[Held from November 15th to 17th, 2024 at Senju-ji Temple (Tsu City, Mie Prefecture)] Digital Art Night 2024 at Senju-ji Temple, National Treasure Miei-do Hall and National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall

What is Takada Honzan Senshu-ji Temple National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall and National Treasure Miei-do Hall Digital Art Night 2024?

"Takada Honzan Senju-ji Temple National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall and National Treasure Miei-do Hall Digital Art Night 2024" produced by HITOHATA,INC. (CEO: Takeaki Higashiyama) will be held at Senju-ji Temple (Tsu City, Mie Prefecture) from November 15th (Friday) to 17th (Sunday), 2024. (Organizer: Takada Honzan Senju-ji Temple Digital Art Night Executive Committee)

This event will feature projection mapping of digital art based on motifs of designs from cultural assets that Senju-ji Temple is proud of, such as gold and vividly colored birds and lotus flowers, onto the two national treasures: the gigantic Miei-do Hall, a national treasure building measuring approximately 42 meters wide and 25 meters high, and the magnificent Nyorai-do Hall.

Viewing the projection mapping is free and no prior registration is required.

In addition to the projection mapping, there will be a special night-time viewing (fee required, no prior registration required) where the National Treasure Miei-do Hall and the National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall will be illuminated in fantastical lights, a premium viewing tour guided by a monk that includes a VR theater experience in the 360-degree video space inside the Treasure Museum Tokoden and a tour of the special area, the National Treasure Miei-do Hall Chujin (fee required, prior registration required, registration at the venue only if there is space available), and a night market with food stalls and other items will be held, turning the road in front of Senshu-ji Temple into a pedestrian paradise.

In addition, we will also release a Cultural Assets AR that allows you to interactively view high-resolution 3D models of Senju-ji Temple's valuable cultural assets on your smartphone. (Free of charge; some content can only be viewed by those participating in the premium viewing tour.)

Please enjoy the spectacular projection mapping of the magnificent Miei-do Hall, a wooden building designated as a national treasure and the fifth largest in Japan, and the magnificent Nyorai-do Hall, as well as a variety of events that will brighten up the night at Senju-ji Temple.

Event Outline

[Name] Takada Honzan Senju-ji Temple National Treasure Miei-do Hall and National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall Digital Art Night 2024

[Date and time] November 15th (Friday) - 17th (Sunday), 2024 17:30 - 20:30

*The projection mapping will alternate between the main content of the National Treasure Miei-do Hall for approximately 7 minutes and the main content of the National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall for approximately 8 minutes.

*You will be able to see the same projection mapping images regardless of the time of your visit.

*In the event of rain, the projection mapping may be temporarily suspended or canceled.

[Venue] Senju-ji Temple, Head Temple of the Shinshu Takada School, National Treasure Miei-do Hall and National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall (2819 Isshinden-cho, Tsu City, Mie Prefecture)

*You cannot enter through the Karamon Gate on the Nyorai-do side. Please enter through the Sanmon Gate on the Miei-do side.

Public transport: 5 minutes on foot from JR Isshinden Station

About 15 minutes on foot from Ise Railway "Higashi-Ishinden Station"

About 20 minutes on foot from Kintetsu Takadamotoyama Station

About 10 minutes by taxi from "Tsu Station"

About 30 minutes by bus from the East Exit of Tsu Station (detours available)

By car: 15 minutes from Geino Interchange on the Ise Expressway

About 15 minutes from Tsu Interchange

About 5 minutes from Kurima Nakayamacho on National Route 23

Parking: Takada Honzan Large Parking Lot (2722 Ozato Kubota-cho, Tsu City, Mie Prefecture) Approximately 250 spaces

Parking lot in front of Takada Honzan Karamon Gate (2800-1 Isshindencho, Tsu City, Mie Prefecture) Approximately 100 spaces

*On Sunday, November 17th, the surrounding roads will be closed due to the Isshinden Jinaicho Festival, and the Takada Honzan Karamon Gate Parking Lot will be unavailable. In addition, the number of cars allowed in the lot will be significantly limited on Saturday, November 16th and Sunday, November 17th.

