hattō 法堂

A lecture hall which corresponds to the *kōdō 講堂 in temples of Buddhist sects other than those at Zen temples. Unlike the kōdō, there are usually no Buddhist statues placed in the hattō. Therefore, instead of the priest preaching while standing in front of Buddhist images, he is seated on top of the altar *shumidan 須弥壇, on a special chair called a hōza 法座. In other sects Buddhist statues are normally placed on the altars. Hattō are large structures that look like two-storied buildings because of the *mokoshi 裳階, which add an extra aisle covered by a pent roof. This gives the impression of a second story although these are really single-storied buildings. Although two-storied hattō are known to have existed at both Kenchōji 建長寺 in Kanagawa Prefecture and Tōfukuji 東福寺 in Kyoto, during the medieval period, these are no longer extant. Hattō are almost as big as *butsuden 仏殿 and in some cases even bigger. For example, the Hattō (1657) at Myōshinji 妙心寺, in Kyoto is 7 × 6 bays (25.42 × 20.18 m) including the one bay deep enclosure, mokoshi, surrounding the building. The hattō has a hard-packed earthen floor *doma 土間. The largest extant hattō is the one at Shōkokuji 相国寺 in Kyoto. It has the same number of bays including the mokoshi as that at Myōshinji, but it is a larger structure, being 28.12 m × 22.20 m. Both buildings have structural characteristics typical of the Zen style zenshūyō 禅宗様. The Hattō at Manpukuji 萬福寺 (1662), in Kyoto, is 5 x 6 bays (22.21 m x  20.06 m) and is an example of the type found at the Ōbaku 黄蘗 Zen sect; see *ōbaku kenchiku 黄蘗建築. The roof is hip-and-gable *irimoya-zukuri 入母屋造, and is covered with pantile *sangawarabuki 桟瓦葺. It has no bracket complexes *tokyō 斗きょう, but has bracket-shaped moldings, mochiokuri kurigata 持送繰形, single eaves *hitonoki 一軒, widely spaced rafters *mabaradaruki 疎垂木, Zen style gable ends with rainbow beams and bottle struts; see *kōryō taiheizuka 虹梁大瓶束. Unique to the Ōbaku Zen style is the one-bay deep, open colonnade across the front of the building, and the fret-patterned balustrade at the edge of the stone podium on each side of the steps.