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Rokudô-e Pictures as Central Worship Images – Using the Rokudô-shaku to Read and Understand the Shôju-raigôji Version Rokudô-e
Get PDFThe Shôju-raigôji [聖衆来迎寺] version Rokudô-e (referred to here as the Shôju-raigôji version) -- a monumental presence within the rokudô-e pictorial form established in the Kamakura period -- is particularly massive in scale, consisting of a set of 15 hanging scrolls. The set further contains numerous shikishi-format [色紙形] cartouches noting the essential elements of Genshin’s Ôjô yôshû [往生要集], which can be called the source text for rokudô-e iconography. Thus, the Shôju-raigôji version is positioned as a core element of the historical development of rokudô-e iconography over Japan’s medieval period. That said, how was this set of scrolls actually used in ritual spaces?
In this article I considered this question in terms of the relationship between the Nijûgo zanmai-e [二十五三昧会] ritual, which can be called the ritual practice of the Ôjô yôshû, and the Nijûgo zanmai-shiki [二十五三昧式] (or the Rokudô-shaku [六道釈] and Rokudô-kôshiki [六道講式] formed from the Rokudô chapter of that text). As part of this process, I transcribed and introduced three volumes, namely: 1) scroll 1 of the Ninnaji [仁和寺] version Rokudô-shaku; 2) scroll 1 of the Shôren’in [青蓮院] version Rokudô kôshiki; and 3) scroll 1 of the Rokudô-shiki said to have been handed down in Tosotsudani [都率谷] and recorded in the Gyôzan sôsho [魚山叢書]. Through the analysis of these texts, I then considered the connection between the Shôju-raigôji version iconography and inscription texts and that version’s historical background, including its creation, transmission and legacy.
The Ninnaji version Rokudô-shaku was the ritual text used for a Nijûgo zanmai ritual conducted by Fujiwara Motofusa [藤原基房] in 1225. The noteworthy feature of this Ninnaji version is the fact that while it is based on the commonly used Nijûgo zan-shiki (Rokudô kôshiki), it adds some individualistic interpretations, particularly its detailed explanation of the Shiku Hakku [四苦八苦] aspect of the suffering aspect of the human path, a feature which resonates with the iconography depicted in the Shôju-raigôji version. This Ninnaji version Rokudô-shaku repeatedly exhorts a single practitioner it calls “we” [我等] to consider the suffering of the six “paths” and thus pray for all sentient beings to shed suffering and attain enlightenment. If we then refer to the Shôju-raigôji version -- which is a visualization of the six paths in the form of rokudô-e with the added element of the King Yama [閻魔王] precinct -- we can see that such visualizations are an effective medium for considering one’s own suffering on the six paths in order to save both self and others. Further, the transcriber of the Ninnaji version, Han-e [範恵], is thought to have been a great grandson of Agui Chôken [安居院澄憲], and thus it is possible that the Ninnaji version text draws from the Agui Chôken Rokudô-shaku lineage. The Shôju-raigôji version, which reveals a close connection to the Ninnaji verison, can thus also be surmised to have been formulated on the basis of the accumulation of conversion rituals conducted by Agui.
Scroll 1 of the Shôren’in version Rokudô kôshiki is thought to have been compiled by Shôren’in priests as memorial offerings for Shingen [真玄], the head priest responsible for Shôju-raigôji’s middle period resurgence, and thus we can surmise connection between the Shôren’in version and the history of Shôju-raigôji. The Rokudô kôshiki consists of a three section kôshiki ritual written by Jien [慈円] (1155-1225) on the basis of the Rokudô-shaku held for the Nijûgo zanmai rituals conducted during the Jôkyû Disturbance [承久の乱], which in turn Jien then continued for his own Nijûgo zanmai rituals; and those memories were then handed on and continued. The Nijûgo zanmai rituals held by Jien marked the beginning of Kamakura period Nijûgo zanmai practices which were then inherited and continued. I next indicated that after the Shôrein’in version Rokudô kôshiki followed the above-described historical process, the Shôju-raigôji version Rokudô-e was created in the late Kamakura period as a new religious iconography based on the context of the Nijûgo zanmai rituals. I then further explained how such practices were handed down and continued at Shôju-raigôji in the late Muromachi period.
