TODAI JI TEMPLE: THE GREAT BUDDHA OF NARA

ESPAÑOL

Before the eighth century AD, the capitals in Japan were temporary settlements that used to be were transferred after the death of the emperor. After Buddhism was introduced to Japan and as a sign of the power of Yamato clan, the first major was founded in 710capital under the name of Heijo-kyou (the castle-capital of Peace) by Emperor Shomu, until in 794, when it was moved to Kyoto. Heijo-kyo, which was founded in the likeness of the Chinese capital of Ch'ang , occuping an area of 5.9 km from east to west and 4.8 km from south to north, and hosted a number of important buildings for the court and religious elite.

Layout of the ancient capital Heijo-kyou

That city, now called Nara (200.000 inhabitants), is a small but pleasant town, with parks and temples, surrounded by forested mountains and crossed by two rivers.

Its most famous treasure is the Todai-ji, the Great Temple of the East, which is the world's largest single wooden roof structure, that houses the largest statue of Buddha made of bronze in the planet.

Todai-ji temple.

See location on Google Maps.

Before arriving at the Todai-ji, we went through a large park populated by deer. Legend says that many deities traveled mounted on white deer, so these animals are revered as divine messengers and bearers of good luck.

The Todai-ji is placed, according to Feng Shui or Chinese geomancy, north of the complex. The complex, begun in 745 by Emperor Shomu, consists of several structures.

Old perspective showing the Todai-ji temple.
Source: Nara Prefecture Library.

Reconstruction of the original temple in the period Heijo kyou, between two pagodas.
Source: Introduction to Japanese Architecture. Drawing: Tan Hong Yew.

NANDAI-MON (GREAT SOUTH GATE)

This majestic portico, 20 m high, dates from 1199 and is used to enter the compound, separating it from the worldly life. It leads to a processional access to a courtyard, which used to receivethousands of pilgrims and Buddhist monks. The original porch was made in Indian style, and this 2/3 version of the original dates from 962, after the original was partially destroyed by a typhoon.

I've always found fascinating the way these huge wooden structures are assembled in a building system which is as effective as intricate. The technique, imported from China, has evolved with differences depending on the time and place where it was applied, but mantaining the samebasic essence.

In the case of the Nandai mon, the 6 x 3 columns structure rests on stone bases, without foundation. These piles are joint through a mesh of wooden beams. The eaves system is based on pieces of wood that are assembled like a puzzle, allowing the roof to be separated from the structure by several meters. It also allows the corners to achieve a slight curvature, characteristic of pagodas, especially in China.

The following video shows an animation of this construction system.

Naidaimon or Great South Gate.
Animation Carlos Zeballos

After passing through the portico, we found the Kairo, a road which is in also the symmetry axis of the complex. To the right of the Kairo is a pond, as it was customary to place a pond south of the temples.

Chuu-Mon (Central Gateway)

Aligned to the Kairo is the mon Chuu, the central portal which precedes a more private domain of the temple. On each side of this gate, there are large wooden figures representing the kings of protecting the temple, as it was in the case of the Nandai-mon.

Aerial view of the Todai-ji

BIG LANTERN

Between the Central Gate and the temple itself, aligned with the Kairo, there is a large octagonal, almost 5 meters high lantern, that was made of bronze in 752, with engravings representing divine beings such as lions and playing musical instruments.

Daibutsu Den

In the middle of the courtyard stands the imposing main temple, the Daibutsuden. This huge wooden structure (56 * 50 * 50 m) houses the statue of Buddha.


The huge image is 15 m high (the tallest indoor Buddha statue in the world) and it was originally covered with gold by Emperor Shomu. Unfortunately, fires, earthquakes and other disasters removed the golden layer, also damaging parts of the original structure.


The statue sits in a mudra position, with his right hand raised, which means he has the power to grant wishes. The hand is so big that five monks can stand on it. Accompanying the Buddha, there are huge images of other deities and protector kings .

In the back of the temple one of the columns contains a hole about 50 cm. which is about the same size of the nostril of a statue of Buddha. The Japanese believe that if one is able to cross the column through that hole, he/she has a guaranteed place in heaven of Buddha, and for that reason many people try to pass across it. It is not uncommon to see someone trapped in the middle of the column, getting aid by some generous volunteers who would try to pull you out (as it was my case). At least I am saved from hell...


