Karesansui: Japanese Stone Gardens

For centuries, Japanese stone gardens, karesansui, have been an object of fascination, holding both an aesthetic appeal and psychological allure. Japanese stone gardens are designed with zen principles and purposes dating back to the 11th century. 

The history behind stone gardens helps elucidate their intrinsic qualities. Analysis of the gardens elements helps to identify how the viewer receives such an intense emotional effect. Primary examples of stone gardens include the Ginkakuji in Kyoto and various gardens within the Daitokuji complex.

Definition

Japanese stone gardens are small, walled, stylized landscape containing carefully arranged rocks, moss, raked gravel and sand and pruned trees and bushes. They are viewed outside of the landscape, often the porch of the hojo, the dwelling of the chief monk of the temple or monastery. Zen gardens are intended to imitate the essence of nature; for instance, raking sand into swirls is a representation of water ripples.

History

                “Classical” zen gardens were created during the Muromachi Period, beginning in Kyoto, Japan as a product as Zen Buddhism. They were used to facilitate meditation about the true meaning of life. Speculation dubs this the reason why the ‘essence’ of nature is captured in stone gardens rather than nature itself, reducing all its forms into rock and significantly simplifying its intricacies; so that it may be more clearly understood.

                 However, Japanese rock gardens have existed since the Heian Period (784-1185), as noted in Sakuteiki , “Records of Garden Keeping,” the first manual of Japanese gardens by Tachibana no Toshitsuna. In fact, their origin is not even very Japanese at all, they were originally copied largely from the Chinese gardens of the Song Dynasty (960-1279). Symbolism was thus already instigated, Chinese used groups of rocks to represent Mount Penglai, reflecting Chinese mythology Horai.

 

                Dry landscapes kare-sansui, decreed the Sakuteiki, have “rocks placed upright like mountains, or laid out in a miniature landscape of hills and ravines, with few plants…[occasionally in the style of] a stream or pond, including the great river style, the mountain river style, and the marsh style. The ocean style features rocks that appeared to have been eroded by waves, surrounded by a bank of white sand, like a beach.” This excerpt exemplifies how stone gardens attempt to replicate nature. The main elements of white sand and gravel have long been a feature of Japanese gardens, symbolizing purity in Shinto religion and water, or like white space in Japanese paintings, emptiness and distance in zen gardens.

                The classic zen gardens arose in the Muromachi Period (1336-1573), simultaneous with the Renaissance in Europe. Though the Muromachi Period contained various wars and political disorder, it also began the Noh theater, Japanese ceremony, shoin style of Japanese architecture and most importantly Zen Buddhism. Samurai class and war lords admired the self-discipline doctrine. Early zen temples followed Chinese gardens with lakes and islands, but were modified by the 14^th and 15^th century to completely stimulate meditation. This primarily took place in Kyoto, the hub of new culture.

“Nature, if you made it expressive by reducing it to its abstract forms, could transmit the most profound thoughts by its simple presence. The compositions of stone, already common China, became in Japan, veritable petrified landscapes, which seemed suspended in time, as in a certain moments of Noh theater, which dates to the same period."- Michel Baridon

Saihō-ji, "The Temple of the Perfumes of the West," (Koke-dera, the Moss Garden) is thought to be the first garden to transition to the new style. It was formed by Buddhist monk  Musō Kokushi, who modified a Buddhist temple into a zen monastery in 1334.

Upon examination, the lower garden is in the traditional Heian Period style. This consists of the ground representing a pond, with several rocks representing islands. The upper garden is a dry rock garden which features three rock "islands”:

-Kameshima is the island of the turtle, and resembles a turtle swimming in a "lake" of moss.

-Zazen-seki is a flat "meditation rock." Meditation rocks are thought to transmit calm and silence.

-Kare-taki, is a dry "waterfall" composed of a stairway of flat granite rocks. Interestingly, the most famous attribute of the moss is only a recent development and has now grown to symbolize water.

                
The second classic example to follow was Kokushi’s next achievement in Tenryū-ji, the "Temple of the Celestial Dragon". It was strongly influenced by Song Dynasty paintings where mountains rise in the mist, reminiscent of depth and height. Again it is evident that nature is depicted as abstract and stylized. Muso Kokushi went on to build gardens of Ginkaku-ji, also known as the Silver Pavilion, which are noted for the innovative new pile of gravel, representing Mount Fuji. This design is now known as kogetsudai, or “small mountain facing the moon.” It has prompted other similar techniques that are called ginshanada, literally "sand of silver and open sea" as the landscape for which Mount Fuji is set.

