UNESCO · Cultural · 2011

Hiraizumi – Temples, Gardens and Archaeological Sites Representing the Buddhist Pure Land

平泉―仏国土（浄土）を表す建築・庭園及び考古学的遺跡群―ひらいずみ―ぶっこくど（じょうど）をあらわすけんちく・ていえんおよびこうこがくてきいせきぐん―Hiraizumi – Bukkokudo (Jōdo) o Arawasu Kenchiku, Teien oyobi Kōkogakuteki Iseki-gun

A northern capital built as an image of paradise

Hiraizumi in Iwate Prefecture comprises five sites — the temples Chuson-ji and Motsu-ji, the excavated temples Kanjizaio-in and Muryoko-in, and the sacred hill Kinkeisan — created in the 12th century by the Northern Fujiwara to represent the Buddhist Pure Land on earth. They were inscribed in 2011, three months after the Great East Japan Earthquake.

Inscribed 2011Criteria: ii, viIwate

Overview

For about a century, from around 1100 to 1189, Hiraizumi on the Kitakami River in southern Iwate was the capital of the Northern Fujiwara, a dynasty of regional lords who ruled the far north of Honshu with wealth drawn from gold, horses and trade. Its founder, Fujiwara no Kiyohira, had survived decades of war in the north, and he and his successors Motohira and Hidehira built temples and gardens meant to realise the Pure Land of Amida Buddha on earth, a world of peace for friend and foe alike.

At its height Hiraizumi rivalled Kyoto in splendour. Chuson-ji rose on a hill with its gold-covered Konjikido hall; Motsu-ji and Kanjizaio-in were laid out around ponds in the Pure Land garden style; Muryoko-in was modelled on Byodo-in in Uji and aligned with the sacred hill Kinkeisan, behind which the sun set in the west, the direction of paradise.

In 1189 Minamoto no Yoritomo destroyed the Northern Fujiwara after the fourth lord, Yasuhira, had killed Yoritomo's brother Yoshitsune, who had taken refuge here. The city decayed, but the Konjikido and the gardens survived. Five centuries later the poet Matsuo Basho visited and wrote his haiku on the summer grasses that are all that remain of warriors' dreams.

Why it is World Heritage

UNESCO recognised two criteria. Hiraizumi's temples and gardens show how Pure Land Buddhism, which reached Japan from the continent, combined with indigenous Japanese concepts of nature worship to create a unique approach to planning and garden design representing an ideal world on earth (criterion ii).

The ensemble is an exceptional expression of the Pure Land concept of Buddhism, which spread across the Japanese archipelago in the 12th century; Hiraizumi is the most complete surviving example of an attempt to build paradise as a place (criterion vi).

Component sites

Chuson-ji
中尊寺Chūson-ji
Tendai temple on Kanzan hill, begun by Kiyohira around 1105. Its Konjikido (Golden Hall) of 1124, covered in gold leaf and inlaid with mother-of-pearl, holds the remains of the first three Fujiwara lords and the head of the fourth; it stands inside a protective hall.
Motsu-ji
毛越寺Mōtsū-ji
Temple built mainly under Motohira, whose halls vanished but whose Pure Land garden around the Oizumi-ga-ike pond survives with its stone arrangements and a winding stream used for poetry gatherings.
Kanjizaio-in site
観自在王院跡Kanjizaiō-in-ato
Temple founded by Motohira's wife beside Motsu-ji; its pond garden has been restored as a public park over the excavated remains.
Muryoko-in site
無量光院跡Muryōkō-in-ato
Temple built by Hidehira in imitation of the Phoenix Hall of Byodo-in, larger than its model; excavations have revealed the island hall and pond aligned east–west with Kinkeisan.
Kinkeisan
金鶏山Kinkeisan
Conical hill at the centre of Hiraizumi's plan, where sutra mounds were buried; it served as a sacred reference point for the layout of the temples.

History

1087
The Later Three Years' War ends; Fujiwara no Kiyohira emerges as ruler of the north.
c. 1105
Kiyohira begins building Chuson-ji at Hiraizumi.
1124
Completion of the Konjikido.
12th c.
Motohira builds Motsu-ji; Hidehira builds Muryoko-in.
1189
Minamoto no Yoritomo conquers Hiraizumi and ends the Northern Fujiwara.
1689
Matsuo Basho visits Hiraizumi on the journey recorded in Oku no Hosomichi.
2008
A first nomination is not inscribed; the property is redefined.
2011
Inscription on the World Heritage List in June, after the earthquake and tsunami of 11 March.

Visiting

Hiraizumi is reached from Ichinoseki on the Tohoku Shinkansen, then by JR Tohoku Line or bus in about ten minutes; the sites are close enough to explore on foot or by rental bicycle.
Chuson-ji lies on a hill reached by the steep Tsukimizaka avenue of old cedars; the Konjikido is viewed through glass inside its protective hall.
Motsu-ji holds the Gokusui no En, a revived Heian-style poetry party by the garden stream, in late May.
The Hiraizumi Cultural Heritage Center explains the archaeology of the town, much of which lies under fields and houses.

Frequently asked questions

Who were the Northern Fujiwara?

A branch of lords who ruled northern Honshu from Hiraizumi for four generations in the 12th century, who traced their descent through Kiyohira's father to a branch of the Fujiwara clan.

Is the Konjikido really covered in gold?

Yes. Inside and out the hall is covered in gold leaf, and its altars are decorated with mother-of-pearl inlay and lacquer; it is one of Japan's first National Treasures in architecture.

What is the Pure Land?

In Mahayana Buddhism, the Pure Land is the paradise of Amida Buddha in the west, where believers hope to be reborn. Hiraizumi's gardens and halls were designed to make it visible on earth.

Which haiku did Basho write at Hiraizumi?

'Natsukusa ya / tsuwamonodomo ga / yume no ato' — summer grasses, all that remain of warriors' dreams. He also wrote a haiku on the Konjikido and the early summer rains.

Sources

1.Hiraizumi – Temples, Gardens and Archaeological Sites Representing the Buddhist Pure Land (opens in a new tab) — UNESCO World Heritage Centre
2.日本の世界遺産一覧 (opens in a new tab) — 文化庁
3.関山中尊寺 (opens in a new tab) — 中尊寺
4.平泉町 (opens in a new tab) — 平泉町