Mount Hiei

This mountainous area forms the border between Kyoto City and Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture. It is a tectonic mountain range that extends from the Hira Mountains to the north and defines the western side of the Omi Basin. The eastern slope facing Lake Biwa and the western slope facing the Kyoto Basin both form fault scarps running north to south. It is composed of the Chichibu Mesozoic and Paleozoic strata, but between it and Mount Daimonji in the south, granite is widely exposed. The summit is relatively flat, and it is divided into two peaks, Mount Daihiei (848 meters) in the east and Mount Shimeigatake (838 meters) in the west. From the summit, you can see the eastern and western areas of the lake across Lake Biwa, and the Tamba Highlands across Kyoto City to Minamiyamashiro and Osaka in the west. There is an observation deck on Mt. Shimeigatake. It is part of Lake Biwa Quasi-National Park, and because it is a temple site, the natural condition is good. There are many coniferous trees such as cedar, cypress, and fir, and about 80 species of birds such as woodpeckers, blue-and-white flycatchers, narcissus flycatchers, Japanese black thrushes, and Japanese paradise flycatchers live there. It has been designated a national natural monument as the "Mount Hiei Bird Breeding Ground."

Mt. Hiei has been the subject of mountain worship since ancient times, and it is said that mountain gods such as Oyamakui-no-kami were enshrined there. In 785 (Enryaku 4), Saicho (Dengyo Daishi) entered the mountain and built a hermitage, marking the beginning of Enryaku-ji Temple, the head temple of the Tendai sect. Mt. Hiei is located in the northeast direction of Heian-kyo, which is an unlucky direction, and it has continued to pass on the teachings of the Dharma to this day as a sacred mountain that protects the country. In the Middle Ages, there were temples and pagodas known as 3,000 temples, and it was home to a large number of warrior monks. It fell into temporary decline after being burned down by Oda Nobunaga in 1571 (Genki 2), but was restored by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Tokugawa Ieyasu, and others.

The temple grounds are divided into three districts: Toto, Saito, and Yokawa, and the three towers and 16 pagodas scattered throughout the valley are collectively called Enryaku-ji Temple. The centerpiece is the Konponchudo (National Treasure) of the Toto, surrounded by old cedar trees, and the current building was rebuilt by Iemitsu in 1642 (Kan'ei 19). In addition to the Konponchudo, the Toto also contains the Daikodo, Kaidan-in, and Amida Hall. The Toto, located west of the Toto, is a quiet place with few people around. The Shakado Hall was relocated from the Onjo-ji Kondo Hall by Hideyoshi in 1595 (Bunroku 4), and is the oldest structure from the Kamakura period on Mount Hiei. The Toto also contains the Jogyo-do Hall, the Hokke-do Hall and other buildings. If you go 4km north from Shakado along the ridge path known as Minemichi, which is a path used by pilgrims, you will reach Yokokawa in Oku-Hiei. Yokokawa was founded by Ennin, the founder of the Jikaku Daishi, and is a secluded place that is considered a training ground for the Daishi faith. Yokokawa Chudo is a building that was rebuilt in 1971 (Showa 46), and is also home to Eshin-in Temple, where Eshin Sozu, the founder of Pure Land Buddhism, lived.

To access Mount Hiei, there is the Mount Hiei Driveway, which branches off from Yamanakagoe, heading towards Otsu City, from Kitashirakawa, Sakyo Ward, Kyoto City, and reaches Konponchudo, and there is also a cable car from Sakamoto, Otsu City, and a cable car and ropeway from Yase, Sakyo Ward, Kyoto City. In addition, the Oku-Hiei Driveway has also been opened, which runs from Konponchudo through Yokokawa to Kamiogi in Katata, Otsu City, and connects with National Route 161.

[Takeo Oda]

"Mount Hiei" by Haruki Kageyama and Shuichi Murayama (NHK Books)" ▽ "Mount Hiei Temple" by Haruki Kageyama (1978, Dohosha Publishing)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

京都市と滋賀県大津市との境界をなす山地。北は比良(ひら)山地から続く近江(おうみ)盆地の西側を画する地塁山脈で、琵琶(びわ)湖に面する東斜面と、京都盆地に面する西斜面は、ともに南北に走る断層崖(がい)をなしている。秩父中・古生層で構成されているが、南の大文字(だいもんじ)山との間には花崗(かこう)岩が広く露出している。山頂部には比較的平坦(へいたん)面が残り、東の大比叡（848メートル）と西の四明ヶ岳(しめいがたけ)（838メートル）の二峰に分かれる。山頂からは、東は琵琶湖を隔てて湖東、湖西方面、西は丹波(たんば)高地から京都市内を越えて南山城(みなみやましろ)や大阪方面まで望むことができる。四明ヶ岳には展望台などがある。琵琶湖国定公園の一部で、寺域のため自然状態が良好である。スギ、ヒノキ、モミなどの針葉樹が多く、またキツツキ、オオルリ、キビタキ、クロツグミ、サンコウチョウなど約80種の鳥が生息し、「比叡山鳥類繁殖地」として国の天然記念物に指定されている。

　比叡山は古くから山岳信仰の対象となり、大山咋神(おおやまくいのかみ)などの山神が祀(まつ)られたといわれるが、785年（延暦4）最澄(さいちょう)（伝教(でんぎょう)大師）が入山して草庵(そうあん)を結んだのが天台宗総本山の延暦寺(えんりゃく)の始まりであり、比叡山は平安京北東の鬼門にあたり、護国鎮護の霊山として今日まで法燈(ほうとう)を伝えている。中世には三千坊と称される堂塔があり、多数の僧兵を擁した。1571年（元亀2）織田信長の焼打ちで一時衰微したが、豊臣(とよとみ)秀吉、徳川家康らによって再興された。

　寺域は東塔(とうとう)、西塔(さいとう)、横川(よかわ)の三つの地区に分かれ、三塔16谷に点在する堂塔を総称して延暦寺という。中心は老杉に囲まれた東塔の根本中堂(こんぽんちゅうどう)（国宝）で、現在の建物は1642年（寛永19）に家光によって再建されたもの。東塔には根本中堂のほか、大講堂、戒壇(かいだん)院、阿弥陀(あみだ)堂がある。東塔の西にある西塔は人影もまばらな静寂の地。釈迦(しゃか)堂は1595年（文禄4）に秀吉が園城(おんじょう)寺金堂を移築したもので、比叡山最古の鎌倉時代の建造物。西塔にはこのほか常行(じょうぎょう)堂、法華(ほっけ)堂などの堂舎がある。釈迦堂から北へ4キロメートルの峰路(みねみち)とよばれる回峰行者(かいほうぎょうじゃ)のたどる尾根道を進むと奥比叡の横川に達する。横川は慈覚大師円仁(えんにん)によって開かれ、大師信仰の道場とされる幽邃(ゆうすい)の地である。横川中堂は1971年（昭和46）に再建された建物で、浄土思想の祖といわれる恵心僧都(えしんそうず)の住んだ恵心院もある。

　比叡山への交通は、京都市左京区北白川から大津市に向かう山中越から分岐して根本中堂に達する比叡山ドライブウェイがあり、また大津市坂本からケーブルカーが、京都市左京区八瀬(やせ)からケーブルカー、ロープウェーが通じている。さらに根本中堂から横川を経て大津市堅田(かたた)の上仰木(かみおうぎ)で国道161号と結ぶ奥比叡ドライブウェイも開通した。

［織田武雄］

『景山春樹・村山修一著『比叡山』（NHKブックス）』▽『景山春樹著『比叡山寺』（1978・同朋舎出版）』

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例