May
17 , 2003 - page 3 I
recently visited two of the most popular tourist spots in Yamaguchi,
Sesshutei Garden and Rurikoji. My Zen Buddhism class took a field
trip to Sesshutei Garden. In addition to the spectacular garden,
a Buddhist temple is also located here. On the tour of the temple,
Katayama Sensei thoroughly explained all aspects of monkish life.
We even had the opportunity to see some of the monks in action as
they were doing some raking. And from there we gazed at the splendor
of the famous garden. There was a definite air of serenity and tranquility
to the garden. And I took advantage of the moment and took several
photographs.
I also visited Rurikoji, a famous five-story pagoda. Rurikoji is
actually a national treasure since it is one of three remaining
five-story
pagodas in Japan. It was constructed in the late 1300’s and
is a marvel of not only Japanese architecture, but of architecture
in general. I tried to find out how tall the pagoda was, but was
unable to do so. While the pagoda was great, I admit that my interests
were actually focused somewhere else. I guess you could say the
biologist in me came out, as I spent several minutes watching the
various creatures that dwelled in the monstrous pond in front of
the pagoda.
This weekend I went to a film festival sponsored by the international
relations department at YPU. I attended the film festival on Saturday
and Sunday. On Saturday I watched
I
recently visited two of the most popular tourist spots in Yamaguchi,
Sesshutei Garden and Rurikoji. My Zen Buddhism class took a field
trip to Sesshutei Garden. In addition to the spectacular garden,
a Buddhist temple is also located here. On the tour of the temple,
Katayama Sensei thoroughly explained all aspects of monkish life.
We even had the opportunity to see some of the monks in action as
they were doing some raking. And from there we gazed at the splendor
of the famous garden. There was a definite air of serenity and tranquility
to the garden. And I took advantage of the moment and took several
photographs. 
five-story
pagodas in Japan. It was constructed in the late 1300’s and
is a marvel of not only Japanese architecture, but of architecture
in general. I tried to find out how tall the pagoda was, but was
unable to do so. While the pagoda was great, I admit that my interests
were actually focused somewhere else. I guess you could say the
biologist in me came out, as I spent several minutes watching the
various creatures that dwelled in the monstrous pond in front of
the pagoda. 
