Ohara Sanzenin Temple A dry landscape rock garden (karesansui). Ohara, Japan View from the veranda at Sanzenin Temple. Ohara, Japan A small Jizo statue stands between large cedar trees. Jizo is the guardian of children, particularly children who died before their parents. He is the saviour of souls who suffer in the underworld, and is also the protective deity of travellers, and roadside statues of Jizo are a common sight in Japan. Ohara Two small Buddhist Jizo statues surrounded by green moss and cedar trees. Ohara, Japan A bronze statue of Benzaiten (her sanskrit name is Sarasvati Devi, which means flowing water), Benzaiten is the goddess of eloquence, of everything that flows – water, knowledge, speech, eloquence, and music. Ohara, Japan A Japanese water fountain or ‘tsukubai’ is a small basin provided in Japanese Buddhist temples for visitors to purify themselves by the ritual washing of hands and rinsing of their mouth. Tsukubai are usually made of stone and the water is provided through a bamboo pipe called a ‘kakei’.