Rashōmon
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Rashōmon (羅城門 or 羅生門 Rajōmon or Raseimon?, lit. "the castle gate" , Rasho(mon)- "mon" translate into "gate", so called Rasho Gate) was the gate built at the southern end of the monumental Suzaku Avenue, or Suzaku-ōji in ancient Japanese cities of Heijō-kyō (Nara) and Heian-kyō (Kyoto), in accordance with the Chinese grid-patterned city layout. At the other far north-end of Suzaku Avenue, one would reach the Suzakumon Gate, the main entrance to the palace zone. As of 2007, the southern end of Suzaku-ōji and the possible remainder of the equivalent gate in Fujiwara-kyō (Kashihara) is yet to be discovered.
The gate was originally called the Rajōmon gate; Rajō (羅城) indicates the outer precincts of the castle, so "Rajōmon" signifies the main gate to the castle grounds --- the city, in reality, as ancient Chinese cities are believed to have been completely surrounded by walls as if they were castles. In Japan, however, excavations suggest that the ancient cities were not necessarily completely closed. The name Rashōmon (using the kanji 羅生門) has gained popularity since it appeared in a play by the famous noh playwright Kanze Nobumitsu.[1][2]
Most recently the gate is called Rajōmon (羅城門), especially when referring to the gate itself (rather than the noh play or novelised stories.)
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[edit] Rashōmon in Kyoto (Heian-kyō)
The Rashōmon Gate in Kyoto was the grandest of the two city gates built during the Heian Period (794 - 1185). Built in 789, it was 106 feet wide by 26 feet high, with a 75-foot stone wall and topped by a ridge-pole. By the 12th century it had fallen into disrepair and became an unsavory place, with a reputation as a hideout for thieves and other disreputable characters. People would abandon corpses and unwanted babies at the gate.
The ruined gate is the central setting — and provides the title — for Akira Kurosawa's famous 1950 film, Rashōmon, which is based on a short story by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa. Akutagawa's use of the gate was deliberately symbolic, with the gate's ruined state representing the moral and physical decay of Japanese civilization and culture in the Heian period. According to one legend, it was even inhabited by the demon Ibaraki Dōji. [3]
Today, not even a foundation stone of the gate remains. A stone pillar marks the place where it once stood, now behind a nondescript Kyoto shop on Kujō street, west of Route 1 within walking distance from Tō-ji temple. A wooden sign written in Japanese and English explains the history and significance of the gate. The site sits directly next to a small playground. Though a nearby bus stop is named Rajōmon, unless one is exceedingly familiar with the area, the Rashōmon site is likely to be missed.
[edit] Rajōmon in Nara (Heijo-kyō)
The Rajōmon in Nara stood about 4km south to the Suzakumon of Heijō Palace. Their foundation stones were found in the excavations conducted between 1969 and 1972. From the remaining foundations, the width of the gate is estimated to have been 41.5m.
Some of the foundation stones were reused in the 16th century by Toyotomi Hidenaga, who was expanding his castle in Kōriyama.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ 羅城門 (Rajomon) (pdf) (Japanese). Kyoto City (2002-04-10). Retrieved on 2007-04-10.
- ^ Akira Kurosawa, Rashomon: Akira Kurosawa, Director, pp. 114-115. Rutgers University Press, 1987
- ^ Ibaraki
- ^ 奈良歴史漫歩 No.025 平城京羅城門と来世墓の鳥居 (Heijo-kyo Rajomon etc.) (Japanese). ブックハウス (bukku hausu). Retrieved on 2007-04-10.
[edit] See also
- Suzakumon, the southern gate on ancient palace grounds
[edit] External links
