The Eternal Ephemeral Architecture of Shikinen Sengu: The Japanese Temple Rebuilt Every 20 Years
The conception of architecture, understood since modernity, emphasizes permanence. The durability of tectonic construction can be manifested in various ways. However, what does it mean to associate architecture with ephemerality? And what happens when the idea of permanence is connected to transience? The Shikinen Sengu ceremony in Japan may help provide answers to these questions.
Within the realm of hegemonic architectural thought, the monument stands as the foremost example of permanence within a city. It represents something deserving of remembrance and is not the sole symbol embodying this intent for perpetuity. Government headquarters, courts, and temples present themselves as steadfast structures to bolster enduring, timeless values. They evoke abstract concepts, with architecture serving as the vessel or embodiment of these ideas. The Shikinen Sengu ceremony is intriguing due to the disassociation between the physical solidity of construction and the concepts that are associated with it.