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Murooji, Murō-ji 室生寺 Muro-Ji
Murō-ji is a temple of Omoto school of Shingon Buddhism, located in the city of Uda, Nara, Japan.
Murō-ji shows its typical aspect of Shingon Buddhism, with its buildings laid on the mountainside of Mount Murō (室生山, Murō-yama).
Unlike many temples of the time, Murō-ji was opened to females. For that reason, the temple is also called Mount Kōya for women.
While legend has it that the temple was opened by En no Gyōja by order of Emperor Temmu, later restored by Kūkai, an extant record kept by the temple, Murō-ji ryaku engi (室生寺略縁起), tells that a successful ritual in respect of a ryūjin to cure Prince Yamabe's (later to become Emperor Kammu made the imperial court order a monk of Kōfuku-ji named Kenkyō (賢璟) to construct a temple on the site. The construction of the temple was taken over by a pupil monk Shūen (修円), after Kenkyō's death in 793.
Among the buildings that remain from the ninth century is the five-storied pagoda, which is the smallest of the kind standing in the open air. The pagoda suffered major damage in a 1998 typhoon, when a falling tree struck it. It was restored over the following two years.
In Edo period, the temple buildings were repaired by donation of Keishō-in, mother of Tokugawa Tsunayoshi.
About a kilometer east of the temple is located Ryūketsu Shrine, enshrining the ryūjin (Dragon Deity).
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !
the famous Kannon statue of the temple - 室生寺 観音
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source : taipa.tea-nifty.com/blog
quote
Muro-ji temple
Muroji (or Murouji / Murou-ji) temple is one of Nara's best temples, an absolute gem. Yet due to its location it is one that very few foreign visitors to Nara have the opportunity to see. If you have the chance to visit - grasp it! Located in Murou village in the Uda district of Nara Prefecture. Constructed in the Enryaku era (780 - 805), Muroji stands in a mountain valley, buried in the midst of large cryptomeria groves.
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Depending on the season, the Kondo (Main Hall) which stands at the top of Muroji's long stone stairway presents the visitor with a variety of elegant and graceful expressions, set against a backdrop of vivid greens in spring and summer, or blazing reds and yellows in autumn. The Mirokudo Hall houses such works as the seated Shaka Nyorai figure, an absolute masterpiece exemplifying the distinctive flavor of early 9th-century Buddhist art. Instead of bronze statues that were common in the Asuka and Nara period, the statues in Muro-ji were carved beuatifully from wood.
The early Heian Period marked an era in which temples relocated into the mountains from the plains. There is also evidence that the architecture was beginning to return to a more traditional style of construction. Lack of open spaces compared to the Asuka and Nara periods not only discouraged large symmetrical plans, but also made the buildings themselves smaller. Muroji exhibits a main hall that is decidedly smaller in scale compared to anything from the previous eras. It is believed that the original structure was even smaller because the enclosed porch appears to be a later addition. The pagoda itself is of a smaller scale yet is perfecct in its proportions. The base is a slender eight feet by eight feet square, and a mere 43 feet high.
In the flower season of April, this temple has many blooming rhododendrons. The unique atmosphere of the "Female Koya" - brings many visitors, especially in May, when rhododendrons are in full bloom. Another popular season is in October and November, when the autumn leaves of the enormous and beautiful canopy overhead start changing color. In this season Muroji is uncommonly beautiful.
source : yamasa.org/japan
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Muroo ryuuketsu jinja 室生竜穴神社 Shrine Muro Ryuketsu Jinja
and the three Dragon Kings :
Myokichijo Ryuketsu 妙吉祥竜穴
Mochiho Kichijo Ryuketsu 持法妙吉祥竜穴
Sashara Ebisu Kichijo Ryuketsu 沙遮羅夷吉祥竜穴
At the entrance to the shrine is a frame with the inscription
Zennyo Ryuuoo 善女龍王社 Dragon Lady Zennyo
. Ryuu-oo 竜王 Ryu-O - The Dragon King .
