The is the outer of two large entrance gates that ultimately leads to the
Sensō-jiis an ancient Buddhist temple located in Asakusa, Taitō, Tokyo. It is Tokyo's oldest temple, and one of its most significant. Formerly associated with the Tendai sect, it became independent after World War II...
(the inner being the
HōzōmonThe is the inner of two large entrance gates that ultimately leads to the Sensō-ji in Asakusa, Tokyo. A two-story gate, the Hōzōmon's second story houses many of the Sensō-ji's treasures. The first story houses two statues, three lanterns and two large sandals...
) in
Asakusais a district in Taitō, Tokyo, Japan, most famous for the Sensō-ji, a Buddhist temple dedicated to the bodhisattva Kannon. There are several more temples in Asakusa, as well as various festivals.- History :...
,
Tokyo, officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan and is located on the eastern side of the main island Honshū. The twenty-three special wards of Tokyo, each governed as a city, cover the area that was once the city of Tokyo in the eastern part of the prefecture, totaling over 8 million people....
. The gate, with its lantern and statues, is popular with tourists. It stands 11.7 m tall, 11.4 m wide and covers and area of 69.3 m
2.
The Kaminarimon was first built in 942 by
TairaThe was a major Japanese clan of samurai in historical Japan.In reference to Japanese history, along with Minamoto, Taira was a hereditary clan name bestowed by the emperors of the Heian Period to certain ex-members of the imperial family when they became subjects...
no Kinmasa. It was originally located near Komagata, but it was reconstructed in its current location in 1635.
The is the outer of two large entrance gates that ultimately leads to the
Sensō-jiis an ancient Buddhist temple located in Asakusa, Taitō, Tokyo. It is Tokyo's oldest temple, and one of its most significant. Formerly associated with the Tendai sect, it became independent after World War II...
(the inner being the
HōzōmonThe is the inner of two large entrance gates that ultimately leads to the Sensō-ji in Asakusa, Tokyo. A two-story gate, the Hōzōmon's second story houses many of the Sensō-ji's treasures. The first story houses two statues, three lanterns and two large sandals...
) in
Asakusais a district in Taitō, Tokyo, Japan, most famous for the Sensō-ji, a Buddhist temple dedicated to the bodhisattva Kannon. There are several more temples in Asakusa, as well as various festivals.- History :...
,
Tokyo, officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan and is located on the eastern side of the main island Honshū. The twenty-three special wards of Tokyo, each governed as a city, cover the area that was once the city of Tokyo in the eastern part of the prefecture, totaling over 8 million people....
. The gate, with its lantern and statues, is popular with tourists. It stands 11.7 m tall, 11.4 m wide and covers and area of 69.3 m
2.
History
The Kaminarimon was first built in 942 by
TairaThe was a major Japanese clan of samurai in historical Japan.In reference to Japanese history, along with Minamoto, Taira was a hereditary clan name bestowed by the emperors of the Heian Period to certain ex-members of the imperial family when they became subjects...
no Kinmasa. It was originally located near Komagata, but it was reconstructed in its current location in 1635. This is believed to be when the statues of Raijin and Fūjin were first placed on the gate. The gate has been destroyed many times throughout the ages. Four years after its relocation, the Kaminarimon burned down, and in 1649
Tokugawa IemitsuTokugawa Iemitsu was the third shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Hidetada, and the grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Iemitsu ruled from 1623 to 1651.-Early life :...
rebuilt the gate along with several other of the major structures in the temple complex. The Kaminarimon's current structure dates from 1960.
Features
Four statues are housed in the Kaminarimon. On the front of the gate, the statues of the
Shintoor kami-no-michi is the natural spirituality of Japan and the Japanese people. The word Shinto was adopted from the written Chinese , combining two kanji: , meaning gods or spirits ; and , or "do" meaning a philosophical path or study...
gods
Fūjinis the Japanese god of the wind and one of the eldest Shinto gods. He was present at the creation of the world and when he first let the winds out of his bag, they cleared the morning mists and filled the Gate between heaven and earth so the sun shone....
and
Raijinis a god of thunder and lightning in Japanese mythology. His name is derived from the Japanese words rai and shin...
are displayed. Fūjin, the god of wind, is located on the east side of the gate, while Raijin, the god of thunder and lightning, is located on the west side. Two additional statues stand on the reverse of the gate: the
BuddhistBuddhism, as traditionally conceived, is a path of salvation attained through insight into the ultimate nature of reality. It encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha...
god Tenryū on the east, and the goddess Kinryū on the west side.
In the center of the Kaminarimon, under the gate, hangs a giant red
chōchin that is 4 meters tall, 3.4 meters in circumference and weighs . Being very fragile, the lantern is not an original piece. It is instead a restoration that was donated in August 2003 in commemoration of the 400
th anniversary of the start of the
Edo periodThe , or , is a division of Japanese history running from 1603 to 1868 and is the premodern era. The period marks the governance of the Edo or Tokugawa shogunate, which was officially established in 1603 by the first Edo shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu. The period ended with the Meiji Restoration, the...
by
Konosuke Matsushitawas a Japanese industrialist, the founder of Panasonic, a company based in the suburb of Kadoma , Osaka in Japan. For many Japanese, he is known as "the god of management"...
, the founder of the Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. (now known as
PanasonicPanasonic is an international brand name for Japanese electric products manufacturer Panasonic Corporation Under this brand the company sells plasma and LCD display panels, DVD recorders and players, Blu-ray Disc players, camcorders, telephones, vacuum cleaners, microwave ovens, shavers,...
).
The front of the lantern displays the gate's name, . Painted on the back is the gate’s official name, . A wooden carving depicting a dragon adorns the bottom of the lantern.
During festivals such as
Sanja Matsuri, or Sanja Festival, is one of the three great Shinto festivals in Tokyo, along with the Kanda Matsuri and Sannō Matsuri. It is considered one of the wildest and largest. The festival is held in honor of Hinokuma Hamanari, Hinokuma Takenari and Hajino Nakatomo, the three men who established and...
, the lantern is collapsed to let tall objects pass through the gate.
The characters on the tablet above the lantern read from right to left and reference the Sensō-ji.