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カテゴリー1： 4. Jinja (Shrines)
カテゴリー2： Shrine Architecture
Title
§ History and Typology of Shrine Architecture
Text
History and Typology of Shrine Architecture

Because shrine grounds or precincts (keidai) are considered sacred areas, a boundary of some kind is used to demarcate the shrine grounds from the secular world. The road or path approaching the shrine generally features one or more ritual arches or gateways called torii. The area around the sanctuary (honden) may be open, depending on the nature of the shrine, but most honden are surrounded by wooden or stone fences (tamagaki). Verandas inspired by Buddhist architecture were often added around the perimeter of shrine buildings, and large multi-storied gateways were also introduced. Shrine grounds may also include the characteristic font and basin (temizuya) for ritual purification of hands and mouth (misogi), as well as lanterns (tōrō).
Specific structures found in shrines may include a sanctuary (honden) enshrining the kami worshipped there (saijin), the hall of worship (haiden), where ritual worship is performed, a hall of ceremonial dance (maidono), and a hall of offerings (heiden). Additional structures may include buildings used for holding meetings of shrine guilds (miyaza) and for banquets (naorai), together with various storehouses for holding highly prized articles and ritual utensils. Ritual worship is also frequently observed in the shrine's courtyard. Larger shrines may possess ceremonial kitchens (shinsenden) where sacred wine (miki) and food offerings (shinsen) are prepared, as well as shrine offices (shamusho), retreat halls (sanrōsho, saikan) for priests spending periods of purificatory seclusion prior to rites, and residences for shrine priests. Also, as part of the historical merger of Shinto and Buddhist deities (shinbutsu shūgō ), most shrines had noncommital relationships with Buddhist temples, with the result that shrine-temples (jingūji) or halls for the enshrinement of the kami's Buddhist counterpart (honjidō) were frequently found on shrine grounds. Most of these structures, however, were abolished as part of the Meiji-period movement to separate kami and buddhas (shinbutsu bunri).

History of Shrine Architecture

In some periods of Japanese history, the very existence of shrines reflected their strongly political character. Deeply intertwined with the Japanese state since their founding, the Grand Shrines of Ise have been held in highest regard as politically-oriented or state shrines, and were the most complete group of shrines in the pre-Nara period. On the other hand, the shrine cult was also rooted in Japanese folk religion, but that folk religion was never entirely subsumed into shrine worship. Even today, a strong current of faith directed toward simple trees and rocks continues to exist, and minor wayside shrines (hokora or yashiro) continue to be built. Also, architectural styles developed independently at various shrines, but the trend has been for such styles to eventually become formalized and to remain relatively unchanged thereafter. Many shrines observe the custom of performing regular periodic re-buildings (often referred to as "removals," sengū) or restorations, and such systematic re-buildings have also been instrumental in preserving architectural styles. Finally, shrine architecture has seen periodic movements aimed at returning to ancient styles. This has occasionally resulted in a simplification of an architectural style that developed over time. In other cases, such as the enforced separation of kami and buddhas (shinbutsu bunri) in the modern period, the amalgamation or mixing of kami and buddhas (shinbutsu shūgō ) that had been commonplace throughout the ancient and medieval periods was repudiated. It should be noted that shinbutsu bunri did not first appear in the Meiji period; it was already present at the Grand Shrines of Ise in the Heian period, and it was practiced at ordinary shrines in certain regions during the Edo period as well.
The above hints at a substantial difference in the development of Shinto shrine architecture compared to that of Buddhist temples and houses, since the latter two experienced a relatively unilinear pattern of evolution. Ignoring that fact for a moment, the development of shrine architecture can be typified as progressing along two paths: first, an evolution from primitive to advanced structures paralleling technical and decorative advancements; and second, a development in the composition of shrine structures paralleling the evolution from a simple folk cult to Shinto as a more highly organized religious institution. However, such changes should not be understood as necessarily reflecting a contrast between different eras or old and new building styles.

Typology of Shrine Architecture

If one takes into consideratiuon the smallest wayside structures, the number of "shrines" in Japan is collosal. The majority of sanctuaries at shrines of mid- to small size shrines are built in either the nagare-zukuri or Kasuga-zukuri styles, including the misedana adaptations of those styles. For larger shrines, particularly those in the class of provincial first shrines (ichinomiya) or above, individual shrines tend to display unique building styles and arrangements. Such variety represents another significant departure from the architectural styles found in Buddhist temples and houses. The following is a description of the major architectural styles found at Shinto shrines:

(1) Primitive shrines without halls of worship (honden)

The shrine Ōmiwa Jinja in Sakurai, Nara Prefecture, is devoted to the divine mountain Miwa-san, and one area at the remote end of the Hall of Worship (haiden) is off limits from human entry. Mt. Miwa, called a shintaizan (kami-body-mountain), is one of numerous "divine mountains" found in various areas of Japan. Until the modern era, the shrine Isonokami Jingū also had a forbidden area at the rear of the haiden, but this area was surveyed in the Meiji period and a sanctuary (honden) was constructed in 1913.

