Kategorie: Japan

Morgenzeremonie im Amida-dō (阿弥陀堂) des Higashi Hongan-ji-Tempels in Kyoto

Aufnahme mit einem Sony PCM-M10 am 29.03.2025, nachbearbeitet mit WaveLab Pro 12

Die Aufnahme dokumentiert eine morgendliche buddhistische Zeremonie im Amida-dō (阿弥陀堂) des Higashi Hongan-ji-Tempels in Kyōto. Ich betrete den Tempel und begebe mich wie die anderen Anwesenden in den Fersensitz (seiza, 正座 – diese Haltung ist in japanisch-buddhistischen Kontexten üblich, besonders bei formellen Zeremonien. Sie signalisiert Respekt, Hingabe und Konzentration). Die Aufnahme beginnt mit dem Anschalten des Aufnahme-Rekorders, den ich auf meine Tasche gelegt habe. Sehr leise betreten dann die Mönche den Raum und setzten sich. Ab 1 min/7 sec wird ein Gong geschlagen und die Chor-Rezitation beginnt. Hierbei handelt es sich um rhythmisch und tonal strukturierte, langgezogene Chor-Rezitationen im shōmyō-Stil (声明), der typisch ist für formelle Jōdo-Shinshū-Rituale. Mehrfach ist deutlich das Mantra „Namu Amida Butsu“ (南無阿弥陀仏) zu hören – die zentrale Praxisform der Jōdo-Shinshū: das rezitierende Anrufen des Buddha Amida als Ausdruck von Vertrauen und Hingabe. Die Rezitation endet mit mehreren Gongschlägen bei 2 min/40 sec. Danach verlassen die Mönche und die anderen Anwesenden den Tempel.

Der Shin-Buddhismus – eigentlich: Jōdo-Shinshū (浄土真宗, wörtlich: „Die wahre Schule des Reinen Landes“) – ist eine der bedeutendsten und meistverbreiteten buddhistischen Schulen in Japan. Er gehört zur sogenannten Reines-Land-Tradition (Jōdo-shū), ist demnach dem Amidismus zugehörig. Im Zentrum ihrer Lehre steht das Vertrauen in den transzendenten Buddha Amitabha (japanisch 阿弥陀 Amida) und die Hoffnung auf eine Wiedergeburt in seinem „Reinen Land“ (jōdo 浄土). Die Schule basiert auf dem Sukhâvatîvyuûhasûtra (japanisch 阿弥陀経 Amida-kyō), dem Sûtra des Landes der Glückseligkeit. Gestiftet wurde die Shinshū von Shinran Shōnin (親鸞聖人1173–1263), später wurde sie von Rennyo Shōnin (蓮如, 1415–1499) weiter ausgebildet. Shinran Shōnin war Schüler von Hōnen Shōnin (法然上人,1133-1212) dem Gründer der Reines-Land-Schule, er entwickelte aber seine eigene, sehr persönliche und sozial radikale Auslegung der Reines-Land-Lehre. Das zentrale Ziel ist die Wiedergeburt im „Reinen Land“ (Jōdo 浄土) des Buddha Amida (Amitābha). Dieses Reine Land ist kein „Himmel“, sondern ein Zustand oder Bereich jenseits von Leid und Verblendung, in dem Erleuchtung möglich wird. Shinshū’s zentraler Praxisweg ist nicht Meditation, Askese oder Verdienstansammlung wie in anderen Schulen, sondern Vertrauen (Shinjin) in die Kraft des Buddha Amida, der durch sein Gelübde allen Wesen die Wiedergeburt im Reinen Land verspricht. Ausdruck dieses Vertrauens ist Nembutsu – das rezitierte Anrufen des Namens „Namu Amida Butsu“ (南無阿弥陀仏, „Ich nehme Zuflucht zu Amida Buddha“).  Das Nembutsu ist kein magischer Zauberspruch, es hat keinen Einfluss auf den Akt der Befreiung, sondern ist nur Ausdruck des Dankes für die Zusicherung der Befreiung durch Amida und einer inneren Verbundenheit.

Field Recordings around a ‚Rakugo‘ performance in the Kōzu-gū shrine in Osaka

Kōzu-gū is a Shinto Shrine in Ōsaka, Japan. It honors Emperor Nintoku, the 16th emperor who reigned from 313 to 399. In 866, Emperor Seiwa, the 56th emperor, became interested in this place. He ordered a search for the old capital’s ruins. A shrine was built on the site. This became the Kōzu-gū shrine. During Emperor Ōgimachi’s reign (from 1577 to 1586) changes happened. Toyotomi Hideyoshi was building Ōsaka Castle then. The shrine was in the castle area. In 1583, the shrine’s shintai was moved. It went to Himekoso Jinja. This is Kōzu-gū’s current location.

