Nikkô Tôshôgû is a shrine in the town of Nikkô in the mountains to the north of Tokyo. It was founded in 1617 to house the remains of the founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate and the Edo Period, Tokugawa Ieyasu. The shrine was built entirely in a year and a half and was designed to be the most lavish and colorful shrine in Japan. The affluent success of Nikkô Tôshôgû inspired a new generation of architecture across the nation. The shrine is dedicated to the peace of the Edo period and was decorated as such with motifs all around the complex of animals frolicking and enjoying life in the glow of peace. There are several parts to the complex including a hall to the Tokugawa Shoguns, the Hall of the Roaring Dragon, and the hall to Tokugawa Ieyasu up the hill behind the main hall.
For the casual: 11. For the educated: 11.
If you don't go to this shrine, you're missing out on some seriously fun stuff. This is a shrine where the buildings and surrounding forest compliment each other. Be it sun, rain, or snow, Nikko Tôshôgû is one of the most incredible places to go to year round. Words cannot properly describe the love that I have of this complex and its significance in history. The shrine is meant to represent the peace that was created by the Tokugawa Shogunate; a peace which did last for two and a half centuries. Though the shogunate couldn’t have know the peace under their rule would last for so long, they chose this shrine to portray a visual cornucopia of what was possible under their rule. Carvings, paintings, and structural forms told this story on a new scale that had never been seen before. The animals portrayed are sometimes fantastical like early interpretations of elephants, dragons, or lion-dogs (komainu), while local animals like birds, deer, and others are bursting with life now that peace is the reigning force in Japan. For example, there is a well known carving over the walkway entrance up the hill to the resting place of Tokugawa Ieyasu (founder of the Edo Period). This carving depicts a small cat napping while being surrounded by countless birds taking flight. This carving illustrates that in this time of peace, even a cat feels content enough to rest while birds soar nearby.
The complex is fundamentally built with three primary colors: white, black/slate, and gold. Gold is the main focus in that color wheel for obvious reasons, and it doesn’t disappoint. The gold leaf glitters in almost any quantity of light and it becomes increasingly revealing just how much is used when the light is most intense. A labrynth of support brackets that elevate the roofs, are adorned in black lacquer, and decorative veins of gold leaf disappear or shine bright depending on the exposure. This gold detailing is made all the more stunning because it is mostly used as a highlight on the darker aspects of each building, not only the lacquer supports as previously mentioned, but also the slate black roofs which are capped and adorned with gold facets baring the crest of the Tokugawa family. What light isn’t reflected with gold is still used and redirected because of the white base paint on each structure. As mentioned before, the shrine is adorned with carvings of flowers, luscious foliage, and frolicking animals all of which are painted with the brightest pigments available. Each of these colors seem to become even more brilliant because the structure’s base color is a milk white which manages to control the mass of flashy adornments while equally allowing them to shine. In many ways, the nation under the Tokugawa government was very much like this building, the various regions and lords being the shrine embellishments while the shogunate is a subtle yet pervasive white base keeping everything in check, but a flashy gold stamp of their family crest is always there to reaffirm who is in power.
The town of Nikkô is also fantastic with great little shops to help with whatever additional souvenirs you may want. Need a place to stay? Check out the inns in the area, even those a bit farther away (if you have a car), because many have hot springs where visitors can relax. If you don’t have a car, locals trains or buses can take you to and from the closest shinkansen station about 30 min. away or a limited express train can take you from Tobu-Nikko Station to Asakusa Station in about 90 minutes.
