roji

thumb|Roji leading to the Seigetsu chashitsu at [[Ise Jingū; typical features include the stepping stones, moss, bamboo gate, and division into outer and inner gardens]] , lit. 'dewy ground', is the Japanese term used for the garden through which one passes to the chashitsu for the tea ceremony. The roji acts as a transitional space leading from the entry gate to the teahouse, and generally cultivates an air of simplicity and purification.

==Development== The roji developed during the Momoyama era (1573–1603) as the tea ceremony established itself in Japan. Sen no Rikyū was important in the development of the roji. At his tea house Tai-an, the 'sleeve-brushing pine' gained its name from the garden's diminutive size. For his tea house at Sakai, he planted hedges to obscure the view over the Inland Sea, and only when a guest bent over the tsukubai would they see the view. Rikyū explained his design by quoting a verse by Sōgi: "A glimpse of the sea through the trees, and the flash of the stream at my feet." Kobori Enshū was also a leading practitioner. thumb|left|Roji with the Nijiriguchi (Entrance) to the tea house at the Adachi Museum of Art, Yasugi, Shimane Prefecture, Japan.