Temporary parking lot: ① Takada Junior and Senior High School staff parking lot (2618-28 Ozato Kubota-cho, Tsu City, Mie Prefecture) Approximately 120 spaces * Available from 18:00 on Friday, November 15th

② Takada Gakuen JR Entrance Parking Lot (2661-2 Osari Kubota-cho, Tsu City, Mie Prefecture) Approximately 130 spaces *Available from 18:00 on Friday, November 15th

③ Kato Nao Shoten Parking Lot (207 Isshinden-cho, Tsu City, Mie Prefecture) Approximately 20 spaces

④ Isshinden Elementary School South Ground Parking Lot (355 Okoso, Isshinden, Tsu City, Mie Prefecture) Approximately 30 cars *Not available in rainy weather

⑤Takada Nursery School Staff Parking Lot (280 Isshinden-cho, Tsu City, Mie Prefecture) Approximately 30 spaces *Available only on November 16th (Sat) and 17th (Sun)

⑥ Takada Junior College Parking Lot (195 Toyono Isshinden, Tsu City, Mie Prefecture) Approximately 150 spaces *Available from 18:00 on Friday, November 15th

⑦ Mie Prefectural Human Rights Center (693-1 Okoso, Isshinden, Tsu City, Mie Prefecture) Approximately 70 parking spaces *Available from 17:00 on Friday, November 15th

⑧ Former Parlor Delco Parking Lot (478-4 Isshinden Kamitsubeda, Tsu City, Mie Prefecture) Approximately 100 cars *Available only on November 16th (Sat) and 17th (Sun)

*Due to limited parking space, we recommend using public transportation whenever possible.

*Please note that the temporary parking lot is up to 1.5km away from the venue.

Requests to visitors

・If you are taking photographs or videos of the projection mapping, please refrain from using flash photography, drone photography, or long-term photography using a tripod in the front row when it is crowded. In addition, the shutter sound of continuous shooting may be a nuisance to those around you, so please refrain from continuous shooting or use the silent shooting function when it is crowded. Since the image moves quickly, we recommend that you use a smartphone to shoot videos.

・When shooting projection mapping, if you use a tripod, the camera position must be no higher than head height, regardless of the viewing location (except for filming by official record staff). In addition, please refrain from filming using ladders or other objects whose feet do not touch the ground.

・Please note that you may be photographed or filmed by staff or during media interviews.

・Please note that photography is prohibited in some areas during the special night viewing and premium viewing tours.

Organizers etc.

[Organizer] Takada Honzan Senju-ji Temple Digital Art Night Executive Committee

[Special sponsors] Shishu Takada Honzan Senju-ji Temple, Mie Prefecture Tourism Federation

[Planning and Production] HITOHATA,INC.

[Cooperation] Create Suzuka Co., Ltd.

*This event is being held with the support of the Agency for Cultural Affairs' FY2024 "Cultural Resource Utilization Project Subsidy (Project to Promote the Utilization of Attractive Cultural Assets from Around the Country)."

①Projection mapping at the National Treasure Miei-do Hall and the National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall

The projection mapping projected images using digital art based on motifs of designs from cultural assets that Senju-ji Temple is proud of, such as gold and vividly colored birds and lotus flowers, will be projected onto the two national treasures: the gigantic national treasure Miei-do Hall, approximately 42 meters wide and 25 meters high, and the magnificent national treasure Nyorai-do Hall.

Event time: Friday, November 15th to Sunday, November 17th, 2024, 17:30-20:30

Location: Senju-ji Temple grounds, National Treasure Miei-do Hall and National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall (outdoors)

Admission: Free, no prior registration required

*The projection mapping will alternate between the main content of the National Treasure Miei-do Hall for approximately 7 minutes and the main content of the National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall for approximately 8 minutes.

