Hiraizumi, Iwate
Encyclopedia
Towns of Japan
A town is a local administrative unit in Japan. It is a local public body along with prefecture , city , and village...
located in Nishiiwai District, Iwate
Nishiiwai District, Iwate
is a district located in Iwate Prefecture, Japan.As of 2005, the district has an estimated population of 8,782. The total area is 63.39 km².After the 3rd city of Ichinoseki creation on September 20, 2005, the district has only one town left.*Hiraizumi...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. It was the home of the Hiraizumi Fujiwaras
Northern Fujiwara
The Northern Fujiwara were a Japanese noble family that ruled the Tōhoku region of Japan from the 12th to the 13th centuries as if it were their own realm. They succeeded the semi-independent Emishi families of the 11th century who were gradually brought down by the Minamoto clan loyal to the...
for about 100 years in the late Heian era and most of the following Kamakura period
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
. At the same time it served as the de facto capital of Oshu, an area containing nearly a third of the Japanese land area. At its height the population of Hiraizumi reached 50,000 or more than 100,000, rivaling Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
in size and splendor.
History
The first structure built in Hiraizumi may have been Hakusan Shrine on top of Mount Kanzan (Barrier Mountain). A writer in 1334 recorded that the shrine was already 700 years old. Although rebuilt many times, the same shrine is still standing in the same location.In about 1100, Fujiwara no Kiyohira
Fujiwara no Kiyohira
was a samurai of mixed Japanese-Emishi parentage of the late Heian period , who was the founder of the Hiraizumi or Northern Fujiwara dynasty that ruled Northern Japan from about 1100 to 1189....
moved his home from Fort Toyoda in present day Esashi Ward
Esashi, Iwate
Esashi was a city located in Iwate Prefecture, Japan.The city was founded on November 3, 1958.On February 20, 2006 Esashi was merged with the city of Mizusawa, the towns of Maesawa and Isawa, and the village of Koromogawa, all from Isawa District, to form the new city of Ōshū...
, Oshu City
Oshu, Iwate
is the second largest city in Iwate Prefecture, Japan with a population of 127,804.The city was founded on February 20, 2006, as the result of a merger between the cities of Esashi and Mizusawa, the towns of Maesawa and Isawa and the village of Koromogawa from Isawa District...
to Mount Kanzan in Hiraizumi. This location was significant for several reasons. Kanzan is situated at the junction of two rivers, the Kitakami
Kitakami River
The is the fourth largest river in Japan and the largest in the Tōhoku region. It is 249 kilometers long and drains an area of 10,150 square kilometers. It flows through mostly rural areas of Iwate and Miyagi Prefectures. The river is unusual in that it has two mouths, one flowing south into...
and the Koromo. Traditionally the Koromo River served as the boundary between Japan to the south and the Emishi
Emishi
The constituted a group of people who lived in northeastern Honshū in the Tōhoku region. They are referred to as in contemporary sources. Some Emishi tribes resisted the rule of the Japanese Emperors during the late Nara and early Heian periods...
peoples to the north. By building his home south of the Koromo, Kiyohira (half Emishi himself) demonstrated his intention to rule Oshu
Oshu
Oshu or Ōshū may refer to:* Oshu** Oshu , the First Prime of Lord Yu in New Order .** Ōshū, another name for Mutsu Province.** The city of Ōshū, Iwate, Japan....
without official sanction from the court in Kyoto. Kanzan was also directly on the Frontier Way, the main road leading from Kyoto to the northern lands as they opened up. Kanzan was also seen as the exact center of Oshu which stretched from the Shirakawa Barrier in the south to Sotogahama
Sotogahama, Aomori
is a town located in the Higashitsugaru District of northeastern Aomori Prefecture in the Tōhoku region of Japan. As of 2009, the town had an estimated population of 2,492 and a density of 18.5 persons per km². Its total area was 135.03 km².-Geography:...
in present day Aomori Prefecture
Aomori Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku Region. The capital is the city of Aomori.- History :Until the Meiji Restoration, the area of Aomori prefecture was known as Mutsu Province....
.
Kiyohira built the large temple complex on Kanzan known as Chūson-ji
Chuson-ji
Chūson-ji is a Buddhist temple in Hiraizumi, Iwate Prefecture, Japan. It is the head temple of the Tendai sect in Tōhoku . The Tendai sect claims that the temple was founded in 850 by Ennin, the third chief abbot of the sect, but most scholars believe that Chūson-ji was founded by Fujiwara no...
. The first structure was a large pagoda
Pagoda
A pagoda is the general term in the English language for a tiered tower with multiple eaves common in Nepal, India, China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam and other parts of Asia. Some pagodas are used as Taoist houses of worship. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most commonly Buddhist,...
at the very top of the mountain. In conjunction with this he placed small umbrella reliquaries (kasa sotoba) every hundred meters along the Frontier Way decorated with placards depicting Amida Buddha painted in gold. Other pagodas, temples and gardens followed including the Konjikido, a jewel box of a building intended to represent the Buddhist Pure Land and the final resting place of the Fujiwara lords.
