The Gardens of Suzhou

15. Zigzag Bridge

The objective in employing such a bridge, constructed according to Zen philosophy and teachings, is to focus the walker's attention to the mindfulness of the current place and time moment - "being here, now." As it sometimes has no railings, it is quite possible for an inattentive walker to simply fall off an end into the water.

The zig-zag of paths and bridges also follows a principle of Chinese Feng Shui. Negative energy and bad spirits are believed to have problems navigating corners, while people and good energy have no such problem.