Rajeev's World: Ryoanji - A Peek Into Zen Traditions... Part I

A visit to Japan without soaking in a bit of Zen is quite incomplete...

And so our next port of call was the Ryoanji, a short 20 minute bus ride from Nonomiya.

Walking towards Ryoanji...

The site of Ryoanji temple was an estate of the Fujiwara family in the 11th century. The first temple, the Daiju-in and the large pond were built in that century by Fujiwara Saneyoshi. In 1450, Hosokawa Katsumoto, another powerful warlord, acquired the land where the temple stood. He built his residence there, and founded a Zen Buddhist temple, Ryoanji.

Durings the wars that followed, the temple was destroyed but then was painstakingly reconstructed. The temple served as a mausoleum for several emperors.

Some believe that the gardens here were built during the 15th century, by Hosokawa Katsumoto, the creator of the first temple of Ryoanji. But this claim is disputed by some scholars who claim that other warlords or local monks built the pristine gardens.

But who constructed the gardens here is irrelevant as far as we were concerned. We were here to enjoy the beauty of the place...

Pathway leading to the shrine...

Zen is a sect of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty as Chan Buddhism, as a result of strong influences from Taoism. From China, this sect spread across Vietnam, Korea and Japan, where it became known as Zen.

Zen emphasizes rigorous self-control, meditation-practice, insight into Lord Buddha's nature, and the personal expression of this insight in daily life, especially for the benefit of others. And that's probably why Zen temples are oases of peace and tranquility...