DOCSLIB.ORG

ITINERARI NEL SACRO L’Esperienza Religiosa Giapponese

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
ITINERARI NEL SACRO L’Esperienza Religiosa Giapponese Massimo Raveri ITINERARI NEL SACRO L’esperienza religiosa giapponese Massimo Raveri Itinerari nel sacro. L’esperienza religiosa giapponese © 2006, 1984 Libreria Editrice Cafoscarina ISBN 88-7543-109-4 In copertina: Bambina in costume sciamanico durante un matsuri (Foto dell’autore) Tutti i diritti riservati. Libreria Editrice Cafoscarina Calle Foscari 3259, 30123 Venezia www.cafoscarina.it Seconda edizione riveduta e ampliata aprile 2006 Stampato in Italia presso Selecta SpA, Milano A Luisa e in memoria di Elsa AVVERTENZE Il sistema di trascrizione seguito è lo Hepburn, che si basa sul principio ge- nerale che le vocali siano pronunciate come in italiano e le consonanti come in inglese. In particolare si tengano presente i seguenti casi: ch è un’affricata come l’italiano “c” in cena g è sempre velare come l’italiano “g” in gara h è sempre aspirata j è un’affricata s è sorda come nell’italiano sasso sh è una fricativa come l’italiano “sc” di scena u in su e in tsu è quasi muta e assordita w va pronunciata come una “u” molto rapida y è consonantico e si pronuncia come l’italiano “i” di ieri z è dolce come nell’italiano rosa; o come in zona se iniziale o dopo “n” La lunga sulle vocali indica l’allungamento delle stesse, non il raddoppio. Tutti i termini giapponesi sono resi al maschile. Seguendo l’uso giapponese, il cognome precede sempre il nome. PERIODIZZAZIONE DELLA STORIA GIAPPONESE Jōmon 縄文 (fino al 200 a.C.) Yayoi 彌 生 (200 a.C. – 250) Kofun 古墳 (250-552) Asuka 飛鳥 (552-646) Hakuhō 白鳳 (646-710) Nara 奈良 (710-794) Heian 平安 (794-1185) Kamakura 鎌倉 (1185-1333) Nanbokuchō 南北朝 (1336-1392) Muromachi 室町 (1392-1568) Azuchi Momoyama 安土桃山 (1568-1600) Tokugawa 徳川 (1600-1868) Periodi moderni Meiji 明治 (1868-1912) Taishō 大正 (1912-1926) Shōwa 昭和 (1926-1988) Heisei 平成 (1988- ) INDICE I. LO SPAZIO 11 Lo spazio sacro 11 La risaia 13 La montagna 19 Il tempio 24 Il concetto di oku 30 Uno spazio marginale 34 Architettura dell’impermanenza 40 Il limite 42 Coltivato e incolto 48 Il gusto per l’asimmetria 50 Giardini e paradisi 56 Esterno e interno 59 La casa 63 La fuga e il ritorno: il pellegrinaggio 68 Itinerari di ascesi 75 II. IL TEMPO 87 La ciclicità del tempo 87 I riti dell’anno 89 I riti e la vita dell’uomo 93 Il sacro e il quotidiano 101 Il tempo come pienezza d’azione 103 Il dono 106 La scansione del rito 107 Il valore dei proverbi 113 I vagabondi e il fantastico 114 Il calendario e il potere sul tempo 118 La divinazione e l’annullamento del tempo 121 Il senso dell’impermanenza 135 Contro la logica del tempo: il miira 139 Il potere del passato 140 Il millennio e il paradiso che verrà 147 10 ITINERARI NEL SACRO III. LA MORTE 151 Il corpo 151 Purezza e impurità 154 Il cadavere 159 Riti di separazione del morto 165 La morte di Izanami 168 La doppia sepoltura 170 Il lutto 172 Gli antenati 175 Spiriti dei morti, spiriti divini 183 La festa del ritorno dei morti 188 Iconografia dell’aldilà 195 Il giudizio dei morti 207 Il viaggio estatico nel mondo ultraterreno 210 I morti inquieti 219 I culti del rimorso 229 Il suicidio rituale 243 L’automummificazione 248 IV. IL POTERE 253 Gli dei 253 Lo shintō e l’ideologia nazionalista 268 La gerarchia religiosa 280 Il vertice del potere 292 L’impurità della donna 307 Le sciamane cieche e gli spiriti infelici 315 La forza dei liminali 320 Majutsushi, il maestro di illusioni 323 Le fondatrici carismatiche delle Nuove Religioni 331 BIBLIOGRAFIA 341 LO SPAZIO Il passaggio segreto verso le profondità della montagna sacra di Yoshino, là dov’è la dimora del nulla. (formula rituale degli yamabushi) Lo spazio sacro Ogni cultura opera delle scelte per definire lo spazio sacro, le sue specificità e i suoi limiti, e queste scelte non sono mai casuali. Al- l’origine vi è un’organizzazione generale