227 



ating tones of the Ijreaking 1)ik1s, or toward sunrise, the low rus- 

 tling sounds of the petals of the reopening l)looms, which are 

 often compared Ijy Oriental poets to the swishing- of the dancing 

 skirts of celestial angels. 



The Rear Gate (Ura-Mon) 



The way along the lake shore, skirting the edge of the pine 

 grove, leads the visitor to the ]\ear Gate. This is constructed in 

 a typical tea garden style, with the douhle-barred hinged doors 

 and open bamboo sleeve fence at each end. The side posts have 

 cross pieces and bracketing at the top which carry a projecting 

 board roof. An antique looking tal)let of wood bearing the in- 

 scription Lakeside Terrace (Chiluni) is placed overhead between 

 the two lintels (Fig. 19). 



General Observations on Gardens in Japan 



It is interesting to know that the primary knowledge of Japa- 

 nese children for landscape gar(k'ns is ol^tained by actual contact 

 with various gardens in their tutelary Buddhist temples. The 

 children visit these temples and gardens accompanied by their ])ar- 

 ents on many occasions, such as the anniversary of the birth of 

 Buddha, the celebration of Buddha's Nirvana, and the propitiation 

 of Kzvan-non, Goddess of Mercy, or the memorial rituals per- 

 formed for the spirit of departed ancestors. On such days the 

 visitors are received by the chief priest of each temple at the 

 Drawing Hall (Sho-iu) of the Monaster}-. From its spacious 

 veranda they may obtain the full view of the garden — its lake, 

 rocks, trees, and shrubs. The garden varies according to the size 

 of the village, but there are three to seven Buddhist temples in 

 nearly every village all over Jajian, each having distinctive gardens. 



These landsca])e gardens in Japan are costly in their production. 

 From one stand]:)oint, they are the product of luxury, but they 

 have resulted from the intense desire of the Japanese people to 

 enjoy nature. This has further resulted in the expenditure of 

 enormous sums of money for the creation of these gardens. 



The large landscaj^e gardens are associated either with the 

 temples or with the palaces of the Mikado and the higher nobility. 

 In the feudal days of Japan, many fine gardens were constructed 



