Styles of Shinto shrines (arts of Japan cycle)

The heart of every sanctuary is without doubt honden. It is always built in one of the traditional styles, although the word “style” has different meaning than in the case of European architecture. Normally there is no connection between a style and the time when the building was built. Most of the styles were used very long ago, but it is difficult to date any because of the custom of regular rebuilding. In theory the new building should be an exact copy of the previous one, but we know that the sanctuary of Izumo Taisha changed its size, whereas in Ise Jingu we know that brass fittings have been added during Meiji era and removed after the last war. We know this about the most important sanctuaries, the less important ones could have been changed, but we know nothing about it. The difference between styles is more akin to the difference between basilica and hall churches. A honden always has a gabled roof, but the entry can be either from the gable wall, or from the eaves wall.

ROOF TRUSS

Taisha-zukuri seems to be the oldest in the first group. The best example of it is Izumo Taisha in Shimane prefecture in western Japan. Honden in Izumo Taisha is a building on a roughly square plan, on high stilts, with a gabled roof covered with a thatch. A characteristic feature of this style is a pole going through the centre of the gable wall and supporting a ridge pole. The door is not in the centre but on a side of this pole. The floor is quite high above the earth so stairs are needed to get there. These are in front of the door (which means they are not in the centre) and have a separate roof above it. There is a balustraded balcony around the building, the roof is slightly curved and on the very top of the roof there are three short beams across the ridge (they are called katsuogi) and two wooden crosses (called chiigi). Izumo Taisha has been rebuilt several times, last time in 1744. In the town of Matsue in the same prefecture stands a sanctuary built in the same style, called Kamosu Taisha, whose last rebuilding took place in 1346. There is one feature in Kamosu that is significantly different: the poles supporting the ridge pole are not incorporated into the gable wall, but placed outside. Considering the dates, we are entitled to suppose that Kamosu represents the earlier version of that style. The construction is very different not only from the one used in Europe, but also in Japan from the time when Buddhism was introduced. A house in taisha style is built like an old-fashioned tent: first you fix the ridge pole, then the rest is built around it. Beams of the roof truss rest on the ridge pole, not the ridge pole being supported by truss.

YEARLY MONSOON

The taisha style seems to be very archaic. It appears to be a reminiscence of not only pre-Buddhist times, but of the times before the builders arrived in the Japanese archipelago. The main argument to support this theory is a fact that Japan experiences snowy winters, houses have to be heated and houses on high stilts are not very practical here. As scholars looked for analogies, they found on Ryûkyû islands granaries on stilts used until quite recent times. There are also analogies much more distant in space. On Sulawesi island, among the Toraja people, houses are built with a pillar supporting a ridge pole standing outside the gable wall. These houses are also built on stilts, which there is not impractical at all: the yearly monsoon causes regular floods, whereas houses do not need to be heated at any time. In Japan this style of building come out of use long ago, now only houses for gods are built like that. Gods, as is well known, do not need any heating.

SRAIGHT ROOFS

Doors in the gable wall are also in the style called sumiyoshi-zukuri, the example of which is Sumiyoshi Taisha in Ôsaka. In this style the door is in the gable wall, but placed centrally, so there is no pillar supporting the ridge pole. Sumiyoshi Taisha is supposed to have been built by empress Jingû in 3^rd century AD. It shows many archaic features, like straight roofs (both Izumo Taisha and Kamosu Taisha have slightly curved roofs, which is considered Chinese influence introduced in one of the rebuildings). There is also no balcony around the building and no separate roof over the stairs. The stairs are not very big, as the floor is just above the ground. On the top of the roof there are katsuogi logs across the ridge pole and chigi crosses, purely for decoration here. The present buildings are relatively new, as they have been rebuilt regularly, and are painted white and red. In front of each honden (there are 4 of them) there is a haiden, or hall of priestly offerings, built in a much later style.

RED PAINT

Simmei zukuri, one of the shrines in Ise

Kasuga-zukuri is the style in which Kasuga Taisha in Nara has been built. It also has a door in the gable wall. Sanctuaries in this style are smaller so the door covers the whole façade. Roofs are slightly curved. There are a few steps before the door and an extra roof over the steps. Chigi and katsuogi are not always there. In Kasuga Taisha there are four shrines for four deities worshipped by the Fujiwara family. Wherever the same deities are worshipped, there are four sanctuaries standing next to each other, but this is not the integral part of the style; there are also single sanctuaries in kasuga-zukuri. Kasuga Taisha has been built in Nara times, but the last rebuilding was in 1863. A small sanctuary Kasuga-dô next to Enjô-ji near Nara is older, the present building dates from 12^th century. For some reason most of the shrines in this style are painted in red.

BRASS FITTINGS

Kasuga zukuri, one of the shrines of Fushimi Inari Taisha

In the second group of sanctuaries, with the door in the eaves wall, shimmei-zukuri seems to be the oldest. The sanctuaries of Ise Jingu are built in this style. According to the tradition, Naiku shrine, where Sun is worshipped, was built in the 3^rd century AD. It is being rebuilt every 20 years, so the present buildings are quite new. In theory the new version is the exact copy of the old building, but we know that in the Meiji era new brass fittings were added, only to be taken down after the last war. What other small changes could have been introduced earlier, we don't know. Nevertheless the buildings standing now are just as archaic as taisha-zukuri: the floor is raised on relatively tall stilts, a pillar supporting the ridge pole is standing outside the gable wall, and truss beams are longer than the roof and piercing the thatch stick out above it. In this style the name chigi applies to those beams that stick out above the thatch. The katsuogi, the logs that lie across the ridge pole, here appear as weights keeping the thatch in place (which would mean that they have a practical function, not only symbolic). Roofs are straight and the whole is made from unpainted wood. This clearly archaic style, raw wood of the buildings and the whole thing being placed in the wood of ancient cedars – all make an impression that the place is very old. However, the buildings are quite new. The oldest shrine in this style, Nishina Shimmei Jinja in Nagano prefecture, is not very old either, last rebuilding dates from 1636. There are buildings older than this in nagare-zukuri, even though the style itself is considered younger.

