Day 23: A morning of unexpected temples
This morning I set out south from my hostel with the intent of visiting Shorin-Ji temple, as I had heard that they have a very nice garden within their walls and unique Goshuin for those who visit.
It was a short walk, approximately 3km, and was nestled into a neighborhood like so many temples and shrines throughout Japanese cities. Were I not looking specifically for it, it would have been easy to miss.
Nearly all temples and shrines have a small fountain with wooden laddles for performing a cleansing ritual before you enter. By now I have becomes quite accustomed to this step, but I was happily surprised when finding the fountain in this temple to be filled with vibrant flowers.
I quietly washed my hands and mouth, following the bow familiar ritual, and proceeded further in to the grounds.
Like most urban temples and shrines, the grounds were not massive, but they were immaculately kept. I slowly strode along the path admiring the carpet of moss and stones that blanketed much of the grounds.
Reaching the main building I made a small offering in the coin box and gave a small prayer before taking off my shoes and heading inside to receive a Goshuin.
The office was easily within sight of the entrance, sparing me from getting lost in the temple like a bumbling foreigner. However I was quick to discover that while the temple did offer a number of beautiful Goshuin, they were all pre-printed on loose sheets of paper.
As gorgeous as they were, I have made a rule to avoid these. In part because I have no means of gluing them into my book, but also because I like the aesthetic of all the Goshuin in my book being hand made specifically for my book.
I thanked the attendant behind the desk and quietly retreated.
Feeling like I had come all this way and failed to achieve my goal, I wandered the streets to see what else I might find. I had not been in this part of Kyoto before, so it was worth spending the rest of the morning seeing where the wind might push me.
After wandering for 10 or 15 minutes I found myself at the entrance to a massive temple complex built up the side of a hill.
I wasn't sure what to expect as I climbed the road, but there was a constant presence of locals walking the road in both directions, so I did not feel as though I were out of bounds.
Quickly I began encountering temples on both sides of the road, and I formed a plan to walk all the way to the end of the road and start with the temple furthest back, working my way down to where I began.
Even today, running late into September, on a cloudy day with no direct sun it was a humid 28 degrees. The walk up was on a comfortable incline, but the warmth insisted that it was also to be a sweaty walk.
Arriving at the furthest temple I made my way inside, finding the entrance to the main building. Again shedding my shoes I climbed the stairs to the attendant at the top and asked politely if I could get a Goshuin.
She happily took my book and gave me a number tag to retrieve it later, then asked me a question in Japanese that I could not understand. Seeing me confused face she paused and picked up a small book, flipped through the pages for a moment before finding the right one and showing it to me: "Would you like to see the inside of the temple?".
I have not had the chance to tour the inside of a temple before this point, so I happily accepted the offer in exchange for a few hundred yen. She handed me a small leaflet with a map in Japanese, as well as a second page with many English explanations.
Walking through the building I could feel the age of the place long before the paper in my hands told me so. The large floor boards creaked under foot and the sound was absorbed by the temple walls, muffling my movements and preserving the quiet of the place.
Inside I first found a small room overlooking the back garden, with small sliding paper doors opened for viewing. A few locals were sitting near the first doors, so I walked to the end of the room and took a seat on the floor at the last door.
Here, where I sat, countless monks over hundred of years had sat in peaceful meditation while looking at the garden I myself now gazed out upon. This fact seemed lost on the chatty locals sat at the other end of the room, but I appreciated it and did my best to follow this tradition, sitting, breathing and meditating as every few minutes a distant gong rung out from some unknown spot in the woods.
Feeling calm, inside and out, I gathered my belongings and continued my tour. I was greeted with ancient rooms and wonderful rock gardens as I passed through the temple.
Knowing there were many more temples to see, I headed back the the entrance. Once there I found the attendant was gone, but my book marked with a matching number tag was left on the desk for me. I deposited my tag, collected my books and shoes and made my way out.
Heading back down the road I noticed that there was one temple much larger that the rest and took the opportunity to explore there as well.
Inside I found many buildings, which I discovered originally were part of the Imperial palace, but were rebuilt on this site during the Meiji period, to be used by the emperor and his entourage as a resting place while travelling.
Inside the main temple a monk was kind enough to take my book and create another Goshuin for me, then pointed further inside and guestured for meet me explore this building as well.
The large building was divided into many rooms, each intended to house a specific part of the emperor's staff, from attendants to envoys to the emperor himself. The walls of each rooms covered in ancient and faded painting depicting different parts of Japanese life and history relevant to those who would stay in each room.
Sadly, for you, it was requested that there was to be no photography inside the building, so these memories will have to live in my mind this time.
Departing from this temple I would make my way back down the hill over the course of an hour, visiting many of the smaller temple grounds as I went, each with a different and unique history, thankfully described on signs with an English section.
