Japanese Gravel
Gravel in Japanese gardens represents water, such as the sea or a river. In addition, to abstractly express the roughness of waves or the flow of a river, gravel is streaked with a broom. This is called a sand pattern. At Raku-teiwa, the grain size of natural Japanese gravel is standardized to approximately 3 mm so that visitors can enjoy drawing sand patterns. The gravel color is white, a typical Japanese garden color, and the material used is limestone. Cleaning the gravel is part of the monk’s training, and the sand patterns drawn during this process are considered the finishing touch to a beautiful garden, whether they represent a gentle calm or a series of mystical rings. The sand patterns in RAKUTEI have the effect of calming and purifying the mind, and at the same time, visitors can enjoy drawing the sand patterns freely.
