Ginkaku-ji

Background

Ginkaku-ji, formally Jishō-ji, stands at the foot of Kyoto's Higashiyama mountains in Sakyō Ward and belongs to the Shōkoku-ji school of Rinzai Zen. The two-storey wooden Kannon Hall, the “Silver Pavilion,” is not actually covered in silver, yet it is the emblematic building of Higashiyama culture; the white-sand garden Ginshadan and the cone-shaped sand mound Kōgetsudai are the temple's most recognizable sights, and the moss garden and uphill path look out over the temple grounds and Higashiyama. Visiting it alongside Kinkaku-ji (the Golden Pavilion) best conveys Kyoto's two aesthetics of splendor and rustic simplicity. Ashikaga Yoshimasa began planning a retirement villa in Higashiyama as early as around 1460, and work on the Kannon Hall began in 1482. After Yoshimasa's death in 1490, the villa was converted into a Zen temple according to his wishes and named after his Buddhist name, “Jishō.” Ginkaku-ji represents the Higashiyama culture of the late Muromachi period — the aesthetic milieu in which tea ceremony, flower arrangement, ink painting and Noh matured around Yoshimasa. In 1994 it was inscribed on the World Heritage List as part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto.

Local customs

• Follow the designated route: first see the Ginshadan and Kōgetsudai, then walk around the moss garden and up the hill for a panoramic view, and finally leave by strolling toward the Philosopher's Path. In spring you can enjoy the cherry blossoms along the Philosopher's Path canal, and in autumn the foliage in the gardens
• exact blossom and foliage times vary from year to year.

Travel tips

• Allow about an hour to walk the gardens and the uphill path at leisure, and watch for slippery stone steps in rain and in summer
• check the official site for admission and visiting hours (which differ between summer and winter).
• Take a Kyoto city bus to the Ginkakuji-michi stop and walk from there
• the Ginkakuji-mae stop is closer. For the return trip, you can stroll south along the Philosopher's Path toward Nanzen-ji. Spring cherry blossoms and autumn foliage are the busiest times, so consider visiting off-peak
• the deep green gardens of summer and the Silver Pavilion after snow in winter have their own appeal.