Kangetsuan Teahouse

 

Kangetsuan is a thatched Teahouse in the garden of Fumon-in Temple near Matsue Castle.

In the previous post I covered the temple and garden, and in this post I will focus on the teahouse itself.

After leaving the temple building, the first stop is the waiting area where guests would wait for the host to greet them.

Like the teahouse, it is also thatched. Called Koshikake Machiai, the ceiling is made from planks recycled from clam-fishing boats.

The stepping stones to and from the waiting area are higher than most normal gardens, a feature of Izumo-style gardens that receive a lot of snow.

The teahouse was constructed in 1801 and it is believed Fumai Matsudaira, the lord of the domain and a master of the arts of tea, visited often.

It is also believed that lafcadio Hearn learn Tea Ceremony here.

The teahouse was designed by th 9th head priest of the temple who also happened to be the 9th Head of the Sansai School of Tea, founded by Hosokawa Sansai, one of the 7 disciples of Rikyu.

The inner garden leads to the Nigiriguchi, the half-height entrance with a purpose of instilling humility upon entering.

It also meant swords could not be worn inside the tearoom. A rack for swords can be seen on the right of the photo above.

A circular window in the neighboring room looks out on the pond.

As the name suggests, this building was used to watch the moon. A second moon would appear in reflection in the pond.

The previous post was on the Fumon-in temple and garden.

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Taking Tea at Fumon-in Temple Matsue

 

Fumon-in, a small Tendai temple near Matsue castle, has an Edo-period teahouse used by the great tea master and daimyo, Fumai, and also later by the writer Lafcadio Hearn.

The small bridge you must cross to reach the temple is itself the subject of a ghost story made famous by Hearn.

In the grounds is a fairly big Inari Shrine. Originally established in Wakamiya Shrine to the north of the castle, the priest of Fumon-i was charged by the lord of the castle to perform ceremonies at the shrine. It was moved here in 1870 following the separation of Buddhas and kami.

The thatched roof of the teahouse Kangetsuan can be seen from the temple's outer grounds

The honzon of the temple is a Fudo Myoo and there are several other, smaller, stone Fudo's in the grounds.

Plastic bamboo...

Binzuru

The temple was originally established in 1607 by the first lord of Matsue, Yoshiharu Horio. Called Ganno-ji it was located further away from the castle.

It burned down and in 1699 was rebuilt at the current location and renamed Fumon-in.

The current location was chosen as it protects the castle from the dangerous influences that come from the NE.

The temple is now most famously known for the teahouse Kangetsuan.

Built in 1801 in the temples small, pond, stroll garden...

Fumai Matsudaira, the great tea master, is said to have visited often.

Visitors can walk in the garden and look inside the teahouse, but not enter.

In the next post in this series I will post about Kangetsuan.

After exploring I returned to the temple and the priest's wife brought me a matcha and sweet to enjoy.

The previous post in this series on Matsue was on the garden and teahouse at the nearby Matsue History Mueum.

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Garden & Teahouse at Matsue History Museum

 

The Matsue History Museum is just across the moat from Matsue Castle and opened in 2011.

It was built on the site of the residence of the senior retainer of the domain and was built to resemble a high-ranking retainers residemce. The museum is fronted by the original Eco-Period Nagayamon.

Matsue is known as one of the three centres of Tea Culture in Japan, thanks to Fumai Matsudaira, the daimyo and tea master.

The museum has extensive displays on Fumai and the tea ceremony as well as the history of the town and castle.

The cafe of the museum, where matcha with traditional sweets is the main offering, looks out on a small traditional garden.

Though modern, and built for the museum, it is a traditional Izumo-style garden, one feature of which is stepping stones raised higher than in other parts of the country.

Like most gardens it is planted with seasonal plants so changes throughout the year. These photos were from a couple of different visits at different times of the year.

The top of the castle keep can be seen from within the cafe.

From the cafe a corridor leads to an old teahouse with links to Sen no Rikyu.

I had always thought this was a replica, but apparently not, it is the oldest teahouse remaining in Matsue.

It was designed either by Sen no Rikyu, or under his guidance, in the late 16th century and ended up in Matsue. In the Meiji Period it was dismatled and stored at the Yakumo Honjin.

The previous post in this series exploring Matsue and Izumo was on the gardens at the Prefectural Office next to the castle.