Earthly Utopias

This rich, beautiful book takes readers from the mountains of Kashmir to a repurposed castle in the west of Ireland, as it tours the most magnificent sacred gardens in the world. Elements from religious gardens – from labyrinths and grottos to monastic herb gardens and geometrical patterns – have long been familiar in garden design, as has the tradition of seeking spiritual enlightenment through nature. But this book takes the reader straight to the source, showcasing the best gardens designed and informed directly by religious and spiritual teachings. These include functional gardens created by monks for sanctuary, medicine and food; the sacred bathing pools of Tirta Gangga in Bali; and the kare-sansui garden at Ry-an-ji, informed by Zen Buddhism. Many are ancient sites full of myth, others have been lovingly restored from ruin, and some have been newly created in recent years in a bid to get closer to the Divine, through traditional religion or the worship of nature itself.   Earthly Utopias visits cathedrals, monasteries, and ruined abbeys; temples, mausoleums, and shrines; forests, islands, and deserts, in search of these sacred gardens. And each one serves as a prime example of how religion, philosophy, and spirituality can inform and inspire beautiful garden design.

Yolanda Zappaterra is a London-based author, editor and researcher who has worked on more than thirty art, design and travel titles. She writes about architecture, art and travel, and contributes regularly to leisure and lifestyle magazines and specialist art and design magazines.

Introduction Hakone Estate and Gardens, USA Sunnylands Center, USA Cleveland Cultural Gardens, USA International Peace Garden, Canada & USA Rodef Shalom Biblical Botanical Garden, USA Bishop’s Garden, Washington National Cathedral, USA San Agustín Archaeological Park, Colombia Le Prieuré d’Orsan, France The Bishop’s Palace Gardens, UK Marburg Garden of Remembrance, Germany Alhambra, Spain The Hague Peace Garden, Netherlands Buckfast Abbey, UK Neot Kedumim Biblical Landscape Reserve, Israel Villa d’Este, Italy Kylemore Abbey, Ireland Fontevraud Abbey, France Bahá’í Terraces, Israel Villandry, France The Gardens of the World, Germany Tresco Abbey Gardens, UK Pagan Tarot Garden, Italy The Cloister Garden of Utrecht, Netherlands Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove, Nigeria The Shalimar Gardens, Pakistan Jingshan Park, China Bell Gardia, Japan Bagh-e Fin, Iran Ry-an-ji, Japan Mehtab Bagh, India Milarri Garden, Australia Sala Keoku, Thailand The Lion Grove Garden, China Nishat Bagh, India Daitoku-ji Compound, Japan Shambhala Gardens, Australia Soswaewon Garden, South Korea Tirta Gangga, Indonesia Te Parapara and Hamilton Gardens, New Zealand Saih--ji, Japan Index Picture credits Author thanks