is a

Buddhist temple A Buddhist temple or Buddhist monastery is the place of worship for Buddhism, Buddhists, the followers of Buddhism. They include the structures called vihara, chaitya, stupa, wat, khurul and pagoda in different regions and languages. Temples in B ...

located in the town of Ikaruga,

Nara Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Nara Prefecture has a population of 1,321,805 and has a geographic area of . Nara Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the north, Osaka Prefecture to the ...

, Japan. It was founded as a nunnery in the seventh century by

Shōtoku Taishi Shōtoku may refer to: * Prince Shōtoku , also known as or , was a semi-legendary regent and a politician of the Asuka period in Japan who served under Empress Suiko. He was the son of Emperor Yōmei and his consort, Princess Anahobe no Has ...

. Located immediately to the northeast of

Hōryū-ji is a Buddhist temple that was once one of the powerful Nanto Shichi Daiji, Seven Great Temples, located in Ikaruga, Nara, Ikaruga, Nara Prefecture, Japan. Built shortly after Buddhism was introduced to Japan, it is also one of the oldest Buddh ...

, its statue of Miroku and Tenjukoku mandala are National Treasures. Chūgū-ji is one of three nunneries in

Yamato was originally the area around today's Sakurai, Nara, Sakurai City in Nara Prefecture of Japan, which became Yamato Province and by extension a Names of Japan, name for the whole of Japan. Yamato is also the dynastic name of the ruling Imperial ...

whose chief priestesses were imperial princesses.

History

Chūgū-ji is currently adjacent to the East Temple of Hōryū-ji, but when it was first built, it was located about 500 meters east , at a location which is now the Chūgū-ji Historical Site Park. The details of its foundation are uncertain, as there is no mention of the foundation of the temple in the ''

Nihon Shoki The or , sometimes translated as ''The Chronicles of Japan'', is the second-oldest book of classical Japanese history. It is more elaborate and detailed than the , the oldest, and has proven to be an important tool for historians and archaeol ...

'', or other contemporary historical documentation. Per the ''Hōryū-ji Engi'' (747) and the "Jōgū Shōtoku Hōō Tei-setsu," it is said to be one of the "Seven Temples Built by

Prince Shōtoku , also known as or , was a semi-legendary regent and a politician of the Asuka period in Japan who served under Empress Suiko. He was the son of Emperor Yōmei and his consort, Princess Anahobe no Hashihito, who was also Yōmei's younger half ...

Archaeological excavation In archaeology, excavation is the exposure, processing and recording of archaeological remains. An excavation site or "dig" is the area being studied. These locations range from one to several areas at a time during a project and can be condu ...

s on the former temple grounds suggest that it was founded in the early 7th century, around the same time as Hōryū-ji, and have uncovered roof tiles of the same type as those of Mukohara-ji (Sakurai Nunnery), which suggests that it was a nunnery from the beginning. According to temple legend, the current principal image, Nyōirin Kannon, was the original principal image of the original

Kondō Kondō, Kondo or Kondou (近藤 "near wisteria") is a surname prominent in Japanese culture, although it also occurs in other countries. Notable people with the surname include: *, Japanese ballet dancer *, man known for marrying a fictional vocal ...

. Per the

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means in Japanese. It is a ...

"Prince Shōtoku's Calendar", the temple was established by Prince Shōtoku who converted the palace of his mother, Princess Hashihito no Anahobe after her death. A later legend emerged that Princess Hashihito herself was the initiator. The inscription on the back of the

Kamakura period The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...

"Prince Shōtoku's Private Records" by Kenshin states that "It was called Chūgū-ji because it was the middle palace among the three palaces of Ashigamiya, Okamotomiya, and Ikaruganomiya, and it was named Chūgū-ji when it was established as a temple." Chūgū-ji fell into decline after the Heian period, but was restored in the Kamakura period by the nun Shinnyo. At the time, the temple was converted from Hosso to the

Shingon is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asian Buddhism. It is a form of Japanese Esoteric Buddhism and is sometimes called "Tōmitsu" (東密 lit. "Esoteric uddhismof Tō- ...

sect. Later, during the

Sengoku period The was the period in History of Japan, Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as th ...

, the temple burned down. It is believed that it was moved to its current location around the end of the 16th century, when it became a '' monzeki'' monastery (a high-ranking temple where the head priest is a member of the imperial family or aristocrats for generations). In 1602, Chūgū-ji reverted to being a nunnery when an imperial princess was appointed, and the temple was also styled as the "Ikaruga Palace", which continues to exist to this day.