For a day that started out on a disappointing note, luck turned in my favour and I was able to explore some fantastic temples and see a lot of interesting historical areas.
It was a short walk, approximately 3km, and was nestled into a neighborhood like so many temples and shrines throughout Japanese cities. Were I not looking specifically for it, it would have been easy to miss.
Nearly all temples and shrines have a small fountain with wooden laddles for performing a cleansing ritual before you enter. By now I have becomes quite accustomed to this step, but I was happily surprised when finding the fountain in this temple to be filled with vibrant flowers.
I quietly washed my hands and mouth, following the bow familiar ritual, and proceeded further in to the grounds.
Like most urban temples and shrines, the grounds were not massive, but they were immaculately kept. I slowly strode along the path admiring the carpet of moss and stones that blanketed much of the grounds.
Reaching the main building I made a small offering in the coin box and gave a small prayer before taking off my shoes and heading inside to receive a Goshuin.
The office was easily within sight of the entrance, sparing me from getting lost in the temple like a bumbling foreigner. However I was quick to discover that while the temple did offer a number of beautiful Goshuin, they were all pre-printed on loose sheets of paper.
As gorgeous as they were, I have made a rule to avoid these. In part because I have no means of gluing them into my book, but also because I like the aesthetic of all the Goshuin in my book being hand made specifically for my book.
I thanked the attendant behind the desk and quietly retreated.
Feeling like I had come all this way and failed to achieve my goal, I wandered the streets to see what else I might find. I had not been in this part of Kyoto before, so it was worth spending the rest of the morning seeing where the wind might push me.
After wandering for 10 or 15 minutes I found myself at the entrance to a massive temple complex built up the side of a hill.
The start of a long, winding road up into the trees and away from the hubbub of the city.
I wasn't sure what to expect as I climbed the road, but there was a constant presence of locals walking the road in both directions, so I did not feel as though I were out of bounds.
Quickly I began encountering temples on both sides of the road, and I formed a plan to walk all the way to the end of the road and start with the temple furthest back, working my way down to where I began.
Even today, running late into September, on a cloudy day with no direct sun it was a humid 28 degrees. The walk up was on a comfortable incline, but the warmth insisted that it was also to be a sweaty walk.
Arriving at the furthest temple I made my way inside, finding the entrance to the main building. Again shedding my shoes I climbed the stairs to the attendant at the top and asked politely if I could get a Goshuin.
She happily took my book and gave me a number tag to retrieve it later, then asked me a question in Japanese that I could not understand. Seeing me confused face she paused and picked up a small book, flipped through the pages for a moment before finding the right one and showing it to me: "Would you like to see the inside of the temple?".
I have not had the chance to tour the inside of a temple before this point, so I happily accepted the offer in exchange for a few hundred yen. She handed me a small leaflet with a map in Japanese, as well as a second page with many English explanations.
Walking through the building I could feel the age of the place long before the paper in my hands told me so. The large floor boards creaked under foot and the sound was absorbed by the temple walls, muffling my movements and preserving the quiet of the place.
Inside I first found a small room overlooking the back garden, with small sliding paper doors opened for viewing. A few locals were sitting near the first doors, so I walked to the end of the room and took a seat on the floor at the last door.
Here, where I sat, countless monks over hundred of years had sat in peaceful meditation while looking at the garden I myself now gazed out upon. This fact seemed lost on the chatty locals sat at the other end of the room, but I appreciated it and did my best to follow this tradition, sitting, breathing and meditating as every few minutes a distant gong rung out from some unknown spot in the woods.
Feeling calm, inside and out, I gathered my belongings and continued my tour. I was greeted with ancient rooms and wonderful rock gardens as I passed through the temple.
Knowing there were many more temples to see, I headed back the the entrance. Once there I found the attendant was gone, but my book marked with a matching number tag was left on the desk for me. I deposited my tag, collected my books and shoes and made my way out.
Heading back down the road I noticed that there was one temple much larger that the rest and took the opportunity to explore there as well.
Inside I found many buildings, which I discovered originally were part of the Imperial palace, but were rebuilt on this site during the Meiji period, to be used by the emperor and his entourage as a resting place while travelling.
Inside the main temple a monk was kind enough to take my book and create another Goshuin for me, then pointed further inside and guestured for meet me explore this building as well.
The large building was divided into many rooms, each intended to house a specific part of the emperor's staff, from attendants to envoys to the emperor himself. The walls of each rooms covered in ancient and faded painting depicting different parts of Japanese life and history relevant to those who would stay in each room.
Sadly, for you, it was requested that there was to be no photography inside the building, so these memories will have to live in my mind this time.
Departing from this temple I would make my way back down the hill over the course of an hour, visiting many of the smaller temple grounds as I went, each with a different and unique history, thankfully described on signs with an English section.
For a day that started out on a disappointing note, luck turned in my favour and I was able to explore some fantastic temples and see a lot of interesting historical areas.
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