Todaiji Temple Bell Tower

Todaiji Temple Bell Tower: Eisai's Kamakura-Period Belfry

The Todaiji Temple Bell Tower (東大寺鐘楼, Shōrō) is an early Kamakura-period belfry on the hill east of the Great Buddha Hall at Todaiji in Zoshicho, Nara City, Nara Prefecture, rebuilt in the Jōgen era (1207 to 1210) and designated a National Treasure in 1951.

According to the Agency for Cultural Affairs, Todaiji first hung its bell in 752, and a bell tower probably stood on the rise east of the hall from the beginning. The present Bell Tower was rebuilt by Eisai (1141 to 1215), who succeeded Chōgen as chief fundraiser of Todaiji. The temple calls the spot Shōrō-ga-oka, the bell tower hill, between the Shunjōdō and the Nenbutsu Hall.

Built to Carry an Enormous Bell

The Todaiji Temple Bell Tower is a single bay square, open on all four sides, with a hip-and-gable roof of clay tiles, standing on a stone-faced platform. Each side is braced partway up by tie-beams and intermediate posts, and these carry the colossal beam from which the bell hangs.

Every member is, as the Agency puts it, extremely thick. The moulded ends of the tie-beams and the round-section beams are Daibutsu-yō traits. The bracket sets, by contrast, are placed between the posts as well as on them (Tsumegumi), are slender compared with the frame, and are unusual in their arrangement and the shape of their tail rafters.

The Agency reads the structure as Daibutsu-yō at its base, with hints of the Zenshūyō (Zen style) in the bracketing and details. Since Eisai is the monk who brought Rinzai Zen back from Song China, that mix is worth pausing over.

Why the Bell Tower Is a National Treasure

The Todaiji Temple Bell Tower was first protected in 1897 under the Ancient Shrines and Temples Preservation Law and became a National Treasure in 1951. The designation includes one ridge tablet (Munafuda).

The Agency for Cultural Affairs values it as a highly individual building of the early Kamakura period, of great significance for both its technique and its style. It shows how Chōgen's Great Buddha style carried on, and changed, under the next chief fundraiser.

The Great Bell and Its Sound

The bronze bell in the Todaiji Bell Tower, itself a National Treasure, dates from the founding of Todaiji. The temple gives it as 3.86 meters tall, 2.71 meters across the mouth and 26.3 tonnes in weight. It has long been called simply the Ōgane (great bell) and nicknamed Nara Tarō. Earthquakes brought it down in 1070 and 1096, and its suspension loop broke in 1239; inscriptions record the repairs each time.

The zelkova striker is 4.48 meters long and weighs about 200 kilograms with its fittings. The bell is still struck every day at 8:00 p.m., and you can listen from close by. From 26 February to 14 March it is struck at 7:00 p.m. instead, and from 1 to 14 March also at 1:00 a.m.

Because the tower has no walls, you can look up at the great beam and the bell together from outside. Standing close beneath it shows how massive the beam has to be.

Visiting the Todaiji Bell Tower

The Todaiji Temple Bell Tower stands on a hill in the grounds, and its exterior is free to see. Climb east from the Great Buddha Hall to reach Shōrō-ga-oka.

If you come for the 8:00 p.m. bell, bring a light; the area is dark. Arrangements change on special days such as New Year's Eve, so check the Todaiji website first. Directions to the temple are on the Todaiji Temple page.