Medieval Japan. Culture of medieval Japan

Features of Japan and its historical development are clearly visible today. This original country was able to carry through through the centuries almost unchanged a special culture, in many respects different, even from the immediate neighbors in the territory. The main features of the traditions characteristic of Japan, appeared in the early Middle Ages. Even then, the art of the developing people was marked by the desire to approach nature, understanding its beauty and harmony.

Conditions

Medieval Japan, located on the islands, was protected from intrusion by nature itself. The influence of the external world on the country was mainly expressed in the process of interaction of the inhabitants with the Koreans and the Chinese. And with the first the Japanese fought more often, while the second took a lot.

The internal development of the country was inextricably linked with natural conditions. On relatively small islands, there is virtually nowhere to escape from the formidable typhoons and earthquakes. Therefore, on the one hand, the Japanese sought not to burden themselves with unnecessary things, so that at any time it was possible to easily collect all the essentials and be saved from the raging elements.

On the other hand, it was thanks to such conditions that the culture of medieval Japan acquired its own characteristics. The inhabitants of the islands were aware of the power of the elements and their inability to oppose anything to it, they felt the strength and at the same time the harmony of nature. And they tried not to violate it. The art of medieval Japan developed against the background of Shinto, based on the worship of the spirits of elements, and then of Buddhism, which welcomed the contemplative realization of the inner and outer world.

The first state

On the territory of the island of Honshu in the III-V centuries. Formed tribal federation of Yamato. By the IV century on its basis the first Japanese state, headed by Tenno (emperor), was formed. Medieval Japan of that period is revealed to scientists in the process of studying the contents of burial mounds. In their very structure, the connection between the country's architecture and nature is felt: the mound resembles an island, overgrown with trees, surrounded by a moat with water. Various objects of everyday life were placed in the burial place, and the rest of the deceased ruler was guarded by hollow ceramic haniva figurines placed on the surface of the mound. These small figurines show how observant the Japanese masters were: they depicted people and animals, noticing the slightest features, and were able to convey the mood and character traits.

The first religion of Japan, Shintoism, deified all nature, inhabiting the spirits of every tree or pond. Temples were built in a mountainous and wooded area of wood ("living" material). The architecture was very simple and fit perfectly into the surrounding nature. The temples did not have any ornaments, they seemed to flow smoothly into the landscape. The culture of medieval Japan sought to unify nature and man-made structures. And the temples clearly demonstrate this.

The Formation of Feudalism

Japan in the Middle Ages borrowed much in China and Korea: the features of legislation and land administration, writing and statehood. Through the neighbors in the country penetrated and Buddhism, which played a big role in its development. He helped overcome the internal disunity of the country, unite the tribes to which Japan shared. The periods of Asuka (552-645) and Nara (645-794) were characterized by the emergence of feudalism, the development of an original culture based on borrowed elements.

The art of that time was inextricably linked with the erection of buildings that had a sacred significance. A magnificent example of a Buddhist temple of this period is Khoruji, a monastery built near Nara, the first capital of Japan. Everything is amazing in it: magnificent interior decoration, a huge five-story pagoda, a massive roof of the main building, supported by intricate brackets. The architecture of the complex is noticeable as the influence of the traditions of Chinese construction, as well as the distinctive features that characterized Japan in the Middle Ages. There is no scope typical for the sanctuaries that were built in the vastness of the Celestial Empire. Japanese churches were more compact, even miniature.

The most impressive Buddhist temples began to be built in the VIII century, when a centralized medieval state was formed. Japan needed a capital, and it became Nara, built on the Chinese model. Temples here were built to match the scale of the city.

Sculpture

Fine art developed in the same way as architecture, from imitation of Chinese masters towards the acquisition of an ever greater identity. Originally removed from the earthly statue of the deities, they began to be filled with expression and emotionality, peculiar to ordinary people rather than to celibates.