                Ryōan-ji, is said to be the first purely abstract garden, constructed in Kyoto in the late 15th century. No certainty of its representation is reached, although recently Gert van Tonder of Kyoto University and Michael Lyons of Ritsumeikan University suggest the rocks form the subliminal image of a tree. Researchers claim that the mind can note the relationship between the rocks, creating the calming effect. In comparison, Daisen-in can be quite literarily analyzed; “a river of white gravel represents a metaphorical journey through life; beginning with a dry waterfall in the mountains, passing through rapids and rocks, and ending in a tranquil sea of white gravel, with two gravel mountains.” In other words, the river of life.

Design

As rocks are the main element, their selection and placement is crucial in creating the design of the garden. The phrase for “creating a garden” is actually synonymous for “setting stones” : ishi wo tateru koto; literally, the "act of setting stones upright.” If the rocks are placed incorrectly, the owner of the garden would suffer misfortune.

Stones are classified as tall vertical, low vertical, arching, reclining, or flat.

Tall vertical - Stones taller than it is wide; used on the taller half of a waterfall or as the central stone in a composition. 

Low vertical- Stone is wider than it is tall; used to complement tall vertical stones 

Arching - Oddly shaped stone overhangs on right or left; used to "give strength and stability to vital points of the garden such as the corner of a stone bridge. To achieve this a stone can be planted at an angle to make a moderate arch more prominent."

Reclining - Stone in shape of a reclining animal "with the head on one end higher and narrower than the hips on the opposite end. Masters use this diagonal top line to draw the eye to another element close by in the garden, almost as though it is a pointer."

Flat - Stones less than a foot tall, but it may be very long and wide with a flat top surface; used in front of a composition , at water's edge, and as a bridge. 

Different natural elements are represented in various ways. For instance, "mountains” are symbolized by igneous volcanic rocks, or sharp, jagged mountain rocks. “Seashore” or river borders for gravel sea are created using smooth, rounded sedimentary rock. Rocks with animal-like or other strange features were not prioritized as they are in Chinese gardens. Emphasis is placed less on individual rocks and more on the ‘harmony of composition.’

 

The harmony of composition was created intricately and strategically. Some of the principle rules outlined in SuXX read as follows:

"Make sure that all the stones, right down to the front of the arrangement, are placed with their best sides showing. If a stone has an ugly-looking top you should place it so as to give prominence to its side. Even if this means it has to lean at a considerable angle, no one will notice.

“There should always be more horizontal than vertical stones. If there are "running away" stones there must be "chasing" stones. If there are "leaning" stones, there must be "supporting" stones."

“Rocks should be rarely if ever placed in straight lines or in symmetrical patterns.”

“The best arrangement is one or more groups of three rocks.”

These reasoning behind these rules are not purely for aesthetic pleasure, but again are meant to be symbolic. A popular triad arrangement has one centric tall vertical rock surrounded by two smaller rocks, and is represent Buddha and his two attendants.

Other common combinations include:

-A tall vertical rock with a reclining rock

-A short vertical rock and a flat rock

-A triad of a tall vertical rock, a reclining rock and a flat rock

Important factors also include variation in color, shape and size of rock. Bright colors are avoided so as to not distract the viewer, and grains ought to run in the same direction to promote unity and fluidity. The number of vertical and horizontal rocks should be balanced.

Sauteishi, "discarded" or "nameless" rocks were used towards the end of the Endo period, placed in seemingly random places to ‘add spontaneity’ to the garden.

The second element in addition to large stones is gravel. Gravel is preferred over sand because it is less disturbed by rain and wind. Gravel is not only used as theswirling, sea background upon which the large stones are placed. The physical act of raking the gravel into ripples and waves helps Zen priests concentrate. The lines must be perfect. The pattern often unfolds after the stones are placed, reliant upon their placement. Not all patterns are rigid, creativity is considered a challenge.

Symbolism

Stones function to represent all landscapes, from mountains to water. Stones and manicured shrubs, karikomi, hako-zukuri are used interchangeably. Moss is functions as "land" covered by forest. The mountains are often in imitation of Horai, the legendary home of the Eight Immortals in Buddhist mythology. Large stones can also be boats, or creatures- particularly turtles and carps. As a group they may symbolize a waterfall, or a flying crane.

