The selection and placement of rocks is the most important part of making a Japanese rock garden. In the first known manual of Japanese gardening, the "Sakuteiki" ("Records of Garden Making"), is expressed as "setting stones", "ishi wo tateru koto"; literally, the "act of setting stones upright." It laid out very specific rules for choice and the placement of stones, and warned that if the rules were not followed the owner of the garden would suffer misfortune. In Japanese gardening, rocks are classified as either tall vertical, low vertical, arching, reclining, or flat.