Nijūmon

Main article: Mon (architecture)

A nijūmon (the sanmon of Tōfuku-ji, a National Treasure)

The nijūmon (二重門^?, lit. two story gate) is one of two types of two-story gate presently used in Japan (the other one being the rōmon, see photo in the gallery below), and can be found at most Japanese Buddhist temples.^[1] This gate is distinguishable from its relative by the roof above the first floor which skirts the entire upper story, absent in a rōmon.^[2] Accordingly, it has a series of brackets (tokyō) supporting the roof's eaves both at the first and at the second story.^[3] In a rōmon, the brackets support a balcony. The tokyō are usually three-stepped (mitesaki) with tail rafters at the third step.^[4][3] A nijūmon is normally covered by a hip-and-gable roof.^[2]

Unlike a rōmon, whose second story is inaccessible and unusable, a nijūmon has stairs leading to the second story. Some gates have at their ends two sanrō (山廊^?), 2 x 1 bay structures housing the stairs.^[2] The second story of a nijūmon usually contains statues of Shakyamuni or of goddess Kannon, and of the 16 Rakan, and hosts periodical religious ceremonies.^[5] Large nijūmon' are 5 bays wide, 2 bays deep and have three entrances, however Tokyo's Zōjō-ji, the Tokugawa clan's funerary temple, has a gate which is 5 x 3 bays.^[2] Smaller ones are 3 x 2 bays and have one, two or even three entrances.^[2]

Of all temple gate types, the nujūmon has the highest status, and is accordingly used for important gates like the chūmon (middle gate) of ancient temples as Hōryū-ji.^[3] The sanmon, the gate of a Zen temple of highest prestige, is usually a nijūmon.^{[note 1]} Some nijūmon are called chūmon (中門^?, lit. middle gate) because they are situated between the entrance and the temple.^[2]

Gallery

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  A Niōmon of Kōmyō-ji in Ayabe
  (National Treasure)

• 

  A nijūmon. Note the double roof.

• 

  A rōmon. Note the balcony and the single roof.

• 

  One of the sanrō of Tōfuku-ji's sanmon (detail of the photo above)

The second story of a nijūmon

Some interior images of the second story of a nijūmon, in this case Kōmyō-ji 's sanmon in Kamakura, Kanagawa prefecture.

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  The sanmon

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  The stairs to the second story

• 

  The second story

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  Second story, exit to the balcony

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  Sacred images in the main room

Notes

1. ^ The term sanmon originated at Zen temples, but is often used by other sects too, particularly by the Jōdo sect.

References

1. ^ Fujita & Koga 2008, pp. 84–85
2. ^ ^{a b c d e f} "nijuumon". JAANUS – Japanese Architecture and Art Net User System. http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus//deta/n/nijuumon.htm. Retrieved 2010-06-22. 
3. ^ ^{a b c} Hamashima, Masashi (1999) (in Japanese). Jisha Kenchiku no Kanshō Kiso Chishiki. Tokyo: Shibundō. pp. 105–107. 
4. ^ For details, see the article Tokyō.
5. ^ Iwanami Nihonshi Jiten

Bibliography

• Iwanami Nihonshi Jiten (岩波日本史辞典), CD-Rom Version. Iwanami Shoten, 1999-2001 (in Japanese)
• "Nijuumon". JAANUS – Japanese Architecture and Art Net User System. http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/r/roumon.htm. Retrieved 2009-06-19. 
• Fujita Masaya, Koga Shūsaku, ed (April 10, 1990) (in Japanese). Nihon Kenchiku-shi (September 30, 2008 ed.). Shōwa-dō. ISBN 4-8122-9805-9.