Through the lens of Shinto the novice is no more absurd than a frog would be in the garden, or a stone:

“The ancient Japanese considered that all things of this world have their own spirituality, as they were born from the divine couple. Therefore, the relationship between the natural environment of this world and people is that of blood kin, like the bond between brother and sister. “
But through my eyes the garden is no less absurd than it is marvelous: the worship of the natural expressed through the total control of the natural, and the novice, who represents us all (with the exception, of course, of yourself dear reader) who satirises himself without suspecting a thing.