A Visit to Kyoto’s Tenryūji and Its Exquisite Garden

The celebrated bridge Togetsukyō was also once part of the temple’s landholdings. (© Pixta)

The Hattō lecture hall, which houses wooden statues of Ashikaga Takauji and Musō Soseki, is also known for its “Cloud Dragon” painting decorating its ceiling. (© Edit Plus)

In the foreground, raked sand evokes a beautiful seashore. (© Edit Plus)

The perfectly framed view of the garden from the Daihōjō main hall. (Courtesy of Tenryūji)

The Ryūmonbaku, in the center of the photo, is the country’s oldest stone grouping. To get a better view, using binoculars or a telephoto lens is recommended. (© Edit Plus)

An early summer view from the Kohōjō study next to the main hall. The nearby mountains are reflected in the pond’s mirrorlike surface. (© Edit Plus)

Autumn colors, viewed from the Daihōjō main hall. (© Edit Plus)

The temple’s garden in winter. This silvery landscape is a rare sight. (© Edit Plus)

The Daihōjō main hall houses a seated figure of Shakanyorai, designated an important cultural property, as its principal image. (© Edit Plus)

The Kuri living quarters, the first building on the route to the temple buildings open for viewing. A distinctive painting of Bodhidharma (known as Daruma in Japan), the monk who traveled from India to China and founded Zen, greets visitors. (© Edit Plus)

The corridor linking the study and the Tahōden hall provides scenic glimpses of the garden. This is the route to the three temple buildings that can be viewed for a separate fee. (© Edit Plus)

Cherry trees transplanted from Mount Yoshino in Nara Prefecture, where emperor Go-Daigo passed away, stand at the entrance to the Tahōden hall erected in his memory. (© Edit Plus)

Brilliant yellow sanshūyu Japanese cornelian cherry, a flowering plant in the dogwood family, and vivid purple mitsuba tsutsuji rhododendron bloom around mid-March. (© Edit Plus)

Fallen camellia blooms carpet the moss-covered ground. (© Edit Plus)

This corridor of bamboo growing 5 to 10 meters high is designated a special historic landscape by the city of Kyoto. (© Edit Plus)