*You will be able to see the same projection mapping images regardless of the time of your visit.

*In the event of rain, the projection mapping may be temporarily suspended or canceled.

*Please note that the last projection mapping will be shown at the National Treasure Miei-do Hall from 20:15 and at the National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall from 20:22.

National Treasure Miei-do Hall Projection Mapping (image)

National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall Projection Mapping (image)

②Special night viewing of the National Treasure Miei-do Hall and the National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall

The National Treasure Miei-do Hall and Nyorai-do Hall, which are usually closed at night, will be specially opened and illuminated with a fantastic nighttime light. (Fees apply, no prior application required)

Event time: Friday, November 15th to Sunday, November 17th, 2024, 17:30-20:30 (last entry at 20:00)

Reception: National Treasure Miokage Hall East side tent *After reception, you can enter the hall from the east entrance.

Admission fee: 500 yen, no prior application required

*Free for elementary school students and younger

*The interior of the National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall can be viewed from inside the National Treasure Miei-do Hall via Tsutenkyo Bridge (a corridor connecting the Miei-do Hall and Nyorai-do Hall; an Important Cultural Property).

Special nighttime viewing of the National Treasure Miei-do Hall

Special night viewing of the National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall

3. Premium tour of the Treasure Museum Tokoden VR Theater and the National Treasure Miei-do Hall

This premium tour is guided by a monk and includes a 360-degree VR theater experience in the Tokoden Treasure Museum and a tour of the special area, the central sanctuary of the National Treasure Miei-do Hall.

Tour schedule: 17:00-17:50, 17:20-18:10, 17:40-18:30, 18:00-18:50, 18:20-19:10, 18:40-19:30, 19:00-19:50, 19:20-20:10, 19:40-20:30

Duration: Approximately 50 minutes per session

Capacity: 40 people per session *Registration will close once capacity is reached.

Reception: Senju-ji Temple Teahouse Renshin-an North Tent

Admission fee: 1,500 yen. Advance registration required (applications on the day are possible only if there is availability)

*Free for elementary school students and younger (application required for elementary school students and younger)

How to apply: Please apply in advance via the following website.

Apply here

*Please arrive punctually at the start of the tour at the north tent of Senju-ji Temple Teahouse Renshin-an.

*If it is crowded, it may take some time to move around, so please allow yourself plenty of time.

*After the Premium Tour ends, you will also be able to enjoy the special night viewing of ②National Treasure Miei-do Hall and National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall.

*All tours are accompanied by a monk guide.

*Please note that the departure time may be delayed depending on the progress of the tour.

Premium tour of the National Treasure Goei-do Hall

Treasure Museum Tokoden VR Theater

④Night Marche

The road in front of Senjuji Temple will be turned into a pedestrian precinct and a night market will be held with food stalls and other items.

Event times: Friday, November 15th - Sunday, November 17th, 2024, 17:30-20:30 *Varies by store.

Location: Road in front of Senju-ji Temple, between Senju-ji Karamon Gate and Senju-ji Sanmon Gate

⑤Cultural Assets AR

We will be releasing content that allows you to interactively view high-resolution 3D models of Senju-ji Temple's precious cultural assets on your smartphone.

How to view: Scan the QR codes set up in Senju-ji Temple with your smartphone camera and hold the camera over each spot (AR marker) to experience AR (Augmented Reality) content. No app download is required, and you can experience different content at each spot.

Admission: Free (Some content can only be viewed by those participating in the premium tour)

*Please turn on the location services on your smartphone.

Cultural property AR (image)

About Senju-ji Temple, the head temple of the Shinshu Takada sect

Senju-ji Temple is the head temple of the Shinshu Takada sect, which has over 600 temples nationwide. It is a temple that faithfully inherits the teachings of its founder, Saint Shinran, and its remains are kept in the mausoleum within the temple grounds. Located in Isshinden-cho, Tsu City, Mie Prefecture, it is affectionately known as Takada Honzan.