SMALL CHAPELS

Nagare zukuri, a shrine in Uji

In nagare-zukuri the door is also in the eaves wall and the roof is curved, which is crucial, because the sides are not equal: the roof over the door is longer, sometimes twice as long. It protects not only the stairs, but also some area in front. Thre are sometimes (though not always) chigi and katsuogi, purely decorative. This is the most common style especially of small chapels, but not only. As a model for this style served two sanctuaries of Kamo Jinja in Kyôto, though they were rebuilt in 1863. There is, however, a sanctuary of Ujigami in Uji, built in the 11^th century and never rebuilt.

IDENTICAL HOUSES

Sanctuaries dedicated to the god of the bushi are usually built in the style called hachiman-zukuri. They look like two identical houses joined at the eaves. The front building is actually a hall of priestly offerings, the back building is the actual sanctuary. The model for this style is the sanctuary of Usa Hachiman-gû on Kyûshû island. It was built there in 708, but the present buildings are much younger, the last rebuilding took place in 1855.

TWO TRANSEPTS

Tokugawa Ieyasu was supposedly an incarnation (gongen in Japanese) of a war deity, so a sanctuary was built to him in Nikkô. It was in the style called gongen-zukuri. It was not the earliest building in this style. A model for the style is Kita-no Temman-gû in Kyôto, which was originally built in 947 for Sugawara Michizane, who (as was decided after his death) was also an incarnation. In this style honden and heiden are joined with a wide corridor, covered with a separate roof. Using Western terms, the corridor looks like a nave and heiden and honden look like two transepts. The roof of the corridor is continued over the façade and forms a little pediment.

SOUND OF CICADAS

Gongen zukuri, a shrine in Matsumoto

Apart from the styles described above there are others, used less often, there are also sanctuaries built in a style of their own, not seen elsewhere. In most sanctuaries, regardless of style, there is a tendency to use nature to add to the aesthetic effect. Even in the middle of a city wooden buildings stand among ancient trees. As a rule there is silence there, broken only by sound of steps on a gravel path and (in summer) noise of cicadas among trees. If this is impossible, there is at least a hedge around a city chapel. In a Shintô sanctuary one does not have to be a believer to feel some inexplicable Presence. This aesthetic power of a sanctuary is the only power of this religion.

AWARENESS OF PRESENCE

Shintô is a religion without any sacred scriptures, ethical system, theology. The oldest chronicle of Japan, called Kojiki, is not a sacred text. At least it is written in old Japanese, the next oldest chronicle, called Nihongi, is written in Chinese. Both are basically historical texts glorifying the ruling dynasty. Both cite old myths, especially those which confirm divine origin of the ruling dynasty, but there are no instruction what to do in life. There is no imperative to read them regularly or spread them among others. Some people do consider them sacred, but they don't have status anywhere near as important as among the believers have the Bible, Koran or Vedas. There are no scriptures that would contain any commandments or prohibitions, there is no ethical system. There is an idea of “purity of heart”, but it is by no means clear what it means. Perhaps every human should know what to do and what not to do. There is no theology ether, no writings on what kami (deities or gods) are, no definitions or proofs. There are, however, certain expectations. These are not saving the soul, nothing about afterlife; the expectations are about here and now. No divinity is omnipotent, but they are expected to somehow influence one's destiny. These expectations can be quite specific: a childless couple will give offerings in a sanctuary of a fertility goddess (or god for that matter; a phallic symbol will be in a shrine of a male god, I guess), a poet with ambitions will ask a patron of poets for help. This is, however, always unspecified protection. The most important thing is the Presence, the Divine Presence among people, especially in the sanctuary especially prepared for this purpose.

LANGUAGE AND ATTIRE

There are no sacred scriptures, no doctrines, no theology; Shintô is passed on from one generation to another by ritual only. Beginning of Shintô ritual reach prehistory. The ancient language and the attire of priests that appears dating from Heian times suggest that it was finally formed in that epoch.

ANTICS OF HOOLIGANS

Interior of the shrine in Matsumoto. 
An exposed brass mirror is visible.

It is by no means a dead ritual, it is being lived today by millions of people. For the Japanese it plays the role similar to the holy book for Christians or Muslims. The excesses of the last war, like sending young pilots to a certain death, were antics of a bunch of hooligans that had as much common with Shintô as – say – pogroms of Jews with Christianity. The spirit of Shintô is an undercurrent of Japanese culture in all its history. Buddhist temples, which in China are often built of stone and not very clean, in Japan are almost always wooden and spotlessly clean, with gravel paths around. Tea ceremony, which in China uses elaborate utensils, in Japan becomes dramatically simple. And maybe a lack of progress in propagating Christianity in modern times has something to do with Japanese understanding of holiness: huge pseudo-gothic churches, where one enters in shoes like to a railway station (a Japanese takes his or her shoes off even entering his or her own house), do not appear as places where divine presence could be found.

The creators of the ritual must have seen the effect it had on their contemporaries. I wonder whether they foresaw how durable it would be. 

A shinto priest in ceremonial robes.