Heian attitudes towards nature and garden design

Neither the few surviving remains of gardens of the Heian period nor the hypothetical reconstructions of those lost to us provide sufficient bases upon which to judge contemporary Heian attitudes towards nature and garden architecture. We are thus obliged to rely on historical records of the day, of which two literary sources of particular relevance shall be discussed here The first illustrates the social function of palace gar dens, while the second paints a useful picture of gar den design and construction.