KYOTO – A fragment that can be regarded as part of a legendary pagoda over 100 meters in height was found at Kinkakuji temple (see below) – known for its Golden Pavilion – in Kyoto, local authorities revealed Friday.

As no ruins or relics of the pagoda had been found at the site it was widely thought to be apocryphal.

The pagoda is called Kitayamaoto and is said to have been built by Ashikaga Yoshimitsu (1358-1408), the third shogun of the Muromachi shogunate (1336-1573).

The finding suggests the possibility that the pagoda was the tallest example of wooden architecture in the nation’s history, exceeding 100 meters.

According to ancient documents and other sources, Yoshimitsu built two gigantic pagodas. The first was a seven-story pagoda standing 109 meters tall at Shokokuji – a temple also built by him in Kamigyo Ward, Kyoto – in 1399. It was later burned down by lightning.

Five years later, Yoshimitsu began building another seven-story pagoda called Kitayamaoto at a location that later became Kinkakuji temple. Kitayamaoto was also burned down by lightning in 1416, just before its completion.

According to the Kyoto City Archaeological Research Institute, the fragment appears to be from the kurin, a circular part of the decorative shaft at the top of a pagoda. The fragment was excavated from a stratum of the Muromachi period on the west side of a parking area about 200 meters northeast of the famed Golden Pavilion.

The gilt bronze fragment is 37 centimeters wide, 24 centimeters long, 1.5 centimeters thick and weighs 8.2 kilograms. The diameter of the whole kurin is estimated to have been about 2.4 meters.

The diameter of the kurin atop the Gojunoto five-story pagoda at Toji temple in Minami Ward, Kyoto, is 1.6 meters. The pagoda is preserved to this day and stands 55 meters tall.

As this comparison reveals Kitayamaoto to be bigger than Gojunoto, it can be surmised that it was equivalent in size to the big pagoda that existed at Shokokuji.

In Kyoto, the highest building before the pagoda at Shokokuji temple is said to be the no longer standing 81-meter Hakkakukyujunoto nine-story pagoda built in the late Heian period (late eighth century to late 12th century) at Hosshoji temple in Sakyo Ward, Kyoto.

Showing immense power

Kyoto University Associate Prof. Yoshiyuki Tomishima said the Hakkakukyujunoto pagoda had been the symbol of power in Kyoto before the building of Kitayamaoto.

As an expert in Japanese architectural history, he said: “Yoshimitsu had to exceed it to show his power. Standing next to the Golden Pavilion, the symbol of Kitayama culture, the pagoda would have been a gorgeous and immense display of Yoshimitsu’s power.”

However, he insists the exact size of the pagoda cannot be known only by the fragment of kurin. “Unearthing the foundation is essential,” he added.

“It is possible that other remains are still buried. We want to co-operate on further excavation and research,” said Raitei Arima, head priest of the Shokokuji branch of the Rinzai Zen sect, and also chief priest of Kinkakuji temple.

•  Kinkakuji temple

A villa built by Ashikaga Yoshimitsu in 1397 and converted into a Zen temple after his death. It was named Rokuonji after Yoshimitsu’s posthumous Buddhist name. It is famous for a shariden hall called Kinkaku, or the Golden Pavilion, that enshrines relics of the Buddha. Representing Muromachi culture, the temple is better known as Kinkakuji. In 1994, it was registered on the UNESCO’s World Heritage list as part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto.

TAIPEI, Taiwan — The suspect involved in the commuter train explosion that injured 25 people on Thursday night is suspected of considering injecting poison into consumer drinks to trigger public panic, an investigation task force said on Saturday.

Investigators found that the 55-year-old male suspect, Lin Ying-chang – among the 25 victims wounded after Thursday night’s blast – allegedly borrowed NT$500 (S$21) from the boss of a breakfast stand in Nantou County, Central Taiwan, and then purchased a bottle of Paraquat, a highly toxic weed killer, before heading north to Taipei on a commuter train.

Investigators originally thought Lin intended to commit suicide by drinking the toxic herbicide after perpetrating the criminal act of detonating an explosive device on the commuter train approaching the Taipei Songshan railway station.

Suspected pipe bomb explodes on Taiwan train

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Reuters, The China Post/ANN, AFP

Possible Attempt to Inject Poison into Drinks

But investigators also found that evidence seized by the police included a small sharp utensil that can pierce a container and inject liquid into the container, and therefore became suspicious that Lin possibly had planned to inject toxic herbicide into consumer drinks to cause public panic, just as had been done in the past by a “consumer terrorist” in Japan.

Lin remains in critical situation and in intensive care, and therefore cannot be questioned to find out the motives behind the explosion that rocked commuter Train No. 1258’s sixth carriage on Thursday night, July 7, two minutes before it was due to arrive at Songshan Station.

Investigations also suggested that his past divorce and existing health conditions had been factors that led him to perpetrate the crime.

Lin was married at the age of 20 and divorced his wife after having a child two years later, according to investigators.

Over 60 Treatments for Mental Illnesses and Cancer

Lin has been treated for mental illnesses and tonsil cancer, and has suffered financial troubles in recent years. Investigators found hospital records of over 60 separate treatments for mental illnesses and cancer since he was confirmed as having tonsil cancer in his early 30s.

Lin, who is from Hualien, had reportedly faced financial difficulties in recent years and had been living in his van with his dog. Police later located his van, which the suspect is thought to have abandoned in the mountainous area of Nantou County before taking a bus and then a train to Taipei.

They also found a note in Lin’s van that he left behind for his family members, telling them to repay his debts and arrange his funeral.

Lin also asked his son to give him money, given his “bad financial conditions.”

On another front, Interior Minister Yeh Jiunn-rong seems to have passed a preliminary ordeal for him after assuming office on May 20 under the administration of President Tsai Ing-wen, as the suspect implicated in the train blast incident was identified within 24 hours of the incident.

Immediately after learning of the explosion, the National Police Agency under the Ministry of the Interior stepped in to take effective action to cordon off the scene, rescue the wounded, collect evidence and form an investigation task force, eventually confirming Lin as the sole suspect in the case without any accomplice.