Daitokuji

Daitokuji is the head temple of the Rinzai sect's Daitokuji school within Japanese Zen Buddhism and is considered one of the best places to experience Zen in Japan. Daitokuji temple has many subtemples, called "in" which together form a kind of temple village. They are built in 16 century, under lots of influence from Zen and tea ceremony. The main temple and some of the subtemples are open to the public and display Zen architecture and design, including gardens and tea ceremony rooms. Among the most interesting subtemples are Kotoin, which is famous for its maple trees (particularly spectacular when the leaves turn color, usually in mid November) and Daisenin, whose small rock garden is considered one of the best.