Each city has its own atmosphere. The appearance of the streets, people’s character, the climate, and all other elements create their uniqueness. Kyoto city is no exception. When you step into the city, you will feel something completely different from any other city. People’s life has been continued and developed since Kyoto became the capital of Japan in 794, and here you would find something you can’t describe in words.
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in kyoto > Temples and Shrines of Kyoto, Higashiyama
Kyoto has developed itself for more than 1,200 years. The Emperor Kammu,
who got his position after many conspiracies, transferred the capital to
Kyoto. In those days, it was believed that all accidents were caused by
ghosts. To escape from ghosts, to separate his reign from the old force,
and to create a new country, the Emperor tried large-scale transfers of
the capital twice. Kyoto was his last destination. It has been said that
Kyoto is a worthy town of being protected by four gods. There are the mountains
in the north, the big street in the west, the hollow in the south as the
front, and the current in the east protected by the Gemmu God (Black Warrior),
Byakko God (White Tiger), Suzaku God (Red Chinese Phoenix), and Seiryu
God (Blue Dragon) respectively. If you feel the four gods still protecting
this town, you will fully experience the sanctity there.
In addition, we often hear legends related to the temples and shrines in
each direction. Here is an interesting story mentioned in Kyoto Hakken
II (Discoveries in Kyoto II) written by Takeshi Umehara. The Yasaka Shrine
in Higashiyama is in the direction of Blue Dragon. Under the Hon-den Hall
in the main house, some believed that there is the dragon’s hole. Although
it is covered by plaster today, people could see that the hole kept some
water, which is now believed to flow into the Shinsen-en (God’s spring)
Garden at Horikawaoike. It is also said that this relates to the Gion-matsuri
Festival, which is one of the three major festivals in Kyoto.
There is a five-story tower regarded as a symbol of Higashiyama town. The
tower is loved by many people, and its magnificent appearance never fails
to stop passers by. It is now known as the Houkan-ji Temple, a sub-temple
of the Kennin-ji Temple School from the Rinzai sect, but its history goes
back as late as the Asuka period (550-710), the time when Shotoku Prince
flourished. According to the dagoba register from the Higashiyama Houkan-ji
Temple of Yamashiro, Nyoirin Kannon, the Goddess of Mercy that Prince Shotoku
used to pray to, appeared in his dream and told him to build a temple there
because it was a good place to start something. Although there was a deeply
forested mountain, Prince Shotoku decided to build the five-story tower
and enshrine the Buddha’s ashes there.
Each temple and shrine in Kyoto has its story. The more we know about
them, the stronger we can feel the uniqueness of Kyoto.
References
Takeshi Umehara, Discoveries in Kyoto II – Walking through the passages,
Shincho-sha 1998.