Leaving the Daibutsuden, is the spire that used to crowned an ancient pagoda, showing close a delicate work of art that is meant to be seen only by the gods.

Nearby, in a temple called Shoru, is one of Japan's oldest bells, cast in bronze. The great bell of nearly 5 m (which unlike the West is tolled by a large bamboo on the side) produces a deep sound and can be heard from great distances.


The important historical legacy of this ancient capital, considered a UNESCO World Heritage Site, can be seen in many other areas in Nara, which I hope to comment on other future occasions. Until then.

SEE ALSO

JAPANESE TRADITIONAL ARCHITECTURE

• Itsukushima Jinja, Miyajima, Japan (1148)
• Kinkakuji, Golden Pavilion, Kyoto, Japan. (1397).
• Ginkaku ji, Silver Pavilion, Kyoto, Japan. (1474)
• Kiyomizu dera, Kyoto, Japan (780-798)

MY SON IN VIETNAM

Champa complex of My Son in Vietnam. Phots courtesy of Global Citizen .

ESPAÑOL

"I Left My Son, Abandoned In The Middle Of Nowhere" I wrote on my Facebook status, to the dismay of my friends. In fact, the "My Son"I was talking about is an archaeological site of Hindu architecture in the middle of the Vietnamese jungle, which was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO . Its dilapidated condition, due to the passage of time and particularly to the ferocious U.S. bombing during the war, has left little to see for visitors, especially if compared My Son to other monumental sites in this part of the world. However, during a visit to this ancient capital of the Champa kingdom, it became clear the stylistic relationship to other similar complexes in Indochina, and the important influence of Hindu art and architecture, before Buddhism became prevalent in this part of Asia .


CHAM AND INFLUENCE THE HINDU

The Chams were an ethnic group of fishermen and farmers who flourished in Vietnam from the second to seventeenth century. The Cham created the Champa civilization and shared historical ties as well as conflicts with other cultures around the Mekong River . In addition, the civilizations of the Indochina Peninsula received important Hindu influence, as expressed in the art and architecture of the area. My Son precedes in time and shares characteristics to those structures such as Prambanang in Indonesia, Ayutthaya in Thailand, Angkor in Cambodia and Bagan in Burma (Myanmar). Even in Buddhist structures like Borobudur in Java, Indonesia maintained features of Hindu architecture (curiously, Buddhism would eventually prevail in the entire area, except for Indonesia which is mainly Muslim). According to UNESCO, My Son would have been a center of cultural exchange and the place where Hindu architecture was introduced to Southeast Asia.

Left: the Champa Kingdom maritime trade with other civilizations in the region. Above, VII to IX century. Below, tenth to thirteenth centuries.
Right: Hindu complexes in Southeast Asia.

Some common features between My Son and other Hindu sites are, for example, the presence of towers of complex roofs and pyramidal shape; the presence of linga, phallic sculptures that represent fertility and are also associated with good harvests and the presence of representations of the gods Shiva, Vishnu and Ganisha, among other deities of the Hindu pantheon.


LOCATION OF MY SON

It takes more than an hour to get to My Son, located about 70 km from Da Nang in central Vietnam. On the way, I find it hard to imagine the reason for choosing this site in the middle of jungle to a city building. However, a panoramic look gave evidence of a special configuration of the place.


My Son is located near a river, in a circular valley, a sort of "nest" of mountains, one of which stands to the southwest.

See location on Google Maps

I wonder if the choice of location would have been some kind of relationship with the Chinese geomancy or Feng Shui , which is known to chose this type of configurations to facilitate the flow of positive energy in the city, or if that mountain would have symbolized the mythical Mount Meru, the axis of Hindu cosmogony.


While I have not found literature to confirm these hypotheses, in any case, I suspect that the site configuration must have had an important role, both symbolically and defensively, especially considering that My Son was the religious and intellectual center of the Champa kingdom.

My Son in 1938, before the U.S. bombing.

FEATURES

The Citadel of My son was developed in several stages over the centuries, and is composed of several different towers surrounded by auxiliary buildings.

Evolution of the set of My Son towers between the seventh and thirteenth centuries. Image taken from the site museum.

