Day 6
Today was a Sagano Bamboo Grove & Arashiyama Walking Tour. This one will also be a little sparse on details, because the guide we had wasn’t the best. He was probably new at his job, but his biggest problem was limited English vocabulary. He labored over the things he had to tell us, visibly struggling for words, and then would spit out something in a burst, ending with a pause while we both looked at each other (us wondering if there was anything else forthcoming, he appearing to wonder the same thing), and then he’d conclude, “Thank you for listening.” *LOL*
The tour started with us taking the main JR train and then another local train once we got to the Arashiyama area. It was pretty much survival of the fittest, as the guide didn’t look behind to make sure everyone was there, and at one point we’d stopped to take a 10 minute break and he told us to meet back at a certain time. He then said we’d be moving on, and it took other people in the tour to say that the deadline hadn’t been reached, so it was possible not everyone was back yet. Two women (who were teachers by profession) advised him it would be good to count everyone and compare it to the number of people in his tour (which he then had to figure out by counting names on his list…apparently this was not something he’d thought of doing before). Once that was done we moved on, everyone hopefully accounted for.
It began with a walk through a residential district. Arashiyama, sitting at the base of the Arashiyama mountains, was designated a National Historic Site and Place of Scenic Beauty by Japan. We passed a temple (or church…not sure) and the guide pointed out the stones that were piled atop one another on the wall outside. It looked exactly like the way that tourists pile stones at sacred sites in Hawaii, in misguided way of trying to offer something to the gods. But the guide explained these were done by people who had lost a child, so it was sad to see so many piled stones, representing lost children.
The first stop was Tenryu-ji Temple, which is built on a site where Empress Tachibana no Kachiko founded Japan’s first Zen temple in the 9th century. The name means “Heavenly Dragon Temple” and it was built after a shogun who dreamed of a dragon rising from a nearby river, which was taken to mean that the recently-deceased emperor was not resting peacefully. The temple with its garden was built to placate his spirit. It is now the headquarters of the Rinzai School of Zen Buddhism.
Inside the entrance hall of the Kuri, or Temple Living Quarters, is a large painting of Bodhidharma, the Indian monk who, according to Zen tradition, transmitted the Zen teachings to China 1,500 years ago. This style of Bodhidharma painting is seldom seen outside of Tenryu-ji, and in this sense represents a kind of “face” for the temple.
Outside the reception hall is Sogenchi Teien, which is a “strolling pond garden,” in which a level path surrounding a picturesque pond allows guests to appreciate the scenery from a variety of perspectives. The scenery of two hills – Kameyama and Arashiyama – both of which are located outside the garden, form part of the composition.
On the way out toward the bamboo forest, we passed a large inkstone monument. The painter Shonen Suzuki painted a large cloud dragon, using brush and ink, on the ceiling of the Hatto (Dharma Hall) in 1899. Over 60 monks helped in making the ink, and the inkstone was built to commemorate the painter. It is said that people who make pray to the inkstone will improve their shodo (calligraphy) skill. I did purify myself there….let’s hope it helps! *LOL*
The Sagano Bamboo Forest was beautiful, cool and rustle-y. When the wind blew the giant stalks (bamboo is a type of grass) swayed, and you could hear the bamboo leaves rubbing together. It was a lovely walk, but it was crowded with people. I wish I could’ve gotten pictures of how serene it must be when it’s deserted, but apparently it never is.
After that we visited some temple up a hill, but for the life of me I can’t remember what it was. It was a beautiful hike, with lovely scenery and carpets of moss on the ground. I tried asking my friend Mil if she remembered what it was, but she said all she recalled is the green tea ice cream we ate afterwards. *LOL* It was good ice cream – mine a soft-serve swirl of green tea and sweet potato flavors – but unfortunately I didn’t get a photo!
Written by Suzette Tom