Christmas

Merry Christmas Japan!

Love Stone

Located at Kiyomizudera (清水寺) in the heart of Kyoto there are a pair of stones that people from all over the world come to visit. They are called the love stones oｒ 恋占いの石. This means the "fortune telling  stones" and their purpose is to help one find love.

There are two stones located at 20ft apart. The person who is seeking love starts at one stone, closes their eyes and begins to walk towards the other. Here are the English directions located at the love stone:

 

This may seem silly and superstitious (much of Japanese culture based in superstition) but when I visited kiyomizudera I had the opportunity to attempt the challenge. At the time my girlfriend and I were having some problems (as we were living across an ocean from each other at the time) and I was truly very nervous attempting to do this. I am generally not superstitious, and I am not Japanese, but when I got to that other stone with my eyes closed I was ECSTATIC. I was so happy that I practically jumped up and down. Now, that same girl is now my fiance. It goes to show what a little superstition can do sometimes.

Fun Fact: Pokemon

The term Pokemon （ポケモン）is short for Pocket Monsters.

Tenugui 手拭

If you have an interest in Japan and have studied their culture, pictures, or anime, then you have most likely seen one of these just never realized it. Here is a picture.

Have you guessed it? That's right. It is the headband that Mr. Miagi is wearing. These are called tenugui and are translated as "hand towels".  They can actually have many different functions like wash clothes, bandanas, souvenirs and so on. They can also symbolize different things depending on the print or the way it is worn or used.

 

 

If you have seen my profile picture, I am actually wearing a tenugui around my neck during a matsuri (festival) in Japan. I was lucky enough to be included in the pulling of the dashi ( 山車 - だし） or floats during the festival. Aside from this, the print symbolized which town I was from.

My tenugui, as it hangs around my neck symbolizes I am a puller of the dashi and a participant of the festival. The people working on the floats had them tied around their heads in the following style which during the festival symbolized them as float workers (very important at festivals):

I was lucky enough to be able to keep my tenugui after the matsuri as a souvenir which is one of the main functions of these hand towels as they have been replaced by terri cloth towels in functionality recently. Within Japan they are often only used now for  cultural activities in which a tenugui is traditional and required.

J Rock

Japanese Rock also known as J Rock is a hugely popular genre of music in Japan. Japanese music in general is on the rise in popularity across the world but is mainly sticking to the European and Asian continents.

Here is a music video I found of the band Kishida Kyoudan & The Akeboshi Rockets. It is the opening theme to the anime "High School of The Dead". This live recording I felt was very well done and the song is a great representation of Japanese rock.  If you are a rock fan you will definitely enjoy the style. If not, then please watch it to learn a little bit more about Japan and their entertainment culture.

 

So we can get a more global opinion on Japanese rock music, here are some of the comments that were made on the video.

Kaleb Koehn: I think I'm going to make it my mission to make American rock bands be this loud, chaotic, and fast again, and I'll start by writing songs like this for my band.

Rei Miyamoto: I LOVE HIGHSCHOOL OF THE DEAD SO MUCH AND JAPANESE ROCK I'M JUST SO AHHAHKAJSBFHNSNVOEPIHFSBV LOVEE YOUUUU <3333333

Zack Conner: ill do the same, i wish American rock was still as fast and loud as it was back in the day when Metallica rocked the world

BlackShadowExtreme13: japoneses <3 saudações do brasil. vocês são bons demais.

Wajin Shu: F***ing awesome!!!

Keitai Charms

Straps and charms on keitaidenwa or "keitai" for short in many western countries are on the rise. In many 1st world Asian countries however, like Japan, these have already taken over since the invention of the cell phone. These charms can be found essentially in every store or shop and range from animals, Hello Kitty, bells, small omamori, to sports and so on. 

Japan is a place where once you arrive you will be overwhelmed by the amount of cuteness that you encounter. At least the Japanese understanding of what is cute.  I will delve into this later on but today I will discuss specifically "keitaidenwa charms" or cell phone charms.