The Rokudô shiki contained in the Shôrin’in [勝林院] version Gyôzan sôsho is a transcription dated 1585, which has been handed down as the "source ritual" in Tosotsudani. Ryôzen’in [霊山院] and Kedai’in [華台院] are located in Tosotsudani, Yokawa, Mt. Hiei, and of the many Rokudô-shaku versions, it is the text handed down in the place geographically closest to the Shôju-raigôji version Rokudô-e. Both its interpretation and context resonate with that of the Ninnaji version Rokudô-shaku, while also developing its own interpretations. Given its abbreviated version of the human path section which is one of the characteristic Ninnaji version features, and its extremely abstracted expression, overall the Shôrin’in version displays a highly general-purpose nature. Another noteworthy aspect of the Shôrin’in version is the addition of a section after the Rokudô-shaku urging reflection on the part of the congregation and listeners, thus indicating that it is a text aware of actual Nijûgo zanmai ritual practices.
In this manner, the actual site of Nijûgo zanmai practices that developed along with Agui’s explanations of the Buddhist teachings and Jien’s revival of the Nijûgo zanmai were visualized in the medieval period through the interpretation and mutual referencing of the Ninnaji version Rokudô-shaku, the Shôren’in version Rokudô kôshiki, and the Tosotsudani version (Shôrin’in version) Rokudô-shaku. We can then posit that if rokudô-e were physically positioned within those ritual spaces, then the rokudô-e was considered iconography that functioned as the central worship image for such a ritual. It stood as a personification of the ritual context in which the practitioner would consider the six paths under confessions to the King Yama; develop a heart that desires escaping the pain of the real world, and with other practitioners, aim to be mutually reborn as spiritual guides or spiritual friends and extend that merit to all living beings within the six paths. Thus, I suggest that the Shôju-raigôji version Rokudô-e should not be considered simply as explanatory pictures for illustrated preaching sessions, but rather, should be seen as the Nijûgo zanmai ritual central worship image that was created from this historical sequence of circumstances and events.journal articl
Early Meiji-era Music Performers of Kabuki in Tokyo: Towards an Understanding of Theatrical Appearances and Co-performance Relationships
Get PDFHayashi-kata (music performers), who are in charge of musical staging of Japanese performing arts Kabuki, are indispensable to the performance itself; yet they have not been the primary focus of documentation. As a basis for clarifying the actual state of ensembles that were often lumped together as 'the hayashi performers', this paper extracts and analyses name lists from historical sources in the early Meiji-era (1868-1896). From Kabuki playbills (banzuke) and music direction memoranda (hayashi-tsukechō), I have been able to find a total of 1,958 names from 81 different performances in the period under study. In particular, when examining narimono players (percussionists and flutists), new aspects have been found in their theatrical appearances and co-performances in the early Meiji-era, which would have played an important role in the formation of current Kabuki tradition. It can be pointed out that these points reflect the changing power relations of the theatres in Tokyo. There is still much work to be done, including more detailed consideration of ensemble groups including singing and shamisen, as well as the relationship between the music performers and the actors who employed them.departmental bulletin pape
Medieval Handscrolls on Demons and Deities Themes:Hekija-e, Kandô no oni and a Fragment of Another Handscroll
Get PDFThe Hekija-e (NT, Extermination of Evil, Nara National Museum) consists of handscroll fragments formerly owned by Masuda Takashi, with five fragments extant today: Tengyosei (God of Heavenly Punishment), Sendan Kendatsuba (Candana Gandharva), Shinchû (the Divine Insect), Shôki (Zhongkui) and Bishamonten (Vaisravana). Since Kobayashi Taichirô stated that they were Chinesederived images for banishing evil, the traditional view is that the subject presents beneficial deities who protect people from all manner of harmful demons and malevolent deities. Given the fact that it was handed down with the Shamon Jigoku Scrolls (Hell for Priests Scrolls), some have also suggested a connection with the Rokudo-e housed in the Rengeo-in treasure house of retired emperor Go-shirakawa.
The Kandô no oni (Fukuoka City Museum of Art) is a fragment of a handscroll depicting the tale of demons quelled by Bishamonten, and the closeness of its text calligraphy style to that of the Hekija-e has been noted. This article introduces a newly discovered section of text (private collection) with similar calligraphy, analyzes the iconography in each of the Hekija-e fragments, and attempts a new comparison with related works. The author determined that the newly discovered text fragment is not connected to the Hekija-e or Kandô no oni fragments and that it was produced in a different process than that of Kandô no oni. Thus it is difficult to consider that it is from the same set of scrolls as the Hekija-e fragments. However, this separate production indicates that numerous handscrolls on the theme of demons and deities were produced in an environment close to that of a series of Rokudo-e pictures.
