There are 5,173 wooden sculptures in Toshogu Shrine. A few more than five hundred of them can be seen on Yomei-mon, the striking gate leading to the inner precincts.
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| Yomeimon at Toshugo in Nikko |
The Yomei-mon gate, deservedly designated a national treasure, is also called Higurashino-mon which translates to "the gate where people spend all day long to look". If I didn't have a train to catch, I'd probably still be standing there catching flies in my gaping mouth.
The gate rests on twelve pillars, one of them inverted to signify imperfection and the desire for long life. In ancient times it was believed that perfection was the beginning of decline so people used to leave space for three tiles on the roof when they built a house.
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| Misa and Mineko outside Yomei-mon |
A sleeping cat is carved above the entrance to Okusha, the area of the shrine where Ieyasu Tokugawa is buried. This is the most famous sculpture in Toshugo so I had to try to blend into a class of yellow-capped students to get close enough to take a picture. Their guide was probably telling them that the sparrow perched on the cat's back means that peace has arrived in Japan after years of civil strife.
Another interesting carving can be found on the gable of one of the storehouses across from the sacred stable. People call this "The Imaginary Elephants" because the artist had never seen one and had to rely on his imagination and some limited written descriptions.
I hope the imperfections translated into a long life for him.
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