Ginkaku-ji "Silver Pavilion" ‹âŠtŽ›
Ginkaku-ji, at the foot of Kyoto's Higashiyama, is the more common name for the Tozan Jisho-ji temple.
In 1460 Ashikaga Yoshimasa (1436-1490) ordered the construction of a retirement villa, in the same line as the Kinkaku-ji built by his grandfather Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. The villa was not completed until 1482 due to the Onin Wars (1467-1477), which ravaged Kyoto.
Although Ginkaku-ji translates as "Silver Pavilion", the original plans to cover it with silver was abandoned at Yoshimasa's death, and the villa was converted into a Buddhist temple.
The compound includes several buildings (Hondo, Togudo, Dojin-sai) apart from the silver pavilion. The gardens and pond designed by the famous landscape gardener Soami (1455-1525) are particularily beautiful.
The Ginshaden (Sea of Silver Sand), where a perfectly smooth cone of sand stand in a sand garden, is said to represent a mountain and the sea.
Note that like the Kinkaku-ji, the Ginkaku-ji is on many tours' list and can get very crowded on weekends, Japanese national holidays or during the cherry blossoms and autumn leaves season.
How to get there
Bus 4, 5, 17 and 100 from Kyoto or Sanjo station, or bus 203 from Shijo or Demachiyanagi station stop at Ginkakuji-mae.
You can also walk from Nanzenji along the Path of Philosophy.
Ginkakuji is open from 8:30am to 5pm from 15 March to
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