Sakuteiki

Sakuteiki is the oldest written work on Japanese gardening and remains one of the most significant. This new translation by Jiro Takei and Marc Peter Keane brings renewed access to a text that is at once a practical guide and a window into the Japanese worldview of humanity’s relationship with nature.

The book helps readers understand the historical and cultural contexts that led to the development of the //Sakuteiki.// Keane’s extensive annotations build on his late collaborator’s translation, drawing on deep knowledge of Japanese philosophy, design, and horticulture. Together, they illuminate the primary themes woven throughout the Sakuteiki, including the interplay of animist and Buddhist spirituality in gardening taboos.

Equally important is the role of geomancy, recently popularized in the West as “feng shui,” which reflects the Japanese understanding of the interrelatedness of all phenomena. The guide provides concrete instructions on the direction of water flows, the placement of rocks, and the spatial relationships that optimize the movement of life energy through a landscape.

For anyone enamored with Japanese gardens or seeking to understand the aesthetic and philosophical traditions that shape them, this volume is essential. It honors both the technical rigor and the spiritual depth of its source, making the Sakuteiki accessible to contemporary readers without diminishing its complexity.