Day 11: Oh Deer!

I had a great day today, which started with a visit to the Nara Park. According to Shinto belief, Japanese deer were the messengers of the gods. As such, Nara Park, which houses the Todaiji Temple, is full of wild deer. These deer, unlike those typically shown on TV, are not frightened of humans and in fact actively approach them hoping for the cookies that a sold to feed them. You are able to pat them and they will bow to you in the hope of food. However, if you do actually had the cookies in sight, they will bite and head-butt until you drop them, particularly the males. It was still a really cool experience, I have never met deer before and they were quite calm and friendly overall (mostly because I didn't buy the cookies.)

Deer!

Lots of deer

Hello!

Little Deer

Courtney had cookies and therefore got bitten

You can pat the deer

The main gate to the temple

There was another deer at the gate

Pretty Japanese gardens that were mowed by the deer

The main building, which was reconstructed as a smaller structure 300 years ago due to lack of wood. The pathway had four sets of marble, each from a different location (India, China, Korea, Japan - the order in which Buddhism spread).

The big Buddha, which is larger than the Kamakura one. It was cast in eight sections.

Because we finished early, we went to another temple that was also surrounded by deer. It used to be a private shrine, but when the Emperor moved, the gods moved with him, carried by the deer and the shrine was opened to the public.

One of the Shinto Gates at the Temple

Stone Lanterns donated by rich families hundreds of years ago

DEER!

Me on an autumn decorated staircase

Shinto Gate up to the holy shrine on the mountain

We also saw the performance of a Shinto Dance Ritual for the Sun God (the most powerful Shinto deity)

Our next stop was the Sharp museum. This place was incredibly interesting - it is hard to believe a company known for its calculators invented the mechanical pencil, as well as the domestic microwave oven. The museum was a historical tour, as well as a taste of what is yet to come. It was a really interesting experience - as well as amusing to see the development of technology over time.

First black and white TV by Sharp

First colour TV v. a colour TV 1/7th the weight and 10x the resolution

World's first calculator!

World's first satelite

Redesigning a fan to mimic bird wings

Anti-reflective glass - does gather fingerprints though (there's no hole in the box on the right)

The development of the PC

Our final stop was the Horyuji Temple. This is the second oldest Buddhist temple in Japan. It positions both the Pavilion (five story structure) and the main hall next to each other as they were both deemed equally as important. There wasn't a lot we could take photos of due to the need to protect the historical structure, but we did get to explore a wonderful museum of the artworks and statues that had existed within the temple. What was most interesting was the way the art developed during this time. Because Buddhism came from China, the original artworks depict a very Chinese Buddha and people, because Japanese artists learnt from Chinese artists. However, over time, these Japanese artists learnt to draw and sculpt to reflect the unique features of the Japanese people, reducing the Chinese appearance of the subjects.

Pathway to the Temple

Better view of the temple

Cleaning fountain with a dragon

The middle gate - unusually having two entrances, one for the Pavilion and one for the Main Hall.

Pretty Tree.

Pavilion - looks five stories tall, but is actually only one floor with a high ceiling. This structure taught Japanese architects how to deal with earthquakes

The main hall containing many depictions of the Buddha

For dinner we met with some English students at the local Kyoto University and went to an all you can eat and drink buffet. We had an incredible time and I am very, very full. However, despite getting back to the hotel very late, we do need to be up quite early tomorrow.