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  • The Moss Garden at Saihoji Temple is one of the few temples in Kyoto where visitors must request an invitation in advance before their visit. Visitors are required to participate in chanting and writing wishes before visiting the famous gardens. In this way the monks are able to maintain the temple and garden and prevent mass tourism from destroying the tranquility of the moss garden.
    AMBER-LOTUS-2023-82.jpg
  • The Moss Garden at Saihoji Temple is one of the few temples in Kyoto where visitors must request an invitation in advance before their visit. Visitors are required to participate in chanting and writing wishes before visiting the famous gardens. In this way the monks are able to maintain the temple and garden and prevent mass tourism from destroying the tranquility of the moss garden.
    AMBER-2021-EXTRA-101.jpg
  • The Moss Garden at Saihoji Temple is one of the few temples in Kyoto where visitors must request an invitation in advance before their visit. Visitors are required to participate in chanting and writing wishes before visiting the famous gardens. In this way the monks are able to maintain the temple and garden and prevent mass tourism from destroying the tranquility of the moss garden.
    AMBER-2022-17.jpg
  • Komyoji is a popular temple with locals in the Kamakura area for its abundant cherry blossoms in spring, frequent weekend flea markets, and free parking near the beach. Komyoji Garden has a rare example of a dry garden, sometimes called a Zen garden, as this temple is not of the Zen sect of Buddhism.  In addition to the temple's zen dry karesansui garden, on the north side of the temple is the pond garden, which comes to life in spring with sakura cherry trees.
    AMBER-LOTUS-2023-182.jpg
  • Shinchi Teien or Sacred Pond Garden was established during the early Meiji period.  Left dormant for many years, it was restored in 1999.  The centerpiece is a serene pond with strolling paths around it.  This secret garden is located adjacent to controversial Yasukuni Shrine.
    AMBER-LOTUS-2023-169.jpg
  • Engetsukyo Bridge at Ritsurin - a landscape garden in Takamatsu  built by the local feudal lords during the Edo Period. Considered one of the finest gardens in Japan,  Ritsurin features many ponds, hills and pavilions set in front of wooded Mt. Shiun which serves as a background and example of borrowed scenery and Japanese gardening design.
    ritsurin-garden-12.jpg
  • Ritsurin is a landscape garden in Takamatsu  built by the local feudal lords during the Edo Period. Considered one of the finest gardens in Japan,  Ritsurin features many ponds, hills and pavilions set in front of wooded Mt. Shiun which serves as a background and example of borrowed scenery and Japanese gardening design.
    ritsurin-garden-18.jpg
  • 78.5 Engakuji 円覚寺 is the main temple of the Engakuji sect of the Rinzai Buddhist sect. Engakuji is one of the leading Zen temples in eastern Japan and ranks second among Kamakura's five great Zen temples. Its unique garden was restored in 1969 according to an old drawing. Zen Buddhism regarded gardens as microcosms of the natural landscape and this is a fine example.
    78.5.TENTATIVE-KAMAKURA-ENGAKUJI-02.jpg
  • Engetsukyo Bridge, or "full moon bridge" built in the Chinese style at Koishikawa Korakuen Garden in Tokyo.  It has this name because a full moon is formed by the arch of the bridge and its reflection in the pond beneath.
    koishikawa-korakuen-24.jpg
  • Koishikawa Korakuen Garden is one of Tokyo's oldest and most beautiful Japanese landscape gardens. It was built by close relatives of the Tokugawa Shogun in the early Edo Period..Like most traditional Japanese gardens, Koishikawa Korakuen attempts to reproduce famous landscapes from China and Japan in miniature, using a pond, stones, plants and a man made hill.
    koishikawa-korakuen-23.jpg
  • Japanese Tea House at the Japanese Tea Garden at Golden Gate park was originally part of the Pan Pacific Exposition.  One of the craftsmen of the Japanese village, Makoto Hagiwara, helped design the Japanese village, and later he became responsible for the majority of the Japanese Tea Garden.  Hagiwara and his family became residents of one of the buildings in the garden, living within Golden Gate Park at the time.
    golden-gate-tea-9.jpg
  • Ninomaru garden was designed by the famous landscape architect and tea master, Kobori Enshu. It is located between the two main rings of fortifications, next to the palace of the same name. The garden has a large pond with three islands and features numerous carefully placed stones and topiary pine trees.  Nijo Castle and its garden are a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    ninomaru-7.jpg
  • Ritsurin is a landscape garden in Takamatsu  built by the local feudal lords during the Edo Period. Considered one of the finest gardens in Japan,  Ritsurin features many ponds, hills and pavilions set in front of wooded Mt. Shiun which serves as a background and example of borrowed scenery and Japanese gardening design.
    ritsurin-garden-06.jpg
  • Ritsurin is a landscape garden in Takamatsu  built by the local feudal lords during the Edo Period. Considered one of the finest gardens in Japan.  Ritsurin features many ponds, hills and pavilions set in front of wooded Mt. Shiun which serves as a background and example of borrowed scenery and Japanese gardening design.
    ritsurin-garden-07.jpg
  • Ritsurin is a landscape garden in Takamatsu  built by the local feudal lords during the Edo Period. Considered one of the finest gardens in Japan,  Ritsurin features many ponds, hills and pavilions set in front of wooded Mt. Shiun which serves as a background and example of borrowed scenery and Japanese gardening design.
    ritsurin-garden-10.jpg
  • Ritsurin is a landscape garden in Takamatsu  built by the local feudal lords during the Edo Period. Considered one of the finest gardens in Japan,  Ritsurin features many ponds, hills and pavilions set in front of wooded Mt. Shiun which serves as a background and example of borrowed scenery and Japanese gardening design.
