{"id":2382,"date":"2014-01-31T21:20:49","date_gmt":"2014-01-31T12:20:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2014-01-31\/2382"},"modified":"2014-01-31T21:20:49","modified_gmt":"2014-01-31T12:20:49","slug":"on-the-approach-to-the-todaiji-temple-in-nara","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2014-01-31\/2382","title":{"rendered":"On the Approach to the Todaiji Temple in Nara"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 14-24mm f\/2.8 @ 14mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/6.3, ISO 800 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nThis is the Small One<\/span>\na gate on the approach to the Todaiji Temple (\u6771\u5927\u5bfa<\/span>\u306e\u5357\u5927\u9580),<\/span>\nNara, Japan\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

Dipping into the largely-untapped reservoir of things I want<\/span> to post\nabout, here are some pictures from a December<\/span> 2012 visit to the Todaiji Temple (\u6771\u5927\u5bfa)<\/span>\nin Nara, about an hour's train ride south of Kyoto. I posted<\/span> a bit<\/span> from that trip in\n“<\/span>That Massive Column in Nara\u2019s Todaiji Temple Is Nothing To Sneeze At<\/a>”<\/span>,\nbut it's a visually<\/span> rich place, so I've been wanting to post much more.<\/p>\n\n

I'd made the trip to take some pictures for a friend<\/span><\/a> who is the\nauthor of Lonely\nPlanet's “<\/span>Japan”<\/span> guidebook<\/a>. A few of<\/span> the photos from this trip made it\ninto the most recent edition. Another friend, Aeron<\/a>, was kind enough to\nmake the trek with me.<\/p>\n\n

The Todaiji Temple site is impressively large, dating back almost 1,300\nyears. On the approach<\/span> we took is a massive<\/span> wooden gate that seems to exist\nmerely to set you up for the substantially-more-impressive sights that\nwait beyond.<\/p>\n\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 85mm f\/1.4 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>400 sec, f<\/span>\/1.4, ISO 100 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nTodaiji in a Nutshell<\/span><\/span>\ndeer, school kids, big wooden buildings\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

Looking through the gate you can see another behind, and beyond that the\ntemple's main building towers so high that you can't see the top of its\nroof.<\/p>\n\n

The gate, called the Great Southern Gate (\u5357\u5927\u9580),<\/span> is interesting enough\nin its own right. It was originally<\/span> built in 962, but the one standing\ntoday is a reconstruction<\/span> built just 815 years ago. (The sign near the top of\nthe photo is new, giving \u300c\u5927\u83ef\u53b3\u5bfa\u300d,<\/span> apparently an old name for the temple.)<\/p>\n\n

Here's a shot exposed to reveal the detail under the roof:<\/p>\n\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 14-24mm f\/2.8 @ 14mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/2.8, ISO 5000 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nHolding Up Well<\/span>\nfor 815-year-old construction\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

As with many temple gates, two guardians flank the sides of the gate.\n(Wikipedia tells me they're called Kongorikishi<\/i><\/a>, and\ndescribes them as “<\/span>wrath-filled muscular guardians of the Buddha”<\/span>). They're almost 25½ feet tall, so they're\nalmost 4½ times my height. Their situation is not conducive to good photos, but here's one:<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 50mm f\/1.4 — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/2.8, ISO 3600 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nWrath Filled and Muscular<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

The other statue, at my back while taking this shot, was carved in\n1203. This one dates from the same era, though I couldn't<\/span> find out for sure\nwhat year this one was carved.<\/p>\n\n

Here's a wigglegram<\/span><\/a> to make you feel as if you're there; wiggle your mouse over the image...<\/p>\n\n