Basically My Son consists of 68 towers arranged in several groups of buildings, set on both banks of the river, delimited by rectangular compounds with a predominantly east-west orientation. These complexes were presided by a main temple called Kalan and surrounded by smaller shrines and bounded by low walls.


The first buildings were made of wood, but a series of fires forced to replace it with brick and sandstone. By using this material, Cham towers became more monumental and resistant. The roofs may be flat or in the shape of ogival pyramids. Their height varies, may be up to 24 m.

Hypothetical reconstruction and current status of one of the towers.
Images taken at the museum.

Unlike the western vaults, the ogivall "vaults" were built by overlapping rows of bricks that were gradually having a setback to converge at the top. The interior of the same was hollow, because it represented a cave or a womb.

Their layout is generally square, although there are also some of rectangular base. The entrance gate was oriented towards the east, which is the direction of sunrise, the point where the cosmic movement starts.

Art and style of the pillars at the entrance of temples.

Andrew Hardy, Mario Cucarzi and others argued that, according to the architectural concepts of Hinduism, the Champa Kalan were composed of three parts:
a) The foundations of the temple, symbolizing the world.
b) The body of the temple, symbolizing the spiritual world of the faithful, the place where they were purified by contact with their ancestors and gods.
c) The roof of the temple, representing the world of the gods, the place where the gods reside.

Balusters, in different styles, are common in the architecture of this part of the world, from Angkor Wat in Cambodia to Luang Prabang in Laos .

The bricks that make up the buildings measure 31 cm x 17 cm x 5 cm and were placed without mortar. However, according L. Binda, P. Condoleo and others (2006), the cham used a special resin obtained from dau rai trees.

These wedges were carved in the stone pillars to increase resistance and stability.

Besides, the towers were decorated with floral, plants, animals and humans Hindu style.

Among the most important elements there were some fountains called yoni-linga, which were the representation of sacred genitals, representing the union of the Shakti and Shiva gods.

It is likely that some of the yoni-lingas and / or sculptures of deities have been venerated in a ritual space defined under wooden structures mounted on stone bases.


However, in this tower, instead of lingas there are bombs that were dropped by American B-52s but did not explode, and are a testimony of those terrible memories of the war, which are present throughout the country. Interestingly, today the bombs are rather used as bells.

SEE ALSO
- HINDU ARCHITECTURE

• Coming soon

HA LONG BAY, VIETNAM

ESPAÑOL

This non-architectural post is dedicated to Ha Long Bay (or Halong) in Vietnam, a landscape that, due to the symbolic value that it has for its people is probably the most  renown in Vietnam, but also because of its unique geological and geomorphological structure has been considered a World Natural Heritage site by UNESCO, and chosen one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature.

Photo courtesy of Grumsysumpy

Ha Long means "descending Dragon" because, according to legend, a group of dragons descended from heaven as a gift from the gods to the ancient Vietnamese people, in order to help them fight their enemies. Those dragons spat out jewels and jade, which eventually became rock thousands that populated the bay. In addition, the larger islands are no others than the petrified family of dragons.

There are actually similar formations in other areas of the region, and the first time I saw emerging vertical rocks as if they were floating on the water was in Phi Phi Islands, Thailand. There are also other examples in the Philippines, China and Okinawa, Japan. But nowhere in the world there is the same number and density as  in Vietnam.

There are over 3000 rock formations, vertical and giant moles whose chromatic tones are diluted until they seem to vanish in the haze of the horizon.

Photo courtesy of fallroad

Some of the rocks acquire peculiar forms, such as the so-callede Fighting Cocks. Photo courtesy of Ha Long Travel.

Also, part of the landscape are the fishing vessels, conducted by fishermen wearing the typical conical straw hats, although it is true that there are also many boats dedicated to "fishing" tourists.

Photo courtesy of jmboer

In addition to the magic that this scene conveys, in many cases the action of the sea and the elements has been eviscerated the inside of these rocks, producing impressive caves, dramatic geological formations which appear to have been carefully sculpted.

The following is a slideshow of our visit to Ha Long Bay.

I take this opportunity to wish you a prosperous 2012 and to thank you for your kind read.

SEE ALSO
- SPECIAL.

• Ode to the sea