Summer special exhibition "Koyasan in the Time of Kiyomori"

Places associated with Taira no Kiyomori are well known, including Kyoto, Kobe, and Itsukushima in Hiroshima. However, there are also things related to Kiyomori at Mount Koya. In "The Tale of the Heike, Volume 3, The Construction of the Great Pagoda," Mount Koya is mentioned as the reason why Kiyomori came to worship at Itsukushima Shrine, as follows:

Kiyomori was ordered by Emperor Toba to repair the Great Pagoda at Mount Koya. When he made a pilgrimage after completing the repairs, he met an old monk. The monk thanked Kiyomori for repairing the Great Pagoda and asked him to repair the dilapidated Itsukushima. As the monk left for Okunoin, he suddenly disappeared after a while. Kiyomori learned that the monk was an incarnation of Kobo Daishi, and his faith deepened even more, so he donated a mandala to the Kondo. It is said that the mandala he donated at that time was painted by mixing the jeweled crown of Taizokai Dainichi Nyorai with the blood of Kiyomori's own head. This mandala, known as the "Blood Mandala," has been cherished and passed down to the present day.

This exhibition will focus on the "Blood Mandala," and will display items related to people close to Kiyomori, as well as Buddhist statues and paintings from Kiyomori's time. There are records that during Kiyomori's time, Shirakawa-in, Toba-in, and Goshirakawa-in also climbed Mount Koya for pilgrimage. Mount Koya during Kiyomori's time had a great influence on the people of that time. We hope that you will be able to get a sense of what Mount Koya was like at that time.