    ritsurin-garden-13.jpg
  • Engetsukyo Bridge at Ritsurin - a landscape garden in Takamatsu  built by the local feudal lords during the Edo Period. Considered one of the finest gardens in Japan,  Ritsurin features many ponds, hills and pavilions set in front of wooded Mt. Shiun which serves as a background and example of borrowed scenery and Japanese gardening design.
    ritsurin-garden-15.jpg
  • Engetsukyo Bridge at Ritsurin - a landscape garden in Takamatsu built by the local feudal lord during the Edo Period and considered one of the most esquisite gardens in Japan,  Ritsurin features ponds, hills and pavilions set in the woods which acts as background and a textbook example of borrowed scenery.
    ritsurin-garden-16.jpg
  • Ritsurin is a landscape garden in Takamatsu  built by the local feudal lords during the Edo Period. Considered one of the finest gardens in Japan,  Ritsurin features many ponds, hills and pavilions set in front of wooded Mt. Shiun which serves as a background and example of borrowed scenery and Japanese gardening design.
    ritsurin-garden-21.jpg
  • 23. Daigo-ji 醍醐寺 Within its grounds, Daigo-ji houses eighteen of Japan’s National Treasures. Among them are buildings belonging to Sanbo-in famous for the quality of its Japanese garden.  The garden was laid out with a large pond, paths and bridges and said to contain over 700 stones.  Sanbo-in was designed for viewing from a specific perspective within the temple’s buildings. Laid out in the Momoyama period, the garden’s islands depict ‘fortuitous crane’, the ‘tortoise’ and the ‘"isle of eternal youth’ - poetic terms that show stones and ponds can be poised in a prescribed, esoteric relationship.
    23.KYOTO-DAIGOJI-02.jpg
  • Ritsurin is a landscape garden in Takamatsu  built by the local feudal lords during the Edo Period. Considered one of the finest gardens in Japan,  Ritsurin features many ponds, hills and pavilions set in front of wooded Mt. Shiun which serves as a background and example of borrowed scenery and Japanese gardening design.
    ritsurin-garden-01.jpg
  • Ritsurin Trail within this magnificent landscape garden in Takamatsu.  It is  thought to be one of the finest gardens in Japan.  The garden boasts many features such as trails, teahouses, ponds, hills and pavilions set by Mt. Shiun providing a kind of borrowed scenery.
    ritsurin-garden-09.jpg
  • Ritsurin Pond Garden - a landscape garden in Takamatsu was built by  feudal lords during the Edo Period.  Ritsurin is considered to be one of the finest gardens in Japan, and features many pavilions, ponds, bridges and hills set beside wooded Mt. Shiun which serves as a background and serves as an example of borrowed scenery and Japanese gardening design.
    ritsurin-garden-17.jpg
  • 19. Ryoanji 龍安寺 garden is the world's best known Zen garden. This rock garden, known as a dry garden or karesansui is the most renowned of its kind in the world. The simple appearance of this Zen garden consists of nothing but stones and neatly raked gravel. The intention of the garden's design is obscure and up to each visitor's interpretation. Like a Zen koan puzzle it is said that if you can see all of the 15 stones at once you will have reached enlightenment.
    19.KYOTO-RYOANJI-02.jpg
  • 16.  Tenryuji 天龍寺 has been ranked first among Kyoto's ‘Five Great Zen Temples’.  Muso Soseki, the temple's founding abbot and famous garden designer, is said to have created Tenryuji's garden which, unlike the temple buildings,  survived several fires intact and is considered one of the oldest gardens of its kind. This is a shakkei or borrowed landscape garden, integrating the background scenery of the hills of Arashiyama as part of the garden's composition. Rather than physically entering the garden, it shows a 3D effect and was meant to be viewed from a distance.  It is often cited as a one of the best examples of the use of borrowed scenery gardens in Japan.
    16.KYOTO-TENRYUJI-02.jpg
  • Komyoji Garden Sakura - Komyoji is a popular temple with locals in the Kamakura area for its abundant cherry blossoms in spring, frequent weekend flea markets, and free parking near the beach. Komyoji Garden has a rare example of a dry garden, sometimes called a Zen garden, as this temple is not of the Zen sect of Buddhism.  In addition to the temple's zen dry karesansui garden, on the north side of the temple is the pond garden, which comes to life in spring with sakura cherry trees.
    komyoji-pond-garden-1.jpg
  • Komyoji is a popular temple with locals in the Kamakura area for its abundant cherry blossoms in spring, frequent weekend flea markets, and free parking near the beach. Komyoji Garden has a rare example of a dry garden, sometimes called a Zen garden, as this temple is not of the Zen sect of Buddhism.  In addition to the temple's zen dry karesansui garden, on the north side of the temple is the pond garden, which comes to life in spring with sakura cherry trees.
    komyoji-snow-03.jpg
  • Komyoji is a popular temple with locals in the Kamakura area for its abundant cherry blossoms in spring, frequent weekend flea markets, and free parking near the beach. Komyoji Garden has a rare example of a dry garden, sometimes called a Zen garden, as this temple is not of the Zen sect of Buddhism.  In addition to the temple's zen dry karesansui garden, on the north side of the temple is the pond garden, which comes to life in spring with sakura cherry trees.
    AMBER-LOTUS-2023-185.jpg
  • Komyoji is a popular temple with locals in the Kamakura area for its abundant cherry blossoms in spring, frequent weekend flea markets, and free parking near the beach. Komyoji Garden has a rare example of a dry garden, sometimes called a Zen garden, as this temple is not of the Zen sect of Buddhism.  In addition to the temple's zen dry karesansui garden, on the north side of the temple is the pond garden, which comes to life in spring with sakura cherry trees.
