Roji
Roji (露地), lit. 'dewy ground', is the Japanese term used for the garden through which one passes to the chashitsu for the tea ceremony. The roji acts as a transitional space leading from the entry gate to the teahouse, and generally cultivates an air of simplicity and purification.[1]
Development
The roji developed during the
Features
The roji is usually divided into an outer and inner garden, with a machiai (waiting arbour). Use of stone as both a decorative and a functional feature is characteristic of the roji.
Role in Tea Ceremony
The garden acts as a transitional space between the outside world and the ritual seclusion of the ceremony.[12] The roji offers guests the opportunity to purify themselves before entering the tea house by washing their hands and mouths with water. It also acts as a transitional space where guests can leave behind the outside world and prepare themselves for the aesthetic and spiritual dimension of the ceremony.[13]
The garden is carefully cleaned before the ceremony begins. This cleaning extends the ritual of the ceremony into the host's preparations. Preparing the garden is meant to clean and order the host's mind.[14] The roji is sprinkled with water three times during a tea gathering as a form of repeated purification: once before the guests arrive, once during the nakadachi (a break in the ceremony), and once before the guests leave the teahouse.[15]
Influence
Sadler argues that the roji, with its small size, harmonious proportions, and 'simple suggestiveness' served as a model for domestic Japanese courtyard gardens.[16] Tobi ishi, originally placed to protect the garden's moss, eventually took on an aesthetic nature. The stones were placed to slow down the visitors on their way to the tea house and encourage contemplation of the everyday, an enduring feature of Japanese gardens. Additionally, tōrō, originally used to light the path for ceremonies held at night, were soon adopted as decorations for other types of gardens, a practice that continues.[17]
Burakumin
In the works of Japanese writer Nakagami Kenji, roji, in the sense of "alley", can also be understood as a euphemism for the buraku ghettos, where burakumin people used to live.[18]
See also
References
- ^ Nonaka, Natsume (2008). "The Japanese Garden: The Art of Setting Stones". SiteLINES: A Journal of Place. 4 (1): 3. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
- ^ Nonaka, Natsume (2008). "The Japanese Garden: The Art of Setting Stones". SiteLINES: A Journal of Place. 4 (1): 3. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
- Weatherhill. p. 195f.
- ISBN 978-0-8048-1224-5.
- Weatherhill. p. 196f.
- ISBN 978-0-8348-1014-3.
- ^ Nonaka, Natsume (2008). "The Japanese Garden: The Art of Setting Stones". SiteLINES: A Journal of Place. 4 (1): 3. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
- ^ "Roji". Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. Retrieved 30 March 2011.
- ^ "Chaniwa". Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. Retrieved 30 March 2011.
- ^ "Koshikake machiai". Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. Retrieved 30 March 2011.
- Weatherhill. pp. 198f.
- ^ Kumakura, Isao (2023). Japanese Tea Culture: The Heart and Form of Chanoyu. Japan Publishing Industry Foundation for Culture. pp. 42–77.
- ISBN 9780141191843.
- ^ Anderson, Jennifer L. (September 1987). "Japanese Tea Ritual: Religion in Practice". Man. 22 (3): 475–498. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
- ^ Kumakura, Isao (2023). Japanese Tea Culture: The Heart and Form of Chanoyu. Japan Publishing Industry Foundation for Culture. pp. 42–77.
- ISBN 978-0-8048-1224-5.
- ^ Nonaka, Natsume (2008). "The Japanese Garden: The Art of Setting Stones". SiteLINES: A Journal of Place. 4 (1): 3. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
- ^ Cornyetz, Nina (1999). Dangerous Women, Deadly Words. Phallic Fantasy and Modernity in Three Japanese Writers. Stanford University Press. p. 215.
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External links
Media related to Roji at Wikimedia Commons
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