Higashi Honganji -
Hall of Compassion

Visitors to Kyoto, arriving at the station, cannot miss Higashi Honganji. An impressive pile of wood, it sits squarely at Karasuma Avenue that leads into the city from the station. Walking past its magnificent gates and wall, viewing it from bus or taxi, you realize: I am in Kyoto, the Buddhist capital of Japan...

In the sheer force of its size, Higashi Honganji is indeed what you imagine a Kyoto temple to be. And it is more. Always open in the daytime, its spacious halls beckon a warm welcome to passersby who long for a moment of silence, a break from rain or heat, an interval with oneself alone. I often have come here, each time just for ten or fifteen minutes, seeking a brief refuge from the city. Now I visit again, to start my round of Kyoto temples where the Buddhist city begins, at the Honganji temple.

In the size of its buildings, Higashi Honganji is one of the largest temples of Japan, and this is also true for the number of followers, that runs to ten million. The strange thing, however, is that Shinran, the founder of the Jodo Shin denomination to which the temple belongs, was against temples. Shinran (1173 - 1262) was a disciple of Honen, who was considered a Buddhist radical, as he preached that salvation could be obtained by countless times reciting the Nembutsu, the phrase "Namu Amida Buddha" ("I take my Refuge in the Buddha Amida"). One did not need to train for many years in a monastery, one did not need to learn difficult esoteric rites or read piles of sutras. Honen finally brought Buddhism within reach of the daily life of ordinary people. But Shinran proved to be even more radical than his teacher.

Honganji Seen through the Gate

Shinran's Faith
Shinran taught that, provided one had sincere faith in the Amida Buddha, one single recitation of the Name was sufficient. Once faith had been established, nothing else was necessary. Amida had made a vow, the Primal Vow (hongan), to save all mankind ("If all beings who sincerely aspire to be born in my land recite my name and fail to be born there, then may I not attain Supreme Enlightenment"). As Amida had become a Buddha, an enlightened being, the contents of his vow had been proven true. Therefore, Shinran said, it was enough to entrust oneself to the inconceivable power of Amida's vow. Then one would be saved and be reborn in the Pure Land. It would be like "being grasped never to be abandoned." As humans themselves were powerless, all one could do was to rely on the saving power of that other force, Amida. This type of Buddhism is called Tariki, reliance on the Other Power, and contrasts with, for example, the Zen school that is based on Jiriki, one's own efforts. For Shinran, only faith was necessary.

Shinran therefore saw temples as irrelevant. He was a true radical and allowed priests to marry (as he did himself), and eat fish and meat. His followers would gather in dojo, training places in private homes and barns. These contained no rich temple trappings, no images. The only object on the altar was a wooden plaque engraved with the Nembutsu. It was a simple kind of Buddhism, without difficult practice, without obtuse metaphysics, without the necessity to understand a deep philosophy. It was the type of Buddhism that strongly appealed to the common people. Shinran took the countryside by storm and Jodo Shinshu grew into the largest Buddhist group.

Honganji's huge gateway seen from the avenue in front

From Wooden Shed to Buddhist Fortress
Shinran did not found a temple. In true Congregationalist or revivalist spirit, his followers did not need one. But a cult grew up around his tomb at Otani on Higashiyama. In 1272 here the first Honganji Temple was built, a mortuary chapel, established by his daughter and administered by his descendants. Thus Honganji originated in death rites for Shinran. It functioned as a spiritual center for followers all over Japan, who still came together in their local dojo. But Honganji continued to grow, slowly but steadily, against persecution by other Buddhist groups. The energetic abbot Rennyo dramatically advanced the power of the Honganji, bringing all followers of Shinran, who had been split into several factions, together under its aegis. Too much success, however, attracted disaster: in 1465 Tendai warrior monks from Mt. Hiei completely destroyed the temple. The Shin believers were driven out of Kyoto and they would have to stay in the countryside for 125 years. This proved a boon: their following again grew enormously among ordinary people, especially in the Hokuriku region.

Afterwards, the Shin sect came back with a vengeance, now to Osaka. There they built an enormous headquarters, Ishiyama Honganji, right on the spot of present-day Osaka Castle. At that time, the sect had grown so strong that even Japan's powerful warlords could not touch it. The temple, which resembled a fortified town, even withstood an eleven year siege by the all-powerful warlord Oda Nobunaga.

In 1591, the sect gave up the Osaka fortress-temple for a piece of land in Kyoto - present-day Nishi Honganji - offered by the wily Hideyoshi. The only way to vanquish the sect was to appease them and lure them back to the capital. Thus Honganji returned to Kyoto with a vast number of followers. The temple is still in Osaka as well: after giving up the castle, it moved to what is now Midosuji, Osaka's central boulevard, which was even named after the temple: Mido, the Honorable Hall, was the popular name for the Honganji temple (suji is a street).

Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first Edo shogun, found another means to diminish the power of the sect. He availed himself of a succession conflict in the temple to offer another piece of land in the vicinity to a brother of the abbot, and so Higashi Honganji was born. The sect was effectively split into two parts, although there were no doctrinal differences. From now on, radicalism was forgotten and the temple grew into an establishment like all others.

Compared to Higashi Honganji, Nishi Honganji owns the greater buildings, in the form of an ornate Shiro-Shoin reception hall from the Momoyama period, two Noh stages, the Karamon or Chinese Gate, and the beautiful Hiunkaku Pavilion. But in the modern city, Higashi Honganji stands right in front of the station and is therefore more accessible. You almost stumble over it when coming into Kyoto. It is separated from its western counterpart by a maze of streets teeming with shops selling items to supply the needs of pilgrims.

Lantern in the grounds

Hall of Compassion
Higashi Honganji is always bustling with people, as out-of-town parishioners make it a point to stop over to pay their respects when they are in Kyoto. Not counting the temple offices, abbot's quarters etc., there are only two halls: in central position, opposite the main gate (also very impressive, as it is one of the largest gates in Kyoto) stands the Founder's Hall dedicated to Shinran and containing an image of the master, and on the left side stands a hall dedicated to the Buddha Amida. It is characteristic of the Jodo Shin faith that Shinran's hall is larger and more centrally positioned than the one of the Buddha himself. This is a reflection of the fact that the temple originated in Shinran's funerary chapel.

Higashi Honganji's buildings are relatively new, as the temple burned in the nineteenth century and was rebuilt in 1895. At that time, fifty ropes woven from the tresses of female believers were used to haul the massive timbers. One of these coiled ropes, now of a somewhat ghostly aspect, can still be seen in a glass case on the temple porch.

Higashi Honganji is Kyoto's gateway. A temple to end all temples, it has on the contrary become the quintessential temple. Everyone is welcome to enter and sit down on its tatami mats, that have worn down to a velvety sheen. The huge keyaki-wood pillars impart a sense of security.

The pigeons, they come too. In droves they fill the wide courtyard. As it is against Buddhist law to take life, there are no active means to banish pigeons. On the contrary, vendors standing under the gate sell bags of beans to feed the birds.

This, too, is a sign of the all-embracing nature of Higashi Honganji.

Shinran's Hall