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[Karesansui]

"Karesansui" is one of the forms of Japanese garden in which the landscape is expressed with stones and sand without using water. The only temple that stuck in my mind during a school excursion to Kyoto in high school was Ryoanji Temple, which has a karesansui garden.

Japanese gardens are classified into three major categories: Chisen-teien, which has a stream, pond, or other water feature; karesansui, which does not use any water; and roji, which is associated with a tea ceremony room, and karesansui is the oldest garden form among them. According to the Sakuteiki, a medieval text on garden design, it is said that since it was impossible to move huge stones such as those in stone chambers of ancient tombs, they were used to the contrary in creating gardens. The combination of several natural stones is called "ishigumi" (stone arrangement), and it is a factor that greatly influences the landscape of a garden. This suggests that karesansui is closely related to the afterlife.

Until the Heian period (794-1185), only a small number of karesansui were created in the gardens of aristocratic families, but when Zen Buddhism was introduced to Japan in the Kamakura period (1192-1333), full-scale karesansui were created in the gardens of Zen temples, mainly in Kyoto. Today, karesansui gardens are widely used not only in Zen temples but also in shrines and private homes. In contrast to large pond gardens, which require a relatively large site, karesansui can be created in any area and can be placed indoors or on rooftops without the use of water, so it has become a common sight in modern architecture.

Karesansui gardens may look simple at first glance, but they have a unique atmosphere and mysterious power to calm the mind as one sits on the veranda and gazes out at them. Whenever my friends come to Kyoto, I always want to include a karesansui garden in the course at least once, and I would like to recommend three temples in particular.

First is the World Heritage-listed Zen temple Ryoanji, which became world-famous as a "rock garden" after Queen Elizabeth II praised its stone garden during an official visit to Ryoanji Temple in 1975. It is said that only 14 stones can be seen from every angle of the stone garden, composed of white sand and 15 stones, and I remember how we all compared them from different angles during school excursions. The creator and the intent of the garden's creation are both a mystery. For me, the first dry landscape garden I visited was Ryoanji Temple. The beauty, tranquility, and serenity of Ryoanji Temple, including the stone garden where you cannot move from the edge once you sit down, the large site full of greenery leading to the stone garden, and the Kyoyouchi Pond where water lilies bloom, are all at the origin and the top of my current list.

The second is the Daitokuji Zuihoin Temple, built in 1535 by Sorin Otomo, a well-known Christian feudal lord, as a family temple of the Otomo family. Both the "Dokuza-tei" and "Kanmin-tei" gardens located around the jōgen were created by Mirei Shigemori in 1961 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the founder's death. The "Kanmin-tei" is also called the "Garden of the Cross" because of its four vertical and three horizontal stones arranged in a crisscross pattern. The white sand, reminiscent of rough seas, is unique and hard to find elsewhere. Although compact, this temple achieves a harmony between Christianity and Buddhism.

The last temple is Kenninji Temple, the oldest Zen temple in Kyoto. Eisai, who studied Zen in the Song dynasty (960-1279), built the temple in 1202, modeling it after the Chinese temple Hyakujozan. The garden in front of the hojo (the building where priests and monks live) is a large garden of white sand and 15 stones, with the Imperial Gate and Dharma Hall in the background. I had never been to Kenninji Temple because it is located in the Gion district and I thought I could go there anytime I wanted, but when I visited there for the first time just the other day, I found that the site was much larger than I had imagined, the stone garden was magnificent, and the veranda was relaxing. In addition to the stone garden, the "Sour Dragon" painted on the ceiling of the Dharma Hall and the "○△□ Garden" expressing the four major philosophies of Zen Buddhism (pond, water, fire, and wind) are also worth seeing.

The best season for viewing the stone garden is when there are no cherry blossoms or autumn leaves. In today's information-rich society, there is something that can only be satisfied in a karesansui. Ryoanji Temple and Zuibuin Temple are located in the upper part of Kyoto City, so please visit them together with our Imadegawa showroom, Kenninji Temple is located in Gion, which is more easily accessible, so please visit them together with our Sanjo showroom when you come to Kyoto.

Sanjo Showroom
https://www.shokunin.com/en/showroom/sanjo.html
Imadegawa Showroom
https://www.shokunin.com/en/showroom/imadegawa.html
Ryoanji Temple
https://maps.app.goo.gl/GLV4tMys1ur7LfbP7
Daitokuji, Zuihoin Temple
https://maps.app.goo.gl/a7XqsAhuEB1Qn3PX9
Kenninji Temple
https://maps.app.goo.gl/N2sU2fzeVqt3wque7

References
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9E%AF%E5%B1%B1%E6%B0%B4
https://souda-kyoto.jp/guide/theme/sekitei/
https://mizu.gr.jp/kikanshi/no51/05.html
https://intojapanwaraku.com/rock/culture-rock/10210/
https://ja.kyoto.travel/glossary/single.php?glossary_id=1172