Asuka culture

Japanese: 飛鳥文化 - あすかぶんか

The culture of the period in Japanese history when the capital was mainly in the Asuka region (→ Asuka period). The characteristics of the Asuka culture are (1) a culture that absorbed the culture of the Six Dynasties of China via the Korean peninsula, (2) a culture based on Buddhism, and (3) a culture that developed in the small area around the Asuka region, where the capital was located, and the surrounding area. The cultural heritage of Horyu-ji Temple is that there was a debate about whether it should be rebuilt or not early on in the Nihon Shoki, which records the burning of Horyu-ji Temple in the fourth month of the 9th year of Emperor Tenchi (670). As a result of subsequent dismantling and repairs, the reconstruction theory became the established theory, and the architecture of Horyu-ji Temple is no longer of the Asuka period in the strict sense, but of the Hakuho period, and no architecture from the Suiko period remains. However, the entasis of the columns, cloud-shaped brackets, and brackets seen in the current Horyu-ji Temple are said to be architectural techniques from the Six Dynasties. In terms of sculpture, the Shaka Triad in the Golden Hall of Horyuji Temple is believed to have been created by the sculptor Tori (→Kurasaku Tori) in March of the 31st year of the reign of Empress Suiko (623) for Prince Shotoku, who had died the previous year, based on the inscription on the back of the halo. The statues are characterized by their long faces, thick lips, slightly upturned mouths, and a smile. Their eyes are spindle-shaped and open wide, unlike the narrow, half-closed eyes seen in Buddhist statues of later periods. The clothing, posture, and style of the three statues are based on the style of the Northern Wei dynasty, which was in effect from the 6th century onwards, near the end of the Northern and Southern Dynasties period in China, and are thought to have been brought to Japan via the Korean Peninsula. The "Yakushi Nyorai" and "Kannon Bodhisattva Standing Statue" in the Kondo, the "Kuse Kannon Standing Statue" in the Yumedono, the "Bodhisattva Half-seated Statue" in Chuguji, and the "Maitreya Bodhisattva Half-seated Statue" in Koryuji Temple in Uzumasa, Kyoto, are from this period, including the Hakuho period. Other cultural assets include the "Tenjukoku Embroidery Mandala" (→Tenjukoku Embroidery Mandala) in Chuguji, which is a valuable textile, even though it is a fragment. The "Tamamushi Zushi" in the Horyuji Temple collection is not only an excellent work of art, but its date of creation is divided into the Asuka theory and the Hakuho theory, and the former theory states that the cloud-shaped doko in the Horyuji Kondo was copied from the palace of this "Tamamushi Zushi". In addition, there is a "Sankyo Gisho" (Commentary on the Three Sutras) said to have been written by Prince Shotoku, but there are doubts about whether it is the prince's original work.

Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia About Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia Information

Japanese:

日本史上，都が主として飛鳥地方にあった時代 (→飛鳥時代 ) の文化。飛鳥文化の特質としては，(1) 中国六朝 (りくちょう) 文化を朝鮮半島を経由して摂取した文化，(2) 仏教を基調とした文化，(3) 都のおかれていた飛鳥地方を中心に畿内とその周辺の狭い地方に発達した文化，などがあげられる。文化遺産としては法隆寺があり，これについては，『日本書紀』の天智天皇9 (670) 年4月の条の法隆寺炎上の記事をめぐって早くから再建非再建の論争があった。その後解体修理の結果，ほぼ再建説が定説化したため，法隆寺の建築は狭義の飛鳥時代のものではなく，白鳳期のものとなり，推古期の建築は現存しないこととなった。しかし現在の法隆寺にみられる柱のエンタシス，雲形の斗栱 (ときょう) ，肘木 (ひじき) などは六朝の建築手法を伝えたものとされている。彫刻では法隆寺金堂の釈迦三尊像が光背裏の銘文から，推古 31 (623) 年3月，その前年に亡くなった聖徳太子のために止利 (とり) 仏師 (→鞍作止利 ) が造立したものとされる。その特徴は顔は面長で唇が厚く，口元はややそり上がり，微笑をたたえている。目は紡錘形でかなり見開かれ，のちの時代の仏像にみる切れ長な半眼とは相違する。そのほかこの3像の衣相，姿勢，形式などは中国における南北朝時代も末に近い6世紀以降の北魏末の形式を受けたもので，朝鮮半島を経由してもたらされたものとみられている。同じく金堂の『薬師如来像』『百済観音立像』，夢殿の『救世観音立像』，中宮寺の『菩薩半跏像』，京都太秦 (うずまさ) の広隆寺『弥勒菩薩半跏像』などが白鳳期を含めたこの期のものである。そのほかの文化財としては中宮寺の『天寿国繍帳曼荼羅』 (→天寿国繍帳 ) が残欠ではあるが織物として貴重なものである。法隆寺所蔵の『玉虫厨子』は工芸品として優秀であるばかりでなく，その制作年代が飛鳥説と白鳳説とに分れており，前説は法隆寺金堂の雲形斗栱はこの『玉虫厨子』の宮殿から模倣したものとする。なお，聖徳太子筆という『三経義疏』があるが太子の真筆とすることには疑問も出ている。

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