(2) Shinmei-zukuri

An architectural style found at the Grand Shrines of Ise and its environs, its regional estates (mikuriya), areas where the Ise cult prevails, and shrine sanctuaries built throughout Japan since the Meiji period. Built of planed, unfinished woods, the style is characterized by a gabled roof, an entry constructed parallel to the ridge of the roof, a straight roofline without upward curvature at the eaves, linear construction, independent exterior pillars supporting the ridge board, chigi that cross at and extend past the ridge, and transverse sections of logs called katsuogi, placed at intervals along the ridge. These features stand in stark contrast to the Buddhist main hall (kondō) architecture introduced from China, which featured tile roofing, semigabled and hipped roofing, complicated interlocking corbels beneath the eaves, and colored decorations. The basic traditional elements of shinmei-zukuri derive from the form of Japanese architecture transmitted since the tumulus (Kofun) period (ca. 300-710 C.E.). While this makes it relatively "primitive" in form, the architectural design characterized by the Main Sanctuary (shōden) of the Grand Shrines of Ise is considered a pinnacle in architectural design, when judged by either ancient or modern criteria.

(3) Taisha-zukuri

A style found at the shrine Izumo Taisha and in its surrounding areas. Characteristics include gabled construction with entry at the gabled end. Features of the gable-end pillars and central "heart pillar" (shin no mihashira) suggest the archaic nature of the style. The honden of the Izumo Taisha, in particular, is an immense structure dwarfing the sanctuaries of other shrines even today, judging from Izumo myths and later legends, it was apparently even taller when first built. Records from the Heian period indicate that its height was 16 jō (about forty-eight meters). While design plans have been drawn to reconstruct the structure's original appearance, it appears somewhat unrealistic in scale.

(4) Sumiyoshi-zukuri

The style of the Sumiyoshi Taisha honden in Osaka. Characterized by gabled roof construction with entry on the gabled end, the building's interior is divided into two separate rooms, front and rear. The roofline is relatively linear and other details are simple, but pillars are painted vermilion and the walls are white. The overall shape of the sanctuary resembles the unadorned structures called yukiden and sukiden of the ritual palace (Daijōkyū) built on the occasion of an emperor's enthronement rites, but no direct influence between the two has been documented. The resemblance in styles, however, suggests that both styles are ancient.
The above styles are those that appeared before the Nara period. From the Nara to the Heian period, the rooves of shrines were generally curved.

(5) Nagare-zukuri ("Flowing Style")

This style is typified by the honden of the Upper and Lower Kamo shrines in Kyoto (today called the Kamo Wakeikazuchi and Kamo Mioya shrines). The style is characterized by gabled roof, entry on the long (non-gabled) side, with the roof on the entry side extending forward to form a swooping, full-width portico. The main part is called the moya, while the extended portico section is referred to either as a hisashi or kōhai. The scale of the building is determined by the number of equally spaced "bays" (intervals) between pillars on the entry side. For example, the Kamo shrine has three bays on the entry side, so its style is referred to as "three-bay nagare-zukuri" (sangensha nagare-zukuri). Nagare-zukuri is the most common style of shrine architecture, and can be found nationwide. In a modification of the style, a separate room is attached in front of the moya and covered by the kōhai. A derivative style features a three-bay main roof, but only a one-bay hisashi. This style is called kirizuma-zukuri.

(6) Kasuga-zukuri

A style represented by the shrine Kasuga Taisha in Nara, featuring gabled roof construction with building entry on the gabled end, with a pent roof extending to cover the entry stairway. Most shrines built in this style are the width of only a single bay at the gable ends (called ikkensha Kasuga-zukuri), but in rare instances a three-bay type may be found. Shrines built in this style are the next in frequency after the nagare-zukuri type, but are most concentrated in the greater Nara and central capital environs (Kinki region). When a diagonal rafter (sumigi) is added to help support the portico, the construction is called sumigi-iri Kasugazukuri. Further evolutions in the Kasuga-zukuri style include the irimoya-zukuri of the Kumano Hongū Shōjōden, but this style should probably be considered independently.

