Kyoto Gardens of Honolulu Memorial Park
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Kyoto Gardens of Honolulu Memorial Park is a cemetery located in the eastern half of the Honolulu Memorial Park, 22 Craigside Place, Honolulu, Hawaii. Its three-tiered Sanju Pagoda, the Kenkaku-ji Temple, and Mirror Gardens are fine examples of Japanese traditional-style structures and gardens built outside of Japan. The gardens are listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Honolulu Memorial Park was established in 1958, and its Buddhist Kinkaku-ji memorial and Sanju Pagoda were constructed between 1964-1966 as part of the Nuuanu Memorial Gardens Funerary Home. This name was changed to Kyoto Gardens in 1966 when the City of Kyoto, Japan, donated a bronze bell, with Abbot Jikai Murakami of Kyoto's Kinkaku-ji present for the opening.
- Sanju Pagoda resembles that of the Minami Hoke-ji Temple in Nara, Japan, built in the Momoyama Period (1571-1602). It is built from concrete and steel,and somewhat larger than the original with a height from foundation to rooftop of 80 feet. Including the ku-rin copper spire, its total height is 116 feet.
- Kinkaku-ji columbarium is modeled upon the reknowned Kinkaku-ji (Golden Pavilion) located on the grounds of the Rokuonji Temple in Kyoto, built in the Muromachi Period (1335-1573). It is three stories tall (38 feet), constructed with steel frame and plaster finish, and with a phoenix finial at its roof peak.
- Mirror Lake Garden, surrounding Kinkaku-ji, also reflects Muromachi Period (1335-1573) garden design.
Both the Sanju Pagoda and Kinkaku-ji serve as columbariums. As of 2006 they are in poor repair, due to the cemetery's financial difficulties.
