page_title: Hōgon-ji
section_title: Hogon-ji's treasure house
hierarchical_section_title: Hōgon-ji / Hogon-ji's treasure house
caption_attribution_description: English: Actor in the Noh play Chikubushima.
context_page_description: The Hogon-ji Temple is located on the sacred Chikubu Island in Shiga Prefecture, Japan. It is part of a temple complex on the revered island. It is a Buddhist temple dedicated to the goddess Benzaiten. Also, it is said to have first been built in 724 CE under the order of Emperor Shōmu. The temple has been rebuilt a few times over the years, with a major rebuilding around 1602 CE by the Japanese court officials Toyotomi Hideyori and Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The temple looks to be of Amida style architecture. The temple's gate is originally from the Toyokuni Shrine in Kyoto, but was moved to Chikubu Island during the renovations in 1602. The artwork on the temple's gate has features reminiscent of the Momoyama Period.
context_section_description: Next to the temple complex's pagoda is the Treasure House. Here several important artifacts relevant to the temple's history are stored. An example of such artifacts include: tapestries, pipes, Nō masks, swords, and Buddhas. A tapestry of Benzaiten resides there. In it she is portrayed with only two arms and a biwa, or Japanese lute. This form that emphasized her musical attributes was very popular in Japanese artwork. Seen around her head is a halo, thus emphasizing her divinity. Her robes look very soft due to the curvy lines used. This image is much more reminiscent of the Japanese iconography of deities than that of Indian iconography because the figure appears as organic and soft, not a stiff, stern, and untouchable being. Another evidence of this is the fact that the lines used are not geometric, a trait common in the Indian iconography of deities.
   Nō masks worn by the actors in that type of theatre (see fig. 11) are especially relevant to the temple's history in that Chikubu Island was the location and Benzaiten was the subject of the famous Nō play, Chikubushima. The play follows the pilgrimage of a court official to Chikubu Island in his journey to pay homage to the deity there. He arrives at the island by an old couples fishing boat and then learns his lesson of judging people because it actually turns out that the old woman is Benzaiten, and the old man the Dragon God of Lake Biwa. The play finally ends with Benzaiten and the Dragon God of Lake Biwa returning to their divine abodes after they both have performed marvelous dances.
caption: Figure 11 Nō Actor Wearing Mask
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