    AMBER-LOTUS-2023-184.jpg
  • Hase-dera Temple in Kamakura is officially named Kaiko-zan Jisho-in Hase-dera but commonly called Hase Kannon.  Hase-Dera has landscaped Japanese gardens, a giant prayer wheel, jizo caves, a bamboo grove, and a vegetarian restaurant up the hill with a birds-eye view of Kamakura and the Shonan Coast. Hase-dera is famous for its massive wooden statue of Kannon - a treasure of Japan.  Originally belonging to the Tendai sect of Buddhism, Hase-dera became an independent temple of the Jodo sect of Zen Buddhism.
    kamakura-hase-dera-03.jpg
  • Meigetsuin Zen Garden - The karesansui zen garden of raked sand, rocks and plants at Meigetsuin Temple Garden represents legendary Mount Shumi or Sumeru an imaginary mountain in the Buddhist universe. According to records Meigetsuin was originally merely the guest house of a much bigger temple called Zenko-ji which was closed by the government during the Meiji period and is all that remains of the formerly important temple.
    meigetsuin-kamakura-1.jpg
  • Komyoji is a popular temple with locals in the Kamakura area for its abundant cherry blossoms in spring, frequent weekend flea markets, and free parking near the beach. Komyoji Garden has a rare example of a dry garden, sometimes called a Zen garden, as this temple is not of the Zen sect of Buddhism.  In addition to the temple's zen dry karesansui garden, on the north side of the temple is the pond garden, which comes to life in spring with sakura cherry trees.
    kamakura-komyoji-06.jpg
  • Shinchi Teien or Sacred Pond Garden was established during the early Meiji period.  Left dormant for many years, it was restored in 1999.  The centerpiece is a serene pond with strolling paths around it.  This secret garden is located adjacent to controversial Yasukuni Shrine.
    shinchi-07.jpg
  • Shinchi Teien or Sacred Pond Garden was established during the early Meiji period.  Left dormant for many years, it was restored in 1999.  The centerpiece is a serene pond with strolling paths around it.  This secret garden is located adjacent to controversial Yasukuni Shrine.
    shinchi-04.jpg
  • Shinjuku Gyoen Garden was designed and built on the estate of Lord Naito, a feudal lord of the Edo period.  Shinjuku Gyoen was originally an imperial garden, but then donated to the public.  Shinjuku Gyoen Garden was designated a national garden after WWII.  Besides the Japanese Traditional Garden, Shinjuku Gyoen also has a French Formal Garden and an English Garden.  Shinjuku Gyoen is one of the most important Japanese gardens of the Meiji era.
    shinjuku-gyoen-13.jpg
  • Shinjuku Gyoen Garden was designed and built on the estate of Lord Naito, a feudal lord of the Edo period.  Shinjuku Gyoen was originally an imperial garden, but then donated to the public.  Shinjuku Gyoen Garden was designated a national garden after WWII.  Besides the Japanese Traditional Garden, Shinjuku Gyoen also has a French Formal Garden and an English Garden.  Shinjuku Gyoen is one of the most important Japanese gardens of the Meiji era.
    shinjuku-gyoen-12.jpg
  • Momijiyama Garden is located near the ruins of Sunpu Castle in Shizuoka.  Garden of the Village is made up of various flowers, plants and a wooden pavilion. The zigzag wooden bridge is surrounded by irises in late May and June.  Garden of the Mountain Village is composed of a hill meant to resemble Mt. Fuji.  Surrounding the hill are azalea bushes arranged to as to look like the terraced tea fields of Shizuoka.  Shizuokaís claims to fame are green tea and Mt Fuji.  Next, Garden of the Sea or is meant to be viewed between the pines facing the pond with the white beach below, so as to resemble the seashore of Miwa. Stones in the pond and the opposite shore represent Izu coastline, also part of Shizuoka Prefecture and known for its seascapes.  Finally the Garden of the Mountain is composed of two small waterfalls meant to symbolize mountain scenes of Japan.
    momijiyama-05-amber.jpg
  • The Moss Garden at Saihoji Temple is one of the few temples in Kyoto where visitors must request an invitation in advance before their visit. Visitors are required to participate in chanting and writing wishes before visiting the famous gardens. In this way the monks are able to maintain the temple and garden and prevent mass tourism from destroying the tranquility of the moss garden.
    AMBER-2021-EXTRA-102.jpg
  • Rinnoji Temple's Shoyo-en Garden in Nikko. The garden was made in the early Edo period originally but revised in the beginning of the 19th century. A Confucian scholar, Issai Sato gave the garden its name. The temple's main building, which enshrines successive members of the Imperial family.
    shoyo-en-3.jpg
  • Eiho-ji is a Rinzai Zen Buddhist temple in Tajimi, Gifu and was established in 1313.  The temple is a monastery known for its pond garden with a fabulous bridge over the pond listed as National Treasure.
    Eiho-ji-13.jpg
  • Eiho-ji is a Rinzai Zen Buddhist temple in Tajimi, Gifu and was established in 1313.  The temple is a monastery known for its pond garden with a fabulous bridge over the pond listed as National Treasure.
    Eiho-ji-12.jpg
  • Eiho-ji is a Rinzai Zen Buddhist temple in Tajimi, Gifu and was established in 1313.  The temple is a monastery known for its pond garden with a fabulous bridge over the pond listed as National Treasure.
    Eiho-ji-9.jpg
  • Eiho-ji is a Rinzai Zen Buddhist temple in Tajimi, Gifu and was established in 1313.  The temple is a monastery known for its pond garden with a fabulous bridge over the pond listed as National Treasure.