Some speculate that the gardens also held a political message in the Heian period. Sakutei-ki wrote:

"Sometimes, when mountains are weak, they are without fail destroyed by water. It is, in other words, as if subjects had attacked their emperor. A mountain is weak if it does not have stones for support. An emperor is weak if he does not have counselors. That is why it is said that it is because of stones that a mountain is sure, and thanks to his subjects that an emperor is secure. It is for this reason that, when you construct a landscape, you must at all cost place rocks around the mountain."

But some gardens have no concrete definition to their composition. In contrast, garden historian Gunter Nitschke wrote about gardens: "The garden at Ryōan-ji does not symbolize anything, or more precisely, to avoid any misunderstanding, the garden of Ryōan-ji does not symbolize, nor does it have the value of reproducing a natural beauty that one can find in the real or mythical world. I consider it to be an abstract composition of "natural" objects in space, a composition whose function is to incite meditation." This relates back to the original focus of the Japanese stone gardens: to elicit peace, and provoke thought, rather than just relay an image.

Other Zen garden influences

The invention of the zen garden was concurrent and connected to developments in Japanese ink landscape paintings. Japanese painters such as Sesshū Tōyō (1420–1506) and Soami (died 1525) simplified their works of nature, including only its most basic aspects and leaving the background blank. More evidence is accrued when it is noted that Soami supposedly help design both Ryōan-ji and Daisen-in, though this was never documented.

Karesansui garden scenery is known to be inspired originally from Chinese and later also Japanese, landscape paintings. Like paintings, the gardens depict natural landscapes; they also use simplicity to evoke calm instead of overwhelming the viewer with detail. Some gardens are thought to be direct translations of a specific scene. The technique of “borrowed scenery”, such as hills in the background, is also sometimes incorporated; Shakkei. Ink painting is still retained in Buddhist work; and Japanese stone gardens are considered art.

Allure

                Buddhistic principles circulate Mahayana Buddhism, circulating around meditation. The garden is structured thus to elicit tranquility and guide the meditator to a higher state of calmness. The stone’s placement is not solely based on the natural image in mind, where rocks symbolize mountains and gravel the sea that surrounds them.

Aesthetically, the larger stones are the main object and the smaller stones used to guide the eye towards them, raked in strategic curves leading to them or encircling them, focusing the eye. The smaller stones are used to create a plane for the larger stone centerpieces to sit, and are utilized to make soothing lines around them in a clear path for the viewer to follow them. This process is soothing and results in the simple design. Supposedly, their representation should additionally psychologically stimulate calmness, that of mimicking nature. In this manner, both the view and its meaning have principally calming effects. That their subject matter is and of nature also deepens a more basic, purity of feeling and hopefully, of thought.

Thus stone gardens are able to elicit tranquility, through their appearance and their significance. In viewing a stone garden from a distance, the viewer is also not submerged and must reflect, and puzzle over the design. It is also therefore able to be viewed in its entirety, as a whole rather than as glance by glance screen shots if you were standing within it. As your eye travels, following the guided pattern, the swirls reminiscent of sea and the natural asymmetry of piled stones, mountains, within it- your mind may dolefully wander, and in observing the natural world you may glean something from it.

There is certainly a purpose to the garden, but even purposeless it has an effect. And even affectless, it has a history. For these basic reasons alone people are consistently drawn to stone gardens, their simplicity is captivating, their serenity remarkable and thus their success is undeniable.

Today

Today, stone gardens have been created and managed far from Japan on many different scales for many different purposes. Gravel and large stones have been integrated into landscape design as essential earth elements, and as essential partners as such. The basic principles of the stone gardens can be maintained in much larger, complex gardens; a corner of a pond, a swirl of gravel to frame flowers rather than a pile of stones. Moss is decorative in many instances, much less of a symbol- but always in collaboration with stone. There is such a timelessness to the stone garden’s simplicity that it can be assumed that stone gardens will persist, continuing to be an active trend for gardeners and philosophers alike. 


For more information, be sure to  investigate the following sources


Young, David and Michiko, (2005), The Art of the Japanese Garden
Nitschke, Gunter, (1999) Le Jardin japonais - Angle droit et forme naturelle, 
Baridon, Michel (1998). Les Jardins- Paysagistes, Jardiniers, Poetes
Murase, Miyeko, (1996), L'Art du Japon, 
Elisseeff, Danielle, (2010), Jardins japonais
Klecka, Virginie, (2011), Concevoir, Amenager, Decorer Jardins Japonais