A peculiar result of the development of the sculpture of this time is a Buddha statue 16 meters high, located in the Todaidzi monastery. It is the result of the fusion of many techniques used in the Nara period: casting, fine engraving, chasing, forging. Huge and bright, it is worthy of the title of a miracle of the world.

At the same time, there are sculptural portraits of people, mostly temple attendants. The buildings were decorated with paintings depicting heavenly worlds.

A new turn

Changes in the culture of Japan, which began in the IX century, are associated with the political processes of this time. The capital of the country was moved to Heian, known today under the name of Kyoto. By the middle of the century there was a policy of isolation, medieval Japan fenced off from its neighbors, ceased to receive ambassadors. Culture has become increasingly alienated from the Chinese.

The Heian period (IX-XII century) - the heyday of the famous Japanese poetry. Tank (pyatimishya) accompanied the Japanese constantly. It is no accident that this period is called the golden age of Japanese poetry. In it, perhaps, most fully expressed the attitude of the inhabitants of the Land of the Rising Sun to the world, his understanding of the deep connection between man and nature, the ability to notice beauty even in insignificant. Psychology and a special philosophy of poetry pervades all the art of the Heian period: architecture, painting, prose.

Temples and secular buildings

Features of Japan at that time were in many respects connected with the appearance of Buddhist sects, which united the Buddha's teachings and traditions of Shinto. Monasteries and temples once again began to be located outside the city walls - in forests and mountains. They did not have a clear plan, as if accidentally arose among trees or hills. The decoration was nature itself, the buildings were apparently as simple as possible. The landscape seemed to be a continuation of the architectural structures. Monasteries did not oppose nature, but harmoniously fit into it.

By the same principle, secular buildings were created. Sinden, the front pavilion of the estate, was a single space, if necessary shared by screens. Each building was necessarily accompanied by a garden, often quite small, and sometimes, like in the palace of the emperor, equipped with ponds, bridges and gazebos. Such gardens could not boast of all medieval Asia. Japan, having reworked the styles and elements borrowed from China, created its own architecture, inextricably linked with nature.

Painting

Changed and sculpture: new images appeared, plastic has become more refined and multicolored. However, national peculiarities were most noticeable in painting. In the 11th-12th centuries a new style developed-Yamato-e. For him, water-based paints were used. Primarily, Yamato-e was used for illustrations of various texts. At this time, artistic prose developed actively, there were scrolls-stories, or emakimono, in which the poetic worldview and the worship of nature, characteristic of medieval Japanese, were embodied. As a rule, such texts were accompanied by illustrations. Masters of Yamato-e were able to convey the greatness of nature and the emotional experience of people, using different colors, achieving the effect of flicker and translucency.

Poetic comprehension of the world is noticeable in the lacquerware of that time - literally luminous caskets and bowls, smooth musical instruments, gilt trunks.

The Minamoto Dynasty

At the end of the 12th century, because of the feudal war, the capital of Japan was again transferred. The victorious Minamoto clan made Kamakura the main city of the country. The new ruler was subject to all of medieval Japan. In short, the Kamakura period can be described as the time of the shogunate - military rule. It lasted several centuries. To manage the state were special soldiers - samurai. In Japan, with their coming to power, new cultural features began to take shape. To replace the poetry of the tank came hunks - heroic epics, glorifying the courage of warriors. In religion, a significant role was played by Zen Buddhism, who taught to achieve salvation on earth through physical training, strong-willed efforts and deep self-knowledge. The outer gloss was irrelevant, the ritual side of religion faded into the background.

Samurai in Japan laid a special culture of spirit, honor and devotion. The masculinity and power peculiar to them permeated all art from architecture to painting. Monasteries began to be built without pagodas, from them the sophistication of the Heian period disappeared. The temples resembled simple huts, which only increased their unity with nature. There was a large number of sculptural portraits. The masters learned new ways to create images that seemed alive. At the same time, the same masculinity and severity shone in the poses, forms and composition.

