Worship Hall (Haiden) (National Treasure)
Tokugawa Iemitsu (1604–1651), the third Tokugawa shogun, left instructions that his mausoleum should not surpass that of his grandfather. Accordingly, the black-and-gold color scheme of the worship hall (haiden; pictured here) is relatively subdued and somber compared to the red, white, and gold of its larger counterpart at Tōshōgū Shrine. The main shrine building of the Taiyūin Mausoleum has three distinct sections: the worship hall, the ai no ma (“in-between space”), and the main hall (honden).
The three pairs of bronze lanterns directly in front of the worship hall were donated by the three cadet branches of the Tokugawa family: the Owari, Kii, and Mito families. The other lanterns within the grounds were donated by powerful daimyo, and one pair by the king of Korea in the mid-1600s.
Main Hall (Honden) (National Treasure)
This is where the spirit of Iemitsu is enshrined. Unlike the main shrine building at Tōshōgū, this building does not face south, the preferred orientation for the final abode of a ruler according to Chinese geomancy. It faces northeast toward Tōshōgū, where Iemitsu’s grandfather Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543–1616) is enshrined. Iemitsu wished to be near his grandfather in death so that he could continue to serve him in the next world.
The main hall is lavishly covered in gold and is built like a Buddhist temple. It has a four-sided pent roof and ornamental, curved windows called katōmado that are often seen in Buddhist temple architecture.