ABOUT THE TBS TOSHODAIJI TEMPLE PROJECT 2010

To commemorate the 50th anniversary of TBS, TBS initiated the Toshodaiji Temple Project 2010, a project extending from 2000 through 2010. It entails a huge restoration of the Golden Hall of Toshodaiji Temple (a designated National Treasure), which was established in the Nara Era (759 A.D. or Tempyo 3).

Toshodaiji Temple is the most famous temple remaining from the Tempyo Period. It is the consummate expression not only of that historic time but of the Japanese soul itself. In 1998, it was designated as a World Cultural Treasure. It was built by the priest Ganjin, who came from China which was the highest authority on architecture, medicine, philosophy and art at that time. The temple was designed from his worldly point of view and served to bring a clarity and purity to Japan. With this tremendous contact from the outside world, a great transformation took place which created the original essence of Japanese culture. This project attempts to identify the Japanese identity by reconstructing the cultural elements remaining from Ganjin and Toshodaiji Temple through all the media TBS has to offer. It strives to discover the uniqueness of Japan and to find the core of the relationship between Japan and the world.

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