National Treasures and Important Cultural Properties · Nara

Todaiji Temple Tozai Gakumon Gate (West)

Todaiji West Tozai Gakumon Gate: The 1719 Gate in the West Corridor

Todaiji's western Tozai Gakumon Gate, an eight-legged gate of 1719 in the Great Buddha Hall corridor: how it fits the Edo rebuilding, its form and how to view it.

Designation National Treasures and Important Cultural Properties

Location Nara

Todaiji Temple Tozai Gakumon Gate (West): An Edo-Period Gate in the Great Buddha Hall Corridor

The Todaiji Temple Tozai Gakumon Gate (West) (東大寺東西楽門（西）, also called the Nishi Gakumon) is a mid-Edo-period gate built in 1719 in the western corridor that encloses the Great Buddha Hall at Todaiji in Zoshicho, Nara City, Nara Prefecture, and designated an Important Cultural Property in 1900.

The forecourt of the Great Buddha Hall is closed off by the Middle Gate at the front and the corridors running east and west from it. The Tozai Gakumon, literally the east and west gakumon gates, are one gate in each of those corridors. The western one, covered here, was finished three years before its eastern twin.

Part of the Long Edo-Period Rebuilding

The Great Buddha Hall burned in 1567 and was rebuilt through the fundraising of the monk Kōkei, with a consecration in 1709. The temple's history notes that the Middle Gate and corridors took another thirty years to complete.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates give the order: Middle Gate 1714, the West Gakumon Gate 1719, the East Gakumon Gate 1722, and the corridors between 1716 and 1737. The western gate was therefore built into the corridor while the corridor itself was still going up.

An Eight-Pillar Gate

The Todaiji Temple Tozai Gakumon Gate (West) is three bays wide with a single opening in the centre bay, a Hakkyakumon or eight-legged gate, with a gabled roof of clay tiles. In this type the four main pillars that carry the doors are braced by four supporting pillars in front and four behind, eight in all.

The corridor roof runs low and continuous, but at the gate a gabled roof rises a step higher. Seen from outside the enclosure, the gate marks a clear break in the long line of the corridor.

Designation of the West Gakumon Gate

The West Tozai Gakumon Gate was designated on the same day in 1900 as the Middle Gate and corridors, under the Ancient Shrines and Temples Preservation Law, and is now an Important Cultural Property. In the Agency's database, the west and east gates share one designation number but are recorded as separate properties.

The Great Buddha Hall, Middle Gate, corridors and Tozai Gakumon were all shaped by the same Edo-period project, and the western gate is one piece of the frame that gives the hall's forecourt its form.

Seeing the Todaiji West Gakumon Gate

The outside of the Todaiji Temple Tozai Gakumon Gate (West) can be seen free from the grounds outside the corridor, and from inside the corridor while visiting the Great Buddha Hall. The temple's visitor information says nothing special about the interior of the gate or passage through it.

The entrance to the Great Buddha Hall is on the left (west) side of the Middle Gate, and the western gate lies further along the west corridor. Hours, fees and directions are on the Todaiji Temple page.

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Q&A

QWhen was the Todaiji West Tozai Gakumon Gate built?: AThe Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to 1719. The eastern gate followed in 1722.

QWhere is the Todaiji West Tozai Gakumon Gate?: AIt opens in the western corridor that encloses the Great Buddha Hall, partway along the corridor running west from the Middle Gate.

QWhat is the eight-legged form of the Todaiji West Tozai Gakumon Gate?: AFour main pillars hold the doors, and four supporting pillars stand in front and four behind them. The gate is three bays wide with one central opening.

QWhen was the Todaiji West Tozai Gakumon Gate designated?: AIn 1900, on the same day as the Middle Gate and corridors. The west and east gates share one designation number.

QCan visitors see the Todaiji West Tozai Gakumon Gate?: AYes. Its outside is visible free from the grounds, and you can also see it from inside the corridor while visiting the Great Buddha Hall.

Basic Information

Name	Todaiji Temple Tozai Gakumon Gate (West)
Location	Zoshicho, Nara City, Nara Prefecture
Designation	Important Cultural Property
Year Designated	1900
Quantity	1 building
Dimensions	Three-bay, single-opening eight-legged gate, gabled roof, clay tiles
Owner	Todaiji Temple
Public Access	Exterior visible free from the grounds