Mini Zen Gardens

[muileag]

I've been meaning to post in this thread ever since you posted the photo which looked like a turtle swimming toward an egg-yolk island

Lovely polished, colored stones.

The last one (which looks like manatees) reminded me of a repeated dream I had very often growing up...three whales that come to converse with me while I'm standing on the edge of a rocky outcropping. (At least that's what popped out at me because of my personal experience.)

And what I find amazing about the bottom photo is that the lovely designs aren't disturbed by footprints...did the gardener hop from rock to rock (some are quite a stretch)?

[Visitor]

Thanks for your response muileag.
The last image is supposed to be three frogs. The frog, is a common rock shape used in Zen gardens.

I will give a hint to the image found on the link page.... it can only be seen at this vantage point.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/tfa/516003134/

[Visitor]

Referring back to posts #20 and 22....

Here is a good example of a Zen Garden.
Do you notice anything amazing about it?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/tfa/516003134/

I will give a hint.... it can only be seen at this vantage point.
If you do see something, please post your findings here.

[muileag]

Originally Posted by Visitor

Thanks for your response muileag.
The last image is supposed to be three frogs. The frog, is a common rock shape used in Zen gardens.

I will give a hint to the image found on the link page.... it can only be seen at this vantage point.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/tfa/516003134/

Oh, I thought you meant what "I" see and not something literal...like the raindrops in the lefthand side of the pic.

Have a pleasant day, Visitor...thank you for the peaceful pictures

[Visitor]

Hello muileag.

To clarify. I posted the link for you and others to discover a little bit more about zen gardens.

The idea about a zen garden is to observe and see beyond the obvious (a bunch of rocks on a gravel bed). It is much like seeing shapes in clouds.

When I said, "it can only be seen at this vantage point", I meant ... imagine you have taken the photograph, holding the camera at that exact vantage point. Any other location would miss the zen image. IMHO.

Over forty people have viewed this thread since introducing the link, but no response. Forgive me if I assume no-one has seen what I see. So I'll post another clue.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xpc36WQ62M...0/IMG_3354.JPG

[muileag]

Aha! I see; we're supposed to see what you're seeing (the first thing that popped into my head, which was a sea dragon)

[Visitor]

Hello muileag.

Originally Posted by muileag

Aha! I see; we're supposed to see what you're seeing (the first thing that popped into my head, which was a sea dragon)

Thanks for pointing out my arrogance of wishing others to see what I saw. I guess I got caught up with my own imagery.
Sorry everybody for misleading you in any way.

Seeing something out of the shapes and patterns of a dry zen garden is the essence of zen meditation and intuition. Whether you see what I see is irrelevant.
My original goal was to introduce a different way of seeing a zen garden, for those who are unfamiliar with them.

I see a man and a horse wading through water.


To view zen garden again:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/tfa/516003134/

[muileag]

Originally Posted by Visitor

Hello muileag.


Thanks for pointing out my arrogance of wishing others to see what I saw. I guess I got caught up with my own imagery.
Sorry everybody for misleading you in any way.

Seeing something out of the shapes and patterns of a dry zen garden is the essence of zen meditation and intuition. Whether you see what I see is irrelevant.
My original goal was to introduce a different way of seeing a zen garden, for those who are unfamiliar with them.

I see a man and a horse wading through water.


To view zen garden again:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/tfa/516003134/

I wouldn't label it so much your arrogance as my ignorance

You asked if anyone saw something "amazing about it" (and I automatically thought you were asking about the picture -- my mistake)...and it is amazing to me that the rake designs are pristine, especially because it's quite a distance between some of the rocks. I didn't realize that you were asking what we saw in the rocks. The first thing I saw when I opened the picture is what you see as a horse; it looked like a water dragon to me (a type of swimming horse)...or Nessie

Once you showed the second clue, I could see what you were getting at.

My question to you is, when you design a formal Zen garden, are you supposed to create recognizable images? Is there always a figure or two, like your frogs (which look like manatees to me), or are some Zen gardens just a creative pattern? The only analogy that I can come up with is that of a student analyzing a poem; there is the poet's intended meaning, and then there's meaning the reader gleans based on the experiences he brings to the reading. Should I approach the design in similar fashion?

I hope I didn't interject disharmony into your Zen thread; I seriously didn't know that there are traditional representations of certain animals/patterns as I only used my small garden for swirling

[Visitor]

Hi muileag.
Sorry for delay, I just got back.

Originally Posted by muileag

... I didn't realize that you were asking what we saw in the rocks. The first thing I saw when I opened the picture is what you see as a horse; it looked like a water dragon to me (a type of swimming horse)...or Nessie

Once you showed the second clue, I could see what you were getting at.

My question to you is, when you design a formal Zen garden, are you supposed to create recognizable images?
That is up to the designer. Most use recognizable images in a rock, like a frog, a person, emotions, known islands, etc. Some use these recognized rocks as pieces to a scene/image.

Is there always a figure or two, like your frogs (which look like manatees to me),...
No, actually it is more common in older/ancient zen gardens.

... or are some Zen gardens just a creative pattern?
I would say, that most modern zen gardens just use creative patterns. However, the zen part is still significant, where the meditative observer receives intuition and insight.

The only analogy that I can come up with is that of a student analyzing a poem; there is the poet's intended meaning, and then there's meaning the reader gleans based on the experiences he brings to the reading. Should I approach the design in similar fashion?
Great analogy. Same as other forms of art - each to their own creative thoughts/perception.

I hope I didn't interject disharmony into your Zen thread; I seriously didn't know that there are traditional representations of certain animals/patterns as I only used my small garden for swirling
muileag, I never saw you as interjecting disharmony. Sorry you saw it that way. If anything, it is me who tends to push and shove.

Traditional zen gardens are huge. The rocks they use are not easy to transport around, or to position into place.
As far as I know, they are not altered from their natural state (like carved).
So they are selected pieces for some intention. Though the original intention may get altered while placing the pieces in the garden.

Japanese zen gardens, as far as I know, is an off branch from Japanese garden design. That is, a Japanese garden has more than one scenic viewpoint.
Nearly every possible section of the garden becomes a new scene. From within the main house, looking through the framed window is a complete scene (a balanced, harmonious composition).
In the garden, every pathway, even if it is only a few steps, may lead you to see around a blind corner and view a new vista - complete, balanced, harmonious composition. A world in itself.
Much like a house with rooms.

Most large Japanese gardens contain a tea house somewhere in it.
A good garden design will assist the visiting person(s) along the journey, to the tea house, to arrive with a serene humble mind.
There is a famous Japanese garden, in Japan, that requires visitors to pass through a hole before getting to the tea house. But the hole is at ground level and requires one to cruel through on their hands and knees.

There is a lot more about Japanese gardens, but getting back to the mini zen dry gardens, they are for playing with easily placed bits and pieces to discover your own intuitive insights and intentions.

[Visitor]

This Zen garden is in Portland, Oregon.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...zen_garden.jpg