"Shogun Askikaga Yoshimitsu built this pavilion on the edge of a lake to serve partly as a villa and partly as a monastery. The building was covered with rich gold leaf. After the regent had officially renounced his governmental responsibilities in order to manipulate politics from behind the scenes, he lived a leisured life indulging his aesthetic inclinations in this splendid villa, where he even received visits form the Emperor." (from "The Oriental World")