Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
278
in creating the monument: Some 15,000 artists and craftspeople were brought to Nikko
from all over Japan, and after 2 years' work, they erected a group of buildings more
elaborate and gorgeous than any other Japanese temple or shrine. Rich in colors and
carvings, Toshogu Shrine is gilded with 2.4 million sheets of gold leaf (they could cover
an area of almost 2.4 ha/6 acres). The mausoleum was completed in 1636, almost 20
years after Ieyasu's death, and was most certainly meant to impress anyone who saw it as
a demonstration of the Tokugawa shogunate's wealth and power. The shrine is set in a
grove of magnificent ancient
Japanese cedars
planted over a 20-year period during the
1600s by a feudal lord named Matsudaira Masatsuna. Some 13,000 of the original trees
still stand, adding a sense of dignity to the mausoleum and shrine.
You enter Toshogu Shrine via a flight of stairs that passes under a huge stone torii
gateway, one of the largest in Japan. On your left is a five-story, 35m-high (115-ft.)
pagoda.
Although normally pagodas are found only at temples, this pagoda is just one
example of how Buddhism and Shintoism are combined at Toshogu Shrine. After climb-
ing a second flight of stairs, turn left and you'll see the
Sacred Stable,
which houses a
sacred white horse. Horses have long been dedicated to Shinto gods and are kept at
shrines. Shrines also kept monkeys as well, since they were thought to protect horses from
disease; look for the three monkeys carved above the stable door, fixed in the poses of “see
no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil”—they're considered guardians of the sacred horse.
Across from the stable is
Kami-Jinko,
famous for its carving by Kano Tanyu, who
painted the images of the two elephants after reading about them but without seeing
what they actually looked like.
The central showpiece of Nikko is
Yomeimon Gate,
popularly known as the Twilight
Gate, implying that it could take you all day (until twilight) to see everything carved on
it. Painted in red, blue, and green, and gilded and lacquered, this gate is carved with
about 400 flowers, dragons, birds, and other animals. It's almost too much to take in at
once and is very un-Japanese in its opulence, having more in common with Chinese
architecture than with the usual austerity of most Japanese shrines.
You can visit the shrine's main sanctuary,
Hai-den,
comprising three halls: One was
reserved for the Imperial family, one for the shogun, and one (the central hall) for con-
ducting ceremonies. You can buy good-luck charms here that will guard against such
misfortunes as traffic accidents, or that will ensure good health, success in business, easy
childbirth, or other achievements in daily life. To the right of the main hall is the
entrance to
Tokugawa
Ieyasu's mausoleum.
If it's not already included in your combi-
nation ticket, admission is ¥520 extra. After the ticket counter, look for the carving of a
sleeping cat above the door, dating from the Edo Period and famous today as a symbol
of Nikko (you'll find many reproductions in area souvenir shops). Beyond that are 200
stone steps leading past cedars to Tokugawa's tomb. After the riotous colors of the shrine,
the tomb seems surprisingly simple.
On the way out you'll pass
Yakushido,
famous for its dragon painting on the ceiling.
A monk gives a brief explanation (in Japanese only) and demonstrates how two sticks
struck together produce an echo that supposedly resonates like a bell. Twelve statues here
represent the Chinese zodiac calendar.
FUTARASAN SHRINE
Directly to the west of Toshogu Shrine is Futarasan Shrine
(
&
0288/54-0535
), the oldest building in the district (from 1617), which has a pleasant
garden and is dedicated to the gods of mountains surrounding Nikko. You'll find minia-
ture shrines dedicated to the god of fortune, god of happiness, god of trees, god of water,
and god of good marriages. On the shrine's grounds is the so-called
ghost lantern,
11
