#Rurikoji Temple five-story pagoda

[bearbench-img]

ルリコウジゴジュウノトウ

「瑠璃光寺五重塔」は、山口県山口市にある瑠璃光寺（るりこうじ）の境内にある五重塔です。 瑠璃光寺は、719年に創建されたと伝えられる古刹で、山口市の中心部から少し離れた静かな場所に位置しています。この寺は、室町時代に大内氏の庇護を受けて栄え、現在の本堂や五重塔もこの時期に建てられました。 瑠璃光寺五重塔は、1442年に大内盛見によって建立されました。高さは約31メートルで、日本の国宝に��定されています。この五重塔は、京都の醍醐寺三宝院の五重塔をモデルとして建てられたと言われており、室町時代の代表的な五重塔として知られています。

手抜きイラスト集

[dailykikou]

1月に山口に出張した。今回は初めて新幹線に広島の西方へ乗った。第一日目、山口市へ行った。新山口で普通車に乗り換えた。20分ぐらい山口駅にかかる。山口市が山に取り巻かれてる。これは県庁所在地であるのに、県の最大の市ではない。九州の近い下関と海岸の宇部はもっと大きくて、人口がもっと多い。

4時まで自分で観光できた。先に瑠璃光寺へ行った。駅から30分が歩いてかかった。天気は曇りであった。この写真を撮った後で雨が降ってきた。最良ではなかった。京都のらしい、瑠璃光寺の五重塔は大切で、歴史的なのである。市役所を通って、山口大神宮に着ける。現代、神社もお寺は互いを影響する。この神宮は古い型で保存してる。例えば、神宮で人々が立てる場はない。どこかで書いてあると思う。何かちょうど違って、わからない。美術館にも行きたかったけど、リフォームさせてた。1月中にたくさん観光所はこんな具合であるでしょう。

雨だから、スタバに入って、アメリカの味のジンジャーブレッドラテを飲んで、手紙を書いた。一泊のホストマザーは山口の中にスタバ3つだけがあるといった。ちょっとびっくりした。首都圏の中ならスタバは無数である。さいたまの大宮の辺に５つを見つけられる！田舎の県違うなあ。

次の日、ホストと他の場へ行った。その話を後日に投稿する。

写真：瑠璃光寺五重塔　2020.1

[yumakobayashi-blog]

Travel to Yamaguchi (visited in March, 2013 and March, 2017)

Travel Tips on Blogger 

[hb-wherethelostthingsgo]

Every weekend Jamie and I try to discover something new in Japan, be that close to home or a little further away. We’ve managed to see some incredible things, we’ve: been to Mount Aso and stood within 1km of the active volcano’s crater; found hidden waterfalls within the mountains of Kyushu; discovered shrines and temples throughout Japan and explored just a few of Japan’s intriguing cities. This weekend we went to Hofu and Yamaguchi city which are both in Yamaguchi prefecture (where we live). For some reason finding beautiful places and tourist spots in Yamaguchi is surprising for me. Everyone I work with tells me that Yamaguchi doesn’t have many special sights or beautiful locations and many of my students ask me why I chose to come to this area of Japan. So naturally I assume there isn’t that much to do or see in the surrounding areas other than beaches and mountains. Everyone was wrong, however, Yamaguchi is full of beautiful places and historical areas. I guess it’s natural for people to play down the beauty of the area they’re from. I know that I do when talking about Nottinghamshire, even though there are beautiful areas and stately homes throughout Nottingham, I still don’t really see it as a tourist spot. Anyway, Yamaguchi is where many of the Prime Ministers of Japan throughout history were born, including the current Prime Minister Abe. It has very dramatic landscapes due to it’s proximity to the Seto inland sea, islands are scattered along the coast and tall mountains covered in deep green forests frame the mainland. In Hofu there is a very famous shrine called Tenmangu, it is dedicated to Tenjin who, in Shinto religion, is the god of scholars. To reach the shrine you must walk up about 70 steps (this is very typical of shrines and temples in Japan), and as you reach the top you can see the bright red walls of the shrine. We spent about an hour walking around the peaceful gardens and exploring the smaller shrines around the main building. We then went to Yamaguchi City, to a temple called Rurikoji, this is a Buddhist temple, and is well-known for its five-story pagoda that was built in 1442. In front of the pagoda is a pond filled with white, orange, red and black koi, it was such a clear and bright day that you could see the pagoda’s reflection on the water and it was as though the koi were swimming in the sky, encircling the tall structure. It’s nice to be surprised by places so close to home, and there’s still so much to discover.

