The spring breeze shakes the canopy. The rain graces the plants, announcing the coming of sunny days. I notice my sleeves soaked by the dew from the bush. With my basket in hand, I set off to pick tea from the fields.

At the very back of the garden you’ll find Jizō statues. In front of them is a mountain of white stones, shining like a godly figure in the light of the sun. Many places in Japan have a tradition of piling stones in front of Jizō statues, but here we pay our respects to them by throwing the rocks onto a pile instead of placing them. This unique practice began at a time when commoners who weren’t allowed to enter the garden would write their wishes on small rocks and toss them over the wall from the outside.

The Jizō are known as the “womb of the earth.” Just as the earth possesses the power to nurture all life, the Jizō serve as a bodhisattva that aids those who are suffering through compassion and mercy. People put their palms together and pray to this many-faced god that helps people in so many different ways.

Jizō are normally placed along the roadside. However, once they were placed in this garden it became more difficult to pray to them. Thus, people came up with the idea to place their wishes into stones and throw them into the garden.

When the stones land in the garden, they’d make a light plunking sound.

That “plunk” is the sound of your wishes overlapping with those of all the people who came before you.

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