Kaminarimon

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The north face of the Kaminarimon - note the statues of Raijin on the left and Fūjin on the right.

The Kaminarimon (雷門 ^?, "Thunder Gate") is the outer of two large entrance gates that ultimately leads to the Sensō-ji (the inner being the Hōzōmon) in Asakusa, Tokyo. Known as the face of Asakusa, the gate sports an ornate lantern and statues, and as a result it is extremely popular with tourists. It stands 11.7 m tall, 11.4 m wide and covers and area of 69.3 m².^[1]

1 History
2 Features
3 See also
4 References

[edit] History

The Kaminarimon was first built in 942 by Taira no Kinmasa.^[2] It was originally located near Komagata, but it was reconstructed in its current location in 1635. This is believed to be when the statues of Raijin and Fūjin were first placed on the gate.^[2] The gate has been destroyed many times throughout the ages. Four years after its relocation, the Kaminarimon burned down, and in 1649 Tokugawa Iemitsu rebuilt the gate along with several other of the major structures in the temple complex.^[3] The Kaminarimon's current incarnation dates back to 1960.^[1]

[edit] Features

The wooden carving of a dragon on the bottom of the great red lantern on the Kaminarimon

There are a total of four statues housed in the Kaminarimon. On the front of the gate, the statues of the Shinto gods Raijin and Fūjin are displayed. Raijin, the god of thunder and lightning, is located on the west side of the gate, while Fūjin, the god of wind, is located on the east side.

In addition to the two Shinto gods on the front, there are two lesser known statues featured on the back side of the gate as well. On the east side stands the Buddhist god Tenryū, and the goddess Kinryū joins him on the west side.

In the center of the Kaminarimon, under the gate, hangs the famous giant red chōchin that is 4 meters tall, 3.4 meters in circumference and weighs 670 kg.^[2] Being very fragile, the lantern is not an original piece. It is instead a restoration that was donated in August 2003 in commemoration of the 400^th anniversary of the start of the Edo period by Konosuke Matsushita, the founder of the Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. (also known as Panasonic).^[2]

On the front of the lantern, the gate's name - Kaminarimon (雷門, Kaminarimon^?) - is painted on it. Painted on the back is the gate’s official name, Furaijinmon (風雷神門, Furaijinmon^?).^[4] A wooden carving depicting a dragon adorns the bottom of the lantern.