百済寺の秘仏を目指してMIHO MUSEUMへ Heading to the MIHO MUSEUM to see a hidden Buddhist image from Kudara-ji Temple

滋賀の奥深い山中にあるMIHO MUSEUMを訪ねるには、京都駅から琵琶湖線で石山まで行き、そこからバスの車中で1時間過ごす必要がある。

よっぽどの展示内容でなければ、そこに足を向けることはない。

今回は、百済寺の秘仏である十一面観音立像を拝むことができるとあって、そこに足を向けた。

百済寺は、聖徳太子が創建したと伝わる由緒ある古寺で、その本尊である十一面観音立像も太子が彫り上げたとされる。

今回、本堂の修繕の機会を使って、MIHO MUSEUMでの展示となったようだ。

近江を好んで隅から隅まで歩き尽くしたと言っていい白洲正子もその著の中で百済寺の秘仏について触れている。

彼女も目にしなかったであろうその秘仏は、以外にも像の高さだけでも2メートル50センチはある巨大なもので、下からそのありがたいお姿を拝み上げることになった。

その顔の表情は実に特徴的だ。全体のバランスからすると、明らかに顔の形は小さい。小顔の観音様で、幼い子供のようにも見える。

いわゆる暴悪大笑面は、真後ろではなく、斜め後ろに左右それぞれ2面あるように見える。しかも、その暴悪大笑面だけ何故か金箔がよく残っている。

とにかく、これまで見たことがないような個性的な十一面観音立像で、このお像を拝むことができただけでも、関東からわざわざ足を運んだ甲斐があったと言える。

百済寺は、平安時代以降は比叡山の影響下に入り、天台寺院として発展し、戦国時代にはルイス・フロイスが”地上の楽園”と書くほどにもなったが、織田信長に敵であった六角氏を助けたとして焼き討ちにあったりした。

それでも、江戸時代には将軍家から代々朱印状を受けるなど、その法脈を繋いできた。

その百済寺では、かつて酒造りが行われて、朝廷や幕府に献上されていたが、信長の焼き討ち以降に廃れてしまった。最近になり、”百済寺樽”として復興されたという。

MIHO MUSEUMには、レストランもあるので、是非、そこで味わってみたかった。

To reach the MIHO MUSEUM, nestled deep in the mountains of Shiga Prefecture, one must take the Biwako Line from Kyoto Station to Ishiyama, followed by an hour-long bus ride.

Unless an exhibition is truly exceptional, it is not the sort of place one would typically make the effort to visit.

On this occasion, however, I made the journey specifically to behold a "hidden" (rarely displayed) statue of the Eleven-Headed Kannon (Avalokiteshvara) from Hyakusai-ji Temple.

Hyakusai-ji is an ancient temple of great historical significance, said to have been founded by Prince Shotoku; the Eleven-Headed Kannon—its principal object of veneration—is also attributed to the Prince’s own hand.

The statue is being exhibited at the MIHO MUSEUM to coincide with renovation work currently underway at the temple’s main hall.

Masako Shirasu—who famously explored the Omi region so thoroughly that she could be said to have walked every inch of it—mentions this hidden statue in her writings.

The statue, which perhaps even Shirasu herself never had the chance to see, is unexpectedly massive—standing 2.5 meters tall—and I found myself gazing up at its sacred form from below.

The expression on its face is truly distinctive. In terms of overall proportion, the face is remarkably small—giving the Kannon a youthful, almost childlike appearance.

The so-called "fierce, laughing faces" (often found on such statues) are positioned not directly behind the main head, but rather toward the rear-left and rear-right. Curiously, these specific faces still retain a significant amount of their original gold leaf.

In short, it is a unique Eleven-Headed Kannon unlike any I have ever seen; the opportunity to behold this statue alone made the long journey from the Kanto region well worth the effort.

Following the Heian period, Hyakusai-ji came under the influence of Mount Hiei and flourished as a Tendai Buddhist temple. During the Sengoku (Warring States) period, it was so magnificent that the Jesuit missionary Luís Fróis described it as a "paradise on earth." Later, however, the temple was burned to the ground by Oda Nobunaga, who accused it of aiding the Rokkaku clan—his sworn enemies. Even so, throughout the Edo period, the temple managed to preserve its lineage—for instance, by receiving "shuinjo" (official vermilion-sealed charters) from successive generations of the Tokugawa shogunate.

In the past, sake was brewed at Kudai-ji Temple and presented to the Imperial Court and the shogunate; however, this practice ceased following the temple’s destruction by fire at the hands of Oda Nobunaga. It is said that the tradition has recently been revived under the name "Hyakusai-ji Taru" (Hyakusai-ji Barrel).

As the MIHO MUSEUM also houses a restaurant, I had very much hoped to sample it there.