The Golden Pavilion, also known as Kinkakuji, or Rokuonji, was
originally built in 1397 and is one of the 17 World Culture Heritage
sites in Kyoto. The original structure was burnt down in 1950, and what
stands now is a complete replica.
As this
weekend is a four day holiday from school, and it also directly follows
our midterm test schedule, it is the perfect chance to go out and
explore more of Kyoto. Today, Nicky and I, along with Erin, Ian and
Sarah, all went north to view two of Kyoto’s most famous spots- right at
the height of the fall colors.
I had known about the Golden Pavilion before, as it was the backdrop of the first book of Yukio Mishima’s that I’d read, The Golden Pavilion.
The novel was a fictional adaptation of the crime that took place on
July 2, 1950, when a monk by the name of Hayashi Yoken burned the
original structure down. The novel itself spoke of the dichotomy between
beauty and ugliness, power and weakness, through a somewhat perverse
lens. It certainly makes an impact, and it a novel that is hard to
forget.
That being said, I was certain I would
actually be rather disappointed by the -real- Golden Pavilion, as
Mishima described the temple continually as a place of impossible
beauty. Of course, since these descriptions were given to us through the
narrator, who suffered from mental illness, we are to understand that
the temple actually is not so beautiful.
Nonetheless, I found the temple quite
stunning. With the washes of crimson red in the backdrop, and a
perfectly still pond below, the temple gleamed so beautifully. Even with
all of the tourists, the tranquility of the spot could not be broken.
Truly, I think it is one of my more favored temples of the ones I have
visited since arriving in Japan.
Afterwards, we headed a little more to the east to go to Ryoanji (or The Temple of the Dragon at Peace).
This temple is also one of the UNESCO World Heritage sites. It’s main
feature is a rock garden consisting of fifteen boulders that, no matter
where one stands in the garden, are impossible to see all at once. At
any time, only fourteen are visible. It is said that the fifteenth
boulder can only be seen if one has attained enlightenment.
Both of
these temples were extremely pretty, though I am certain, to an extent,
that the red and gold colors of fall greatly enhanced the experience
there. It has been a wonderful thing to be living in a place that has
four true seasons. I can only imagine what winter will bring us.