Temple in Hydrangea and Temple in Beauty of Wabi

 Yata Temple

Main temple  of Yata Temple



I had a good chance to visit a temple of hydrangea(Yata Temple )just after the rain.

Yata temple is famous for hydrangea. About 8000 hydrangeas entertain us. They were at their best time in the valley of the temple. It took us about 30 minutes  walk around there.  Thousands kind of blue, purple,red , pink  appeared vividly in the " valley of hydrangea"
After leaving our car, We had  to climb up a lot of staircase to the temple and we prayed " Jizo- Bosatu"at a main temple. This temple is dedicated to Jizo- Bodhissattva. Many jizo statues( Ojizosama) were placed in the temple.


many Ojizosama are placed inside temple





Ojizosama stand on the edge of cyozu-bachi  beside corridor





Hydrangea HydrangeaHydrangea





What color  are you turning with light and water together from babypink?




People admires splendor and stops to take photos. We can't go ahead soon because of narrow rainy path.  But nobody complain. Everyone are willing to wait.  Flowers make us gently.



We call here Valley of hydrangea. Beautiful hydrangea were filled over the wall of valley.



This temple joins "Yamato 13 Buddh Sacred Places" ,which  means a group of 13 temples in Nara prefecture that enshrines Buddha or Bodhisattva etc. The association of 13 temples suggests to pray those Buddhas to respect our ancestors or fulfill our wishes and give a mount that we get a vermail seal as proof of visiting.  So we got  vermeil seal of this temple and will visit the other 12 temples. But when will we finish to visit all? Because we started visiting of "Shikoku 88 Pilgrimage" (  88 temples in Shikoku where are sacred place of Kobo-Daisi) 8 years ago but we don't finish visiting all, though we visited  about one third.


We had "Shojin Ryori"(cooking used vegitables not meat, fish etc) called "Ajisai Gozen"( Ajisai means hydrangea and gozen means cooking) for lunch inside the temple. It's a usual Shojin Ryori like Tenpura of vegetable ,Gomadofu,Takenoko boiled and seasoned etc. Foe me, Fu (a breadlike food made of wheat) boiled down in sweetened soy tasted good.




Ajisai-gozen



Thank you for marvelous color!



Jikoin Temple

On the way back home, we dropped at Jikoin Temple. It's very near Yata Temple.  When I entered into the entrance, even I felt  beauty of this temple's simpleness, plain, neatness and it didn't seem to be usual temple.


Garden from a drawing room.  A well-kept garden




This garden borrows a view of Yamato plain behind. I think there were not buildings behind before. We had a cup of tea  and sweets  in the shape of heraldry of the Katagiri  on the red carpet . A cool wind came from Yamato plain to us. Very comfortable. Moon Viewing is hold here on the night of the harvest moon of Autumn.

 According to a guide paper, Sekishu Katagiri( feudal lord of this area) built it for family temple in 16 century. He engaged a high priest of Daitokuji Temple in Kyoto as a ahead of the family temple. He received Zen Buddism and Tea Ceremony from the priest and put his "Beauty of Wabi" theory into practice.

So this temple had taste of tea ceremony, such as approach from entrance, garden, tea room, gate etc.
That is to say, my first impression  that this temple is neat was correct, though everyone can feel it.





Temple Gate . It's thatched roof.



Approach from the outside gate. The stony road was spattered with water or rain. I felt it water to entertain guests.