    Eiho-ji-6.jpg
  • Yamanashi Prefecture is famous for its rock crystals and many world-class lapidary experts.  It should not be surprising that a rock garden, for which the Japanese are famous, should be born.  The main difference here is that the stones are not austere white pebbles, but multicolored ones from local crystals.  The Jewel Dream Garden is run by a local jewelry company that sponsors it and the adjacent Jewelry Museum.
    shingen-jewel-garden-7.jpg
  • Yamanashi Prefecture is famous for its rock crystals and many world-class lapidary experts.  It should not be surprising, therefore, that a rock garden, for which the Japanese are famous, should be born.  The main difference here is that the stones are not austere white pebbles, but multicolored ones from local crystals.  The Jewel Dream Garden is large, and run by a local jewelry company that sponsors it and the adjacent Jewelry Museum.
    shingen-jewel-garden-2.jpg
  • Erin-ji Garden - Erin-ji is a Zen temple set in the mountains of Yamanashi Prefecture built in 1330. Zen priest and garden designer Muso Soseki was asked to establish and design the temple and its garden. It is now a temple of the Myoshin-ji branch of the Rinzai Zen Buddhism.  The temple's pond garden is best viewed from either the temple's tatami rooms or connecting hallways.
    erin-ji-garden-12.jpg
  • Erin-ji Garden - Erin-ji is a Zen temple set in the mountains of Yamanashi Prefecture built in 1330. Zen priest and garden designer Muso Soseki was asked to establish and design the temple and its garden. It is now a temple of the Myoshin-ji branch of the Rinzai Zen Buddhism.  The temple's pond garden is best viewed from either the temple's tatami rooms or connecting hallways.
    erin-ji-garden-6.jpg
  • Tojo-tei Tojogaoka Garden is the former domain of Kokugawa Akitake, often called “the last Shogun".  In 1887 when the last Shogun returned power to the emperor.  At the time,  a new era had begun and people from Shogun families faded into obscurity.  The house was designed in styles of both the Edo and Meiji periods with only precious materials used in its construction.   The minimalism found in the design creates the beauty of form. The garden surrounding the home is  an important element havin been designed so that seasonal followers can be enjoyed viewing from all rooms.
    tojitei-tojogaoka-5.jpg
  • Tojo-tei Tojogaoka Garden is the former domain of Kokugawa Akitake, often called “the last Shogun".  In 1887 when the last Shogun returned power to the emperor.  At the time,  a new era had begun and people from Shogun families faded into obscurity.  The house was designed in styles of both the Edo and Meiji periods with only precious materials used in its construction.   The minimalism found in the design creates the beauty of form. The garden surrounding the home is  an important element havin been designed so that seasonal followers can be enjoyed viewing from all rooms.
    tojitei-tojogaoka-4.jpg
  • Kyu Furukawa Garden was originally the domain of Mutsu Munemitsu. but later became the property of the Furukawa family.  Ogawa Jihei designed the garden renowned for its beauty. The Furukawa garden is regarded as an example of Japanese gardens of the Taisho Period.
    kyu-furukawa-12.jpg
  • Kyu Furukawa Garden was originally the domain of a Meiji Period notable Mutsu Munemitsu. but later became the property of the Furukawa family.  Ogawa Jihei  sometimes known as Niwashi Ueji designed the garden renowned for its beauty. The Furukawa garden is regarded as an example of gardens of the Taisho Period of Japan.
    kyu-furukawa-10.jpg
  • Shinchi Teien or Sacred Pond Garden was established during the early Meiji period.  Left dormant for many years, it was restored in 1999.  The centerpiece is a serene pond with strolling paths around it.  This secret garden is located adjacent to controversial Yasukuni Shrine.
    shinchi-teien-3.jpg
  • Tome Ishi is a stone is wrapped in rope and placed in a path or in front of a gate. They're sometimes called "stop stones" sekimori-ishi indicating that entry is forbidden. They are commonly found at temples,  tea houses or traditional Japanese gardens.
    stopping-stone-2.jpg
  • Kozenji Garden Tottori - while many temples around Japan share the name Kozenji, the Tottori Kozenji features a small landscape garden using "borrowed scenery" - that is hills and forest behind the garden incorporated into the garden's tableaux.
    Kozenji-Tottori-2.jpg
  • Kannon-in Garden was built in the mid 17th century and artfully incorporates the forest behind the pond as its natural background.  This style is called Shakkei "borrowed scenery”.  Kannon-in Garden was designated as a national scenic spot by the Japanese government.
    kannon-in-4.jpg
  • Kannon-in Garden was built in the mid 17th century and artfully incorporates the forest behind the pond as its natural background.  This style is called Shakkei "borrowed scenery”.  Kannon-in Garden was designated as a national scenic spot by the Japanese government.
    kannon-in-2.jpg
  • Ishitani Residence Garden - During the Edo period Chizu flourished as a post station. Among the quaint buildings in Chizu Town the residence of the Ishitani family, an upper class family.  Japanese, gardens are often designed to be viewed from a sitting position. The most celebrated garden at Ishitani Residence is the Chisen Garden, with plants artfully arranged around a pond, the Karesansui Garden, a dry landscape garden that uses no water to represent mountains and streams, and the Shibafu Garden showing the charm of green lawns. The space from indoors to the veranda and the gardens are connected in a gentle way.  In this way Japanese can appreciate living alongside nature by viewing from within the home.
    ishitani-garden-6.jpg
  • Ishitani Residence Garden - During the Edo period Chizu flourished as a post station. Among the quaint buildings in Chizu Town the residence of the Ishitani family, an upper class family.  Japanese, gardens are often designed to be viewed from a sitting position. The most celebrated garden at Ishitani Residence is the Chisen Garden, with plants artfully arranged around a pond, the Karesansui Garden, a dry landscape garden that uses no water to represent mountains and streams, and the Shibafu Garden showing the charm of green lawns. The space from indoors to the veranda and the gardens are connected in a gentle way.  In this way Japanese can appreciate living alongside nature by viewing from within the home.