The use of keitai charms is a huge part of Japanese social and youth culture and has a basis in the importance of the cell phone culture of Japan. For people with keitai, these charms are a way to share their interests and show their support for their favorite animes and organizations, likes and dislikes, and for most of the young women it shows their ability to understand and portray being cute.

 If we want to talk about functionality of a keitai strap the one thing that it "does" is it allows people to pull their phone out of their pockets with ease. Past that their is no real functionality unless the charm is designed to do so.

In a place like Japan where being yourself and being unique openly is often looked down upon, this simple yet subtle way of expressing yourself is very important to Japanese people on a subconcieous level.

I imagine that if we were to ask many Japanese why they have charms on their phone many would say that the strap or charm signifies something they like and that would be the end of it. It would not be until they evaluated the practice from an outsiders point of view to understand the full effects and meanings behind this form of self expression.

 

Koban （交番）

Here in America it is quite often that a pedestrian walking down the street will see a police car drive by, see a few policeman walking down a busy street with bars and clubs, or maybe be on the wrong end of a speeding ticket.  We see policeman quite often but the interaction is usually very limited.  IN America police stations are few and far between and are not the easiest to access. In Japan however, the police presence and level of interaction is quite a different story.

Japan has what are known as "koban" or "police boxes". These are located at essentially every train station, random corners of streets, out in the middle of a field in the country, and so on. These are  small outposts for the police of Japan and they are always manned with at least one officer. They do have main police stations as well, but those are usually located within the city.

They are identified as police boxes because essentially, that is what they are. Small box like structures that vary in size. 

The oldest koban in Tokyo

The policeman at these small police stations are of course there to uphold the law but mainly you will see them assisting with directions and questions people may have about the area since Japan in such a complicated place to figure out if you are in a new place. Another reason for having the koban at nearly every train station is if the trains to get into accidents occasionally or if someone unfortunately decides to walk out onto the tracks the police will already be on the scene. With the train system in Japan being the main mode of transportation for most of the country, the government cannot afford to have the trains be out of service for too long.

Everyone was always very helpful at these koban as they were always eager to help. They were able to assist me many times. If you need some help with directions or just have a general question I suggest finding the nearest koban.

Kofun and Haniwa

If you were able to read my post earlier about the posthumous traditions of the Japanese, then you are already aware that currently the most common way for people to take care of bodies after death is by cremation. When looking at the reasoning behind this is was the limitations of space and religious traditions that are the most common factors.

The tradition of cremating bodies has been long installed into the Japanese tradition. However, even with the space limitations of the country, there was a time in Japan when with certain circumstances, the practices for posthumous burial disregarded the issue of space.  It was during the Kofun period of Japanese history when this was the case.

Kofun （古墳）: Japanese burial mounds of powerful Japanese people consisting of the imperial family, nobles, and government figureheads that were built in the Kofun period from 250 to 538 AD.

There are multiple types of burial mounds in Japan from this era however the "hey hole shaped" kofun (as depicted above) are by far the most unique due to their size and shape. This style of burial mounds is also specific to Japan and cannot be found in any other part of the world. Some are up to 400 meters long and are simply huge structures

A comparison of the Nintoku kofun and the great pyramid at Giza.

When I first learned of these burial mounds they reminded me of ancient pharaohs tombs that can be found in Egypt as they have many similarities other than just size.

In the more extravagant tombs, there are portraits designs and people painted onto the walls. Below is a replica of one of the largest inner tombs, The Ozuka kofun. Below is a replica of the inside of the Ozuka Kofun.

 

One of the most significant parts of a kofun however is not that of the images depicted on the walls but the contents that were buried along with the body of the deceased.

Haniwa (埴輪）: Described as tomb ornaments, these were included within the tomb and were often set around the body. These included earthenware figurines shaped as men, women, animals, buildings and so on.

