The Legend Of Kyoto Golden Pavilion Temple
Golden Pavilion Temple(Kinkaku-ji) is the informal name of Deer Garden Temple(Rokuon-ji), As the important part of the old Kyoto city, It’s designated as the UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994.
It was not a fine day when I visited Golden Pavilion Temple, And it’s still not the right red leaves season, But it still looks so beautiful.
The Golden Pavilion
The famous Pine land boat was planted by Ashikaga Yoshimitsu.
Golden Pavilion Temple was originally built in 1397 by Shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. I knew this Ashikaga Yoshimitsu when I was a little child from a famous cartoon about Ikkyū, an iconic Japanese Zen Buddhist priest and poet.
Rokuon-ji (Deer Garden) was taken from the first two characters of Yoshimitsu’s posthumous name. His son converted the building into a Zen temple according to Ashikaga Yoshimitsu’s will after he was dead.
The Golden Pavilion is a three-story building on the grounds of the temple. The top two stories of the pavilion are covered with pure gold leaf. That’s the reason why the Deer Garden Temple also called Golden Pavilion Temple. The pavilion is the holy place housing relics of the Buddha.
Golden Pavilion Temple was also the center of the so-called “Kitayama culture,” which was central in importing various aspects of Ming-dynasty Chinese culture into Japanese society.
In 1950, the pavilion was burned down by a monk, who then attempted suicide on the Daimon-ji hill behind the building. The statue of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was burned. The present structure rebuilt from 1955, and the roof was restored in 2003.
If you are interesting in this event, you can also read a fictionalized novel named The Temple of the Golden Pavilion, written by Mishima Yukio in 1956.
Kyoto Golden Pavilion Temple Travel Guide:
Address :
1 Kinkakuji-cho, Kita-ku, Kyoto City
How to get there
Golden Pavilion Temple (Kinkaku-ji) is best reached by bus. There are 2 stops at proximity, Kinkakuji-mae and Kinkakuji-michi, deserved by bus 12, 50, 59, 204 and 205).
Open Time:
The temple is open everyday from 9:00am to 17:00pm
Fee:
General: 400 yen ; Elementary and Junior High School Students: 300 yen
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WOW! Amazing looking place
I’m glad it’s been designated as the UNESCO World Heritage Site
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Tiny reply on November 18th, 2008 1:26 pm:
Yes, Quickroute. A UNESCO World Heritage Site also means it can be protected well.
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I love the first photo!
The Golden Pavilion looks so splendid among the green and red leaves.
And I still remember that cartoon, the story about clever little monk Ikkyū!
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Tiny reply on November 18th, 2008 1:33 pm:
Hi, iWalk, I think you would love these red leaves.
But if I visit there a week late, I would see the best red color!
As you know,Kyoto’s red leaves is very famous.
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Beautiful photos !
A very popular location to visit ! I haven’t been to this place before. Nice write up above, informative !
You must have lots of fun there !
JH
http://www.photojournalist-tgh.tv
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Tiny reply on November 18th, 2008 1:40 pm:
Thanks JH!
I love Kyoto more than other two cities I have visited in Japan. Yeah, I enjoy the tour at Kyoto!
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As usual your photos are so pretty. That is such a wonderful place to visit one day. I hope when I finally get that that the colors are as beautiful.
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Tiny reply on November 18th, 2008 1:45 pm:
hi Debo, You’d better visit there at middle of November, and you can see the best red leaves then, better than these in my photos.
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How beautiful I wish I could explore the temple. I especially enjoyed the photo with the reflection of the temple in the water. Fantastic shots and thank you for sharing.
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Tiny reply on November 18th, 2008 11:52 pm:
Sharing good experience is always a happy thing.
I am so glad you like them.
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Well even if the lighting wasn’t to your liking, it’s still very beautiful, and your photos are wonderful.
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Tiny reply on November 18th, 2008 11:55 pm:
Thanks Sheila.
The place is really worth to visit. I still missed some details because I had no enough time to explore.
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Fantastic! What an amazing set of photos.
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Tiny reply on November 19th, 2008 12:00 am:
Thanks SGE, they should be much better if it’s a fine day! That’s what I felt so sorry.
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there’s only one word for this : AMAZING !!!
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