As I See Japan..... from L.A.: 10 Ways to Be Happy

As I See Japan..... from L.A.: 10 Ways to Be Happy
Very simple ways to be happy. Some are easy to do.

What I did on the beginning of a new year

It's the 1st of 2009, the beginning of a new year.
I got up 8 in the morning, ate "Zouni", and went to the buddhist temple near my home. There are many temples and shrines in Japan. A lot of people go to the temples and shrines to pray for happiness for the new year. This is the first visit paid on the New Year holidays, and it is called "Hatsumode."

I saw my next door people getting ready for the New Year yesterday. An old couple next to my house were cleaning the doors and windows with rags and a broom. I could see others vaccuming their rooms. Another person close to my house was washing his car in front of his house. All this activity makes me feel a little guilty. This is a very common scene you often see at the end of the year in Japan. I clean part of the house, but I don't have enough time or energy to do everything.

Why did the bakufu decided to open the ports to American?

At the end of the 18th century, Russians, English, and American ships started coming to Japan. They asked the bakufu to open the country to them because they wanted to trade with Japan.
But the bakufu rejected their requests and stuck to a policy of isolation. In 1853, when Commodore Matthew Perry came from America to Uraga port near Edo with his squadron of four modern steam ships, the bakufu aslo rejected his request . But when they showed their military force by firing warning shots from cannons on their ships, the bakufu realzed that it couldn't avoid conflicts unless their requests were accepted. It finally adecided to change the policy of isolation which had lasted over 200 years. That was the beginning of modern Japan.

Why did the "Tokugawa Bakufu" continued for such a long period?

It is said that Tokugawa Bakufu continued about 270 years. It's quite a long time in Japanese history. Why was it possible? The Tokugawa Shogunate or "bakufu" had very clever policies on how to keep feudal lords under its control. One of them was sankinkoutai, which literally means
an alternate-year residence in Edo. Those days, daimyos or feudal lords were obligated to live in Edo and their own deudal domains for a year to show their loyality to the shogunate. Moving with great numbers of servants and subordinate worriors cost them huge amounts of money, so the bakufu was sure that they couldn't afford to prepare the weapons necessary for rebellions. Their wives and the eldest sons were also obligated to live in Edo like hostages.

What is "Genji Monogatari"?

"Genji Monogatari" is one of the most famous novels written by Murasaki Shikibu in the 11th century. It's a story of Hikaru Genji, a Japanese version of Don Juan. It's written in old Japanese and most of us modern Japanese people cannot read and understand the story without translation. You can read it in English by the translation of Arthur Waley. Yosano Akiko and Setouchi Jyakuchou's modern Japanese translation are also available.

Waht is "kofun"?

"Kofun" is a burial mound that was built for the people of the ruling class in ancient Japan.
When people in power died, they bulit graves and placed their bodies in stone rooms with their possessions. So "kofun" is a Japanese version of the Egyptian pyramids. Many "kofun" were
built during the 4th century.

Who was "Himiko"?

"Himiko" was the name of the queen of "Yamatai-koku." I must explain "Yamatai-koku," first.
According to an old Chinese history text, "The Wei Chronicle"(gishi-wajinn-denn), there was a
country called "Yamatai-koku" in Japan in the end of 2nd century. "Himiko" was the name of the queen of that country. Historians have long debated about whether the ancient country was on Kyusyu or in the Kinki area, but they have yet to reach an agreement. Many people think that she may have been related to "Amaterasu", the Goddess of the Sun, an imperial ancestor, because "Hinomiko" which means "Imperial child of the sun" sounds like "Himiko".

What is the origin of the Japanese people?

We don't know much about where the Japanese originally came from. But it is believed that the origins of the Japanese are related to a primitive mongoloid race because most Japanese babies are born with blue spots called Mongolian marks at their bottoms. It is also believed that people called Jomons are said to have entered Japan from the Eurasian Continent over the "ice bridge" and gradually mixed people from the Eurasian Continent and Southeast Asia who moved to Japan.

Todaiji, a great Nara temple

Todaiji literally means "the eastern great temple." It's a Buddhis temple complex located in the city of Nara, Japan. It was built in 745 A.D. by order of Emperor Shomu. The temple's principal image is know as the "Great Buddha of Nara." The biggest Buddha statue in Japan was completed in 752 A.D..

Nara was the capital of Japan in the 8th century. The area is well-known for its many cultural assets. Todaiji is one of them, along with Horyuji Temple. It is listed as one of UNESCO'S World Heritage Historical Sites.

Link to Wikipedia's related page →　Todaiji

Horyuuji, an ancient Buddhist temple

Horyuuji is one of the famous Buddhis temples in Japan. It was built in 607. Some of the buildings are the oldest wooden structures in the world. It is said that Horyuuji was founded by Prince Shotoku, a politician in the 6th and 7th centuries. He established a political system modeled on that of China and was dedicated to introducing and promoting Buddhis in Japan.
Temple architecture in Japan was strongly influenced by Chinese design. However, the curve of the roof is more gentle and eaves are deeper.
Horyuuji Temple was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1993.

link to the photo of Horyuuji Temple

Jomon-bunka, Yayoi-bunka

When we learn about Japanese history in school, we usually start from the Jomon period.
Jomon-bunka, or Jomon Culture was characterized by straw rope pattern pottery. The period extended from about 10.000 B.C. to 300 B.C.. Their culture was based on hunting and fishing.

After that came Yayoi period. Yayoi-bunka, or Yayoi Culture, was based on agriculture and characterized by unglazed pottery, bronze ware and ironware. Yayoi pottery, compared to Jomon, is simple and plain. The period extended from 300 B.C. to 300 A.D..

By excavating archeological sites, we can learn how people lived and how buildings looked like in the prehistoric age.

The Sannai Maruyama Iseki in Aomori Prefecture is remains of a Jomon village about 5500 years ago. The site shows that people lived in large-sized pit dwellings.

The Yoshinogari Iseki in Saga Prefecture are the remains of large-scale settlement of the Yayoi period. Excavation revealed that there used to be houses, raised floor storehouses, and even watchtowers here and there, which were surrounded by double moats.