The Zen garden (also called Japanese dry garden or Japanese rock garden) is a minimalist landscape consisting of carefully placed rocks and gravel, surrounded by a wall, bamboo screen or a formal hedge. The Zen garden is intended to aid meditation while being able to be surveyed in its entirety from a particular vantage point.
Zen gardens are created according to seven principles: sobriety, simplicity, naturalness, asymmetry, subtlety, magic and silence.
The elements of Zen gardens have deep symbolic meaning. Gravel represents water and is raked in patterns. Raking gravel is part of the meditative process. Rocks symbolise mountains and eternity. The colour palette is subdued. Light, neutral colours such as white, beige or grey are used.
In classical Zen gardens, no water is used. In modern gardens, water is sometimes added in the form of a fountain or a waterfall.
Planting is usually low and creeping, to complement the landscape without overwhelming it. Plants often used are bonsai, dwarf conifers, Japanese maple, bamboo, ferns and mosses.
Statues such as Buddha statues or Japanese lanterns can be placed.
Lighting adds to the mystical atmosphere of Zen gardens.
