KOISHIKAWA KŌRAKUEN

Description

Essentials about Koishikawa Kōrakuen in brief

A walk through Koishikawa Kōrakuen Garden is not only recommended to lovers of Japanese garden art, because Koishikawa Kōrakuen is undoubtedly the most beautiful Japanese landscape garden in all of Tokyo. Its long history and numerous influences from Japan and China make the garden a total aesthetic work of art. A stroll through Koishikawa Kōrakuen is a beautiful experience at any time of the year, putting the hustle and bustle of Tokyo very far away.

The history of Koishikawa Kōrakuen

The history of Koishikawa Kōrakuen dates back to the early 17th century, making the garden one of the oldest green spaces in Tokyo. The garden was begun by the first head of the Mito branch of the Tokugawa, Tokugawa Yorifusa, in 1629, but was not completed until his grandson Tokugawa Mitsukuni in 1669. The scholar Zhu Shunshui, who had fled from China, provided active support in the creation of Koishikawa Kōrakuen, which is why the garden also has many borrowings from Chinese gardens. Incidentally, the name “kōraku” for “after-pleasure” is a quote from Chinese scriptures, where “en” means “garden.” And the first part of the name “Koishikawa” is the small stream that supplies water to the garden.

The grounds of Koishikawa Kōrakuen

Koishikawa Kōrakuen is the oldest convertible garden style garden in the Japanese capital. The centerpiece of such gardens is almost always a pond system fed by flowing water. Together with artificial hills, rocks and trees, this creates a miniature landscape that invites visitors to wander through.

The Kōrakuen contains numerous allusions to Chinese and Japanese landscapes. Among the Chinese landscapes reproduced, for example, is Little Lu Mountain, the famous dam across West Lake. The Island of Happiness (Hōrai Island), is located in the central waters. On the hill of the island is a shrine dedicated to the goddess Benzaiten.

The Japanese landscapes of the garden primarily make reference to Kyoto, the ancient Japanese capital. These include Tōgetsu Bridge, Tsuten Bridge, the Ōi River and Kiyomizu Temple. Copied from the mountains behind Osaka, there is Tatsuta River, famous for its maple trees, and from central Japan, there is Kiso River. The semicircle of the stone Engetsu Bridge forms with its reflection a full moon (Engetsu). At the somewhat separated part of the garden the residence used to start. It has long since disappeared and is now occupied by the Tokyo Dome, a covered baseball stadium.

A walk through Koishikawa Kōrakuen is a delightfully relaxing experience at any time of year. In spring, you can experience the beautiful Japanese cherry blossoms here. In summer, the many fields of flowers glow in different colors. In autumn, the maple leaves turn the garden glorious colors. And in late winter, the plum trees begin to bloom.