     

 

It is suspected that these tomb ornaments are Japan's way of representing loved ones, servants and possessions with the deceased as opposed to including the people directly like tombs found in Egypt or China. There was an instance in which an horse skull was found within a Kofun however this is was a rarity. In many later kofuns however, objects such as swords, armor, and pottery have been found.

Aside from the ideological importance for the deceased, these haniwa allow us to see the evolution of Japanese society throughout the kofun period. For instance, when the first horse haniwa figurine was included, or when the first haniwa warrior was included (right), the dates which correlate to these tombs shows us what was important to the Japanese at the time.

Currently, many of the Kofun sites are public and are considered national monuments. Even though these take up such an immense amount of space in a country which every square foot is necessary, there have not been any type of reforms or movements to remove or relocate city centered Kofun that I am aware of.

Japanese Flag

 The Japanese flag which is known as Hinomaru is depicted as a red sun on a white background. This flag became the national flag after the defeat of Japan in World War II.

Kimigayo: Japan's National Anthem

Japan's national anthem entitled: Kimigayo, is the shortest national anthem in the world.

Kimigayo Sound Clip

Tooth Dye

It was customary in ancient Japan for women to dye their teeth black as white teeth were seen as ugly. Even though this became less common over the years, the tradition persisted until the mid 1800's. We could even go so far as to say that this is the basis for why most Japanese women when smiling, laughing, talking or any time when their teeth could be shown, they cover their mouth with their hands.

Shibuya Crossing

You know that scene in some movies where they show a swarm of people crossing the street in some Asian city? That most likely will always be an image of Shibuya Crossing. Located in Shibuya, Tokyo outside of the Hachiko exit of Shibuya station is one of the busiest intersections in the world. This scramble crossing is where all traffic comes to a complete stop and pedestrians from all sides can cross. There can be as many as 3,000 people crossing at once! I have made the trek to Shibuya a number of times and it was always fun to see and take part in. If you really want to just hang out and do some spying on the people crossing the street, there is a Starbucks that directly overlooks the crossing from across the station.

Current Event: U.S. and Japan to Perform a Joint Drill to 'Retake' Island.

The Japanese SDF (Self Defense Force) and the United States military are going to run practice exercises that will simulate 'recapturing' islands off the coast of Japan. The drill will be taking place at an uninhabited island most likely south of Okinawa and will be the first of its kind to take place on a remote island with both forces involved.

This decision to run this exercise is probably heavily influenced by the custody battle over the remote islets off of the coast of Japan between China, Japan and Russia. More specifically, the Senkaku islands have become more significant in recent months because of the sale of these islands from the controlling Japanese family to the Japanese government. This has brought a large amount of media attention to the Senkaku Islands from all sides and everyone wants to get in on it.  The United Nations states that there is a possibility of gas and oil deposits in the seabeds of these islands. If this is so, with the growing crisis in the middle east we can see why this is becoming more and more pertinent of a location to qualify ownership of.

The main players vying for control are obviously China and Japan. When looking at the map however, Taiwanese influence should not be pushed under the rug either. The collection of Senkaku Islands actually resides closest to Taiwan at a distance of 76 miles, while Japan sits at 92 miles and China at 100 miles away.

It is almost guaranteed that China is not happy with the realization of and follow through of such an exercise by Japan. This will most likely lead to more problems for the neighboring nations that already have a rough history.  I think that this is a good step for Japan to take however. Even though they are pairing up with the United States (as they have been since 1945) this is allowing Japan to make its headway as a nation where a military presence and not just a self defense force should be allowed to exist. With the Korean conflict always near by, I feel this would be a wise decision.

Japanese Writing Systems

Japan has four main scripts that are used.

Kanji - Which was adopted from China over many centuries but first made its way into the country around 400AD. It was used for documentation of government documents and was considered sophisticated. 

Example: 　来年 - Next year

Hiragana - Which was considered a common type of writing system and became popular after Murasaki Shikibu wrote The Tale of Genji in 1021. 

Example:　らいねん - Next year

Katakana - Which is used for foreign words used in Japan.

Example:    ライネン- Next year

Romaji - Which is Japanese words written in roman script.

