Ryōan-ji

龍安寺

temple in Kyoto

#15 in Kyoto / #55 in Japan

by DXR

/ CC BY-SA 4.0

Ryōan-ji is a renowned Zen Buddhist temple located in Kyoto, Japan, famous for its stunning rock garden. The temple was originally an aristocrat's villa during the Heian period, but it was converted into a Zen temple in 1450 by Hosokawa Katsumoto. The rock garden, one of the most iconic elements of Ryōan-ji, features 15 meticulously placed rocks set in a rectangular plot of raked gravel, designed to inspire meditation and contemplation. Visitors often note that, from any vantage point, only 14 of the rocks are visible at one time, symbolizing the idea of incompleteness and imperfection. Ryōan-ji is also part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

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