Tomorrow night’s full moon is rumored to be a Super Moon. (great article about this here)

Which, got me all excited to share this garden with you.  The Ginkaku Moon garden is designed for moon viewing.

If you have any interest in Japanese Gardens, you simply must read this.

The Ginkaku garden was designed in 1490 at Yoshimasa’s villa (apparently Yoshimasa is a big wig in the zen master world).  After Yoshimasa’s death, the villa was converted to a temple and during the Edo period (from 1600 – 1828, so 200 + years later) and moon watching parties were often held in the garden….many of which inspired poetry.

Features of this moon garden include the cone built from sand called the Kogetsudai that supposedly served as a moon viewing platform and a ‘Moon Washing Cascade’ pool that was designed to capture the reflection of the full moon at it’s apex.  This thoughtful moon garden goes way beyond the cliche planting of night blooming white flowers, and I kinda love it for that.

More about Japanese Lunar Gardens.

images bowdoin, Kyoto the Jewel in Japan, and travel blog.