Miroku Bosatsu

The camphor wood statue of is a National Treasure dating from the

Asuka period The was a period in the history of Japan lasting from 538 to 710, although its beginning could be said to overlap with the preceding Kofun period. The Yamato period, Yamato polity evolved greatly during the Asuka period, which is named after the ...

. Formerly painted, it is finished in

lacquer Lacquer is a type of hard and usually shiny coating or finish applied to materials such as wood or metal. It is most often made from resin extracted from trees and waxes and has been in use since antiquity. Asian lacquerware, which may be c ...

Tenjukoku Shūchō Mandala

After the death of

in 622, his consort Tachibana-no-Oiratsume commissioned the . The

embroidery Embroidery is the art of decorating Textile, fabric or other materials using a Sewing needle, needle to stitch Yarn, thread or yarn. It is one of the oldest forms of Textile arts, textile art, with origins dating back thousands of years across ...

of heaven and eternal life, together with one hundred

tortoises Tortoises ( ) are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin for "tortoise"). Like other turtles, tortoises have a turtle shell, shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard ...

and accompanying text, was

restored ''Restored'' is the fourth studio album by American contemporary Christian musician Jeremy Camp. It was released on November 16, 2004, by BEC Recordings. Track listing Standard release Enhanced edition Deluxe gold edition Standard Aus ...

in the

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

by combining the surviving fragments with parts of a

replica.

Chūgū-ji ruins (National Historic Site)

The site of Chūgū-ji at the time of its founding is located about 500 meters east of the current temple grounds, in Ikaruga-chō, Hōryūji Higashi 2-chōme. An earthen platform thought to be the remains of a major building of the original temple complex.

s were conducted in 1963, and the remains of the foundations of the Main Hall and pagoda were discovered. It is known that the temple complex was arranged with the Main Hall to the north and the pagoda to the south, and was patterned similar to Shitennō-ji in

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

. However, the remains of the Lecture Hall, corridors, etc. have not been found. One of the characteristics of this temple complex is that the Main Hall and pagoda were constructed in close proximity to each other, and it is assumed that they were built with their eaves touching. The core foundation of the pagoda is buried deep into the ground. This is similar to the core foundations of pagoda at Shitennō-ji, Asuka-dera, and Hōryū-ji, suggesting that it was built long ago. After several subsequent excavations, the remains of the embankments on the north and west sides were discovered, and it was found that the temple grounds were about 130 meters east-to-west and 165 meters north-to-south. The 130 meter dimension was of interest, as it is longer than one Chō (101.9 meters), but is roughly equivalent to one ''Chō'' of per the system used in ancient

Goryeo Goryeo (; ) was a Korean state founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korea, Korean Peninsula until the establishment of Joseon in 1392. Goryeo achieved what has b ...

. The embankments were 2.1meters wide at its base, and is surrounded by an outer moat that is 2.5 meters wide and 0.7 meters deep. Parts of the north and south gates, as well as an ancient north-south road that runs parallel to the western embankment were also found. The excavated roof tiles date from the Asuka to the

Muromachi period The , also known as the , is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate ( or ), which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi ...

s, and the single-petal lotus-patterned round eaves tile from the temple's founding is of the same type as the items excavated from Heiryu-ji in Heguri, and consists of

Baekje Baekje or Paekche (; ) was a Korean kingdom located in southwestern Korea from 18 BCE to 660 CE. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla. While the three kingdoms were in separate existence, Baekje had the h ...

and

Goguryeo Goguryeo (37 BC – 668 AD) (; ; Old Korean: Guryeo) also later known as Goryeo (; ; Middle Korean: 고ᇢ롕〮, ''kwòwlyéy''), was a Korean kingdom which was located on the northern and central parts of the Korea, Korean Peninsula an ...

-style round eaves tiles. Both have been found to have been produced at Imaike tile kiln (Misato-cho, Ikoma-gun, Nara Prefecture), and are dated to the first half of the 7th century. In addition, round roof tiles with a honeysuckle six-petal lotus motif of the same type as those excavated from the Wakakusa Garan of Hōryū-ji, and flat roof tiles with a honeysuckle arabesque motif of the same type as those excavated from the underground remains of the East Compound of Hōryū-ji, which is believed to be the remains of Ikaruga Palace, have also been excavated. The site was designated a National Historic Site in 1990, with the area under protection expanded in 2001. In May 2018, the remains of the temple were developed and completed as the Chūgūji Ruins Historical Park. Chuguji-ato, garan-3.jpg, Chūgū-ji ruins File:Chuguji-ato, kondou.jpg, Chūgū-ji ruins Kondo site File:Chuguji-ato, tou.jpg, Chūgū-ji ruins Pagoda site File:Chuguji-ato, minamimon.jpg, Chūgū-ji ruins projected South Gate site

References

External links