Fodor's Expert Review Chishaku-in Temple

The lush garden of Chishaku-in and paintings by Tohaku Hasegawa and his son Kyuzo make a visit to this temple a memorable experience. A small museum exhibits works by father and son that are among the finest of the Momoyama period (1573–1615). The elder Hasegawa (1539–1610) painted exclusively for Zen temples in his later years, with masterpieces ranging from lyrical monochrome ink creations to bolder, more colorful works such as the gold-backed images of cherry, maple, pine, and plum trees exhibited here, and ones of autumn grasses. A mountain in China reputedly inspired the design of the temple's hilly garden, whose pond was sculpted to look like a river. The pond is stocked with colorful carp. Equally colorful when they're in bloom are the mounds of sculpted camellia and azalea bushes.