    ishitani-garden-3.jpg
  • Ishitani Residence Garden - Japanese, gardens are often designed to be viewed from a sitting position. The most celebrated garden at Ishitani Residence is the Chisen Garden, with plants artfully arranged around a pond, the Karesansui Garden, a dry landscape garden that uses no water to represent mountains and streams, and the Shibafu Garden showing the charm of green lawns. The veranda and the gardens are connected and in this way viewers can appreciate living alongside nature by viewing from within the home.
    ishitani-garden-2.jpg
  • Yuushien garden is found on Daikonshima Island and was designed as a strolling garden with ponds, streams, trails and waterfalls. The garden is resplendent year round with a variety of seasonal blooms and is famous for peonies. In the 1950's, sericultural industry was in decline on the small island of Daikonshima, and women on the island had to travel all around Japan selling peony seedlings to make a living. A local man, Mr Sakai Kadowaki opened the garden at Daikonshima so that people would visit the island and the free the locals from constant travel around Japan. The garden named after Kadowaki’s father.
    yuushien-13.jpg
  • Lafcadio Hearn lived in Matsue for about one year during his long life in Japan.  His former residence is open to the public and is dedicated to his work.  Hearn was born in Greece in 1850 to an Irish father and a Greek mother and lived in Greece, Ireland, Britain, France and the USA before ending up in  Japan in 1890 where he married a Japanese and was naturalized as Japanese as Koizumi Yakumo, his name in Japan.  He is best know for books that introduced Japan to the western world.   His most famous work was "Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan”.  In his home at Matsue, Hearn described the Japanese garden of the residence: “There are large rocks in it, heavily mossed and fantastic basins of stone for holding water; and stone lamps green with years... and there are green knolls like islets.”  In his well known essay “In A Japanese Garden” he writes: “These are the gardens of the past. The future will know them only as dreams, creations of a forgotten art.”
    lafcadio-hearn-garden-3.jpg
  • The Adachi Museum of Art was based on the private collection of Zenko Adachi.  Adachi collected Japanese paintings, ceramics and scrolls.  Adachi himself was an aficionado of Japanese gardens and collected each pine tree and each stone for the garden himself from around Japan.   In this way he created a beautiful garden filled with his own vision and passion.  Adachi believed that Japanese gardens were "as beautiful as pictures” and even framed one of the gardens in one of the museums rooms as if it is a painting itself. Adachi Museum Garden has been selected as the best garden in Japan year after year since 2003, by the Journal of Japanese Gardens Shisai Project.
    adachi-garden-12.jpg
  • There are 540 of these statues representing disciples of Buddha at Kitain Temple in Kawagoe. They were sculpted between 1782 and 1825.  No two rakan statues are alike.  This assemblage on the temple grounds is known as Go Kyuaku Rakan, or "500 Rakan" although there are actually 540.
    kitain-rakan-5.jpg
  • There are 540 of these statues representing disciples of Buddha at Kitain Temple in Kawagoe. They were sculpted between 1782 and 1825.  No two rakan statues are alike.  This assemblage on the temple grounds is known as Go Kyuaku Rakan, or "500 Rakan" although there are actually 540.
    kitain-rakan-2.jpg
  • Kitain Garden is meant to be viewed only from the temple building itself.  The garden is planted with plum, cherry, and maple trees and a variety of flowers.  In this way, the garden can be enjoyed in many different seasons of Japan.  In visiting Kitain Temple, the garden is often overlooked because of poor signage, but it is the furthermost temple room in back, so visitors should persist as it is the highlight of the temple, apart from the 500 rakan.
    kitain-garden-07.jpg
  • Kitain Garden is meant to be viewed only from the temple building itself.  The garden is planted with plum, cherry, and maple trees and a variety of flowers.  In this way, the garden can be enjoyed in many different seasons of Japan.  In visiting Kitain Temple, the garden is often overlooked because of poor signage, but it is the furthermost temple room in back, so visitors should persist as it is the highlight of the temple, apart from the 500 rakan.
    kitain-garden-05.jpg
  • Tenshozan Renge-in Komyo-ji usually referred to only as Komyoji is a Buddhist temple of the Jodo sect in Kamakura.  The temple is dedicated to the training of Buddhist priests and scholarly research.  Although Komyoji is a Jodo sect temple, it has certain features normally found only in a Zen temple, that is a pond garden, dry rock garden and a temple gate.
    komyoji-1.jpg
  • Sahara Kiku was a wealthy antique dealer in the Edo period established a garden for enjoying flowers and developed Mukojima Hyakkaen meaning "a garden with a hundred flowers that bloom”. The garden first opened with  360 plum trees. In later years, many different plants & flowers discussed in Japanese literature and poetry were added.  The garden is the only surviving flower garden from the Edo Period. So as to preserve the garden the owner gave the garden to the City of Tokyo. It was officially opened to the public in 1939.
    mukojima-1.jpg
  • Taishakuten Suikei-en Garden is to be viewed from a covered bridge that encircles the garden.  The garden itself is composed of a long hedge of azaleas, a pond with pines branches shaped to resemble clouds.  Walking along the covered walkway the view across the pond toward the guest house and teahouse provides the best view of the garden.
    taishakuten-suikei-en-01.jpg
  • Tonogayato Garden is a landscape type  garden in Kokubunji, Tokyo. It was built for the vice-president of Manchurian Railway.  In 1929 the estate was bought by the founder of Mitsubishi and is now owned by Tokyo Metropolitan Parks who maintain it.  There is a teahouse on the garden's grounds that can be rented for tea ceremony.
