Ryoanji Temple

A couple days ago Babs and I went to Kyoto to do a little more temple hopping. The prettiest was definitely Kinkakuji temple (aka the Golden Pavilion). Kinkakuji is set on the edge of a huge Japanese Koi Pond and it's top two levels are completely covered in gold leaf!!! it was awesome.

On our way out of the temple we were stopped by some middle school kids that had a work sheet with them so they could practice what English they could with whatever foreigner they ran into. They asked us the basics: name, age, reason for visit, and then, out of the blue, they asked for a message for world peace. I love Japan! It was awkward and adorable and all the things I love about this country.

After this brief encounter we walked to Ryoanji temple. This is maybe the most famous Japanese Zen Temple in existence. It also is the home to the absolutely most famous Zen Rock Garden. Now I have the utmost respect for Zen Buddhism, infact it is my most favorite school of Buddhism and one of my favorite philosophies. However I also have a mother with a rock collection.... and so I sole a couple pebbles from the most important of all zen rock gardens. These pebbles which could have been there for hundreds of years and were probab ly raked by a Buddhist monk that morning, I stole. It was actually no easy task. The viewing deck was set high enough from the ground for asian legs to not stand a chance of reaching the garden but they underestimate me. My feet could just barely touch the pebbles while dangling my legs over the edge. I made sever attempts, some more conspicuous than others. It finally took using babs as a distraction for me to have the opportunity to seize a few rocks between my socked toes. While babs was taking a picture of me, sitting by the railing, I slid my foot down to the ground, pinned a couple pebbles next to the bottom of the deck, and then slid them up the deck and into my hand. It was perfect, smooth, discrete, and successful... except I got caught. It's only because there was this old white guy next to me who I mistook for a Japanese man, and he heard me and babs discuss it before I made my move. After that I got really akward and it was time to leave....