Sarugatsuji
The Sarugatsuji (猿ヶ辻, lit. 'monkey's crossroads') is the northeast corner of the wall of the Kyoto Imperial Palace.
Summary
[edit]Under the influence of the Chinese cosmology imported by the Imperial Court in ancient times, the northeast direction (艮) became an object of superstition. In any building, the exterior corner facing northeast, called a kimon (鬼門, lit. 'demon gate'), was believed to provide a means by which evil spirits and bad luck could enter.[1]
In order to prevent such things from entering the palace grounds, the northeast corner was built in an unusual concave shape. By avoiding a convex vertex pointing in the direction of the kimon, the wall, and indeed the entire palace, could be regarded as technically having no "northeast corner". This was long regarded as a reliable apotropaic technique for "sealing" the kimon.[2]
A wooden sculpture of a monkey wearing an eboshi was placed under the eaves of the Sarugatsuji.[3][1] This is believed to have been done because the shinshi of Hiei Shrine, located northeast of the palace, was said to have appeared in the shape of a monkey.[4] The monkey of Hiei Shrine was called Masaru (まさる), which is a homophone of ma saru (魔去る, lit. 'evil spirits begone').[1]
In 1868, during the Battle of Toba–Fushimi, the Nishi Hongan-ji sent 100 men led by the monk Tokunyo (徳如) to protect the Sarugatsuji.[5]
1863 murder of Anegakōji Kintomo
[edit]On the night of July 5, 1863, the senior official Anegakōji Kintomo was assassinated near the Sarugatsuji in what became known as the Sakuheimon incident. Tanaka Shinbei's sword was found at the scene of the murder, but he denied killing Anegakōji and performed harakiri during his interrogation. The real culprit was never identified. The Sakuheimon incident was dramatically depicted in the 1969 film Hitokiri.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c "鬼門封じ、京都御所の「猿ヶ辻」 "Sarugatsuji" at the Kyoto Imperial Palace, where demons are sealed". Leaf KYOTO. Retrieved 22 April 2025.
- ^ 清家 Seike, 清 Kiyoshi (1989). 現代の家相 Gendai no kasō. Japan: 新潮社 Shinchōsha. ISBN 9784106019678.
- ^ Ponsonby-Fane, Richard A. B. (1927). "Kiōto in the Momoyama Period". Transactions and Proceedings of the Japan Society. 24. London.
- ^ 小池 Koike, 康寿 Yasuhisa (2015). 日本人なら知っておきたい正しい家相の本 Nihonjin nara shitte okitai tadashī kasō no hon. Japan: プレジデント社 President. ISBN 9784833421492.
- ^ Deneckere, Mick (2023). 楠 Kusunoki, 綾子 Ayako; 松木 Matsugi, 裕美 Hiromi (eds.). "Chōshū, Shin Buddhism and the Restoration of the Emperor" (PDF). 世界の日本研究 Japanese Studies around the World (2022 Annual). 国際日本文化研究センター International Research Center for Japanese Studies.