Kōzu-gū is important for rakugo. Rakugo (落語, literally ’story with a fall‘) is a form of Japanese verbal comedy, traditionally performed in yose theatres. The lone storyteller (落語家, rakugoka) sits on a raised platform, a kōza (高座). Using only a paper fan (扇子, sensu) and a small cloth (手拭, tenugui) as props, and without standing up from the seiza sitting position, the rakugo artist depicts a long and complicated comical (or sometimes sentimental) story. The story always involves the dialogue of two or more characters. The difference between the characters is depicted only through change in pitch, tone, and a slight turn of the head.

The first recording is from the entrance to the shrine at the foot of a staircase, below a building belonging to the shrine, from where the music can be heard.

We went back up the stairs to the shrine to find out who was making the music and what was happening there. We received a friendly welcome and were told that a ‘rakugo’ would begin in 30 minutes. We were allowed to watch the musicians, who played music before and between the individual rakugoka, warm up in a small room behind the actual performance space. I was even allowed to try my hand at playing a shamisen.
The following two recordings are recordings of the musicians warming up for the performance.

The following recording is an excerpt from the moderation before the ‚ragugo‘ of the first speaker. (Out of respect for the artists, we did not record the actual ‘rakugo’ performances.)

(We made the recordings with an iPhone 15 Pro, post-processed with Steinberg Wavelab Elements 11.)

Yaui Inari subordinate shrine in Kōzu-gū Jinja

The Japanese City

The castle town (joka machi) was the administrative centre of a daimyo’s domain and became the characteristic form of Japanese city from the mid-sixteenth century until the Meiji Restoration of 1868. Full-fledged urban communities emerged in the sixteenth century with the forced settlement of samurai around their lord’s castle and the combination of market and castle in a single location. Initially, castle towns were small, consisting of the castle complex and surrounding dwellings. The growing authority of the daimyo was increasingly reflected in their imposing town plans.

Post-station towns (shukuba machi), religious towns (monzen machi), port towns (minato machi) and market centres (ichiba machi) are other types of towns that originated in feudal Japan.

The post-station towns (shukuba machi) developed along the five radial roads, gokaido, that stretched out from Edo, the capital of the shogunate. These towns catered to travellers‘ needs along these routes. Monzen machi developed in the vicinity of popular temples or shrines. Nara is one of the most important monzen machi in Japan. The city developed under the protection of the great temples. The temples and shrines were usually located on the outskirts of the city, unlike the castle, which usually occupied a central position in the city. Temples and shrines played an important role in the economy of these cities. Trading centres that developed along seaports are known as minato machi, or port towns, and many towns such as Hakata (now part of Fukuoka), Sakai (in Osaka Prefecture), Nagasaki and Hyogo (now Kobe) flourished as minato machi. During the Tokugawa shogunate’s policy of exclusion, when overseas trade was virtually banned, domestic trade continued in the port cities of Osaka, Shimonoseki and Niigata. These were located on the major sea routes. Many of these free ports were controlled by the merchants who lived there. Another group of Japanese towns developed as ichiba machi, or market centres. These market towns served as trading centres for merchants from nearby villages and provided a link to urban life. Most arose where unusual opportunities for trading existed, such as where two or more major roads intersected. A number of towns have developed as onsen machi, or hot spring towns or spas, which have been major attractions for the Japanese people since ancient times. Many of these towns have now developed into large resort complexes, e.g. Tamayu, Matsuyama, Beppu, Atami, Noboribetsu. There are many hotels, Japanese style inns, restaurants and recreational facilities in these spa towns.

With few exceptions, all of Japan’s modern cities grew out of one of these origins. Many cities had more than one function in feudal times. Shizuoka and Nagoya, for example, were both a joka machi and a shukuba machi. Osaka was both a joka machi and an ichiba machi. In general, cities that had strong locational advantages in feudal times have retained their locational advantages in modern times. They have become the major industrial and commercial cities. Castle cities such as Osaka, Tokyo, Nagoya, and Hiroshima have not only retained their advantages of location, but have also improved their positions as centres of trade and industry. After 1868, many castle towns became prefectural or regional capitals, adding educational, cultural and service aspects. This resulted in the functional transformation of historic towns. Smaller castle towns became centres of light industries such as food processing, textiles, brewing and agricultural implements. The larger castle towns attracted heavier industries such as metals and shipbuilding and became centres of transport networks. Seaport cities such as Osaka, Niigata, Shimonoseki and Nagoya have retained their administrative-political functions and added important manufacturing and service functions. Japan’s railways follow the old feudal road network, and former stage towns such as Sendai, Kawasaki, Hamamatsu and Nagano have become railway centres with manufacturing and commercial functions. Many religious centres and resort towns have grown in importance in modern times, along with the booming economy.

Quelle: Karan, P. P. (1997): The City in Japan, pp. 12-39; in: Karan, P.P. & K. Stapleton (Eds.): The Japanese City. University Press of Kentucky, Lexington, p. 15-20.