dell’ecosistema; in questo ordinamento viene designata la porzione spaziale che ha le caratteri- stiche più adatte a riassumere le connotazioni del sacro. Lo spazio sacro infatti non è una configurazione culturale isolata e avulsa dal contesto e i criteri della sua struttura simbolica non se- guono delle proprie specifiche leggi. Non vi è una dicotomia di spa- zio sacro e profano con caratteristiche diverse, che presuppongano comportamenti sociali differenti. Il tempio, il cimitero, il villaggio, la casa sono collocati in modo coerente con l’insieme e in base a signi- ficati che trascendono quelli della loro funzione concreta. Spazio sa- cro e profano appartengono alla stessa logica culturale. È per como- dità e semplicità che, parlando di una qualsiasi delle modalità dello spazio, si sceglie di astrarla dalle altre; ma né l’una né le altre cessa- no di influenzarsi e di concorrere a una sua determinata organizza- zione. La questione dunque è di definire le caratteristiche dello spazio sacro e di mettere in luce le ragioni della scelta. Il problema in realtà 12 ITINERARI NEL SACRO è uno solo: nel momento in cui si riescono a delineare le tipologie dello spazio, dalle caratteristiche stesse dei termini tassonomici risul- ta chiara la logica culturale per cui lo spazio scelto per il sacro non poteva essere che quello. Qui sorge un’ulteriore domanda. Se lo spazio ha quelle specifiche caratteristiche è perché, in precedenza, è stato interpretato simboli- camente in un certo modo, e di conseguenza così è stato vissuto nella prassi economica? O è perché è vissuto in un certo modo a livello materiale che viene inevitabilmente classificato e organizzato con quelle modalità e non con altre? Vi è prima un’esigenza economica che condiziona la classificazione simbolica dello spazio, o è una scelta culturale a condizionare la prassi economica? Il problema rimanda alla necessità di comprendere se la diversità estensionale delle culture sia basata o meno sulla diversità dell’eco- sistema e quale tipo di relazione si determini tra l’ambiente ecologico e la società che lo esperisce1. Si devono oltrepassare le teorie di un semplice determinismo geografico in cui non vi è posto per variabili culturali. Anni fa, gli antropologi che sostenevano questa tesi non si limitavano a dire che una particolare combinazione di tecnologia e di ambiente rendeva solo possibile all’uomo di creare un particolare ti- po di organizzazione culturale2. Essi insistevano nel sostenere che rapporti tecno-ambientali simili causavano (con un alto grado di pro- babilità) effetti simili. La risposta al problema di quali siano le relazioni che inter- corrono fra ecosistema organizzato e società, è sfumata. Essa com- porta, come ha messo in rilievo Marshall Sahlins, “l’idea di recipro- cità, di dialogo tra cultura e ambiente. La cultura, come un modello per la perpetuazione del gruppo sociale ‘postula’ il proprio ambiente. 1 Per una definizione di ecosistema vedi E. Odum, Fundamentals of Ecology, Saun- ders, Philadelphia-London 1959, p. 10. 2 Sul problema del determinismo geografico visto dalle varie scuole di antropologia vedi P. Burnham e R. Ellen (a cura di), Social and Ecological Systems, A.S.A. Mo- nographs 18, Academic Press, London 1979 e A. Vayda (a cura di), Environment and Cultural Behavior, American Museum Sourcebooks in Anthropology, The Na- tural History Press, New York 1969. LO SPAZIO 13 Attraverso i suoi modi di produzione, i bisogni materiali della pro- pria struttura sociale nelle sue percezioni standardizzate, una cultura determina la rilevanza di particolari condizioni esterne. Persino il suo divenire storico è movimento lungo la ‘sutura ecologica’ di cui essa stessa ha organizzato lo sfruttamento. Eppure una cultura è plasmata dai limiti che si è autoimposta: si modifica secondo condizioni ester- ne significative per sfruttare al massimo le possibilità di vita. […] La migliore risposta alla controversia