Also called Karayō tokyō 唐様斗きょう. A Zen style bracket complex. The bracket arms *hijiki 肘木 are extended so that they can support as many as five bearing blocks *masu 斗. Many bracket arms end with a decorative nosing *kibana 木鼻. This type of bracket complex is added to the interstices between interstices placed above pillars *hashira 柱. They are called intercolumnar bracket complexes *tsumegumi 詰組. The tail rafters *odaruki 尾垂木 are doubled and extend outward through two steps of each 3-stepped bracket complex *mitesaki tokyō 三手先斗きょう, resulting in a tightly packed, dynamic array of structural members.
The style of these bracket complexes was introduced with the Zen 禅 sect of Buddhism from China, therefore, Kara 唐 meaning China and yō 様 meaning style became a popular appellation. However, to distinguish this style from others imported from China, the term *zenshūyō 禅宗様 has superseded Karayō 唐様 in recent decades. Example: Shoufukuji Jizōdō 正福寺地蔵堂 (1408) in Tokyo.
