「飛び石」とはよく云ったものである
It is clever to describe them as stepping stones.

飛び石

なぜ“飛び石”なのか？それは断続的に置かれた石の配置が、虚の空間を生み出すからである。一歩踏み外したら、それは虚無の世界への入り口。だから子供たちこそ、飛び石を注意深く超えようとするのだ。庭造りの先人たちはこの飛び石の厳格な掟をうまく用いて、ある空間から別の空間への移動の演出に用いた。時にはリズムを帯びさせ、あるいは崩し、意図的に意識を向けさせるのである。直打ち、千鳥掛け、二連打ち…。また、飛び石は視線を操作する上でも効果的である。なぜなら客人たちは足下に意識が集中し、視線が自然と次の石へ移るからである。客は飛び石によって主人の意向に身を託し、そのゲームを楽しむのだ。普段では不合理な“遠い道と近い道”との違いが存在するのもそんな理由からである。また別の空間に入ることをさりげなくさししめす沓ぬぎ石としても利用可能である。

Why are they called stepping stones? It is because the arrangement of stones placed intermittently creates a space of void. A single misstep will lead us to the entrance to the world of void. Therefore, children try carefully to go over the stepping stones. Our predecessors of gardening experts made good use of strict rules of stepping stones, using them as a way to move from one space to another. At times they are placed rhythmically and other times rhythm is intentionally broken to draw our attention─e.g., jika–uchi (stones are placed regularly on a straight line), chidori–gake (each group of stones is placed in regular diagonals), and niren-uchi (two stones are placed in a straight line with another stone off the line). The stepping stones are effective in manipulating one’s view because guests concentrate their attention on their steps, and spontaneously turn their eyes to the next stepping stone. While stepping on the stepping stones, guests commit themselves to their host’s intention, as if enjoying the game. This is part of the reason why the difference of two stones are placed in a straight line with another stone off the line“a distant road and a near road,” that are usually considered irrational, comes to exist. Also the stepping stones can be used to provide guests a place to take off their shoes that indirectly hints at an entrance to another space.

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“遠い道と近い道”（5）“庭に面した幅の広い廊下”（7）
“Distant Road and Near Road”(5) “Wide Corridor Facing a Garden”(7)

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作成者：原案 ちくは ＋ トリートメント 中谷礼仁、米田沙知子、舩橋
Production: Originally planned by CHIKUHA + Treatment: Norihito Nakatani, Sachiko Yoneda, and Kotaro Funabashi