su quale sia il determinante – cul- tura o ambiente – dovrebbe essere questa: entrambe. La risposta si situa in ambedue gli estremi”3. La società produce lo spazio che le è proprio e questo spazio è la condizione della sua esistenza come so- cietà. La parola “organizzazione” definisce bene il rapporto analogico fra i vari livelli di interpretazione dello spazio. Vi è un’organizzazio- ne passiva che riassume le condizioni materiali, oggettive e inevita- bili, dell’ecosistema dato, e vi è un’organizzazione attiva, che è frut- to del lento processo di appropriazione e di modificazione del territo- rio da parte della società. Secondo Augustin Berque, si può distin- guere fra organizzazione tecnica, organizzazione sociale e organiz- zazione mentale dello spazio4. Lo spazio sacro riassume tutte e tre le tipologie. La risaia La percezione dello spazio si attua attraverso due vie: l’una, dinami- ca, che consiste nel percorrerlo prendendone coscienza, l’altra, stati- ca, che permette, da fermi, di ricostituire attorno a sé i cerchi succes- sivi che vanno attenuandosi fino ai limiti dell’ignoto. “La mitologia dei cacciatori-raccoglitori comporta essenzialmente immagini di iti- 3 M. Sahlins, “Culture and Environment: the Study of Cultural Ecology”, in A. Manners e D. Kaplan (a cura di), Theory in Anthropology, Aldine, Chicago 1973, p. 368. 4 Cfr. A. Berque, Vivre l’espace au Japon, Presses Universitaires de France, Paris 1982, pp. 23-25. 14 ITINERARI NEL SACRO nerari: itinerari degli astri, itinerari degli eroi organizzatori. In nume- rosi miti di diverse parti del mondo […] l’universo è inizialmente caotico e popolato di esseri mostruosi. Seguendo un percorso, l’eroe combatte i mostri, stabilisce la posizione delle montagne e dei fiumi, dà agli esseri il loro nome, trasformando di conseguenza l’universo in un’immagine simbolicamente regolata, assimilabile e controllabile dall’uomo”5.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Japanese New Religion Oomoto
    UNIVERSITÉ DU QUÉBEC À MONTRÉAL THE JAPANESE NEW RELIGION OOMOTO: RECONCILIATION OF NATNIST AND INTERNATIONALIST TRENDS THE SIS SUBMITTED AS PARTIAL REQUIREMENT FOR THE MASTERS OF ARTS IN RELIGIOUS STUDIES JOEL AMIS APRIL 2015 UNIVERSITÉ DU QUÉBEC À MONTRÉAL Service des bibliothèques Avertissement La diffusion de ce mémoire se fait dans le respect des droits de son auteur, qui a signé le formulaire Autorisation de reproduire et de diffuser un travail de recherche de cycles supérieurs (SDU-522 - Rév.01-2006) . Cette autorisation stipule que «conformément à l'article 11 du Règlement no 8 des études de cycles supérieurs, [l 'auteur] concède à l'Université du Québec à Montréal une licence non exclusive d'utilisation et de publication de la totalité ou d'une partie importante de [son] travail de recherche pour des fins pédagogiques et non commerciales. Plus précisément, [l 'auteur] autorise l'Université du Québec à Montréal à reproduire , diffuser, prêter, distribuer ou vendre des copies de [son] travail de recherche à des fins non commerciales sur quelque support que ce soit, y compris l'Internet. Cette licence et cette autorisation n'entraînent pas une renonciation de [la] part [de l'auteur] à [ses] droits moraux ni à [ses] droits de propriété intellectuelle. Sauf entente contraire, [l 'auteur] conserve la liberté de diffuser et de commercialiser ou non ce travail dont [il] possède un exemplaire. " UNIVERSITÉ DU QUÉBEC À MONTRÉAL LA NOUVELLE RELIGION JAPONAISE OOMOTO: RÉCONCILIATION DES COURANTS NATIVISTES ET INTERNATIONALISTES MÉMOIRE PRÉSENTÉE COMME EXIGENCE PARTIELLE DE LA MAÎTRISE EN SCIENCES DES RELIGIONS JOEL AMIS AVRIL 2015 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First of all, I would like to thank the Oomoto organization rn general and the International Department ofüomoto in particular for graciously hosting us in Kameoka and other Oomoto centers and for all their eff01is to facilitate my research.
