shakadō 釈迦堂

A hall in which a statue of the historical Buddha *Shaka 釈迦, born in either the mid-6th or mid-5th century BCE in Kapilavastu, central India, is enshrined. Among the eight well-known shakadō, the largest is 7 × 7 bays (22.39 m × 23.72 m), and is found at Enryakuji 延暦寺(1347; transferred to Enrakuji ca. 1595) in Shiga Prefecture. The smallest is 3 × 3 bays (5.74 m) and is found at Shinchōkokuji 新長谷寺 (Muromachi period) in Gifu Prefecture. This building is in a simple wayō style *wayō 和様, with single eaves *hitonoki 一軒, and boat-shaped brackets *funahijiki 舟肘木 placed directly on the pillars. The hipped roof is covered with cypress bark *hiwadabuki 桧皮葺. The oldest is Daihōonji Senbon Shakadō 大報恩寺千本釈迦堂 (1227) in Kyoto, 5 × 5 bays (19.53 m × 23.19 m). 

The Zen style *zenshūyō 禅宗様, is immediately evident in three shakadō with closely packed bracket complexes atop pillars and in the interstices, and the use of rainbow beams and bottle struts *kōryō taiheizuka 虹梁大瓶束 in the gable pediments. These are: Zenpukuin Shakadō 善福院釈迦堂 (1337) in Wakayama Prefecture, 5 × 5 bays (11.69 m), with an enclosed pent roof skirting *mokoshi 裳階; En'yūji Shakadō 円融寺釈迦堂 (Muromachi period; remodeled during the Edo period) in Tokyo, 3 × 4 bays (6.30 m × 8.07 m); and Ankokuji Shakadō 安国寺釈迦堂 (1339) in Hiroshima Prefecture, 3 × 3 bays (8.51 m), which has very widely spaced rafters ōmabara daruki 大疎垂木, with tail rafters *odaruki 尾垂木 that bear a considerable amount of the weight of the roof structure.