In addition to the first national treasure buildings in Mie Prefecture, the Nyorai-do and Miedo halls, the temple also has many national treasures and important cultural properties designated by the government. Within the temple grounds, you can enjoy over 100 lotus flowers of 35 varieties, which are said to bloom in the Pure Land. In addition, the Shinshu Buddhist memorial service "Hoonko" is held every year from January 9th to 16th.

The temple grounds are vast, covering the size of two Tokyo Domes, and are home to Mie Prefecture's first national treasure buildings, the Nyorai-do Hall and the Miei-do Hall, as well as numerous national treasures and important cultural properties designated by the government.

The largest of these buildings is the Miei-do Hall, a magnificent wooden structure that is one of the top five temple buildings from the Edo period in Japan.

Within the temple grounds, you can enjoy over 100 pots of 35 different types of lotus flowers, which are said to bloom in the Pure Land.

*From the Takada Honzan Senju-ji Temple website

About the National Treasure Miedo Hall

The wooden statue of the founder, Saint Shinran, is placed on the central altar, and portraits of the successive priests are placed on the side altars and in the extra rooms. The hall is covered with 780 tatami mats, making it the fifth largest hall among all wooden national treasure buildings in Japan.

The architectural style is purely Japanese, and although it is simple, it exudes a calm appearance. The gable decoration is a standard double-leafed beam construction, and the hanging gegyo is a typical three-flowered gegyo, and the solid workmanship is superb. The entire gable is covered in copper sheets, and the gable boards are adorned with metal fittings with a shining gold-colored five-seven paulownia crest, giving it a calm and heavy feel. The structure in which a thick bottle bundle with a ogi shape is placed on top of the leafed beam that connects the veranda with round eaves tiles to the main building, and then connected to the main building with a shrimp-shaped leafed beam, was a structure favored by carpenters employed by the Edo Shogunate. These techniques suggest a relationship between the master carpenter of this hall and the Edo Shogunate. The interior layout is almost standard for Shinshu temples, but what makes it different from the main hall of the Honganji school is that the large room is long horizontally, and the floors of the two extra rooms are one step higher near the back. These seem to have influenced each branch temple, and became a characteristic of Takada school temple architecture afterwards.

*From the Takada Honzan Senju-ji Temple website

About the National Treasure Nyorai-do Hall

Located to the west of the Miei-do Hall, this hall faces south alongside the Miei-do Hall. The principal image is a standing statue of Amida Nyorai (made by Kaikei, a nationally designated important cultural property) known as the "Nyorai of Evidence," and according to doctrine, this hall is the main hall of the temple complex.

The building area is about half that of the Miei-do, but it is a magnificent structure worthy of a Buddha hall of Amida Nyorai. The roof has two layers, and the height of the ridge is almost the same as that of the Miei-do, which is likely to show its grandeur as a main hall. For this reason, the exterior looks like a two-story building, but there is no second floor, and the lower roof has three types of eaves called mokai. Looking at the construction of the eaves of the upper roof, the rafters are bifurcated, fan-shaped, and supported by a complex structure called shitesaki. These eaves structures are also placed between the pillars, so-called "tsumegumi," and it can be seen that it was built completely using the Zen style (Chinese style) architectural method. In addition, the tips of the tail rafters are carved with elephants, dragons, and bakemonos, and the frog-toad legs on the lower floor incorporate carvings of people based on Chinese historical events, making it a truly elaborate and sophisticated building.

*From the Takada Honzan Senju-ji Temple website

Digital Books

For more information about the cultural assets of Takada Honzan Senju-ji Temple, please see our digital book.

http://www.senjuji.or.jp/nihonhaku/digitalbook/