    [Show full text]
  • The New Religious Sects of Japan
    A Review Article THE NEW RELIGIOUS SECTS OF JAPAN by Shuteu Oishi The New Religions of Japan by Harry Thomsen, Tokyo, Japan and Rutland, Vermont: Charles E. Tattle Co” 1963, pp. 269，US $5.00 C VI,100)* Introduction The Nezv ReHg ons of Japan by Harry Thomsen is an unusually attractive, splendidly illustrated, and very interesting presentation of a subject about wh.ch there is a great deal of interest but very little factual knowledge. The Charles E. Tuttle Co.. the publisher, is to be commended for its unusually fine format. Since this is only the second volume in English to deal with the total situation, the book is certain to be read widely, and it wii! give the general reader a reasonably satisfactory overall picture of these modern sects. It is extremely unfortunate， however, that it is not as accurate and thoroughly reliable as it should be Had the manuscript been submitted to any ciie of a number of competent scholars in the field before publica­ tion, some of the more serious errors at least could have been eliminated. And some of the inconsistencies would have been avoided had more care been taken to incorporate last minute additions in the body of the text as well as merely at the end of some chapters. For example, P L Kvodiin is credited with * This book is available in Japan in paperback for ¥540. 一 45 — THE NEW RELIGIOUS SECTS OF JAPAN 600,000 believers on page 183 and 700，000 on page 197 ; and Daisaku Ikeda is only one of the Soka Gakkai leaders on page 100，but he is the tmrcl president on page 107.
    [Show full text]
  • Full Download
    VOLUME 1: BORDERS 2018 Published by National Institute of Japanese Literature Tokyo EDITORIAL BOARD Chief Editor IMANISHI Yūichirō Professor Emeritus of the National Institute of Japanese 今西祐一郎 Literature; Representative Researcher Editors KOBAYASHI Kenji Professor at the National Institute of Japanese Literature 小林 健二 SAITō Maori Professor at the National Institute of Japanese Literature 齋藤真麻理 UNNO Keisuke Associate Professor at the National Institute of Japanese 海野 圭介 Literature KOIDA Tomoko Associate Professor at the National Institute of Japanese 恋田 知子 Literature Didier DAVIN Associate Professor at the National Institute of Japanese ディディエ・ダヴァン Literature Kristopher REEVES Associate Professor at the National Institute of Japanese クリストファー・リーブズ Literature ADVISORY BOARD Jean-Noël ROBERT Professor at Collège de France ジャン＝ノエル・ロベール X. Jie YANG Professor at University of Calgary 楊 暁捷 SHIMAZAKI Satoko Associate Professor at University of Southern California 嶋崎 聡子 Michael WATSON Professor at Meiji Gakuin University マイケル・ワトソン ARAKI Hiroshi Professor at International Research Center for Japanese 荒木 浩 Studies Center for Collaborative Research on Pre-modern Texts, National Institute of Japanese Literature (NIJL) National Institutes for the Humanities 10-3 Midori-chō, Tachikawa City, Tokyo 190-0014, Japan Telephone: 81-50-5533-2900 Fax: 81-42-526-8883 e-mail: [email protected] Website: https//www.nijl.ac.jp Copyright 2018 by National Institute of Japanese Literature, all rights reserved. PRINTED IN JAPAN KOMIYAMA PRINTING CO., TOKYO CONTENTS
    [Show full text]
  • Unforgotten Dreams: Poems by the Zen Monk Shōtetsu
