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Encyclopedia > Todaiji
Main hall of Tōdaiji
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Main hall of Tōdaiji

Tōdai-ji (東大寺), the Eastern Great Temple, is a Buddhist temple in Nara, Japan. Reputedly the largest wooden building in the world, it houses a giant statue of the Buddha Vairocana (Jp. Dainichi), known in Japanese simply as the Daibutsu (大仏, "great Buddha"). The temple also serves as the Japanese headquarters of the Kegon school of Buddhism. Todaiji, ancient Buddhist temple in Nara, Japan I took this photograph and contribute it to the public domain. ... Todaiji, ancient Buddhist temple in Nara, Japan I took this photograph and contribute it to the public domain. ... Statues of Buddha such as this, the Tian Tan Buddha statue in Hong Kong, remind followers to practice right living. ... Nara (奈良市; -shi) is the capital city of Nara Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan, near Kyoto. ... Categories: Stub | Buddhist philosophical concepts ... Kegon is the name of the Japanese transmission of the Huayan school of Chinese Buddhism, via the Korean Hwaeom tradition. ...


History

During the Tempyo period, people suffered from disasters and epidemics. In 743, Emperor Shomu issued a law that the people should make a Buddha to protect themselves. He believed in Buddha’s power could help the people. 420,000 people contributed and 2,180,000 people worked to build it. The Great Buddha itself was designed by an artist from the Korean Baekje Kingdom. According to legend, nearly 2,600,000 in total helped construct the Buddha at that time; this number equates to nearly the half of the people in Japan at that time and is probably exaggerated. The Buddha was completed in 751, having consumed most of Japan's bronze production for several years and leaving the country almost bankrupt. The statue has been recast several times since for various reasons including earthquake damage, and the temple rebuilt twice after fire. The current building finished in 1709 although immense is actually 30% smaller than its predecessor. The original complex also contained two 100 m pagodas, probably the tallest buildings in the world at the time. These were destroyed by earthquake. Events Umayyad caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik (724-743) succeeded by al-Walid II ibn Abd al-Malik (743-744). ... Emperor Shōmu (聖武天皇) (701-756) was the 45th imperial ruler of Japan. ... Baekje was a kingdom in southwestern Korea. ... Events Pippin the Short is elected as king of the Franks by the Frankish nobility, marking the end of the Merovingian and beginning of the Carolingian dynasty. ...


Todaiji was the provincial temple of Yamato Province and the head of all the provincial temples. Emperor Shōmu established provincial temples (国分寺: kokubunji for monks; 国分尼寺:kokubun niji for nuns)in each province of Japan. ... Yamato (大和) is a province of Japan, which covers area of present Nara Prefecture. ...

Daibutsu at Tōdaiji. Figures in lower right show scale.
Enlarge
Daibutsu at Tōdaiji. Figures in lower right show scale.

On May 20, 1994, the international music festival The Great Music Experience was held at the Todaiji, supported by the UNESCO. Among other artists were the Tokyo New Philharmonic Orchestra, X Japan, INXS, Bon Jovi, Bob Dylan, Hotei Tomoyasu, Roger Taylor, classic Japanese drummers, and a buddhistic monk choir. The event was broadcast on May 22 and May 23, 1994], in 55 countries all over the world. The bronze Daibutsu of Todai temple in Nara is 16 meters high and weighs 500 tons. ... The bronze Daibutsu of Todai temple in Nara is 16 meters high and weighs 500 tons. ... May 20 is the 140th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (141st in leap years). ... 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... UNESCO logo The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, commonly known as UNESCO, is a specialized agency of the United Nations system established in 1946. ... X Japan, or X which was their initial name, was a Japanese Visual kei band, the brainchild of Yoshiki (Yoshiki Hayashi). ... INXS is an Australian rock group. ... Jon Bon Jovi Portrait by T.HO 2004 Bon Jovi is a rock band from New Jersey, USA that sold more than 100 million albums in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s and played live concerts in major cities in Asia, Europe, Australia, Canada and South America, in addition to a... Portrait photograph of Bob Dylan taken by Daniel Kramer Bob Dylan (born Robert Allen Zimmerman May 24, 1941) is widely regarded as one of Americas greatest popular songwriters. ... HOTEI Tomoyasu (1962-,布袋寅泰) is a Japanese musician, guitarist and actor. ... Roger Taylor - Queen. ... May 22 is the 142nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (143rd in leap years). ... May 23 is the 143rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (144th in leap years). ... 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ...


The size of the Buddha

  • Total height : 30 meters
  • Sitting height : 14.98 meters
  • Face : 5.33 meters
  • Eyes : 1.02 meters
  • Nose : 0.5 meter
  • Ears : 2.54 meters
  • Weight : 500 metric tonnes

The Buddha is made of gold (440 kg) and copper (499 Mg). The Buddha has special hair, like a spiral perm. In total, the hair consists of 966 balls whose diameter are 18 cm and whose height are 30 cm each.


External links

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  Results from FactBites:
 
Nara Travel: Todaiji (150 words)
Todaiji ("Great Eastern Temple") is one of Japan's most famous and historically significant temples and a landmark of Nara.
Todaiji was constructed in 752 as the head temple of all provincial Buddhist temples of Japan and grew so powerful that the capital was moved from Nara to Nagaoka in 784 in order to lower its influence on government affairs.
Not only is Todaiji housing Japan's largest Buddha statue (Daibutsu), but it is also the world's largest wooden building, even though the present reconstruction of 1692 is only two thirds of the original temple's size.
Nara Temples: Todaiji (2521 words)
Todaiji, the temple of the Great Buddha of Nara, is core business for any first-time visitor to the town.
Ironically, it were the expenses of building Todaiji that brought the 8th-century nation to the brink of bankruptcy.
Todaiji's Buddha only impresses because of his sheer mass, a 16 meter high mountain of copper, dwarfing he visitors going around him (ten grown people could easily stand on his upturned hand).
  More results at FactBites »


 

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