    tonogayato-5.jpg
  • Tonogayato Garden is a landscape type  garden in Kokubunji, Tokyo. It was built for the vice-president of Manchurian Railway.  In 1929 the estate was bought by the founder of Mitsubishi and is now owned by Tokyo Metropolitan Parks who maintain it.  There is a teahouse on the garden's grounds that can be rented for tea ceremony.
    tonogayato-3.jpg
  • Tonogayato Garden is a landscape type  garden in Kokubunji, Tokyo. It was built for the vice-president of Manchurian Railway.  In 1929 the estate was bought by the founder of Mitsubishi and is now owned by Tokyo Metropolitan Parks who maintain it.  There is a teahouse on the garden's grounds that can be rented for tea ceremony.
    tonogayato-1.jpg
  • Showa Kinen Park is a large space surrounded by greenery in the outer suburbs of Tokyo.  A traditional Japanese garden was created in 1997 in a corner of this spacious park.  The strolling garden surrounds a pond, overlooking a tea house.   The delicacy of traditional Japanese landscaping takes account of details as small as a single flower plant or small stone. Kanfu-tei is the tea house built in the Sukiya style in harmony with the pond garden. It was built using mostly cypress special techniques such as roofing with cypress bark and special joints at pillars and beams.
    showa-kinen-garden-6.jpg
  • Gyokudo Kawai was considered  a great master of Japanese painting who lived in Mitake so as a memorial to his accomplishments Gyokudo Museum was created by Ken Nakajima - the landscape architect. The garden has no specific observation point, thought it can be viewed from many angles without changing its general look.  A central design concept that has been used to describe this garden is nesting technique, which has long been utilized in Japanese art.  Natural stones found in adjacent Tama River were used for the garden's stones as well as a part of natural woods at the background crossed over the wall turned to be garden trees that have set the border between artificial and natural. This can be considered in contrast to borrowed scenery often employed in Japanese gardens. In other words, instead of designating as background, it directly employs the natural elements in the garden itself.
    gyukodo-6.jpg
  • Gyokudo Kawai was considered  a great master of Japanese painting who lived in Mitake so as a memorial to his accomplishments Gyokudo Museum was created by Ken Nakajima - the landscape architect. The garden has no specific observation point, thought it can be viewed from many angles without changing its general look.  A central design concept that has been used to describe this garden is nesting technique, which has long been utilized in Japanese art.  Natural stones found in adjacent Tama River were used for the garden's stones as well as a part of natural woods at the background crossed over the wall turned to be garden trees that have set the border between artificial and natural. This can be considered in contrast to borrowed scenery often employed in Japanese gardens. In other words, instead of designating as background, it directly employs the natural elements in the garden itself.
    gyukodo-7.jpg
  • Gyokudo Kawai was considered  a great master of Japanese painting who lived in Mitake so as a memorial to his accomplishments Gyokudo Museum was created by Ken Nakajima - the landscape architect. The garden has no specific observation point, thought it can be viewed from many angles without changing its general look.  A central design concept that has been used to describe this garden is nesting technique, which has long been utilized in Japanese art.  Natural stones found in adjacent Tama River were used for the garden's stones as well as a part of natural woods at the background crossed over the wall turned to be garden trees that have set the border between artificial and natural. This can be considered in contrast to borrowed scenery often employed in Japanese gardens. In other words, instead of designating as background, it directly employs the natural elements in the garden itself.
    gyukodo-4.jpg
  • Shishi odoshi or deer scare is a gereric device made to scare away animals such as deer from damaging gardens and even a farm.  Sozu is a special water fountain used specifically in Japanese gardens.  Sozu consists of a bamboo tube pivoted to its balance point - its heavier end is down and resting against a rock while water fills into the other end of the bamboo tube.  After the water has accumulated this moves the tube's center of gravity past the pivot, causing the tube to rotate and release water. The heavier end falls back against the rock making a sharp sound, and the cycle repeats. This noise is intended to startle deer which may be grazing on plants in the garden.
    deer-scare-4.jpg
  • Shishi odoshi or deer scare is a gereric device made to scare away animals such as deer from damaging gardens and even a farm.  Sozu is a special water fountain used specifically in Japanese gardens.  Sozu consists of a bamboo tube pivoted to its balance point - its heavier end is down and resting against a rock while water fills into the other end of the bamboo tube.  After the water has accumulated this moves the tube's center of gravity past the pivot, causing the tube to rotate and release water. The heavier end falls back against the rock making a sharp sound, and the cycle repeats. This noise is intended to startle deer which may be grazing on plants in the garden.
    deer-scare-3.jpg
  • Shishi odoshi or deer scare is a gereric device made to scare away animals such as deer from damaging gardens and even a farm.  Sozu is a special water fountain used specifically in Japanese gardens.  Sozu consists of a bamboo tube pivoted to its balance point - its heavier end is down and resting against a rock while water fills into the other end of the bamboo tube.  After the water has accumulated this moves the tube's center of gravity past the pivot, causing the tube to rotate and release water. The heavier end falls back against the rock making a sharp sound, and the cycle repeats. This noise is intended to startle deer which may be grazing on plants in the garden.
    deer-scare-2.jpg
  • Bonsai is a Japanese art form using miniature trees grown in containers. This art form comes from Chinese tradition of penjing from which it originated.  The Japanese tradition dates back over a thousand years, and has its own set of aesthetics.  The purpose of bonsai are pleasant contemplation for the viewer, and the satisfaction of effort and ingenuity for the gardener.  Some species of tree are popular as bonsai material because they have small leaves that make them suitable for the compact scope -  relatively small and to meet the aesthetic standards of bonsai. The tree's growth is restricted by the pot environment and continually shaped to limit its growth, and encourage vigor to areas requiring further development.  Unlike “dwarfing” Bonsai makes use of root reduction, pruning, and defoliation to produce small trees that mimic the shape and style of mature, full-size trees.