Hiraizumi's golden age lasted for nearly 100 years, but after the fall of the Fujiwaras the town sank back into relative obscurity, and most of the buildings that gave the town its cultural prominence were destroyed. When the poet Matsuo Bashō
Matsuo Basho
, born , then , was the most famous poet of the Edo period in Japan. During his lifetime, Bashō was recognized for his works in the collaborative haikai no renga form; today, after centuries of commentary, he is recognized as a master of brief and clear haiku...
saw the state of the town in 1689 he penned a famous haiku
Haiku
' , plural haiku, is a very short form of Japanese poetry typically characterised by three qualities:* The essence of haiku is "cutting"...
about the impermanence of human glory:
- Natsu kusa ya! / Tsuwamono-domo ga / yume no ato
- Ah, summer grasses! / All that remains / Of the warriors dreams. [1689] http://www.haikupoetshut.com/basho1.html
The Historic Monuments and Sites of Hiraizumi
Historic Monuments and Sites of Hiraizumi
Historic Monuments and Sites of Hiraizumi is a group of five sites from late eleventh- and twelfth-century Hiraizumi, Iwate Prefecture, Japan. Proposed jointly in 2001 for inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List under criteria ii, iii, iv, and vi, it was inscribed in 2011.-Hiraizumi:For four...
achieved UNESCO World Heritage Site status in 2011 http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1277.
Demographics
As of March 1, 2011, the town has an estimated populationPopulation
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of 8,319 and a population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
of 131.24 persons per km². The total area is 63.39 km².
The town lost some land to the city of Ichinoseki
Ichinoseki, Iwate
is a city located towards the south of Iwate Prefecture, Japan and situated on the Iwai River. After Morioka and Ōshū, it is the third largest city in the prefecture.-Description:...
from September 1, 1956 to May 1, 1964.
Famous places
Hiraizumi has a number of officially listed National TreasuresNational treasures of Japan
National Treasures are the most precious of Japan's Tangible Cultural Properties, as determined and designated by the Agency for Cultural Affairs...
and other culturally or historically notable sites.
Buddhist temples
- Chūson-jiChuson-jiChūson-ji is a Buddhist temple in Hiraizumi, Iwate Prefecture, Japan. It is the head temple of the Tendai sect in Tōhoku . The Tendai sect claims that the temple was founded in 850 by Ennin, the third chief abbot of the sect, but most scholars believe that Chūson-ji was founded by Fujiwara no...
, including the Konjikidō Golden Hall - Mōtsū-jiMotsu-jiMōtsū-ji （毛越寺）refers to the Buddhist temple of the Tendai sect in Hiraizumi and to the historic area surrounding it containing the ruins of two older temples, Enryū-ji （圓隆寺） and Kashō-ji（嘉祥寺）in a Jōdo garden. The current temple was built in the 18th century and bears no relation to the ancient...
with its 'Pure Land' style JōdoJodo, meaning "the way of the jō", or is a Japanese martial art using short staffs called jō. The art is similar to bōjutsu, and is strongly focused upon defense against the Japanese sword. The jō is a short staff, usually about 3 to 5 feet long...
Garden - The ruins of Kanjizaiō-inKanjizaio-inKanjizaiō-in （観自在王院）refers to a former temple in Hiraizumi founded by the wife of Fujiwara no Motohira, the second of the Northern Fujiwara rulers. It sat directly across the Frontier Way from Enryu-ji and Kasho-ji, her husband's twin temples. Her temple shared the Pure Land theme with her husbands...
with its 'Pure Land' style Jōdo Garden - The ruins of Muryokō-in (無量光院)
- Takkoku no Iwaya Bishamon Hall (達谷窟毘沙門堂)
Transportation
- Hiraizumi StationHiraizumi Stationis a railway station on the JR East Tōhoku Main Line. It is located in Hiraizumi, Iwate, Japan.Hiraizumi Station is administered by Ichinoseki Station...
on the Tōhoku Main Line has hourly connections to IchinosekiIchinoseki, Iwateis a city located towards the south of Iwate Prefecture, Japan and situated on the Iwai River. After Morioka and Ōshū, it is the third largest city in the prefecture.-Description:...
and MoriokaMorioka, Iwateis the capital city of Iwate Prefecture, Japan.As of 2005, the city has an estimated population of 300,740 and a population density of 588.11 persons per km². The total area is 489.15 km²....
. - A bus connects the temple Chūson-ji with the train station, running on to Ichinoseki.
- Bicycles can be hired next to the JR station.