Example - Rainen (ie: rye nen)- Next year

Japan's Women Only Cars

In Japan, there has been a large molester / groping problem on Japanese trains for decades. To counter this, many train lines have adopted "women only" train cars during rush hour. This is done in order to seperate those women who choose to sit in women only cars from possible attackers.

Japanese Cremations, Burials, and Posthumous Tradition.

Approximately 90-95% of people in Japan are cremated after death.  In addition to the fact that death and the ceremonies that go along with it are very touchy, well ceremonialized practices, the restricted land area in Japan does not allow for mass cemeteries and tombs like a large part of the rest of the world. 

Traditional Japanese Cemetery

Traditionally after cremation, the remains are added to the ancestral tomb where it has been understood up until recently, that your ancestors, you, and those to come after you will all come to rest. Since the land restriction has become such a problem in recent years, a few new developments in 'storage' for these remains have come into popularity. Buildings now exist strictly for the purpose of storing cremated human remains.  This may seem strange and is to some, but to others it is seen as a convenience. Living descendants of their dead relatives can go into a small booth, swipe an ID card that houses their loved ones information and presto... Behind the walls of the building being pulled from its rack is your ancestors remains. It moves on a system of conveyor belts and tracks to finally arrive at your destination. Upon its arrival you can view the urn, say your prayers and wishes and bow as you send the urn back to its storage position until it is requested again. There can be as many as 10,000 remains stored in one location! 

It is also only recently that cremated remains have been able to be spread over certain parts of Japan or in the ocean. As I said before Japanese post death practices are very specific and only in a modern time has it become accepted to be able to spread ashes over any place in Japan as it is scene as tainting/dirtying the location and the area around it.  These places are very, very specific and you must get permits from the Japanese Ministry in order to be able to do so.

I plan on doing a series of posts on Japanese religion later on and will cover a large number of Japanese religious practices more in depth. This will be touched on slightly again at that time.

Shinkansen 新幹線

The shinkansen or what foreigners call "the bullet train" (based in both their shape and speed traveled) are the fastest commuter trains in Japan. They can travel at speeds excess of 275 mph depending on the model and destination. These trains are by far the most efficient way to travel long distances around the nation of Japan. If I recall correctly, you could make it from one end of Honshu to the other (running north to south) in less than 9 hours by shinkansen.

Japanese Shinkansen

Since these trains are the main source of domestic long distance travel, the tickets themselves can become quite expensive.  For instance, in the United States the main choice for domestic travel is by airplane. Therefore, shinkansen tickets can be viewed as an equivalent to an airline ticket in America.

Although Japanese bullet trains have been touted as the worlds fastest commuter trains before, China now takes the prize. The newest Chinese bullet trains travel at speeds excess of 310 miles an hour.

Chinese Bullet Train

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize that with China and Japan's rich history, they will always be competing for the top spot in everything the do. The bullet train battle that I feel we will witness over the next 50 years between these two countries will continue to push the envelope of technology and possibility until a newer, more efficient way of traveling comes to the foreground.

Aisatsu 挨拶

In Japan the interactions that take place with people on a daily basis are very structured and are intrinsic to adult Japanese social culture. From the initial greeting, a complex process of awareness and comprehension follow. It is within both the body language and spoken language of the people interacting  where these many intricacies take place. As Japan is such a socially aware nation, these actions are very important in Japanese society.

Aisatsu is what can be defined as a "greeting" but the cultural understanding of the word is much more than just that of the definition.  The "act" of Aisatsu occur on every level of interaction, ie: child to parent, child to teacher, adult to friend, adult to boss, adult to stranger, clerk to customer and so on and so forth. English speakers also have varying ways of interacting with higher or lower status people but the variances are more slight and are not nearly stressed to the extent as they are in Japan.