(7) Hachiman-zukuri

A style found at Usa Jingū, Iwashimizu Hachimangū and other Hachiman shrines, involving two linked structures arranged fore and aft, each with its own gabled roofs having an entry on the non-gabled side. The front structure is called the gaiden (outer sanctuary) and the rear structure is called the naiden (inner sanctuary). Together they form the honden (sanctuary) complex.

(8) Ryōnagare-zukuri ("Dual Nagare")

Here, the gabled structure of ordinary nagare-zukuri is modified with a full-width extended portico roof, not only on the front (entry) side but on the rear side as well. This style characterizes the sanctuaries at the main Itsukushima Jinja, and its auxiliary shrine (sessha) called Marōdosha, as well as the Matsuo Taisha in Kyoto and Munakata Taisha's shrine Hetsumiya in Fukuoka.

(9) Hiyoshi-zukuri

An unusual style represented by only three extant examples at the shrine Hiyoshi Taisha in Ōtsu. With a width of three bays on the long sides and two bays on the gabled ends, the structure has a main gabled roof extended in smaller flat portico roofs (similar to gambrel roofs, but with reversed pitch) on the front and two gable sides. On the rear side, the portico roof is curved at the gable ends, forming a distinctive contour. Also called Shōtai-zukuri.

(10) Irimoya-zukuri

A hip-and-gable style roof formed from a main gabled roof with the addition of full-width pent roofs on all four sides. From the medieval period, it became possible to construct roof styles without concern for specific floor plans, so that a sanctuary built with a hip-and-gable roof was called irimoya-zukuri, regardless of the floor plan involved. Typical examples include the sanctuaries of Mikami Jinja in Shiga Prefecture, and Kitano Tenmangū in Kyoto. At Kyoto's Yasaka Shrine, the sanctuary and hall of worship were originally two separate neighboring buildings, but in the Heian period, both were covered by a single hip-and-gable roof structure, resulting in the formation of an immense hip-and-gable sanctuary. The floor plan and exterior shape of the Yasaka Shrine are difficult to discriminate from Buddhist temple styles, and thus represent an extreme in the development of shrine architecture.

(11) Nakayama-zukuri

Found primarily around the city of Tsuyama in Okayama Prefecture, this shrine style is characterized by structures with three-bay frontal width, hip-and-gable roof design, and a recursive-gable portico on the gabled end. The name Nakayama is taken from its most striking example, the Nakayama Shrine.

(12) Ishinoma-zukuri, Gongen-zukuri

The style like that found at the shrine Kitano Tenmangū, where a hall of worship (haiden) is located in front of the sanctuary (honden), and the two are joined by a low, roofed passage called the ishi no ma (lit., "rock room"). This composite shrine structure was initially used in the late-medieval Toyokuni Shrine (dedicated to the warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi), leading to its later adoption at the Nikkō Tōshōgū as well. The style came to be called Gongen-zukuri since Tokugawa Ieyasu, the enshrined kami (saijin) at Tōshōgū was also referred to as "Tōshō Daigongen" ("Eastern Light Great Avatar"). It should be noted, however, that the term Gongen-zukuri is also sometimes extended to refer to any shrine style characterized by elaborate ornamentation.

(13) Owari-zukuri

A style typified by large shrines in the Owari (Nagoya) area and characterized by a composition of multiple structures within the shrine precincts, including (from front to back) gateway, hanpei (a screening fence), haiden, saimonden ("liturgy hall"), a passageway in the form of a yotsuashimon (a deep gabled gateway constructed by the addition of four additional supporting pillars in front and behind the central ridge-supporting pillars), tsuriwatarō (suspended passageway), and honden. From both sides of the saimonden, a veranda emerges to encircle the honden. Smaller shrines also frequently adopt an abbreviated form of the style. Extant shrines in this style include Ōagata Jinja, Owari Ōkunitama Jinja, and Tsushima Jinja.

(14) Misedana-zukuri

While conventional sanctuary architecture usually includes both a stairway on the front (approach) side and a railed veranda, the misedana ("showcase") style eliminates the stairway, and the veranda is reduced to a flat "shelf." Based on its appearance in the evolution of sanctuary architecture, the style would appear to be an earlier, less developed form. However, since it is normally used only for auxiliary shrines (sessha, massha) and other smaller or more minor shrines within the precincts, it is usually considered to be a simplified form of later developments. Most shrines in this style are found with nagare, Kasuga, or gabled roofs.
— Kuroda Ryūji

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Taisha-zukuri (Izumo Taisha)_Tsujimura Shinobu___2005****_Shimane Prefecture