    bonsai-3.jpg
  • Hase-Dera Garden - Since the year 736, Hase-Dera Temple has been known as the 4th station among the 33 holy places in the Kanto area, and one of the main stops for Buddhist pilgrims in Kamakura, situated down the street from the Great Buddha of Kamakura. Hase-Dera has landscaped Japanese gardens, a giant prayer wheel, jizo caves, a bamboo grove and a vegetarian restaurant up the hill with a bird-eye view of Kamakura and the Shonan Coast.
    hasedera-garden-03.jpg
  • Momijiyama Garden is located near the ruins of Sunpu Castle in Shizuoka.  Garden of the Village is made up of various flowers, plants and a wooden pavilion. The zigzag wooden bridge is surrounded by irises in late May and June.  Garden of the Mountain Village is composed of a hill meant to resemble Mt. Fuji.  Surrounding the hill are azalea bushes arranged to as to look like the terraced tea fields of Shizuoka.  Shizuoka’s claims to fame are green tea and Mt Fuji.  Next, Garden of the Sea or is meant to be viewed between the pines facing the pond with the white beach below, so as to resemble the seashore of Miwa. Stones in the pond and the opposite shore represent Izu coastline, also part of Shizuoka Prefecture and known for its seascapes.  Finally the Garden of the Mountain is composed of two small waterfalls meant to symbolize mountain scenes of Japan.
    momijiyama-25.jpg
  • Momijiyama Garden is located near the ruins of Sunpu Castle in Shizuoka.  Garden of the Village is made up of various flowers, plants and a wooden pavilion. The zigzag wooden bridge is surrounded by irises in late May and June.  Garden of the Mountain Village is composed of a hill meant to resemble Mt. Fuji.  Surrounding the hill are azalea bushes arranged to as to look like the terraced tea fields of Shizuoka.  Shizuoka’s claims to fame are green tea and Mt Fuji.  Next, Garden of the Sea or is meant to be viewed between the pines facing the pond with the white beach below, so as to resemble the seashore of Miwa. Stones in the pond and the opposite shore represent Izu coastline, also part of Shizuoka Prefecture and known for its seascapes.  Finally the Garden of the Mountain is composed of two small waterfalls meant to symbolize mountain scenes of Japan.
    momijiyama-22.jpg
  • Momijiyama Garden is located near the ruins of Sunpu Castle in Shizuoka.  Garden of the Village is made up of various flowers, plants and a wooden pavilion. The zigzag wooden bridge is surrounded by irises in late May and June.  Garden of the Mountain Village is composed of a hill meant to resemble Mt. Fuji.  Surrounding the hill are azalea bushes arranged to as to look like the terraced tea fields of Shizuoka.  Shizuoka’s claims to fame are green tea and Mt Fuji.  Next, Garden of the Sea or is meant to be viewed between the pines facing the pond with the white beach below, so as to resemble the seashore of Miwa. Stones in the pond and the opposite shore represent Izu coastline, also part of Shizuoka Prefecture and known for its seascapes.  Finally the Garden of the Mountain is composed of two small waterfalls meant to symbolize mountain scenes of Japan.
    momijiyama-20.jpg
  • Momijiyama Garden is located near the ruins of Sunpu Castle in Shizuoka.  Garden of the Village is made up of various flowers, plants and a wooden pavilion. The zigzag wooden bridge is surrounded by irises in late May and June.  Garden of the Mountain Village is composed of a hill meant to resemble Mt. Fuji.  Surrounding the hill are azalea bushes arranged to as to look like the terraced tea fields of Shizuoka.  Shizuoka’s claims to fame are green tea and Mt Fuji.  Next, Garden of the Sea or is meant to be viewed between the pines facing the pond with the white beach below, so as to resemble the seashore of Miwa. Stones in the pond and the opposite shore represent Izu coastline, also part of Shizuoka Prefecture and known for its seascapes.  Finally the Garden of the Mountain is composed of two small waterfalls meant to symbolize mountain scenes of Japan.
    momijiyama-02.jpg
  • Ryoanji or the Temple of the Dragon at Peace is a Zen temple in northwest Kyoto, Ryoanji belongs to the My shin-ji school of the Rinzai branch of Zen Buddhism. The garden is considered to be the finest examples of a karesansui, Japanese rock garden, or zen garden, in the world. The temple and gardens are listed as Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto and as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
    ryoanji-2.jpg
  • Todai-ji or the Eastern Great Temple in Nara - the Great Buddha Hall Daibutsuden shelters the world's largest bronze statue of the Buddha known in Japanese as Daibutsu.  The temple also serves as the Japanese headquarters of the Kegon sect of Buddhism. The temple is a listed UNESCO World Heritage Site as "Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara”.  Wild deer, regarded as messengers of the gods in the Shinto religion, roam the area regularly.
    seisyu-an-teahouse-1.jpg
  • Hakone Garden is the oldest Japanese garden in the Western Hemisphere. The garden is set in eighteen acres of in the hills of Saratoga overlooking Silicon Valley. Visitors to Hakone Garden can experience the calming effect of a Japanese garden in Northern California.
    hakone-garden-4.jpg
  • Hakone Garden is the oldest Japanese garden in the Western Hemisphere. The garden is set in eighteen acres of in the hills of Saratoga overlooking Silicon Valley. Visitors to Hakone Garden can experience the calming effect of a Japanese garden in Northern California.
