Posted in travel and places, temples, kyoto on Dec 28th, 2006 No Comments »
In Kyoto, you find small temples in the most unexpected nooks and crannies. One of the best is Tako Yakushi (or officially Eifukuji) right in the middle of youth paradise Shinkyogoku, in the center of the city.
[Tako Yakushi Temple in Shinkyogoku street]
The temple originally stood in Nijo Muromachi and was founded in 1181. The engi, […]
Posted in writing and poetry, travel and places, temples, kyoto on Dec 27th, 2006 No Comments »
In my previous post I have discussed an article from the magazine Serai about the poetry anthology Hyakunin Isshu and also mentioned that various places in Kyoto are still associated with poems from the popular classic. I have visited several of these spots in the last few years and here are the first three Hyakunin […]
Posted in travel and places, temples on Dec 20th, 2006 No Comments »
Bessho Onsen is a ninth century spa that was propelled into cultural significance when it became the headquarters of a Kamakura period governor. This governor hailed from the Hojo clan, the de facto rulers of Japan. He transformed the remote mountain bastion into an elegant capital. A shadow of that old glory still survives in […]
Posted in writing and poetry, history, religion and philosophy, gardens, temples, kyoto on Dec 6th, 2006 No Comments »
One of Kyoto’s most magic places stands in the northwestern part of the city, hidden behind an unobtrusive gateway.
Fifty years ago still countryside, now this has squarely become part of the city. But Shisendo, the Hall of the Poetry Immortals, is in itself contained, a form shut off from its surroundings by tall trees, in […]
Posted in travel and places, temples, kyoto on Dec 3rd, 2006 No Comments »
Koka, the southern part of Shiga Prefecture, is ninja country. The ninja were professional spies, possessing their own camouflage techniques and specialized tools, and they flourished in the wars of the medieval period. As so many things in Japan, they developed their own schools and regional varieties, of which Koka was one of the most […]
Posted in travel and places, religion and philosophy, temples, kyoto on Nov 30th, 2006 No Comments »
The Phoenix Hall of Byodo-in in Uji is so famous that it adorns one side of the 10 yen coin. The hall, with its wings and tail indeed resembling a bird, is an architectural wonder, and it is an even greater wonder that it has survived the ravages of more than nine centuries. Inside sits […]
Posted in travel and places, religion and philosophy, temples on Nov 28th, 2006 No Comments »
What makes Heirinji famous nowadays is the patch of green in which it stands, a rarity in the sprawling metropolis of Tokyo. It is the only spot where the memory of Musashino, as the area was called in the past, still survives in the form of a small forest of pine, spruce and mixed trees […]
Posted in history, travel and places, religion and philosophy, temples on Nov 23rd, 2006 No Comments »
Asuka, in the southern part of the Nara basin, is the cradle of Japanese civilization. In Asuka the first Japanese capital was founded and here Japan was transformed from a loose alliance of clan lords to a state with a clear national consciousness.
Asuka contained magnificent palaces and courtly residences, as well as Japan’s first-ever Buddhist […]
Posted in temples on Nov 19th, 2006 No Comments »
In a land of weirdly shaped rocks, where the soft tuff stone has been quarried for centuries, is a rock temple where a 700 year old Kannon image hovers over white walls. In a nearby quarry stands a huge, modern Kannon statue, proudly staring into the Tochigi plain. The modern statue may look stronger, even […]
Posted in temples on Nov 17th, 2006 No Comments »
A temple not more than a ruin, a visit made more for the sights on the way than for the destination - that characterizes my trip to Ryukakuji Temple. Ryukakuji is the oldest temple of Chiba Prefecture, and the way to it leads through a scenic park containing over a hundred ancient burial mounds. Although […]