    a SeI (aToaen,AEE EERE Si TS STSRRaeSa ~ E A = Unforgetten pareee) rales DY a ee CsanyCaresiT Steven D. Carter SEYEREacncmeSreeGtRotanacoc) rather serious misfortunesin his life: lost all the poemsofhis first thirty years—more than 30,000 of them—ina fire; his estate re enues were confiscated by an angry shogun; and rivals refused to allow his work to appear1 the only imperially commissioned poetry anthology of his time. Undeterred by raatecromelert cles, he still managed to makea living from his poetry and won recognition as a true mast widely considered to be the last great poet of the classical uta, or waka, tradition. Shotet viewed his poetry as both a myeeeeverarTeCe mcsbrearelecmecnetary and his extraordinarily proli Ree comprised more than 11,000 poems—the single largest body of work in the Japane Tales The first major collection of Shétetsu's work in English, Unforgotten Dreams presen beautifully rendered translations of more than two hundred poems. The book opens wi Steven Carter's generous introduction on Shdtetsu's life and work and his significance Japaneseliterature, and includes a glossary of important names andplaces anda list of source MRTR oon erchr sae CCC COONeoUeLbsRecLAL spirit of one of Japan's greate poets, this fine collection fills a major gap in the English translations of medieval Japaneseli erature. STEVEN D. CARTERis Professor of Japanese Literature and Chair of the Departmentof East Asi: PyeTcceeTate Oiccrevetrcoce-casoC ObirhVoesiavera GlCeouu CY beanies co has written, edited, a1 translated numerous books and articles on Japaneseliterature, including Waiting for the Win Thirty-six Poets of Japan's Late Medieval Age (Columbia) and Regent Redux: A Life of t.
    [Show full text]
  • SHINTŌ: EL CAMINO DEL CORAZÓN ‘Conciencia Mítica En El Japón Contemporáneo’
    UNIVERSIDAD DE CHILE Facultad de Filosofía y Humanidades Departamento de Ciencias Históricas SHINTŌ: EL CAMINO DEL CORAZÓN ‘Conciencia Mítica en el Japón Contemporáneo’ Informe de Seminario de Grado: Mito, Religión y Cultura para optar al grado de Licenciada en Historia : ISABEL MARGARITA CABAÑA ROJAS PROFESOR GUÍA: JAIME MORENO GARRIDO Santiago, Chile 2008 AGRADECIMIENTOS . 4 I.-INTRODUCCIÓN . 5 Marco Teórico . 6 II.-DESARROLLO . 12 1. Conciencia Mítica y Shintō. 12 a) Conciencia Mítica según Georges Gusdorf . 12 b) Características Generales del Shintō . 14 c) Shintō y Mito . 18 2. Período Pre-Meiji . 24 a) Japón, Cultura agrícola . 24 b) Cultura China y Budismo . 27 c) Contactos con Occidente . 30 3. Período Post-Meiji . 32 a) La Apertura Económica . 33 b) El Shintō Estatal . 34 c) Después de 1945 . 36 III. CONCLUSIONES . 41 BIBLIOGRAFÍA . 43 LIBROS . 43 ARTÍCULOS . 44 ANEXO 1: MAPAS . 46 ANEXO 2: EJEMPLOS DE MATSURI . 48 ANEXO 3 : SANTUARIO DE ISE . 50 ANEXO 4 : JŌMON . 52 ANEXO 5 : KOFUN . 55 ANEXO 6 :KAN-NAME-SAI . 57 ANEXO 7 :HŌNEN MATSURI . 58 SHINTŌ: EL CAMINO DEL CORAZÓN AGRADECIMIENTOS En primer lugar, quisiera agradecer a mis padres, Carlos y María Elena. El tema de este informe llegó a mí muy similar a una epifanía. El marco general estaba, pero no podía encontrar aquello que hiciera sentido en mí como esperaba que sucediera, hasta que vi en el Mito lo que faltaba al rompecabezas. La libertad que sentí de poder darme el tiempo de buscar lo que anhelaba como objeto de estudio, de haber podido estudiar lo que quería, y de cultivar esta inquietud que ya me acompaña desde hace diez años, y que con paciencia entendieron, se los debo a ellos.
