Apr 16, 2014 - 1 min read

Beautiful Shoren-in Temple, Kyoto 2

Lotus...and more lotus...and more lotus...beautiful

By Larry Knipfing

Community writer

A very nice color combination

Many of the lotus are painted right onto sliding doors

Detail of a lotus painting near the tatami mat floor

There are quite a few rooms in the Kacho-den Hall, which is the first big room you'll see after entering the temple buildings

Quiet and subtle

This more vibrant combination makes you wonder how long the paintings will stay vibrant

A stack of zabuton, for sitting on the tatami, usually used during special ceremonies

Wandering around the complex, there are many delights to be found

This beautiful peacock was painted directly onto a wood wall

Gate leading to a path winding its way up the hill to a great view, a small shrine, and a bamboo grove

A pair of foxes in the shrine at the top

The temple bell is in a corner of the temple grounds, down nearer the exit

Besides being just a generally beautiful temple, with a pond, old wooden corridors, and a shrine up top the hill, the thing that will catch your eye and keep it caught at Shoren-in is the delightful collection of lotus painted onto the sliding doors and walls of the temple's Kacho-den Hall. These were all painted by the very talented pop artist Hideki Kimura in 2005. Take a look at Kimura's website and you will find dozens of other 'wall projects' - all similar, yet all unique. The Shoren-in project (called Lotus Trilogy) features lotus depicting three themes: Land of Happiness, Paean to Life, and Blue Fantasy.

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Larry Knipfing

By Larry Knipfing

Community writer

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Kiddee Burakitbumrung

Kiddee Burakitbumrung 10 years ago

I'll give you one word to sum up it all!, WOW!

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