Deepening autumn at 依水園 Isui-en Garden

Sanshutei & Front garden

依水園 Isui-en Garden is one of a few Japanese gardens in Nara and is considered to be one of the most beautifully landscaped Japanese gardens.  It consists of three gardens:  the Front Garden, the Tea Garden and the Back Garden, each of which has characteristics of traditional Japanese gardens.  (Garden Elements)

The front garden was originally part of Manishu-in, a minor temple which was part of the Kofuku-ji Temple.  The ground was bought in the 1670s by Michikiyo Kiyosumi, a wealthy man whose profession was to deal with bleached or dyed cotton and hemp cloths.  Michikiyo restructured the gardens and built the pavilion 三秀亭 Sanshutei.

This is the view of the front garden you see first after paying permission.

While strolling, I'll be quiet as much as possible so that your senses be opend up.

Entrance to tea ceremony house named 清秀庵 Seishu-an. 

A path leading to the back garden.

Late afternoon glow



The Back Garden built in 1899 is only one 池泉回遊式, Strolling-around-the pond style garden, in Nara.  The mountains of Wakakusa and Kasuga and Todaiji Temple’s Nandaimon Gate are used as “borrowed scenery". The mountains give more depth to the scenery than the actual depth of the garden. The right side is connected to the forest of Himuro Shrine and the left side to that of Todaiji Temple.

The central island is connected to the bank by a series of stepping stones.

The stones were formerly used to grind the pigments used in dyeing.  



依水園 Isuien means “garden founded on water”. 

The water of the ponds and brooks is from the small adjacent Yoshiki River. 

十月桜, October cherry blossoms, bloom modestly one after another till April.

fiery red ドウダンツツジ, or Enkianthus perulatus

 Isui-en gets ablaze with the final glow of autumn foliage at the end of November 

and then gradually gets muted in colors in the cold wind.

Right after the last posting, my mother-in-law got hospitalized for emergency and died of septicemia in two days on Novembter 3rd.  It all happened so sudden but I woldn't grieve so much because she didn't suffer long with lots of tubes at the hospital. She accomplised her 90 years. In her youth, Nara Park was like her garden as a student of Nara University of Education, and the Isui-en Garden was one of her favorite sites all her life. 

On the other hand, my mother who turned 93 on 11th have just started having chemotherapy for her cancer, believing the treatment is for her fragile bone.  My heart aches as she suffers in silence. Both of loved mothers are in my prayers and thoughts.

(November 18^th)

Thank you, my Friends, for all of your concern. Right after the posting, we children decided not to let our mother have any chemotherapy, even the soft one to the elderly.  We hope cancer be very-slow-developing at that age.