    [Show full text]
  • Chuichi Fukaya
    Chuichi Fukaya — In Memory of the Third Shinbashira first of all, earn the trust of our family and society: this is the Zenye Nakayama, the third Shinbashira, passed away for lesson learned from Oyasama’s “Divine Model.” rebirth on June 24, 2014. Summarizing, in part, the entry under his name in the Tenrikyo Jiten (Tenrikyo Encyclopedia), I would like Ichiro Soda — Histories of the Tenrikyo Mission (32) Overseas to reminisce upon his achievements. Mission to Other Areas He was born on July 7, 1932, as the first son of Shozen I will write about overseas missions that I did not touch upon Nakayama, the second Shinbashira, and his wife, Setsu. On in the previous three articles. These missions include Mexico, November 14, with the passing away for rebirth of Shozen South American countries, Europe, and Africa. Nakayama, Zenye Nakayama became the Shinbashira. In Mexico, the mission began when Shinako Takane, a On September 7, 1955, the Tenrikyo Institute of Music member of the Sanohara Grand Church, journeyed to Mexico for was established and he became its president. On April1, her marriage and began missionary work. Through her efforts, the 1956, with the call for the Young Men’s Association to Mexico Church was established in 1961, and followers of other carry out the construction of the Oyasato yakata building grand churches came to attend the church. As a result, the Nagoya complex, the “Construction of Home of the Parent Mexico Church was established. Hinokishin Corps” was established, and he spearheaded its In Colombia, the mission began when students of Tenri High activities by becoming its first corps leader.
    [Show full text]
  • The Myth of Royal Authority and Shinbutsu-Shūgō (Kami-Buddha Amalgamation)
    Yoshiro Sakurai Eri Fujieda The Myth of Royal Authority and Shinbutsu-Shūgō (Kami- Buddha Amalgamation) In: Cahiers d'Extrême-Asie, Vol. 13, 2002. pp. 85-99. Citer ce document / Cite this document : Sakurai Yoshiro, Fujieda Eri. The Myth of Royal Authority and Shinbutsu-Shūgō (Kami-Buddha Amalgamation). In: Cahiers d'Extrême-Asie, Vol. 13, 2002. pp. 85-99. doi : 10.3406/asie.2002.1178 http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/asie_0766-1177_2002_num_13_1_1178 Résumé Cet article étudie deux étapes historiques du développement du mythe de l'autorité impériale au Japon. La première se situe à l'époque où le bouddhisme fut adopté dans la structure mythologique japonaise. Dans le Japon ancien, l 'autorité impériale gouvernait au moyen du système des codes (jp. ritsuryō). La mythologie et les cérémonies qui faisaient la démonstration de cette autorité mirent toutefois de côté l'impureté et l'exclurent du schéma mythologique général. L'ironie est qu'une telle exclusion rendit l'autorité impériale moins capable d'expliquer mythologiquement la création de l'univers par le truchement de la mythologie. De manière générale, les structures mythologiques nourrissent la violence. Celle-ci apparaît comme le premier élément dans les théories de la création de l 'univers. Dans le cas du Japon, la force violente fut représentée par les esprits courroucés et vengeurs des morts (jp. onryō). Mais, cet aspect fut redouté et volontairement négligé dans la mythologie impériale. C'est dans ce contexte que le bouddhisme fut adopté pour apaiser les esprits des morts assoiffés de vengeance et ainsi redonner à cette autorité sa puissance mythique dans toute sa plénitude.
