Sanzen-in temple in autumn

Yes, Turkey post is taking a break again for autumn. My friend Amy came to visit me this autumn. She was in luck as the momiji (autumn) season in Kyoto this year was late and she got to see beautiful red maple leaves. Momiji season had already passed in Sapporo where she was from.



We went to Ohara, which according to Lonely Planet, is a quiet farming town. But on that Saturday, it was anything but quiet. This few weeks is the peak of the momiji season in Kyoto and thus thousands of tourists flock to this area every day. Ohara is famous for its autumn mountain foliage and the famous Sanzen-in temple. The above picture was taken in the grounds of Sanzen-in. I looked at the brochures and saw beautiful maple foliage against that particular temple hall (Ojo-Gokuraku-in hall). However, when we went there, the maple trees were about 70% red and the rest was still green.



I took the above picture outside the temple grounds. The three of us, Amy, Eddie and I, stopped by the gate to take this picture because the two trees on the side of it were beautifully illuminated by the morning sunlight. And we had our McDonalds breakfast there as well. And, when we stopped to take pictures, more and more tourists stopped by there as well.



And this is the picture of the same gate taken from inside the temple grounds. The sun was playing hide and seek with us that day as it was quite cloudy. So we had to wait for the sun to come out. But since it was around noon when we visited the temple, when the sun did come out, it was freaking bright!



This is the moss garden in front of the Ojo-Gokuraku hall. Sanzen-in temple is famous for its moss covered grounds, just like Ginkakuji temple and also for its autumn foliage. Sanzen-in temple is one of the Tendai Monzeki temples. Monzeki temples in history had a member of the imperial family as its chief priest. This particular temple had 32 imperial family members as its chief priests.



The principal figure in this temple is the Buddha of Healing. Inside the Ojo-Gojuraku-in Hall are the Amitabha Trinity statues of Amitabha and his two attendants: Kannon(for mercy) and Seishi (for wisdom).



Sanzen-in is also famous for hydrangeas. It has a beautiful hydrangea garden called Oku-no-in where you can stroll and enjoy the blooming flowers.



There is a tea house in the temple grounds for you to sit, relax and enjoy the view while sipping hot tea. The whole place was packed with tourists. Everybody had to wait in turn to take a picture of any particular scenery. You can be pretty sure that if you alone stop to take a picture of something that no one else seemed to be taking, others will sure to follow.



The beautiful orange-red maple leaves against the Japanese cedar tree, illuminated by the sunlight. Gorgeous isn't it?

Next up : Kinkakuji Temple, Tofukuji Temple, Kyomizudera, Maruyama Park, Heian Jingu and Nanzenji in the autumn of 2005.