- Story by Angela Cowan
Find the mountain where there is no mountain.
Imagine a Japanese garden and you鈥檒l no doubt picture cherry blossom trees, artfully pruned shrubs, trickling water features and gently sloping bridges. A sense of peace and serenity, and of calm and quiet drapes over the space. A large torii gate brackets the entrance, inviting visitors to enter into the garden beneath its arch, exchanging worry for reflection.
Whether expressed in sprawling multi-acre retreats or miniature trays only a few feet wide, the philosophy behind Japanese gardens is the same: a place to think, meditate and be at peace.
鈥淢ost people understand that the style is supposed to have a sense of serenity and peace to it, a place to go and be mindful,鈥� says Susan Hawkins. 鈥淧eople already understand that in Japanese gardens there is an intrinsic value to everything.鈥�
Susan is an instructor at the University of Victoria with a master鈥檚 degree in art history, a background in heritage landscapes and a lifelong passion for all things growing.
She鈥檚 taught the history of gardens from Versailles to Victoria, touching on Edwardian design, the Age of Enlightenment and the fascination with collecting rarities, Egypt, and everything in between. But there鈥檚 an interesting鈥攁nd unique鈥攁spect to Japanese gardens in that it鈥檚 possible to trace their inception back to a narrow point in history.
Muso Soseki, a 12th-century Japanese monk, is considered the first Zen garden designer, notes Susan.
鈥淚n the beginnings, the sages or yogic masters went to nature. They went to a tree. They went to a woodland to meditate, to separate themselves from the everyday. One day, [Soseki] has an epiphany. He鈥檚 sitting outside his little hermitage and sees a rock and a tree and a little creek.鈥�
He sees how the individual parts can represent the wildness and enormity of nature, and takes that idea to create a temple, and a temple garden. Retreating into the sanctity of nature suddenly becomes much more accessible, and caring for the garden becomes part of the monks鈥� spiritual practice.
鈥淭he idea of learning to do this becomes a very high art,鈥� says Susan. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a particular sense of allowing a linkage to happen to nature, of creating a small space to reflect in. So instead of having to go out to nature, to go on a pilgrimage to the mountain, his philosophy truly was, 鈥楩ind the mountain where there is no mountain.鈥欌��
Speaking to Susan, you instantly get the impression that she holds an encyclopaedic level of history and knowledge about everything green; she can pull out facts and near-lectures at will. It鈥檚 fascinating, and utterly absorbing to listen to, and in no small part due to her practical experience as well.
Beyond her academic accomplishments, Susan is no stranger to getting her hands dirty. She鈥檚 been in horticulture for over three decades, has a BC certification in landscape horticulture, is a Master Gardener and, among many other notable projects, was invited to do the restoration for the Japanese Shinto garden at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria. These days she also has an allotment garden in Oak Bay, which is where serendipity struck when she met Marian Paris.
Marian has been in the process of creating her own Japanese garden for three years now. She and her husband have lived in the same Oak Bay bungalow for more than three decades, but it鈥檚 only been in the last few years that she鈥檚 picked up her trowel and dug in.
鈥淚鈥檓 brand new to caring for a garden,鈥� says Marian, who is gentle and thoughtful as she speaks. 鈥淲e started to do some much needed work, like putting up a wraparound fence to deal with the deer, and it just evolved from there.鈥�
When the two women met, they quickly got chatting about Susan鈥檚 UVic courses, and when Marian asked if Susan consulted on private gardens, Susan agreed to lend her expertise to her Japanese garden project.
Much of the foundational work had been done, with structure and shape and hardscaping already largely figured out. Where Susan became essential was in choosing the actual plants.
鈥淚鈥檝e been so insecure about the idea of committing to plants,鈥� says Marian. 鈥淲hat a gift her expertise is, because she brings her passion and experience to this project.鈥�
When Marian describes the in-progress garden鈥攚ith its stonework and hanging lanterns and trickling water鈥攜ou start to actually feel what it is she鈥檚 trying to cultivate in the space: a soft, quiet sense of serenity. Of peace and of sanctuary. You can feel the heart she鈥檚 put into it, trailing out and over the ground like vines of affection.
