{"id":31059,"date":"2024-09-08T18:51:16","date_gmt":"2024-09-08T09:51:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hidemishimura.com\/?p=31059"},"modified":"2024-11-25T09:41:00","modified_gmt":"2024-11-25T00:41:00","slug":"garden-jiangnan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hidemishimura.com\/en\/garden-jiangnan\/","title":{"rendered":"Exploring the Spirit of Gardens and the Philosophy of Semi-Official, Semi-Reclusive Life Review of Jiangnan no Niwa: Chinese Literati and Their Spirit"},"content":{"rendered":"

A friend recommended the book Jiangnan no Niwa: Chinese Literati and Their Spirit<\/em><\/a>(Japanese book), so I decided to give it a read. I found it fascinating and wanted to share my thoughts here.<\/p>\n

The Jiangnan region refers to the area spanning southern Jiangsu Province and northern Zhejiang Province, with Suzhou\u2014a UNESCO World Heritage water town\u2014at its heart. This region is famous for the literati gardens that flourished there.<\/p>\n

This book introduces gardens such as the Humble Administrator’s Garden, Lingering Garden, Master of the Nets Garden, Canglang Pavilion, and Lion Grove (all in Suzhou), Jichang Garden (Wuxi), Slender West Lake, Ge Garden, He Garden (Yangzhou), and Yuyuan Garden (Shanghai). Personally, I\u2019ve visited all of these gardens except the ones in Wuxi and Yangzhou, so I\u2019d consider myself a bit of a garden enthusiast.<\/p>\n

What sets this book apart from typical guidebooks is its focus on the historical and philosophical background of these gardens. For instance, the Humble Administrator’s Garden was built by Wang Xianchen, a Ming Dynasty official who, due to his integrity, refused to accept bribes. As a result, he was demoted three times and eventually quit his position, returning to his hometown of Suzhou to build this garden. Stories like these, which you wouldn\u2019t discover just by visiting the gardens, make the book especially engaging.<\/p>\n

What Is a Literati Garden?<\/h3>\n

Literati gardens emerged as a reaction against the ideology of power. While Taoist hermit philosophy became popular among officials, most couldn\u2019t actually retire to reclusive lives. Instead, they built private gardens near their homes as spaces for “mini-retreats.” This trend became so widespread that the Taihu Lake area in southern Jiangsu ran out of rocks due to overharvesting for garden construction!<\/p>\n

Chinese literati balanced two seemingly contradictory ideologies: the pursuit of power and a desire for retreat. Even when they embraced a reclusive lifestyle, they didn\u2019t entirely abandon their aspirations for fame and achievement. A true recluse was recognized as such only if they maintained their scholarly reputation; otherwise, society would dismiss them as mere failures. This dual mindset heavily influenced their garden design.<\/p>\n

As the book explains:<\/p>\n

The history of Chinese gardens begins with imperial palace gardens reflecting power, followed by literati gardens rooted in reclusive philosophy. These two distinct traditions\u2014like the dual ideology of the literati\u2014did not evolve independently but coexisted and influenced one another.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It\u2019s easy to see why officials, whose jobs were often fraught with stress\u2014from authoritarian rule to the pressures of foreign occupation\u2014sought solace in gardens as places of retreat.<\/p>\n

The Unwritten Rules of Literati Gardens<\/h3>\n

The book identifies the unwritten rules of literati gardens:<\/p>\n

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  1. Reflect the owner\u2019s sentiments as a recluse.<\/strong>\n