摘要: Justification of Outstanding Universal Value　　Hiraizumi, as a representation of the Buddhist ideal world known as the Pure Land, took as its point of departure the ideals and design concepts of Buddhi

Justification of Outstanding Universal Value

　　Hiraizumi, as a representation of the Buddhist ideal world known as the Pure Land, took as its point of departure the ideals and design concepts of Buddhist temple architecture and gardens that had been transmitted from China and the Korean peninsula, as well as the ideals and design concepts of constructing political and administrative centers that originated in the ancient capital cities. These were fused with the unique Japanese sense of nature worship, and in that process, Buddhist thought (particularly Buddhist Pure Land thought) developed in a unique and influential manner that would create a new ideal and design concept upon which this political and administrative center would be constructed in the 12th century. It was created with the vast wealth accumulated by four generations of the ôshû Fujiwara clan thanks to the abundant gold mining in the region and the exchange of cultural products that was being carried out across a broad region stretching from Southeast Asia to China and the Russian maritime region, and up to the northern seas. At the same time, it was constructed in a way that sought to incorporate the ever-changing natural topography, while achieving the Pure Land as the Buddhist ideal world.

　　The unparalleled layout and construction patterns of this political and administrative center that emerged in Hiraizumi would have an impact on the ideals and forms of future construction of Japanese cities.

　　Based on a form of religious-based administration, a unique culture flourished in Hiraizumi in both the central and surrounding areas of the political and administrative center that directly reflected the political ideals of the statesmen. This was expressed in the temples, gardens, residence-offices, and other related buildings that were built as the manifestation of ideals of governance that relied on Buddhism rather than on military might—as symbolized by the fact that the creators of Hiraizumi, the ôshû Fujiwara clan, were entombed within the Amidadô (Amida hall). Many of the elements necessary for understanding the ancient culture are maintained in good condition even after the downfall of the ôshû Fujiwara at the end of the 12th century, and these elements make the property unparalleled testimony that Hiraizumi was a political and administrative center built with the aim of realizing the Pure Land as the Buddhist ideal world.

　　Within the global religion and thought of Buddhism, Pure Land thought played an important role in developing a unique perspective on life and death in the Asian region, and this is also strongly reflected in the construction and layout of Hiraizumi as a political and administrative center that was built with the aim of realizing the Pure Land as a Buddhist ideal world here on earth.

　　As seen from the above, the cultural heritage of Hiraizumi is the property of an important political and administrative center that was formed as the result of an interchange of values among the peoples of East Asia, and it remains as testimony of the effort to create the Pure Land as the Buddhist ideal world here on earth. In addition, underlying the creation of this unparalleled political and administrative center that sought to achieve the Buddhist Pure Land here on earth was the global religion and thought of Buddhism. Accordingly, the property possesses Outstanding Universal Value and is thus significant in terms of the balance and representativeness of the World Heritage List.

　　Criterion (ii) The cultural heritage of 12th-century Hiraizumi shows how the concepts of Buddhist temple architecture and gardens that were conveyed along with the Buddhist religion from China and the Korean Peninsula, as well as the ideals and design concepts of political and administrative centers that originated in the ancient capital cities, evolved as they interacted with Japan’s characteristic form of nature worship belief. It also shows how that developed as a result into not only Japan’s unique Buddhist temples and gardens, but also the concepts, design, and layout of its political and administrative center. The foundation for that was the abundant gold mining in the northern part of Japan’s main island of Honshû, the exchange of cultural products that was being carried out across a broad region stretching from Southeast Asia to China, the Russian maritime region, and the northern seas, and the vast wealth accumulated as a result. This exceptional example of a political and administrative center created with the aim of realizing the Pure Land as the Buddhist ideal world on earth would continue to have a lasting impact on the concepts and forms of Japanese cities.

　　Criterion (iii) Hiraizumi witnessed the flourishing of a unique culture of outstanding quality. Although the leaders were samurai, they applied religious criteria, and their political ideals of trying to create a Buddhist Pure Land in the present world were reflected in the development of the central and surrounding areas of their political and administrative center. The fact that the ôshû Fujiwara clan sought to realize a Buddhist-based governance ideal is reflected in the temples, gardens, residences, and other structures they built, as well as in the unique form and construction of the cluster of buildings that formed the political and administrative center. The downfall of the ôshû Fujiwara clan at the end of the 12th century brought an end to Hiraizumi’s role as the political and administrative center in Japan’s northern territories, and subsequent developments did not bring about any large-scale changes. As a result the various elements that are critical for understanding the culture that flourished there have remained in excellent condition. They totally bear testimony of the culture of Hiraizumi, as a place established with the aim of achieving the Pure Land as the Buddhist ideal world.

　　Criterion (vi) The cultural heritage of Hiraizumi unquestionably represents the diffusion of Buddhism throughout the broad Asian region and, within that context, the fusion of Buddhism with Japan’s indigenous ethos of nature worship and the unique development in Japan of the ideas of Amida’s Pure Land of Utmost Bliss. The layout and construction of the cluster of component parts symbolize the fact that the political and administrative center at Hiraizumi was constructed with the aim of achieving a Buddhist Pure Land in the present world.