experience.com/all-about-japan/miyajima/temples...:

Its bare appearance may not intrigue you at first. Only unfinished walls and a hundred pillars. Although the building is pretty, there is something missing. But once inside, look up: the gigantic ceiling is covered with a mosaic of paintings whose subjects are as varied as the styles and periods of implementation. Medieval battles, Buddhist representations, landscapes and animals in a modern style, the eye does not know where to turn.

Taken in: Japan / Hiroshima / Miyajima (show map)

Taken on: July 21, 2024

Tags:

Hokoku Shrine

豊国神社

千畳閣

Itsukushima

厳島

Miyajima

宮島

Japan

Places of Worship « less

Sets appears in: • Japan 日本

Groups appears in: • *Photos Loisirs* Level 1 • *The Year , L´Année - L1 - January-Janvier

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