Thus, I would like to consider anew the production background for handscrolls on demons and deities themes. In the Hekija-e, the overall composition is drawn in warm tones, to further highlight the fearsomeness and difference of the beneficial deities who kill the bad demons and deities of disease shown in faintly drawn cool tones. Further, what is the source of the bold composition which shows Gozutennô, protector of the royal castle, hanging upside down. The Hekija-e texts expose the suffering of existence from the standpoint of evil demons and deities of disease. This suffering is close to the discourse in the founding legend of the Kawasaki Kannon, which states that Gozutennô said that he is not the poison giver and that sickness is retribution for the evil acts and sins of the masses. Demons and deities are presences that, in the same way as people, seek to escape the cycle of birth and death, and being killed by beneficial deities is an essential process that allows them to escape the cycle of rebirth.
Apart from the handscroll's Buddhist and Taoist religious meaning, the handscroll may have been created to visualize evil demons and sick gods that were originally invisible to the eye. In other words, the principle purpose of the handscroll was to show what happens to demons and evil gods after spells and practices are performed to subdue them.
We can surmise an environment that fulfilled a number of essential factors towards such production in the Hekija-e production background, particularly the presence of a painter who could give life to the otherwise still forms of the distinctive iconography brought from the Asian continent. When we consider that the existence of the Shamon Jigoku notably close in style to the calligraphy of the text sections of the Hekija-e, and the Sôgen-ji version Gaki zoshi, notably close in style to the painting on the Hekija-e, then it is probably highly likely that they are works produced from the same production environment as the group of related handscrolls thought to be those from Go-shirakawa’s treasure storehouse.journal articl
Molecular Identification of Bamboo-Boring Beetles from Frass by PCR Amplification
Get PDFBamboo has been utilized since ancient times as part of buildings, arts and crafts, tools for classical and folk performing arts, and musical instruments, and there are many Asian cultural properties made of bamboo. However, when bamboo used for a cultural property is damaged by bamboo-boring beetles, it is difficult to maintain it in good condition. An ideal measure would include identification of the bamboo-boring beetles that are actually feeding on bamboo, application of the best control methods based on the ecological information of the pests, and utilization of conservation methods appropriate to each situation to prevent damage by bamboo-boring beetles. The presence of bamboo-boring beetles can be inferred by visually observing the presence of escape holes in the material and the presence of frass in the vicinity. It would be a very effective identification system if the species of bamboo-boring beetles could be identified from their escape holes and frass.
In the present study, five major species of insects boring bamboo in Japan ― Lyctus africanus, Lyctoxylon dentatum, Chlorophorus annularis, Dinoderus minutus, and Purpuricenus temminckii ― were selected. The species of the insect samples were identified based on the morphological characteristics. Their COI gene sequences were determined and registered, and specific primers were selected to amplify each COI gene in PCR amplification in order to set up an effective system to specifically identify the target insects. It was found that it is possible to identify the species of bamboo-boring beetles using molecular biological methods by the DNA extraction from frass obtained at cultural property buildings and containing many unknown insects, substances, and contaminants. Finally, the development of the system to identify bamboo-boring beetles from frass made it possible to detect the species without capturing adult insects and is very important for grasping insect damage of cultural properties at an early stagejournal articl
Performance Evaluation of a Hyperspectral Camera for the Two-dimensional Spectroscopic Analysis of Cultural Objects
Get PDFFor the conservation and utilization of cultural properties, scientific investigations play an important role in determining their materials, structure, and state of deterioration. For this purpose, analytical methods that are non-invasive, compatible with a wide variety of chemicals, and easily interpretable are necessary. In recent years, hyperspectral imaging has emerged as a promising measurement method for the restoration of cultural properties and the analysis of materials. The combination of position and spectral information offers many possibilities for material characterization. The present reports the results of basic experiments to evaluate the performance of the hyperspectral camera and to set up the analysis conditions. The content of the basic experiment is to evaluate the spatial resolution, the analyzable wavelength range, and the validity of the reflection spectra.
According to the results of the investigation of the viewing range and the obtained visible images at different distances, it was found that the distance between the material and the camera should be no more than 55 cm for investigations that require discrimination of sizes as small as 1 mm. From the results of measurements using a white plate with a reflectance of 95%, reliable reflection spectra can be obtained between 400 nm and 1000 nm. As a result of evaluating the validity of the reflectance spectra of the commercial pigments obtained by the hyperspectral camera, it was found that the spectra were mostly consistent with the reflectance spectral data of the materials reported in previous studies in the visible light region. In addition, the spectral information in the near-infrared region obtained in this study supplements the research results.journal articl
Restoration Report: Battle between the Genji and Heike Clans (Back Side: Sparrows in a Bamboo Grove, Historisches Museum Bern) : Revised edition
Get PDF初版の出版日:2012-10. First edition October, 2012.boo
