Nara Alight at Night

It’s been yet another rough week at Spring8 but it’s at least come to a happy conclusion. Sadly the protein expression I was talking about earlier didn’t pan out so well. I think time was just a little tight meaning I couldn’t be as thorough as I would have liked to. In the grand scheme of things it isn’t so important right now so I can put it to one side.

What is critical is that Josie be working…and she is. I’m feeling pretty good right now although I still have no idea whether the experiment will work but it’s always nice to have your equipment behaving. I wish I could say it was something I did but it’s thanks to the hard work of our resident electronics wizard.

So at least 80 hours spent in work but I did get a day off yesterday. I’d asked the guys if they minded me going out with some friends if we managed to get the equipment sorted. Since all was well I set off to Nara on Saturday morning though I still felt a little guilty. I’m not sure where it was coming from.

They sincerely didn’t mind and I had worked some epic hours yet somehow I still felt bad. It felt to me as though I was shirking some kind of responsibility. There was nothing I would have been able to help with and I was so fed up of being in work I feel I may have been an epic grouch.

Once I met up with my friends that quickly disappeared. It’s always good being around others your own age. The train Journey from Himeji to Nara is a long one so it gave plenty of time for conversation. That's the thing I love about travelling with groups on long journeys.. There is nothing better to do on the train and you can really learn some interesting things about the people you’re with.

I have a total personality clash with one of them I found, but not in a negative way. We are both completely different perspectives on a wide range of subjects, though our interests are quite similar. It was interesting and eye opening really. A shot down to earth for sure.

Back onto Nara anyway. We arrived in Nara central park, the hub of most of Nara’s sightseeing attractions, around 2:30pm and headed straight for Todaiji., meaning the ‘great eastern temple’. This Buddhist temple dates back to the 8^th century and was originally the head temple of all Buddhist sects within Japan. It’s power grew so great in fact that it is part of the reason Nara was denounced as Japan’s capital.

It is incredibly impressive for two reason. First the central hall is the largest wooden building in the world. It is an impressive site as you approach through the main gates and apparently it’s only 2/3rds of it’s original size. My breath was taken away on the walk up and even more as I walked up the stairs and crossed the threshold. Seeing the massive pillars and beams of wood supporting the structure internally I really got a feel for what a feat of engineering it was.

Once inside you must be prepared to be blown away once again. The interior of the temple is home to Japan’s largest ‘Daibutsu’ an immense statue of the Buddha Cast in bronze. It is absolutely huge standing at nearly 50 foot tall, well sitting actually which is probably a good thing. Sadly it has, rather appropriately, been reincarnated over the years and now nothing is left of the original, the head is in fact considerably younger than the body it sits on.

 

In the surrounding area there are many other statues of Buddha’s or guardian deities stomping Oni that whilst not as impressive are still a joy to view. It has to be said that place of worship tend to be some of the most impressive buildings anywhere in the world, both due to their exteriors and their interiors..

My favorite thing inside however was a pillar with a hole at the base that is the same size as one of the Daibutsu’s nostrils. It is aid if you can pass through then you will achieve enlightenment in your next life. Thanks to some advice from a friend I wiggled my way through, I’m now officially a bogey on the path to enlightenment. 

Once we’d had our fill of the 金堂 we moved on towards the entrance of Nigatsu-do where the main event of the night would be beginning, though not before a quick stop at Binzaru to heal what ailed us. The reason we had come to Nara was to witness the Yamayaki-matsuri. In this festival monks from the Todaiji temple quite literally set the nearby Wakakusa mountain on fire..

The precession begins by taking the ceremonial torches to be lit in the sacred fires of a nearby shrine. Blessings are then said for a successful and safe night whereupon the monks proceed to the foot of mount Wakakusa. The priest line up and ascend the mountain to were the dead winter grass lies. The procession whilst short was amazing. The bus of excitement emanating from the huge crowd of people following the monks was truly exhilarating. No one is exactly sure how the festival began. Some say it involved a border dispute between the rival temples in Nara, others say it is to fend off the wild boars or dangerous insects. I just think it’s incredible.

 

Before the main event so to speak was a firework display. which ran for about half an hour. This was also something pretty special. The fireworks themselves as objects were pretty amazing. They exploded into multiple colours and shapes. Deer, butterfly, flowers. Giant spheres with one colour on the outside and one of a different colour inside. The chemical and physical engineering that must have gone into them was very impressive. What made it even more special was the proximity. You didn’t just see these fireworks. You felt them.

 

Then it came time for the burning. Once the monks had encircled the mountain top they lay their torches on the grass and the fire began to climb upwards. Within a few short minutes the whole place was ablaze.

I think we may actually have been a bit too close and it may have been better to be further away at this point but it was still awe-inspiring. The sheer raw power of the fire as it crackled it’s way to the peak. The haze of smoke gave the entire place an ethereal feel, made even more concrete by the OST of Princess Mononoke playing in the background.

Once the flames had settled down and the grass smoldered we headed back towards Nara station, though not before grabbing a nice warming cup of Yuzu cha, a sweet drink made basically of yuzu (a Japanese citrus fruit) marmalade and hot water. On our way back we stopped at Hard rock Café in Osaka. This was about the only time I had a little stress, I could barely at anything on the menu. I guess Americans love their cheese and meat. I got something in the end though and it was pretty tasty. All in all a great day out with great people.

Ja Mata ato de.