Suizenji Park has a venerable history. When the first Hosokawa lord of Higo, Tadatoshi (細川 忠利), was scoping about for a suitable location for a teahouse in 1636 (the Hosokawa clan is renowned for its cultivation of culture), the burbling springs of the area and its proximity to the castle made the choice a no-brainer. Starting from that simple teahouse, the park grew to include a shrine and a garden of the Heian style, in which the entirety of Japan is represented. It then acquired its full moniker, Suizenji Jyoujuen (水前寺成趣園,すいぜんじじょうじゅえん), derived from a poem by the Six Dynasties period Daoist poet Yuanming Gui Qu Lai Ci: ‘Yuan ri she er cheng qu’ （園日渉以成趣, The garden becomes more venerable and stately day by day) in his poem of 405 CE「帰去来辞」, which might be translated as “Poem of Wanderings.”
Of course, a mini Mt. Fuji was required.
Flash forward to 1877 and the Seinan War. The top of mini Mt. Fuji, the highest point in the area, was lopped off to create a gun emplacement. When the dust had settled, the mount was reconstructed, but then dust was again disturbed during the quakes and the reconstructed portion, never properly bound to the base, slid off. Kumanichi reports that reconstruction of the reconstruction is underway. - William