    [Show full text]
  • Representations of Pleasure and Worship in Sankei Mandara Talia J
    Mapping Sacred Spaces: Representations of Pleasure and Worship in Sankei mandara Talia J. Andrei Submitted in partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Columbia University 2016 © 2016 Talia J.Andrei All rights reserved Abstract Mapping Sacred Spaces: Representations of Pleasure and Worship in Sankei Mandara Talia J. Andrei This dissertation examines the historical and artistic circumstances behind the emergence in late medieval Japan of a short-lived genre of painting referred to as sankei mandara (pilgrimage mandalas). The paintings are large-scale topographical depictions of sacred sites and served as promotional material for temples and shrines in need of financial support to encourage pilgrimage, offering travelers worldly and spiritual benefits while inspiring them to donate liberally. Itinerant monks and nuns used the mandara in recitation performances (etoki) to lead audiences on virtual pilgrimages, decoding the pictorial clues and touting the benefits of the site shown. Addressing themselves to the newly risen commoner class following the collapse of the aristocratic order, sankei mandara depict commoners in the role of patron and pilgrim, the first instance of them being portrayed this way, alongside warriors and aristocrats as they make their way to the sites, enjoying the local delights, and worship on the sacred grounds. Together with the novel subject material, a new artistic language was created— schematic, colorful and bold. We begin by locating sankei mandara’s artistic roots and influences and then proceed to investigate the individual mandara devoted to three sacred sites: Mt. Fuji, Kiyomizudera and Ise Shrine (a sacred mountain, temple and shrine, respectively).
    [Show full text]
  • May 2020 1(4)
    What’s in this issue Welcome Message Eye on Japan Tokyo Days – report by Nadine Willems Piece of Japan Upcoming Events General Links Editor: Oliver Moxham, CJS Project Coordinator CJS Director: Professor Simon Kaner Contact Us Header photo by editor Welcome Message CJS ニュースレターへようこそ！ Welcome to the first May edition of the CJS e-newsletter. This week we are happy to bring you positive news from Japan on handling of the pandemic as infection rates continue to slow after a thankfully quiet Golden Week and the government finally accepts that the virus may not simply disappear by the end of May. We have inspiring stories of human kindness in Japan to keep spirits up, a brand new article from Nadine Willems on the trials of acquiring masks in lockdown Tokyo and a raft of cultural goodies on the theme of humanity versus nature in our Piece of Japan segment. You can find a message from CJS Director Professor Simon Kaner on the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures website and hear more from our SISJAC colleagues on their monthly e-bulletin. We hope you enjoy reading and as ever look forward to hearing from you on what you would like to see in future issues. Written by Oliver Moxham, CJS Project Coordinator and editor Editor’s note: Japanese names are given in the Japanese form of family name first i.e. Matsumoto Mariko Eye on Japan: Quiet Golden Week|Flattening the Curve|Castles in the Spotlight 日本の最新情報 As Golden Week passes by with World Heritage Sites on high alert for daring sightseers, it would seem that most heeded the calls to at least not travel, if not stay indoors.
