Japanese rock gardens, sand and gravel

In the Japanese rock garden symbolism, the water is represented by gravel or sand, raked in various patterns by skilled masters, creating a design that tends toward perfection: simple parallel lines or concentric circles symbolizing a calm sea, deep ditches symbolizing stormy waters and even more complex designs, like water drop waves or perfect geometric shapes.

For complex shapes, in order to withstand the wind and the rain drops, gravel is generally preferred, but only a high quality gravel, with same size stones, like in this photo taken inside the Kodai-ji Zen garden from Higashiyama, Kyoto.