Nara Two-Day Journal｜Collecting the Secret Whispers of the Heian Era Amidst Deer Shadows and Autumn Light

"The morning light spreads over the delicate petals of the chrysanthemum hairpin, stringing the dewdrops on the backs of the deer into crystal necklaces."

When the maple leaves in Kyoto were still between green and yellow, I boarded the October train bound for Nara. This Heijō-kyō city, soaked in autumn colors, carried the October wind filled with the scent of persimmons and the lingering sound of temple bells. Deer bells jingled among the gradually reddening maple forests, and the entire ancient capital unfolded like the slowly opening "Bird Feather Standing Woman Screen," revealing the mottled gold leaf of the flourishing Tang Dynasty in the shifting light of dawn and dusk.

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🦌 Two-Day Autumn Itinerary

Transportation: Major attractions are within walking distance around Kintetsu Nara Station; renting a bicycle is recommended
Accommodation: A machiya-style guesthouse converted near Nara Park, where you can see deer resting at the entrance in the morning

🌸 Day One: Imperial Autumn Colors

· Morning · Ukimido Pavilion
At seven o’clock, Egret Pond is still deserted, its water mirror reflecting vermilion railings and golden ginkgo leaves. Fawns wade through the water, snatching the persimmon leaf sushi from your palm, their eyelashes dotted with fine morning dew.
· Late Morning · Kasugano Garden
Walk along the path lined with three thousand stone lanterns, where maple and cedar trees weave a splendid canopy overhead. Tie five-colored silk threads at the Fufu Okuninushi Shrine, and a shrine maiden will give you a wish paper wrapped in white powder: "Write your heart’s thoughts to the deer messenger."
· Afternoon · Todai-ji Time and Space
Touch the remaining Tang-style carvings at the base of the Great Buddha Hall pillars; hidden in a crack is a cherry blossom specimen from the Bun'ei era. The tea house grandmother brings mugwort dumplings: "Emperor Shomu once gazed at the same layered clouds from here."
· Dusk · Sarusawa Pond
Sit by the pond where the legend of the maidservant took place, watching the sunset gild both the five-storied pagoda and the deer antlers. An old man selling chestnut dumplings says, "The koi here remember the hairpin cast by Empress Kōmyō."

🍁 Day Two: Secret Realm Exploration

· Early Morning · Mount Wakakusa
Climb to the summit via the northern slope trail; the Nara Basin is immersed in pale blue morning mist. The mountain guardian is harvesting red leaves used for dyeing cloth and gives you a bag of serrated tosa-gusa leaves that can be made into bookmarks.
· Late Morning · Shosoin Corridor
View the wooden walls of the azekura-style storehouse through the pine forest; a researcher displays a replica of a mother-of-pearl inlaid mirror at the entrance. When the autumn wind blows, the entire camphor tree grove resonates with the strings of "Karyobin."
· Afternoon · Isuien Garden
Enjoy yuzu jelly in the tea room of the Nara National Museum of Art; outside the glass window, the triple stone bridge and its reflection form an infinity symbol. The gardener trims the century-old wisteria: "It has seen Prince Shotoku walk this autumn path."
· Sunset · Tanzan Shrine
Take a bus to Sakurai City; the thirteen-storied pagoda stands among the maple forest like a vertical dragon flute. The priests rehearse the festival rites, their black robes brushing over the fallen red flowers, as if reenacting the farewell scene of the envoys to Tang from a thousand years ago.

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🎑 Autumn Exclusives

· Deer Flute Calling: Learn to play the cypress deer flute from the park ranger; when the sound rises, the deer will come rushing from deep within the maple forest
· Moss Ball Offering: Make a moss ball wrapped with red smartweed seeds in Ukumo Garden; next spring, it will sprout a Heian pattern on your windowsill
· Special Night Worship: At the end of October, Kasuga Taisha lights up with ten thousand lanterns, and the light flows among the night maples like a moving brocade painting

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"Nara’s October taught me: true eternity is not stillness, but like these deer—reborn every autumn, forever remembering the first frost of Heijō-kyō."