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This Month > Water in the Old Capital
The Ways of Water in the Old Capital
Kyoto's old wells & the Takasegawa canal
Kyoto's Ancient Sweet Water Wells
The Old Capital's famous sweet well waters or meisui continue to be the most important ingredient for making some of Japan's finest tofu and sake. Many locals continue to come to these wells to get good, clean water and the health blessings they have long been known for. Many of them are in popular tourist areas and visiting one or two is highly recommended.
Goko Sui: The water at Gokonomiya Shrine or "Palace of Fragrance", ranked as one of the best 100 wells in Japan, is said to cure sickness, and make your dreams comes true. It was used for bathing Tokugawa family babies in the Edo period (1600-1868); Tel: 611-0559.
Gion Wakimizu: Yasaka Shrine is said to be built on a well of pure water, believed to be the home of the blue dragon diety that protects Kyoto. The water from this well (southeast of the main hall) is called rikisui, or power water. Kyoto women, especially maiko and geiko, drink here to ensure their beauty; Tel: 561-6155.
Kitashirakawa Tenjin: The water at this little shrine (tested monthly) attracts people from all over the area.
Otowa Waterfall: The water from Kyoto's most famous waterfall in Kiyomizu Temple (which means Pure Water) has long been famous for its ability to prevent sickness and accidents. The area around the base of the waterfall is crowded with Kyoto citizens early in the morning; Tel: 551-1234.
Shimogoryo Kosui: The old well at Shimogoryo Shrine just reopened several years ago, after being closed and forgotten for nearly half a century. Cold and sweet, the water here is checked monthly. On Teramachi, south of Marutamachi. Tel: 231-3530.
Somei: The Somei well at Nashinoki Shrine has long been popular with Kyoto citizens. The six wells at this ancient location next to the Imperial Palace compound were used by the empress in the early 10th century to dye her husbands garments, one well for each color. Today, only one well, Somei, is still used; Tel: 211-0885.
The Takasegawa Canal
This month, if you have the time, consider strolling down the Takegawa Canal along the lively, yet always interesting, world of Kiyamachi and Pontocho.
Though the Takasegawa is called a river in Japanese, it is actually a canal, built with thousands of laborers. This is quite an amazing fact, when you consider that the canal runs from Nijo all the way down to the Yodo River in Fushimi/Chushojima, a distance of some 15 kilometers. The water in the river was siphoned off from the Kamogawa River, and the canal ran parallel to the river until Jujo Street, at which point it crossed the river and continued in a southeasterly direction until it merged with the Uji River.
The giant Takasegawa Canal was the brilliant idea of one man: Suminokura Ryoi (1554-1614), a prominent 16th/17th-century Kyoto merchant and overseas trader, who was responsible for a number of visionary projects in Kyoto. A colorful figure of great confidence, Suminokura boldly proposed and funded the construction of the canal, which had a huge impact on Kyoto commerce and also greatly facilitated his own business activities. He was born in Kyoto, as Yoshida Mitsuyoshi, to a family of physicians and money lenders. In the 1590s, he obtained an official license to engage in overseas trade from Toyotomi Hideyoshi and quickly built up a fortune trading with Annam and Tonkin (both located in present-day Vietnam).
In its heyday, the canal functioned as an important transportation artery for moving goods to and from Osaka. The canal played a special role in the wood trade. Lumber was harvested in the areas north and west of Kyoto (logs were floated down the Hozugawa River from Kameoka and then moved on giant carts on Marutamachi, or log street, to the head of the canal, where they were turned into lumber and then shipped on to Osaka). More than 100 Takase boats, characterized by their flat bottoms and high sides (there is one laden with sake barrels at the head of the canal, just south of Nijo), plied the canal.
After the Meiji period (1868-1912), the Takasegawa Canal was no longer used as a commercial canal. However, lined with trees on both sides, the canal adds a distinctive charm to downtown Kyoto.
2008 August
Published on the 1st
of every month.
The 223th issue, since 1987.