    [Show full text]
  • Yasukuni and the Aesthetics and Ideology of Kobayashi Yoshinori's
    Volume 11 | Issue 47 | Number 7 | Article ID 4031 | Nov 22, 2013 The Asia-Pacific Journal | Japan Focus Revisioning a Japanese Spiritual Recovery through Manga: Yasukuni and the Aesthetics and Ideology of Kobayashi Yoshinori’s “Gomanism” James Shields – Kato Etsuro, “Shin rinen manga no giho” (Techniques for a New Manga), 1942 Send to Kindle Yasukuni Shrine is the final stronghold in defence of the history, spirit, and culture of Japan. Summary – Kobayashi Yoshinori, Yasukuniron, 2005 This essay provides a critical analysis of the aesthetic ideology of “Gomanism” in the manga In 1992, just as Japan’s economic bubble was in of Kobayashi Yoshinori (b. 1953), particularly process of bursting, a series of manga began to Yasukuniron (On Yasukuni, 2005) and Tennoron appear in the weekly Japanese tabloidSPA! (On the Emperor, 2009), in order to flesh out under the title Gomanism sengen (Haughtiness the implications of the author’s “revisionist” or Insolence Manifesto).2 Authored by approach to Japanese religion, politics and Kobayashi Yoshinori (b. 1953), this series history blurred the line between manga and graphic novel to engage in forthright social and political commentary with an unabashedly nationalistic slant. Over the following two decades, Kobayashi and his works have become a publishing phenomenon. As of 2013, there are over thirty volumes of Gomanism (and Neo- Gomanism) manga, including several “special editions”—such as the best-sellingShin gomanizumu sengen special: Sensoron(Neo- Gomanism Manifesto Special: On War, 1998) and, more recently,Gomanizumu sengen special: Tennoron (Gomanism Manifesto Special: On the Emperor, 2009)—that have caused controversy and even international criticism for their revisionist portrayal of [Figure 1] modern Japanese history.
    [Show full text]
  • University of Nevada, Reno American Shinto Community of Practice
    University of Nevada, Reno American Shinto Community of Practice: Community formation outside original context A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Anthropology By Craig E. Rodrigue Jr. Dr. Erin E. Stiles/Thesis Advisor May, 2017 THE GRADUATE SCHOOL We recommend that the thesis prepared under our supervision by CRAIG E. RODRIGUE JR. Entitled American Shinto Community Of Practice: Community Formation Outside Original Context be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS Erin E. Stiles, Advisor Jenanne K. Ferguson, Committee Member Meredith Oda, Graduate School Representative David W. Zeh, Ph.D., Dean, Graduate School May, 2017 i Abstract Shinto is a native Japanese religion with a history that goes back thousands of years. Because of its close ties to Japanese culture, and Shinto’s strong emphasis on place in its practice, it does not seem to be the kind of religion that would migrate to other areas of the world and convert new practitioners. However, not only are there examples of Shinto being practiced outside of Japan, the people doing the practice are not always of Japanese heritage. The Tsubaki Grand Shrine of America is one of the only fully functional Shinto shrines in the United States and is run by the first non-Japanese Shinto priest. This thesis looks at the community of practice that surrounds this American shrine and examines how membership is negotiated through action. There are three main practices that form the larger community: language use, rituals, and Aikido. Through participation in these activities members engage with an American Shinto community of practice.
    [Show full text]
  • My 60 Years with the Akita-Inu"
    [Translator Mitsko Suzaki's Comments:] [I have decided to start introducing the series in Aiken Journal by Mr. Shinkichi Kurimori under the title of "My 60 Years With The Akita-Inu". Mr. Kurimori has passed away on April 15, 1974 (?) at the age of 81. At the time of his passing, Aiken Journal still had portions of his articles to last 6 more monthly series. We can assume the series was written by a person who saw first hand what took place and dipped himself entirely in the history of Akita- inu! Out of 66 total pages, the following is the break-down by the subject: Page 1 - 12 .....History 13 - 21.....Postwar Akitas/transition from the past 22 - 24 ....Legacy of Goromaru-go 25 - 33 .....Trainability, unique ability, performance 34 - 37.....diet 38 - 39.....(missing pages) 40 - 42.....optimum maintenance/exercise 43 - 45.....Formation of Akiho Osaka Branch 46 - 48.....Ideal environment/judging criteria 49 - 51.....texture of coat/breeding 52 - 54.....breeding, gestation, whelping 55 - 58.....origin of Akita/purity 59 -60.....what is behind the recorded pedigree 61 - 63.....the story of mystical white dogs 64 - 65.....Odate, dog town. I will try to follow the outline as accurately as I can from the original text, and it is in no way the direct word- to-word translation, but the introduction of main subject in each section.] My 60 Years With The Akita Inu History: The articles by the late Dr.Shozaburo Watase and a few other scholars are the only source of documented history of Japanese dogs, and personally I chose Dr.Watase's thesis as the most reliable study on the subject.
    [Show full text]