Gorintō (五輪塔) ("five-ringed tower") is a Japanese type ofBuddhistpagoda believed to have been first adopted by theShingon andTendai sects during the midHeian period.[1] It is used for memorial or funerary purposes[2] and is therefore common in Buddhist temples and cemeteries. It is also calledgorinsotōba or gorinsotoba (五輪卒塔婆) ("five-ringed stupa") orgoringedatsu (五輪解脱),[2][3] where the termsotoba is a transliteration of the Sanskrit wordstupa.[4] The stupa was originally a structure or other sacred building containing a relic of Buddha or of a saint,[5] then it was gradually stylized in various ways and its shape can change quite a bit according to the era and to the country where it is found.[3] Often offertory strips of wood with five subdivisions and covered with elaborate inscriptions also calledsotoba can be found at tombs in Japanese cemeteries (see photo below).[2] The inscriptions containsūtra texts and the posthumous name of the dead person. These can be considered stupa variants.
In all its variations, thegorintō includes five rings (although that number can often be difficult to detect by decoration), each having one of the five shapes symbolic of the Five Elements, (Mahabhuta inSanskrit, orGodai in Japanese): the earth ring (cube), the water ring (sphere), the fire ring (pyramid), the air ring (crescent), and the ether ring, (or energy, or void).[3] The last two rings (air and ether) are visually and conceptually united into a single subgroup. The last shape, ether, is the one that changes most according to the country,[3] and in Japan it is close to that of a lotus flower.[3] The rings express the idea that after death our physical bodies will go back to their original, elemental form.[3]Gorintō are usually made of stone, but some built in wood, metal, or crystal exist.
On each section are often carved from top to bottom the Sanskrit letterskha (void, or Kū (空) in Japanese),ha (air, or Fū (風)),ra (fire, or Ka (火)),va (water, or Sui (水)), anda (earth, or Chi (地)),[6][7] and inNichiren andTendai temples sometimes agorintō will have carved on it the name of theLotus Sutra (妙法蓮華経,myōhō-renge-kyō) (see photo).
Thegorintō as a symbol belongs toMikkyō (密教) literally "secret teachings", term often translated as "esoteric Buddhism"), aJapanese term that refers to theesotericVajrayāna practices of theShingonBuddhist school and the related practices that make up part of theTendai school.[8] In those esoteric disciplines, the first two shapes (the cube and the sphere) represent the most perfect doctrine, and are supposed to contain in themselves the other three.[3] Together they represent theJitsuzaikai (実在界) (lit. "real world"), that is the realm of perfect understanding, whereas the others constitute theHenkai (変界) (lit. "world of mutation")，or the world of impermanence, which includes the genshōkai (現象界), the world we live in.[3]
On a second level of symbolism, each part of thegorintō also represents an element of change in bothJitsuzaikai andHenkai.[3]
On a last level of symbolism, the shapes represent the order in which the student progresses in his or her spiritual studies.[3]
The theory of five elements was born in India, but the development of the Japanesegorintō shows the deep influence of Mikkyō, and in particular ofKūkai andKakuban.[6] The use ofgorintō is thought to have begun in the second half of theHeian period.[6] The oldest known examples can be found at Chūsonji,Iwate Prefecture, are a mix ofgorintō andhōtō (two-storied Buddhist tower) and go back to 1169.[6] They then came into normal use during theKamakura period and are still widely used today for memorial monuments and tombs, particularly but not exclusively in Buddhist temples. Agorintō is for example the traditional headstone shape of aShingon sect grave.[3]