Basic Aisatsu:

Ohayou Gozaimasu （おはようございます） - Generally a greeting of "good morning" that is used with adult friends or coworkers before 11am (approximately). Gozaimasu is a part of polite Japanese speech and when used it raises the level of speech being used towards the listener therefor making the sentence more formal. Ohayou used by itself is much more common among younger people, in the home, or with close friends. Depending on the relationship, ohayou can be used as a "hi" or "hello" any time of day.

Konnichiwa （こんにちは）- Meaning "good afternoon" or "good day" is a pretty generic greeting for all social relationships (unless using more formal speech patterns). It is used from approximately 11am to 5pm when the sun begins to settle in the sky.

Konbanwa （こんばんは）- "Good Evening" similar to konnichiwa is a fairly generic greeting that is used after 5pm with relationship statuses across the board.

It is not just what words are used during interaction that make things special about Japanese culture but the actions that take place with them. For example:


Trading business cards with both hands, with the  information properly facing the recipient for easy readability.






Bowing the proper level depending upon the interaction.









The "Irasshaimase!" or "Welcome!" that is heard so often while entering stores or markets is also included in this umbrella of proper greeting etiquette.






When it gets down to it there are extensive, specific practices that are engrained in every different part of Japanese social interaction. Entire books are devoted to topics such as Japanese aisatsu  and are even more narrowly defined downed to specific social situations.  If you are a foreigner in Japan, it is not expected that you know all of the aisatsu customs. However, if you can perform them well in the proper situation, native Japanese will be quite impressed with your understanding of their  social culture.

Japan's Islands

The Japanese archipelago consists of nearly 7,000 islands. However, roughly 97% of Japan's landmass (377,835 sq km / 234,776 sq. miles) is comprised of the four main islands: Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu, and Shikoku.

http://www.emecs.or.jp/01cd-rom/section1/toukei/1top_b_1_1.html

Omamori (お守り)

Japanese culture is full of myth, taboo, and superstition.  These assumptions and understandings that the Japanese people have of daily occurrences and the consequences of their actions are ideas that have been built into their culture since ancient Japan. All of which have a basis in Japanese religion, and therefore, they are seen by native Japanese as fact and not fiction.

 

A major religious tool used by the Japanese in daily life is that of the Omamori. Omamori can be purchased at almost every Buddhist Temple and Shinto Shrine in Japan and can be seen everywhere. When translated into English, Omamori is understood as having the meaning of amulet or talisman.  These objects serve as having many different functions and come in a variety of shapes and sizes.  All of which exist in order to enrich the life of the user/owner in some manner or fashion.

The kanji that makes up Omamori: お[守]り, literally means to protect or to care for. Personal protection was the main purpose of Omamori when they first originated and were simply wooden tablets or paper with prayers or religious texts written on them. As their functionality has evolved from merely warding off bad spirits and providing personal protection into a more contemporary purpose, so have the Omamori themselves. Now, as you can see from the image above, the wood is contained within a small bag or pouch and they generally have the script "Omamori" and the name of the Temple or Shrine where they were purchased. They serve many functions and depending on what religious site you go to, there may be a specialized Omamori that are not offered elsewhere. Here are some examples:

• kōtsū-anzen: traffic safety. Protection for drivers and travelers of all sorts
• yaku-yoke: avoidance of evil
• kaiun: open luck, better fortune
• gakugyō-jōju: education and passing the examination. For students and scholars
• shōbai-hanjō: prosperity in business. Success in business and matters of money
• en-musubi: acquisition of a mate and marriage. Available for singles and couples to ensure love and marriage
• anzan: protection for pregnant women for a healthy pregnancy and easy delivery
• kanai-anzen: safety (well-being) of one's family; peace and prosperity in the household

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omamori

It is not uncommon to see Omamori for "good luck in school" hanging from student's bookbags, Omamori for "finding love" on women's purses, or even a "traffic safety" Omamori in a taxi cab. The users of these Omamori all feel that they will bring them what is known as "genze riyaku" or this worldy, immediate benefits. If the owner/user feels that an Omamori is not functioning, either they themselves are doing something incorrect so they do not deserve the assistance, or they did not put enough faith into the Omamori for the scale of the task they are trying to achieve.