    hakone-garden-5.jpg
  • Senganen Garden, also known as Isoteien is a Japanese style landscape garden along the coast of Kagoshima. One of the garden's most striking feature is its use of Sakurajima and Kagoshima Bay as borrowed scenery. The garden includes small ponds, streams, shrines and a bamboo grove. Senganen was constructed in 1658 by the wealthy Shimazu Clan, one of the most powerful feudal clans during the Edo Period.  The Shimazu ruled Kagoshima for almost 700 years and continued to be influential into the modern era as earlyadopters of Western science and technology.  At the center of the garden stands the Iso Residence. The residence was originally built in 1658 along with the rest of the garden, but the current building mostly dates back to a reconstruction in the mid 1880s.
    senganen-garden-02.jpg
  • Japanese Tea Garden Pagoda in San Francisco, California is a historical Japanese-style garden originally built as the Japanese Village for the 1894 California Midwinter International Exposition. Japanese immigrant and gardener Makoto Hagiwara designed the bulk of the garden and was officially appointed caretaker in 1894 until the hysteria surrounding World War II. In the years to follow, many Hagiwara family treasures were liquidated from the gardens, but new additions were also made. Today, the Tea Garden is one of the most popular attractions in San Francisco, featuring beautiful monuments, bridges, native Japanese plants and ponds. Guests can also enjoy the service at the tea house and gift shop.
    golden-gate-tea-6.jpg
  • Shinsen-en Garden Bridge, Kyoto
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  • Carp Pond at Ekoin - Koyasan is one of the best places to experience a temple stay in Japan.  Carp pond and Japanese garden at Ekoin one of the more popular temples for foreign visitors at Koyasan.  One reason is that most of the young monks speak English, and Ekoin is well accustomed to foreign visitors.  Also Ekoin has morning prayer services and fire burning ceremonies that visitors can observe.
    ekoin-koyasan-14.jpg
  • 78.7  Shomyoji 称名寺 was built by Hojo Sanetoki during the Kamakura period and was the Hojo family temple. The Jodo style pure land garden with Ajiike Pond in front of the main temple is its most unique feature - its arched bridge over the pond is its showcase. The temple's bell was portrayed in the woodblock print Shomyo-no-Bansho one of eight prints depicting views of Kanazawa by Hiroshige Utagawa. Today Shomyoji is no longer part of Kamakura but now officially within Yokohama city limits.
    78.7.TENTATIVE-KAMAKURA-SHOMYOJI-01.jpg
  • 78.3 Kenchojji 建長寺 is the oldest Zen monastery in Japan, built in the Kamakura period in 1273.  The layout of the temple follows the Chinese Xian tradition with all the buildings arranged on an axis. It is known for its architecture especially its golden gates.  Also, there is an austere pond garden - one of the few Japanese gardens in Kamakura. Kenchoji is one of the Five Great Zen Temples of Kamakura.  Although still important and occupying a large amount of space, in its heyday it once contained 49 sub-temples. During the Kamakura Period, scholars from the Five Great Zen Temples exercised enormous power in Japan.
    78.3.TENTATIVE--KAMAKURA.KENCHOJI.02.jpg
  • 30. Rinnoji 輪王寺 - Rinnoji Temple was founded in 766 AD by the Buddhist hermit monk Shodo Shonin.  Rinnoji quickly became a popular retreat for ascetic monks who wished to meditate in the mountains.  It was once so important that it had 500 sub-temples under its rule.  Rinnoji is best known for its Sanbutsudoh Three Buddha Hall and the beautiful Japanese meditation garden Shoyo-en on its grounds.  The layout at Shoyo-en is modeled after Lake Biwa, showing the Japanese knack for representation through reduction and miniaturization.
    31.1.NIKKO-RINNOJI-SHOYOEN.jpg
  • 26. Saihoji 西芳寺 The Moss Garden at Saihoji Temple is often called Koke-dera or Moss Temple.  More than 120 different types of moss now grow at Saihoji, some developed naturally or even accidentally thanks to its nearness to the pond. Saihoji is one of the few temples in Kyoto where visitors must request an invitation in advance before their visit. Visitors are required to participate in tracing sutras before visiting the famous gardens. In this way the monks are able to maintain the integrity of the temple and garden and prevent mass tourism from destroying the tranquility of this unique retreat.
    26.KYOTO-SAIHOJI-01.jpg
  • 24. Byodo-in 平等院 is well known in Japan, so much so that its outline is featured on the 10 YEN coin. Byodo-in was originally a private residence like many Japanese temples.  It was converted into a temple by the Fujiwara clan in 1052. The Phoenix Hall, the 8 foot tall statue of Amida inside it and several other items at Byodoin have been declared Japanese National Treasures. The pond garden at Byodo-in is considered to be one of best examples of a Pure Land garden in Japan.
    24.KYOTO-BYODO-IN-01.jpg
  • 23. Daigo-ji 醍醐寺 Within its grounds, Daigo-ji houses eighteen of Japan’s National Treasures. Among them are buildings belonging to Sanbo-in famous for the quality of its Japanese garden.  The garden was laid out with a large pond, paths and bridges and said to contain over 700 stones.  Sanbo-in was designed for viewing from a specific perspective within the temple’s buildings. Laid out in the Momoyama period, the garden’s islands depict ‘fortuitous crane’, the ‘tortoise’ and the ‘"isle of eternal youth’ - poetic terms that show stones and ponds can be poised in a prescribed, esoteric relationship.
    23..KYOTO-DAIGOJI-01.jpg
  • 20.1  Shosei-en Garden 渉成園 is a traditional Japanese formal garden thought to have been built in the ninth century on the site of Prince Minamoto Notoru's mansion. Fires in 1858 and 1864 burnt the walls and interior structures to the ground. They were thereafter restored, and in 1938 designated a National Historic Site. Within the grounds, there are several tea houses, a large pond, a small waterfall, stone lanterns and bridges Shosei-en is part of the Honganji temples complex.
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