Private Before-Hours Access to Myoshin-ji Taizo-in for Special Tour and Zazen Meditation (Matcha Included)

Taizo-in, among the main sub-temples of the Myoshin-ji Zen temple complex, the largest in Japan

Sprawling over a mountainous 31 hectares, the Myoshin-ji complex is collectively known as Japan’s largest Zen temple, and the head temple of its eponymous school of the Rinzai sect of Zen Buddhism. It encompasses 46 separate sub-temples on its grounds, and more than 3,000 branch temples around the world. Built in the early 15th century, Taizo-in boasts one of the longest histories among its sub-temples.

Taizo-in’s storied history spans 600 years

The temple grounds also houses three gardens: “Motonobu no Niwa” (Motonobu’s Garden), a traditional “dry garden” (one of the traditional types of Japanese gardens, exhibiting the beauty of the landscape without ponds or other water features); a newer dry garden created in 1965 which has become famous in its own right; and “Yoko-en” (The Fragrant Garden), a water garden (the other type of traditional Japanese garden, designed for leisurely strolling around a pond). It also contains the national treasure Hyonenzu (“Catching a catfish with a gourd”), said to be the oldest ink wash painting by Josetsu, a Muromachi Period artist monk.

With his soft smile and calm tone, Deputy Head Priest Daiko Matsuyama exudes a solemn but warm gravitas

The deputy chief priest of Taizo-in, Daiko Matsuyama, is your guide through the practice of zazen and a tour of the gardens. He is globally active as a representative and leader in Japanese Zen Buddhism, and has to his name an audience with a former Pope and attendance at the World Economic Forum’s annual Davos Conference. He continually strives to impart a spirituality beyond the borders of separate religions or nations, and in this exclusive plan you will enjoy learning privately from Matsuyama himself about the essence of enlightenment, and Japanese temple architecture and garden culture.

“Sightseeing in Kyoto has evolved over the past 30 years from a focus on seeing to a focus on doing,” says Matsuyama. “More and more people today are in search of spirituality, as our information society leaves us with fewer and fewer ways to be mindfully present in our lives through all five senses. I hope to offer Taizo-in to those people as a tranquil, verdant space of reflection and self-discovery.”

Brush up against enlightenment and Japanese aesthetics with an exclusive tour through the garden

To start, Matsuyama will take you on a special tour of Taizo-in. Move next to the abbot’s quarters of Taizo-in, not usually accessible to the public. Here, view the 15th-century ink wash painting Hyonenzu, or “Catching a catfish with a gourd.” This historical national treasure depicts a koan and humorous Zen riddle alongside the real answers of thirty-one different Zen masters, depicted as a Chinese poem. Matsuyama unravels the mysteries behind this piece and what it has to say about the nature of enlightenment in Zen Buddhism.

Matsuyama elucidates how the gourd parable conveys one essence of enlightenment

Beyond, you can peruse “Motonobu’s Garden” – a unique dry landscape garden of perennial shrubs, modeled on the theme of “immutability” – and stroll through “The Fragrant Garden.” 

Admire an illuminated night view of the temple's gorgeous gardens and sumptuous natural scenery (in after-hours plan)

The Fragrant Garden stands in contrast to the muted tranquility of Zen with its dazzling seasonal colors – spring’s weeping cherry blossoms; summer’s blooming lotus petals; the russet and amber leaves of autumn. It is centered around a gourd-shaped pond containing koi fish – and yes, a catfish – a motif evoking the temple’s treasured painting and its associated koan. Stroll through the garden, basking in its interplay between spectacle and stillness, and admire its “hidden tearoom,” designed to be cleverly camouflaged from the outside.

Enjoy a private visit to the 3306 square-meter Fragrant Garden, and a leisurely amble around its pond while listening to Matsuyama’s commentary

The deputy head priest himself offers commentary on the soul of Japanese beauty, while you have the elegant garden completely to yourself. This is a precious chance to experience both Zen and Japan’s aesthetic sensibilities. At the end of this special visit, sit down to matcha tea and sweets with a view of Taizo-in’s temple garden.

Take in the temple’s legendary garden alongside silky-smooth matcha tea

Touch the world of Zen, and get in touch with your five senses

After the private tour, when the gates of the temple are closed to the public, the veranda of the abbot’s quarters of Taizo-in becomes a place of zazen meditation. This is Zen: a ritual focus on posture, breathing, and state of mind to directly experience life. Listen to insects chirping, feel the touch of the wind, become one with nature, and discover a pure and clear state of mind.

Approaching the Buddha’s enlightened state of mind through zazen meditation

“Through zazen meditation, I hope you will rediscover that the ‘information’ we encounter living in our ‘information society’ is not reality, and reacquaint yourself with the world through your own senses,” says Matsuyama.

Optional: Try your hand at painting the rock garden

As an additional option, you can try painting the Rock Garden of Yin and Yang, designed around fifteen large stones: eight representing yin, and seven representing yang, in different colored sands which represent the nested dualities of the universe and the human heart.

Raking straight lines is unexpectedly challenging in this microcosmic garden of yin and yang

Self discovery, far removed from the daily grind

“Kyoto may be a bustling city, but it’s also a historical religious center offering tranquil repose,” says Matsuyama. “As more and more visitors come seeking this side of it in recent years, a sense comes across of the difficulties people are feeling in their day-to-day lives of facing the big questions: What am I living for? What is happiness? In this experience, I hope to offer people a chance to get more in touch with themselves.” Here, you can also get in touch with Japan’s nature, its aesthetics, and Buddhist views on the universe and enlightenment – with all five senses.

Experience nature unfurling before you with all five senses