鈥淚 have a brand new relationship with this garden, and I feel so grateful to have this focus,鈥� she explains. 鈥淭he garden for me represents recovery from grief. Our youngest of three sons died in 2013. His name is Daniel, and ever since his death鈥攚hich irrevocably altered us鈥攖his project and everything involved has inspired me to look at life differently.鈥�
She adds: 鈥淚 know how I want to feel, and it鈥檚 happening here.鈥�
Marian, and by extension everyone who鈥檚 been involved in creating the space, has approached the construction of the garden with a unique sense of deliberate creativity, with her full encouragement.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been really great to give people the freedom to decide how it should be,鈥� she says.
From the contractor, who unearthed a huge cleft in the bedrock, to the stonemason who created a stunning memorial to Daniel, and the fellow who dug out a huge pit to remove a 4,500-pound boulder and then had to leave to be at his baby鈥檚 birth, everyone has left a piece of themselves in the garden.
It feels fitting that in the creation of a garden meant to be a place of reflection and serenity, an entire community of people has come together and made indelible impacts on the process. And it ties perfectly with the entire philosophy behind Japanese gardens, where everything is deliberate, thoughtful and intentional.
Find the mountain where there is no mountain鈥�
Create your own
Even if an entire garden overhaul isn鈥檛 feasible for a DIY Japanese garden, you can scale down the philosophies into your existing property, says Susan.
It鈥檚 important to think about the basic foundations of gardening鈥攚hat type of soil you have, whether it鈥檚 shady or sunny, how you鈥檒l get a wheelbarrow in鈥攂ut with Japanese garden design, one of the main tenets is the interrelationships between the structures and plants, and how you interact with them.
鈥淚t鈥檚 about being mindful of the things that are in the garden. The wind through the trees. The smells,鈥� says Susan. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about engaging with the environment that you鈥檙e in. You have pathways, you have stone, you have water features and movement.
鈥淛apanese gardens, though they vary greatly, are usually half to two-thirds green and another third colour, especially leaf colour. If you have a shaded area, Japanese gardens typically do very well under certain kinds of canopies. And moss grows very well here,鈥� she adds, laughing. 鈥淭hings that are within a Japanese garden are in flux. You need corners to go around, paths to walk. And there鈥檚 the space between things, called ma. It鈥檚 not an empty space. It鈥檚 a space where activity is constantly being seen. If you鈥檙e looking through the leaves of a tree, the space between those leaves is the dynamic place where ma is.鈥�
Perhaps most importantly, the garden needs to reveal itself gradually.
鈥淵ou have to enter into the garden. It doesn鈥檛 give itself away all at once,鈥� says Susan.
Explore others
Whether you鈥檙e looking for inspiration for your own gardens or just want to explore others, there are plenty of local options.
The Victoria Japanese gardens at both The Butchart Gardens and Royal Roads University are fabulous examples. Both were designed and created around 1910 by Isaburo Kishida, well-known for his creative eye, and have had the benefit of more than a century to grow and mature.
A much more recent Japanese garden was unveiled in 2002 on Mayne Island, in recognition of the early Japanese settlers on the island.
In Kelowna, the Kasugai garden was co-designed in partnership with Kelowna鈥檚 sister city of Kasugai, and offers an oasis of waterfalls, ponds and creeks in the middle of an often very hot city. And in Vancouver, the Nitobe Memorial Garden at UBC is considered one of the most authentic Japanese gardens outside of Japan itself.
But wherever you are鈥攚hether a century-old garden with pine trees that brush the clouds, or a modest corner of your own back yard that鈥檚 been transformed with calming stone and uneven walkways鈥攖he philosophy of the Japanese garden is something you can carry with you. Simply take a breath, listen to the breeze in the leaves and find a mountain.
Story courtesy of , a Black Press Media publication
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