Another beautiful thing: the Silver Temple

So, I had this long discussion of beauty as it pertains to the Golden Temple, as inspired by Mishima's great novel. Then I visited the lesser known Ginkaku-ji, or Silver Temple.

At first glance, the Ginkaku-ji seems much less impressive than the golden temple. And that, of course, is precisely why I like this better. The Golden Temple is so blatantly obvious.



The Ginkaku-ji on the other hand is more subtle, not hitting you over the head with its power. It also blends in better with the surrounding nature, which I understand is an integral idea of Japanese gardens (the Golden temple on the other hands stands out). The Golden temple is a brightly shining sun, dominating its surroundings; the Silver Temple is a moon, bleaker, but also softer, and allowing other sources of light to shine as well.

Even the names of the two temples showcase these differences. While the Golden Temple was created in a period of great wealth, and its name comes from the gilded plating on its wall, the Silver Temple was created roughly 100 years later. By then, times were hard, and no-one could spend money on gilded houses. Thus the "Silver" in the name is derived from the silver sand that exists at the site.

To me, then, the Ginkaku-ji is a much better example of beauty than the Golden Temple.