Special/Planned Exhibits
Autumn Special Exhibition "Calligraphy of Mount Koya"
Period: September 27, 2008 (Saturday) - December 7 (Sunday)
Period: September 27, 2008 (Saturday) - December 7 (Sunday)
Many books remain at Mount Koya as its history changes.
The history of Mount Koya can be glimpsed through these calligraphy works, including the Rōgo Shiki, in which Kukai wrote about his decision to convert to Buddhism at the age of 24; the Kanjō Reki Meisha, which records the names of monks and laypeople who received the initiation rites at Takaosan-ji Temple in Kyoto; and the Kongōbu-ji Konpon Engi, which describes how Kukai was given vast temple land by Nibutsumihime Shrine and how he came to found Mount Koya as a training center for Zen meditation.
The Sengoku warlords also had a deep relationship with Mount Koya, and many influential people had mentor-dan relationships with them, and donations of treasures to Mount Koya were also made frequently.
The special exhibition will display portraits of Kobo Daishi, known for his calligraphy, and Emperor Saga in the 2nd room of the new building, as well as portraits of Sanada Yukimura, a warlord from the Sengoku period who had a mentor-subject relationship with Mount Koya, the Twenty-Four Generals of the Takeda clan, and Takeda Katsuyori's wife and children. In the 3rd room, 4 national treasures, 3 important cultural properties, 1 prefecturally designated property, and 17 undesignated properties will be on display, including the Deaf and Blind Man, a copy of the sutras handed down at Mount Koya, including the Gold and Silver Lettered Sutra on Dark Blue Paper and the Fine-Printed Golden Light Sutra, and letters from warlords of the Sengoku period.
We hope you can feel the history of Mount Koya through the calligraphy.
The history of Mount Koya can be glimpsed through these calligraphy works, including the Rōgo Shiki, in which Kukai wrote about his decision to convert to Buddhism at the age of 24; the Kanjō Reki Meisha, which records the names of monks and laypeople who received the initiation rites at Takaosan-ji Temple in Kyoto; and the Kongōbu-ji Konpon Engi, which describes how Kukai was given vast temple land by Nibutsumihime Shrine and how he came to found Mount Koya as a training center for Zen meditation.
The Sengoku warlords also had a deep relationship with Mount Koya, and many influential people had mentor-dan relationships with them, and donations of treasures to Mount Koya were also made frequently.
The special exhibition will display portraits of Kobo Daishi, known for his calligraphy, and Emperor Saga in the 2nd room of the new building, as well as portraits of Sanada Yukimura, a warlord from the Sengoku period who had a mentor-subject relationship with Mount Koya, the Twenty-Four Generals of the Takeda clan, and Takeda Katsuyori's wife and children. In the 3rd room, 4 national treasures, 3 important cultural properties, 1 prefecturally designated property, and 17 undesignated properties will be on display, including the Deaf and Blind Man, a copy of the sutras handed down at Mount Koya, including the Gold and Silver Lettered Sutra on Dark Blue Paper and the Fine-Printed Golden Light Sutra, and letters from warlords of the Sengoku period.
We hope you can feel the history of Mount Koya through the calligraphy.