2016 Fiscal Year Research-status Report
奈良時代寺院と仏教美術に関する未開拓の基礎的研究―密教と神仏習合を中心に
| Project/Area Number |
26370135
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| Research Institution | Kyushu University |
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Principal Investigator |
BOGEL CYNTHEA 九州大学, 人文科学研究院, 教授 (50637931)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2014-04-01 – 2018-03-31
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| Keywords | 奈良時代 / 飛鳥時代 / 仏教美術史 / 仏教視覚文化 / 都と地方の関係 / コスモロジー思想 / 異世界と仏教美術表現 |
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| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
During H 28 my research progressed considerably. I was offered the opportunity to publish my work in both English and Japanese and I will reach that goal by the end of H29. I spent three weeks at Columbia University exchanging ideas with experts and presented a lecture on my research at Yale University. In H28 I deeply considered differences between the artistic expression of religious beliefs during the late Asuka period (late seventh century) in Fujiwara (the capital) through the early Nara period (early eighth century) and icons and temples made under Emperor Shomu during the mid-eighth century. The latter is the more renowned era; it features the Great Buddha and the newly centralized Buddhist workshop and clergy in Nara. During the former, the reigns of Tenmu tenno 天武天皇and Jito tenno持統天皇we see differences in artistic expression at Fujiwara Yakushiji本薬師寺, in tombs for the rulers (Kitora, Takamatsu), and in the ritual activities of Tenmu, Jito, and her grandson Monmu tenno文武天皇. This contrasts with what we are taught about the eighth century, during which time there continues a very varied religious (Buddhism+other) expression the numinous world. My research allowed me to arrive at an idea of a political and philosophical-religious cosmology for these eras to explain artistic expression. This, along with an understanding of the role of historical narratives like the 720 Nihon shoki, will facilitate ongoing work on the kami belief system 神仏集合 and esoteric密教expression during the eighth century.
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| Current Status of Research Progress |
Current Status of Research Progress
1: Research has progressed more than it was originally planned.
Reason
As noted in the summary above, thus far my research has allowed me to arrive at an idea of a political and philosophical-religious cosmology for the late-seventh and early-eighth century that enriches my understanding of Nara-period artistic expression. We scholars of premodern East Asian humanities and sciences build our understanding of ancient cosmologies and ontologies on remains: material culture, narratives and records. We should understand cosmology as in flux over decades and in flux at any moment. The context, patron, narrative, or icon each experience and express cosmology from different perspectives.
To date I have considered eighth-century temples and icons, both Buddhist and kami, especially in anicient Yamato 大和 and Omi 近江 (Kansai and Shiga), and north Kyushu (eg., Kanzeonji). H28 research on the Fujiwara capital and Asuka region temples and their icons provided a new window to understanding the capital move from Fujiwara to Nara. My project has shifted slightly from understanding not only esoteric 密教 elements in Nara to understanding the cosmology of the “other worlds” 異世界 in the Hakuho白鵬 and Nara periods more broadly but also more deeply.
During the past three years I have presented my research in formal lectures (Yale University, University of Michigan), symposia (Columbia University, Kyushu University, Kyoto University), and through collaborative projects, detailed below. The documents are difficult to interpret and so I have carefully formulated my plan. The last stage of the grant will be publications in H29, which are nearing completion.
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| Strategy for Future Research Activity |
New research sees the seventh century as replete with knowledge of and cultural expression informed by Yin Yang 陰陽knowledge, Daoist practices and texts, Chinese cosmology, Buddhism, and symbolic systems that use directions, color coding, and other knowledge transmitted by waves toraijin 渡来人 immigrants. Recent archaeological finds and scholarship relating to the poetry and ritual apparatuses of the day provide a counter to nativist viewpoints that emphasize nature, the seasons, and the “Japaneseness” of language in the absence of formal writing systems. Much of the developing philosophy of an imperial state can be gleened from the 720 Nihon shoki, which emphasizes the role of Tenmu and Jito in the formation of “Japan” and “imperial Japan.”
I will strengthen my understanding of the Asuka to Nara bridge in publications for H29. I will begin to further my knowledge of “localization” studies to consider the “Nara center and periphery,” studying the consolidation of imperial power and its dependency on parochial strengths. The famous mid-eighth century example of the Usa Hachiman kami 宇佐八幡神 summoned to Todaiji is one famous example, and the jinguji of Usa shrine 宇佐神宮寺 are also of key concern to eighth century study. This will also be considered in H29. During the last year of my grant, H29, I will publish my research on Fujiwara Yakushiji and Yakushiji in Nara in Japanese and complete the draft of an English book manuscript on same.
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| Causes of Carryover |
計画であった調査の旅費代を他予算で使用することができた為
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| Expenditure Plan for Carryover Budget |
国際調査（米国）に行く必要がある為、未使用額についてはその旅費にあてる予定
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| Remarks |
Bloomsbury Handbook of Japanese Religions, Board member (2016, December). (London, New York, Sydney and Delhi).
Oxford University Press, Oxford Bibliography, Buddhism, Advisory Editor
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