Preface: The Aesthetics of Japanese Temples and Gardens

Part 1: Famous Temples of the Kamakura Period
The Six Paramitas and the Thirty-Three Gandangs of Nakjung: History Gives Birth to Relics, and Relics Bear Witness to History
Dongboksa Temple in Naknam: Legends add history to the temple
Inhwasa Temple and Gosansa Temple: We wanted to go to those temples because they have a connection to us.
The origins of Gion and Geoninsa Temple: They have a history, and we have a story.
Sagano's Great Diagonal: If the samurai have power, the nobles have authority.
Sagano's Tenryuji Temple: This is how the legend of the Japanese garden began.

Part 2: Zen temples and gardens of the Muromachi period
Sangguk Temple and Kinkaku-ji Temple: The dream of becoming a prime minister came true at Kinkaku-ji Temple.
The Dragon's Eye of Graffiti: When Art Appears in the Name of Zen
Silver Pavilion in the Nakdong River: The Origin of the Samurai Academy and the Birth of the Japanese House Model

supplement
UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Kyoto
Field Trip Schedule

A walking trail through Kyoto's temples and gardens

In Volume 4 of the Japan edition, we read the story of 'them' who developed their own culture based on our technology and culture, from the perspective of 'us' today, along with the traces of Korean immigrants left in every corner of Kyoto, the most visited tourist destination for domestic tourists and a place where the essence of Japanese history and culture is gathered.
Professor Yoo Hong-jun states in the introduction that the theme of this field trip can be said to be Japanese ‘gardens.’
Japanese gardens are a place where the spirit and culture of the Japanese people are clearly displayed, and when you look at a Japanese garden, you can read the thoughts that stand there and the history that lies behind them.
The basic principle of cultural heritage tours, that ‘history gives birth to relics, and relics bear witness to history’, applies here as well.
Thanks to this, readers have the opportunity to gain a vivid understanding of Japanese history and culture while exploring the historical sites and relics throughout Kyoto.
To reach the core of Japanese culture, a basic knowledge of Japanese history is essential. However, most of us only have a vague sense of Japan and are quite unfamiliar with the flow of Japanese history and its major historical figures.
However, if we follow Professor Yoo Hong-jun's unique wit and extensive knowledge that weaves together the layers of history and culture in a single stroke, we will soon understand the process by which Japan accepted foreign elements in gardens, architecture, paintings, and tea ceremonies and developed them into its own unique style. We will also naturally learn about the long flow of Japanese history from the Kamakura period to the Edo period and into the modern era.


A field trip where people, art, and history come together

The most distinctive feature of Yoo Hong-jun's field trip is the exquisitely crafted "calculus-solving" style of field trip, taking into account the geographical location of the field trip site, the historical time period, and even the interests and understanding of the visitors.
In this book, his unique skill shines through, as he delicately weaves together the numerous famous sites scattered throughout Kyoto to clearly present the evolution of garden styles, which can be considered the essence of Japanese culture, the historical circumstances underlying them, and the ideological currents that resulted from them.
The tour will first visit Keninji Temple, Japan's first Zen temple, and other famous temples of the same era, examining the process by which the new Buddhist ideology of Zen Buddhism was introduced to Japan and the process by which Japan's unique garden style emerged.
At Kinkaku-ji Temple (金閣寺) and Ginkaku-ji Temple (銀閣寺), we confirm that the unique cultural style formed by the blending of aristocratic and Buddhist cultures centered around samurai culture forms the roots of Japanese tradition. We also examine the aesthetic value of the stone garden (cover photo) of Yongan-ji Temple (龍安寺), which has become a symbol of Japanese beauty, and the artistic impact it had on the modern West.

Through them, we gain a new understanding of our history and culture.

Professor Yoo Hong-jun's field trip does not stop at confirming history through historical and cultural heritage and confirming the aesthetic value of relics and artifacts.
Only when we reflect on our own perspectives on cultural heritage through the lens of our own experiences can we truly complete a Yoo Hong-jun-style field trip.
Therefore, the travelogue to Japan does not necessarily stop at looking into ‘their history’ but continues to look back on ‘our story’.

The story of how Japan has more outstanding Buddhist cultural heritages from the late Goryeo and early Joseon Dynasties, such as Goryeo Buddhist paintings and the Tripitaka Koreana, than Korea, and the story of Joseon paintings being of a higher standard than Japan's, to the point that a single landscape painting was brought to Joseon for evaluation, are facts that are new to us today through Japan, broadening our perspectives not only on Japanese culture but also on our own culture.
When we know them and ourselves in this way, it is possible to offer sharp criticism along with humble recognition.
Professor Yoo Hong-jun does not hide stories that would be painful for Japanese people to hear throughout his trip to Japan.
At Kinkaku-ji Temple and other temples, he points out the exhibition and management of cultural properties that do not match their status, and at Yongan-sa Temple, he sharply criticizes the introduction of a folk tale about the number of stones placed in the garden as if it were some great legend, which deviates from the essence.
Furthermore, the passage where he points out that the deep-rooted decorative traditions of Japanese art, while looking at some of Japan's outstanding paintings, are limitations that hinder higher artistic achievements, is a remarkable insight that cannot be achieved without a deep understanding of history, culture, and aesthetics.
This balanced perspective, born from a precise understanding of one another, allows us to see Japan as a country without falling into either cultural superiority or historical complexes.
In that sense, the travelogue of Japan with Professor Yoo Hong-jun is not simply a guidebook or travelogue of Japan, but a must-read for understanding Japan, a theory of Japanese culture essential for our times, and, furthermore, a humanistic reflection that allows us to reflect on ourselves and our culture.