I myself have two "Koutsu Anzen" or traffic safety Omamori. One for my motorcycle, and one for my car. They are both different sizes and cost different amounts when I purchased them. Why is that the case? This is what I mean by the user choosing the Omamori for the occasion. I figured, my motorcycle is smaller so I will need a smaller Omamori for it, and my car is bigger so it will need more protection so I will buy the bigger one. It is this type of thought process that is applied by the Japanese people in regards to Omamori and can go from very simple to very complex.

Omamori aside from providing genze riyaku to the benefactor, can also have qualities of cuteness, fashion, convenience and so on. Some Omamori come in the shape and size of a credit card in order to fit in your wallet. Some are sold as underwear if it is something that you need to keep a secret or if you are needing help with your sex life. And finally for fashion, a Hello Kitty Omamori (who is known as Kitty-Chan in Japan) to some is never a bad thing.

Gundam Cafe

For all of you Gundam fans I am sure you are happy to know this actually exists!

The Gundam Cafe is located in Akihabara (Akiba for short) which is pretty much the anime/manga/otaku/electronics/hentai/etc. center of Tokyo. Its grand opening was on April 24th 2010. I myself did not know this existed and stumbled across it on my way back to Akihabara station from a day wandering the many video game and anime stores Akihabara has to offer.

Obviously I had to go in and check it out. Upon my arrival I was greeted by hostesses dressed in Gundam attire (Earth Alliance and Federation cosplay) and once I saw that I could drink Jaburo blend coffee (Jaburo being a fictional location within the Gundam universe) I immediately told my travel partner that we needed to try it out.

We were lucky enough to walk in and get a seat immediately which I have heard since was a rarity. When the Gundam Cafe first opened the line to get in was on average a two hour wait for weeks!  I imagine the design of the cafe is based off of the White Horse mess hall or something similar.


The walls are plastered with awesome Gundam artwork including cells from the shows, models and large Gundam replicas. Even the bathroom mirror is in the design of a Gundam face! Oh, and the toilet seat goes up all by itself when you enter.. At least in the men's restroom!

As I said before they offer different blends of coffee, food, and of course, Gundam merchandise. All of which if you are a hardcore Gundam fan you will thoroughly enjoy.







Bottom line, if you are in Akihabara, whether you are a Gundam fan or not, this is an AWESOME place to visit! It represents one of the many subcultures of Japan and the Gundam Universe has one of the largest anime followings as its franchise has a very long and intricate history as well. If you go eat a Saber Beam Churro for me!

Links:
Gundam Cafe Official Site!

Japan's Population Density

Japan, which is roughly the size of California has more than one third the population of the United States (approximately 130 million). This makes Japan one of the most densely populated island countries in the world.

 The Japanese archipelago itself is 80% mountainous which forces most of Japan's population to inhabit the coastline and the two major plain regions of Japan: the Kanto （関東） and Kansai （関西） regions. Comparatively to the United States whose population density is 84 people per square mile, Japan's is nearly 10 times that amount at 836 people per square mile. Remember, that is with 80% of the island being mostly uninhabited. (Below is a link to convey the urban population density of Tokyo which is #1 in the world).

Not only does the limited habitable space force people to live near the coast, but being an island country, Japan relies heavily on the sea to provide food and materials for its people and it has been this way since Japan's first inhabitants arrived.

Links:

http://www.newgeography.com/content/002808-world-urban-areas-population-and-density-a-2012-update

http://www.factmonster.com/world/statistics/population-density-square-mile-countries.html

Hello!

Hello everyone! Since this is our first post I figured a small introduction is in order. My name is Corey and I have a BA from the University of Arizona in Japanese Studies. Japan and Japanese culture are both huge parts of my life. I always love learning new things and sharing my knowledge about Japan with those around me. Here I hope to not only share what I already know but also be able to share and learn new things with new people.  We will cover everything from fun facts, history, religion, culture, anime, politics and so on. I hope you enjoy!