more peace, in koya-san

day 51

this is perhaps the most beautiful place in japan. maybe not for everyone. for others, there may be different place. but for me, this is it. the 100% most beautiful place.



the temple we stayed at. i'm sure all the temples are nice. they all look nice from the outside. but if you go to koya-san, stay here. it's the nicest.











goldfish pond outside our window...






...with nearby path leading up the mountain.































the leaves are just starting to turn.






this cemetary has 500,000 tombs. and counting. it is the most peaceful resting place i've ever been to.









































the pilgrims flock here. this dude is getting his passbook stamped with holy ink. there's a hair dryer on the table to the right so you don't hold up the group.






i'm on a pilgrimmage of my own. it doesn't involve dressing up though. dressing outward maybe.

mountain retreat

day 50
koya-san



there's nothing more welcome to see when arriving for an early morning train than the green team preparing to lavish you with free beverages.






koya-san arrival. yes, it's the end of the line.






nowhere to go, except straight up. this is actually a two way track - in the middle there's a passing lane, and the two cars, connected by one almighty long cable, pull each other up and down the mountain.






it's absolutely stunning at the top, though i was disappointed to see cars. turns out there's a road up the other side.






here's the roof of the temple we stayed at, with shrubbery.






view out our window.






what more could you want? the phone is wrapped in embroidered fabric, hot water ready for tea-making, and utter quiet - except for the occasional gong.






the vegetarian dinner was astonishing, with all manner of things i've never tried before. even the mountain yam was passable.

retirement homes

day 49

around daitoku-ji in kyoto is a campus of zen temples. one of the most striking is koto-in, which was established in 1601 by the famed military leader hosokawa tadaoki. tadaoki was one of the greatest warriors of his time, and one of the few to survive the bloody wars which culminated in the establishment of the tokugawa shogunate (1603-1868), which would rule a unified japan from the capital edo (tokyo), definining the edo period. his battle days started at age 15, and as a samurai he took part in korean wars and many domestic sieges and political reprisals. he was a man of great principal and astute policy - when his wife's family chose a different political allegiance and asked for his help, he refused aid and sent his wife back to them (after their defeat, he was urged to take his wife back by the victor, and did so, neatly avoiding a difficult association with his wife's family). his deft political moneouvering, and unrivalled martial skill led to rewards of vast domains, and, being a man of great intellect and taste, devoted his later life to zen study, tea ceremony, and incense sniffing.








i can only wonder at the inner strength that would have been required to sit peacefully sipping tea in the gardens of this villa for the many years following his violent battling and political wrangling.






tadaoki lived to the ripe age of 82, and his remains are on the temple grounds near a lantern he admired greatly.











kinkaku-ji, or golden pavilion, is in fact covered in gold. it's another retirement villa (est.1397), this time for shogun ashikaga yoshimitsu. his son converted it into a zen temple (and his grandson is the builder of the silver pavilion, which was intended to be covered in silver, but never has been). you will not be surprised to hear that it burned down several times during the onin war, and most recently, set ablaze by a mentally disturbed monk in 1950. the present structure dates from 1955, was newly coated in 1987, and reroofed in 2003.











ant on roof.

land of lanterns

day 48
another day in nara



it's no wonder everything in japan has burned down, usually twice. wood construction, lanterns, and often open pit fires in the middle of the floor. even today there are buckets of water left all over the place.











bean skin. one of my favorites.






with duck. it was after 10, and there was nothing open except this place. how unfortunate.

kyoto

day 47
temple walk



keep your eye open for this man.

this just looked so good - because what i really wanted first thing in the morning was a nice cup of tea and a thick slice of cheese melted between toast. well, ok, that's not ideal, but it's better than two slices of toast loaded with whipped butter and sugar, which is what i got. i believe this man is responsible for the atrocity. i can't tell if he's proud or smug.






flush with fat reserves, we headed for zen relief at ginkaku-ji (silver pavilion). it was originally a retirement home for the 8th ashikaga shogun, who started work on it in 1460. construction was halted for 10 years when he had to go off and fight some more in the onin wars, but he did eventually settle down and live on-site.






the sand garden is immense, and has to be reshaped daily. this sand tower is called a moon viewing platform, and it's either: mt fuji (of course), a cone to reflect divine light into the hearts of visitors, or a simple mound of sand to replenish walkways. you choose.






there's also a seascape - abstractly - you're looking at the waves.






even the forest is obsessively manicured, which makes walking through the woods all the more awesome.






the philosopher's walk is nearby, following a channel that passes for a creek, guarded by cats.











another temple, another garden. they're all beautiful, but after seeing so many in a day, some are more beautiful than others. note the slippers. you can't go anywhere without slippers in japan.






this is actually the least impressive part of sanjusangendo - but you can't take pictures inside the '33 bay hall' which holds 1001 statues of kannon-bosatsu that are all 5.5' tall and covered in gold leaf.
















culture shock.






as mentioned previously, the restaurants in kyoto are very appealing.