Emakimono of this time is characterized not by the emotionality of the characters, but by the dynamism of the stories telling about the bloody wars between the clans.

Garden - the continuation of the house

In 1333, the capital was returned to Heian. New rulers began to patronize art. For the architecture of this period, an even closer unity with nature is inherent. Strictness and simplicity began to coexist with poetry and beauty. The teachings of the Zen sect have come to the forefront, they have sung the spiritual exaltation through contemplation of nature, harmonization with it.

During this period, the art of ikebana developed, and houses began to be built in such a way that in different parts of the dwelling you could admire the garden at a slightly different angle. A small piece of nature was often not separated from the house even by the threshold, was its continuation. This is most noticeable in the Ginkakuji building, where a veranda was built, smoothly flowing into the garden and hanging over the pond. The person who was in the house had the illusion that the boundaries between the living quarters and the water and the garden are not, that these are two parts of a single whole.

Tea as a philosophy

In the XV-XVI centuries, tea houses began to appear in Japan. Slowly enjoying the drink brought from China became a whole ritual. The tea houses looked like huts of hermits. They arranged themselves in such a way that the participants of the ceremony could feel themselves separated from the outside world. Small room sizes and paper-covered windows created a special atmosphere and mood. Everything - from the paved stone of the path leading to the door, to simple earthenware and the sound of boiling water - was filled with poetry and a philosophy of tranquility.

Monochrome painting

In parallel with art of cultivation of gardens and tea ceremony painting developed also. The history of medieval Japan and its culture in the XIV-XV centuries. It is marked by the appearance of Suiboku-ga - ink painting. The paintings of the new genre were monochrome landscape sketches, placed on scrolls. Masters suiboku-ha, taking the features of painting from the Chinese, quickly introduced Japanese painting into the art. They have learned to convey the beauty of nature, its mood, majesty and mystery. In the beginning of the 16th century, suiboku-ga techniques merged organically with Yamato-e techniques, giving rise to a new style in painting.

Later the Middle Ages

The map of medieval Japan by the end of the XVI century ceased to represent a "patchwork quilt" from the possessions of different clans. The unification of the country began. Contacts with Western countries began to be established. Significant role now played secular architecture. The formidable castles of shoguns in the period of peace became palaces with solemnly decorated chambers. The halls were demarcated by sliding partitions decorated with paintings and scattered the light in a special way, creating a festive atmosphere.

The painting of the masters of the Kano school, which was developing at that time, covered not only the screens but also the walls of the palaces. Picturesque paintings differed with juicy colors, conveying the splendor and solemnity of nature. New subjects appeared-images of everyday life of the common people. There was also a monochrome painting in the palaces, which acquired special expressiveness.

Most often monochrome painting adorned the tea houses, where the atmosphere of tranquility, alien to the solemnity of the castle chambers, was preserved. The connection of simplicity and splendor permeates the whole culture of the Edo period (XVII-XIX centuries). At this time, medieval Japan once again pursued a policy of isolation. There were new types of art, expressing a special attitude of the Japanese: kabuki theater, woodcut, novels.

The Edo period is characterized by the neighborhood of the magnificent decoration of castles and modest tea houses, the traditions of Yamato-e and the painting techniques of the late 16th century. The combination of different artistic currents and crafts is clearly visible in engravings. Masters of different directions often worked together, moreover, sometimes the same artist performed painting as fans and screens, as well as engravings and caskets.

Later, the Middle Ages was characterized by increased attention to the actual filling of everyday life: new fabrics appeared, porcelain was used, and the costume changed. The latter is associated with the emergence of netsuke, which are small peculiar buttons or trinkets. They became a definite result of the development of the sculpture of the Land of the Rising Sun.

The culture of Japan is difficult to confuse with the results of the creative work of other peoples. Its originality developed in special natural conditions. The constant proximity to the inexorable element gave birth to a special philosophy of striving for harmony, which manifested itself in all directions of art and craft.