Keywords
Architecture
Tea Houses
Lit. guest stone. A type of stepping stone *yaku-ishi 役石 placed in the outer *sotoroji 外露地, side of the middle gates *chūmon 中門 in tea gardens *roji 露地. It marks the area where guests stand as the host beckons them toward the tea room *chashitsu 茶室. The kyaku-ishi thus corresponds to the host stone, called teishu-ishi 亭主石 or shujinseki 主人石, which is located on the other side of the chūmon .