Meigetsu-in - the Hydrangea Garden in Kamakura

Meigetsu-in（明月院）

Every year in June, after the rain season has begun, and the air gets hot and damp, thousands of visitors from Tokyo and Kamakura surge to the Meigetsu-in temple in Kita-Kamakura. This is the time, when the temple’s ajisai (紫陽花), the hydrangeas, are in full bloom and look their best.

Meigetsu-in is now a temple of the Rinzai Zen school of Buddhism. It was founded in 1383 (Muromachi period) by Uesugi Norikata, a powerful statesman of the Uesugi clan.

Apart from the hydrangea, which gave the temple its nickname Ajisai-dera (紫陽花寺), it is famous for an excellent dry landscape garden and the round windows of the main temple buildings. Like all Kamakura gardens, it is also beautiful in autumn when the leaves change color.

Contents of the eBook:

• Introduction to Meigetsu-in
• History of Meigetsu-in
• Buildings and other Highlights
• The Gardens of Meigetsu-in
• The Inner Garden of Meigetsu-in (Iris Patches)
• The Outer Garden of Meigetsu-in (Dry Landscape Garden)
• Around Meigetsu-in
• Directions

16 informative pages, packed with
4 illustrations and 30 photographs
pdf 30 MB

  The eBook is delivered as PDF.