[suwandic]

Saw this happy kids with their mom visiting extremely peaceful Rurikoji Temple complex which is part of Kozan Park in The city of Yamaguchi. The Temple is most famous for its Five-Storied Pagoda built in 1442. This pagoda is one of the three greatest and most important Pagoda alongside the one in Horyuji Temple near Nara and Daigoji Temple in Kyoto. #瑠璃光寺 #Rurikoji #Temple #香山公園 #KozanKoen #瑠璃光寺五重塔 #Yamaguchi #山口 #Buddhist #日本 #Japan #Travel #Nature #Landscape #Panorama #lppostcardsurbanadventures #lppathfinders #lonelyplanet #cnnireport #cnntravel #bbctravel #earthcapture #Pagoda #natgeo #iamtraveler #tlpicks #autumn (at 瑠璃光寺五重塔)

[twosecondstreet]

At the start of autumn, I found myself down in Yamaguchi city, on the southern part of the main island of Japan. I was exhausted and unable to motivate myself to do an insane travel schedule to see the nearby limestone caves, so instead, I decided to go to one of the top three temples in all of Japan: Rurikoji.

Goju-No-To Pagoda

Rurikoji is famous for its five-tiered pagoda, which is made completely from wood and has been standing proud for hundreds of years, having first been built in 1442. As you enter the temple grounds, the pagoda stands to your right. There is a tranquil pond and small park area connected to the temple grounds, making for an enjoyable stroll and relaxing environment.

Temple Shops

Temple shops provide a great way to support the temple while getting yourself a nice souvenir. Rurikoji had these nice flower charms that corresponded to the months of the year. For November, my birth month, it was a Chrysanthemum. For June, my wife’s birth month, it was a Japanese Lily. Buying charms and figures from temples directly supports their operation costs. At Rurikoji, because the pagoda is a valued natural treasure, the temple itself foots 5% of the restoration and upkeep costs. This adds up quickly when you consider the pagoda has to be reroofed every 30 years.

The temple shop proved to be a great source of information as well. The priest who was manning the shop handed me a paper, which was an interview with the chief priest of the temple compiled and translated into English by the Noda High School Translate Club. You can feel the sense of pride the chief priest feels for the pagoda. It has a rich history which draws close to 1,000 visitors every day. I was very appreciative of this information, so if anyone from the Noda High School Translate Club is reading, thank you! I will end this post with a quote from the interview by the chief priest himself:

“I do hope you feel the beauty of the gentle lines of the five-story pagoda and the balance between this temple and nature.”

Rurikoji Temple At the start of autumn, I found myself down in Yamaguchi city, on the southern part of the main island of Japan.

[scottish-curators-to-japan]

Day 15

Together with Keijiro, I went to Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media [YCAM]. This humongous institution dedicates to new media art and its development and popularisation through their diverse programme. They have residency programme which is not based on open calls but through direct appointments by curators. We met Asumi Kitahori (Coordinator) and Richi Owaki (Engineer/Artist) and they very kindly took us to a quick tour in YCAM. As well as the scale and quality of the facilities and programmes, I was impressed with their dedication, knowledge and passion towards new media art and their possibility. Then we visited Unkoku-an, replica of the studio of Sesshu, followed by Rurikoji Temple, still surviving five-story pagoda built in 1471. Utterly beautiful tower, which is listed as one of the National Treasures.  To end of our day, I visited the members of YICA, Yamaguchi Institute of Contemporary Arts. To mark the 20th anniversary of YICA, they are busy preparing to develop an archive of the publications that we have made. We exchanged some ideas and thoughts to develop new projects between Yamaguchi and Scotland into the future... Of course over some lovely local food and sake!!   

Next door to YCAM is City Library - spacious and nice!

Unkoku-an, Sesshu’s studio

Stone monument says ‘Xavier Park’ 

Rurikoji Temple