Kennin-ji - Where Zen and Tea Took Root

A stop on Kyoto: Higashiyama and Gion on Foot, a free self-guided tour.

Hanamikoji ends at the gates of Kennin-ji, founded in 1202 and, by its own claim, the oldest Zen temple in Kyoto. Its first abbot was Eisai, the monk who brought Rinzai Zen from China, and the shogun Minamoto no Yoriie gave the land. Eisai also carried tea seeds home in 1191 and wrote an early book praising tea as medicine, so tea lovers treat this as a pilgrimage stop. Look for the small patch of tea bushes near his memorial hall.

The grounds are free to stroll; the main buildings charge admission. Inside, you can sit on the wooden veranda of the abbot's quarters facing a raked gravel garden, see a fine copy of Tawaraya Sotatsu's Wind God and Thunder God screens (the original is in the Kyoto National Museum), and look up in the Dharma Hall, where twin dragons coil across the ceiling.

Take off your shoes where asked, sit quietly, and never step onto the gravel.

Getting here: Walk south the full length of Hanamikoji, about five minutes, straight into the Kennin-ji grounds, and follow the signs to the main building entrance.

Did you know?: The twin dragons on the Dharma Hall ceiling are modern: Koizumi Junsaku painted them for the temple's 800th anniversary in 2002, on a field about 11.4 by 15.7 meters.

Photo op: From the veranda of the abbot's quarters, frame the sweep of raked gravel against the clay wall and the trees beyond; check the signs, since photo rules inside can vary.

More on Wikipedia: Kennin-ji · Eisai · Minamoto no Yoriie · Tawaraya Sotatsu

Kennin-ji - Where Zen and Tea Took Root

Stops on this tour