# Definition of Iwagumi



## Roy Deki (Apr 7, 2004)

So what constitutes an Iwagumi style tank?


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## bathysphere (Jan 30, 2006)

http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/aquascaping/23346-wet-thumb-forum-what-is-iwagumi.html


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## Faruk Gençöz (Nov 4, 2005)

I understand that there is a religious philosophy and set of rituals behind Iwagumi practice. But the second quote mentions that the main philosophy is lost and only the rules related to aesthetic appearance has been moved to the surface. I interpret this as we are just imitating like a child without knowing what we are doing actually.



Mortadelo said:


> Definition of *Sanzon Iwagumi* from Jaanus.
> 
> _Lit. Buddhist triad stone arrangement. The grouping of one large stone with two smaller flanking stones that lean toward the central stone. The stones are likened to Buddhist triads (see *sanzonbutsu ä¸‰å°Šä»�) such as Shaka sanzon é‡ˆè¿¦ä¸‰å°Š, Amida sanzon é˜¿å¼¥é™€ä¸‰å°Š, Yakushi sanzon è-¬å¸«ä¸‰å°Š and Fudou sanzon ä¸�å‹•ä¸‰å°Š. The central stone is called the chuusonseki ä¸*å°ŠçŸ³, while the side stones are called attendant stones or kyoujiseki è„‡ä¾�çŸ³. In some gardens a worship stone (raihaiseki ç¤¼æ‹�çŸ³) is placed in front of the sanzon iwagumi, in this case the raihaiseki is called the dais stone (daizaseki å�°åº§çŸ³) or lotus seat stone (rendaiseki é€£å�°çŸ³). The term sanzon iwagumi was first found used in the 11c garden treatise *SAKUTEIKI ä½œåº*è¨˜, and thereafter appears in most other garden treatises. Sanzon iwagumi may stand alone or may be included as part oï½† a large stone arrangement. The stones may also be called sanzonseki_


_ ä¸‰å°ŠçŸ³._



Mortadelo said:


> Rocks are the bones of the Japanese garden. If you have properly placed your stones in the garden, the rest of the garden will lay itself out for you. The Sakuteiki laid out hundreds of specific stone groupings, each with a specific meaning. These hold little importance today. It is more important for our purposes to know the basic stones and some of the general rules for stone setting.


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## jsenske (Mar 15, 2004)

In terms of aquascaping, I think the term has become simply a reference to an all-stones based hardscape. Certainly there is more to the actual literal meaning/interpretation, but many have more simply adopted it as a reference to a style.


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## Faruk Gençöz (Nov 4, 2005)

There is a brief introduction to Sanzon-Iwagumi at:
http://www.vectrapoint.com/main/manual/bms2.html

and many guides and explanations at:
http://www.nexus.edu.au/divisions/curriculum/units/japgdn/sections.htm



> The following two photographs and the accompanying poem seek to promote *an understanding and appreciation of a garden style that is totally disassociated with 'western' concepts of what a garden is and does.*


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