Recorded Joy·Rakusai / Matsuo

Saiho-ji, Kyoto's Moss Temple

Known as the Moss Temple, its garden as Muso Soseki laid it out in 1339 was, by tradition, nothing like the moss carpet seen today. Once a brighter garden with a pavilion, it fell into ruin after the fires of the Onin War (1467-77), which left much of Kyoto in ashes, and the moss is said to have taken over only from the Edo period—within the last two centuries or so. At its center lies the Ogonchi, the Golden Pond. Visits remain by reservation made the day before, and begin with devotions in the main hall, such as copying a sutra, before the garden itself.

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These notes come from desk research. Local traditions vary.