Shokado Hermitage 草庵松花堂

Official explanation

The thatched-roof Shokado hermitage was built in 1637 for the Buddhist monk Shokado Shojo (1584–1639), who used it as both his residence and the base for his artistic pursuits in later years. Well-connected with artists, members of the nobility, and the imperial family, Shojo continued to entertain and hold tea gatherings in the tea room of this small building after retiring as the chief abbot of Takimotobo Temple.

The hermitage is a traditional, simple structure with a thatched roof and a two-tatami-mat tea room. The small seating area is surrounded by a Buddhist altar, a tokonoma alcove for displaying art, a round hearth for heating water, and shelves for tea utensils. The woven bamboo ceiling initially featured a different painting, but the current image of mythical birds in flight was done sometime after the hermitage was moved from its original location on Mt. Otokoyama.

Read the full explanation

The Shokado hermitage with its adjacent tea garden (roji) is a designated National Historic Site, and the building itself is a designated Cultural Property of Kyoto Prefecture.

出典: 地域観光資源の多言語解説文データベース（観光庁） — www.mlit.go.jp/tagengo-db. この英語解説文は観光庁の地域観光資源の多言語解説整備支援事業で作成しました。
Source: Japan Tourism Agency, Multilingual Explanation Database. This English text was produced by the Japan Tourism Agency's multilingual explanation project and is shown unedited. Opening hours and services may have changed since it was written.