New pass gets you access to six beautiful moss temples that aren’t that Moss Temple.

Kyoto’s Saihoji Temple is often called Kokedera, or “Moss Temple,” because of the vegetation that grows in abundance in its garden. However, Kyoto has more than one temple with moss-covered grounds, and unlike Saihoji, they don’t require advance reservations that quickly fill up, nor do they require you to copy sutras when visiting.

To highlight these often-overlooked alternative moss temples. Central Japan Railway Company/JR Tokai has created a new pass that covers admission to six different Kyoto temples for only 1,000 yen (US$6.90). The two-day pass, called the Kyoto Moss Tour Passport, went on sale at the start of the summer, and we recently were invited to a press tour for it, during which we visited Jojakkoji Temple.

Located in the Arashiyama district on the western outskirts of Kyoto, Jojakkoji is about a 20-minute walk from Saga Arashiyama Station. Compared to some of the city’s other temples, it’s not particularly old, but you can probably guess that relatively young in Kyoto is still plenty old enough to have historical significance, and Jojakkoji was founded in 1596.

Likewise, one of the newest buildings on the ground, Jojakkoji’s pagoda, was constructed in the 17th century, and is a designated Important Cultural Property.

But what really took our breath away was the moss.

With slightly overcast skies, the shades of green seemed to take on an added depth, creating a soothing and calming atmosphere as we strolled along the stone path.

During our visit, we had a chance to chat with the temple’s head priest, Noriaki Nagao, whose enthusiasm for botany felt almost as strong as Buddhism. Nagao explained how rather than trim the garden’s shrubbery to perfectly rounded spheres, he prefers to leave some irregularities to the length of their branches when pruning, to help give the greenery a more natural look. He also showed us his favorite type of moss that grows at the temple, a type of Leucobryum called shiragakoke in Japanese…

…and as were passing by the pond situated next to Jojakkoji’s main hall and soaking in the sense of tranquility…

…he pointed out the eggs that had been laid by a frog.

▼ Actually, he specifically indicated that these eggs were laid by “a forest green tree frog,” proving that he’s knowledgeable about both the plants and the animals whose home is within the temple grounds.

Nagao’s shiragakoke pick is an especially deep cut of moss fandom, as it’s not even one of the six varieties showcased by JR within the Kyoto Moss Tour Passport.

There’s also a grove of maple trees on the grounds, originally of two different varieties but now including some hybrids of the two as well, which makes Jojakkoji worth a visit in the fall too, but the beautiful green space that the place is during the summer is also a wonderful place to spend time.

▼ And then we managed to snap a cool cat pic, which is always a plus.

As mentioned above, Jojakkoji is just one of the six mossy temples to which admission is included in the Kyoto Moss Tour Passport, with the others being Gioji, Sanzenin, Shorinin, Enkoji, and Tofukuji.

▼ Gioji (祇王寺) and Jojakkoji (常寂光寺) are on the west side of Kyoto, Shorinin (勝林院), Sanzenin (三千院), and Enkoji (圓光寺) the northeast, and Tofukuji (東福寺) is southeast from Kyoto Station.

With each of the temples charging around 500 yen individually for admission, the Kyoto Moss Tour Passport is a great way to save some cash while also getting a charming off-the-beaten path itinerary, and the Passport can be purchased online here through September 29.

Temple information
Jojakkoji / 常寂光寺
Address: Kyoto-fu, Kyoto-shi, Ukyo-ku, Sagaogurayama Ogura-cho 3
京都府京都市右京区嵯峨小倉山小倉町3]
Website

Related: JR Central, Kyoto Moss Tour Passport
Photos ©SoraNews24
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