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Domon Ken 土門拳 - Photographer
(25 October 1909 – 15 September 1990)
He spent a few days at the foot of the mountain, to wait for the right situation to take the famous photo of late snow on the pagoda.
... He is one of the most renowned Japanese photographers of the 20th century. He is most celebrated as a photojournalist, though he may have been most prolific as a photographer of Buddhist temples and statuary.
In 1984 he published Nyonin Kōya Muroji 女人高野室生寺.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !
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室生寺の塔に雨降り苔の花
Murooji no too ni ame furi koke no hana
rain on the pagoda
of temple Muro-Ji -
blooming moss
. Hosomi Ayako 細見綾子 .
室生寺の塔の高さの緑雨かな
Murooji no too no takasa no ryoku-u kana
rain on the fresh green
of the hight of the pagoda
of temple Muro-Ji . . .
Kobayakawa Hisashi 小早川恒
This haiku has a pleasant repetition of the sound NO. I try to imitate this with OF.
. WKD : "rain on the green", ryoku-u 緑雨（りょくう） .
kigo for summer
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室生寺に手斧の音や日の永き
Murooji ni choona no oto ya hi no nagaki
at temple Muro-Ji
the sound of carpenter's axes -
a long day
Yatabe Sakae 谷田部栄
After the destruction of the typhoon in 1998, the pagoda was build again.
Yatabe san from Ibaraki is a carpenter himself, and I suspect he was involved in the reconstruction together with many other carpenters.
. WKD : choona 手斧 carpenter's ax .
Look at an image from an ax ritual of the New Year.
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LOOK at more autumn photos
source : tureduregusa.com
四百の段の室生寺霧はやし
yonhyaku no kaidan no Murooji kiri hayashi
fourhundred steps up
to temple Muro-Ji
forest in the mist
室生寺の穂杉をのぼる河鹿の音
Murooji no hosugi o noboru kajika no oto
climbing up
through the pines to temple Muro-Ji -
the sound of river frogs
Ishihara Yatsuka 石原八束
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春月や室生寺の僧ふところ手
shungetsu ya Murooji no soo futokorode
moon in spring -
the monks of temple Muro-Ji
with hands in the breast pocket
. Takano Sujuu 高野素十 Takano Suju .
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Murooji Kodoo 室生寺古道 Muro-Ji Kodo - The Old Road to Muro-Ji
Look at more photos
source : Kobe Cycling Group
室生寺やすすき分け行く水の音
Murooji ya susuki wake-iku mizu no oto
temple Muro-Ji -
through the pampas grass comes
the sound of water
Kadokawa Haruki 角川春樹
. WKD : Pampas grass (susuki 薄 , obana) .
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室生寺にかくれ道あり蚊喰鳥
Murooji ni kakuremichi ari kakuidori
around temple Muro-Ji
there are hidden roads -
and these bats
Yamamoto Yooko 山本洋子 Yamamoto Yoko
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室生寺の床下にして蟻地獄
Murooji no yukashita ni shite arijigoku
under the floor beams
of temple Muroo-Ji
the ant lions
Takizawa Iyoji 瀧澤伊代次
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室生寺の榧の実食べてしまひけり
Murooji no kaya no mi tabete shimai-keri
I ate all the Shii-oak acorns
from Temple Muro-ji
and that's it
Harada Takashi 原田喬
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菩提樹の実を拾ひをる女人かな
bodaiju no mi o hiroi-oru nyonin kana
some women
pick up the fruit
of the linden trees . . .
. Takahama Kyoshi 高浜虚子 .
in the collection Murooji 室生寺
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high mountain forest --
path of towering cedars
leads to new tea leaves
steps to the forest...
veins of the dragon branch
pulsing life
- Shared by Pat Geyer -
Haiku Culture Magazine , 2013
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