Hondō

Built in 1639, the Hondo is the main ritual hall of this Kyoto temple complex and follows the classic six-room layout of a Zen abbot's quarters. A wide veranda on the south side looks across the raked Ginshadan gravel garden toward Kinkyochi Pond. The innermost room enshrines a statue of Shakyamuni beneath a latticed vaulted ceiling, and contains memorial tablets for Ashikaga Yoshimasa and his wife. Four of the rooms are hung with ink paintings by Yosa Buson and Ike no Taiga, two celebrated eighteenth-century masters of the Nanga school, known for their landscapes and nature scenes.