“Akemashite Omedetougozaimasu” is how you say “happy new year” in Japanese. New year is celebrated extensively all across Japan. Winter in Japan means illumination everywhere and that’s what makes new year’s time all so special. Even though a lot of Japanese festivals are based on the lunar calendar and also the Chinese zodiac system is […]
Blog
Castle in the water
And it dazzled so bright, that the water had to reflect its glory……
An imagination painted by nature
When autumn bade farewell, the wind kissed those last red leaves…..
Going back in time | Totsukawa and Kumano
Little did I know that Japan could be infused with deep spirituality and devotion. The land of manga, robots and bullet trains also has a religious side to it, with hundreds of temples and shrines all across the nation. Amid political and civil tensions in medieval Japan, the introduction and spread of esoteric Buddhism, Taoism and […]
The way of Fragrance – Kōdō
Kōdō is an art of appreciating the aroma from burning incense or fragrant wood. In Japanese, Kōdō is poetically referred to as the art of ‘listening to the aroma’ rather than ‘smelling’- ‘香を聞く’. Although the practice of incense burning is indigenous to many Asian countries, the art of perceiving its smell developed in ancient China. In […]
My favorite Japanese snacks
This is a list of my favorite Japanese snacks; my regular stockpile (>_<) 1. Pocky – ‘anata mo watashi mo pocky’ if you are in Japan and never tried pocky you are surely missing on a lot. Japan’s favorite snack pocky comes in many flavors. These are (sweet) flavor coated biscuit sticks, produced by Ezaki […]
A walk among the tombstones in Koyasan
A week back we were taken on an excursion to Koyasan to study its historical importance and witness the roots of Shingon Buddhism. Walking down the thick forest surrounded by tombstones and that too on Halloween day was eerie. However, it was pretty interesting to find tombstones of some very important personalities including the founders […]
A day spent in the Ninja town
Mie prefecture is located in the south east of Nara, it falls in the Kansai region. Mie is known for its beautiful pearl beach and Ise-jingu. However, I did not have the luxury of time so I decided to make a day’s trip to Iga-Ueno. An easy train ride from JR Nara station made us […]
Coming back to Nara
The image of Nara in my mind has always been limited to Tōdai-ji (東大寺) and the great bronze Buddha statue (大仏). Going back in time, I first came to Nara in 2011, on a one day field trip. We were taken to the most apparent and the must see temple in Nara, the Tōdai-ji. I […]
The Old Japanese Calendar Kyūreki or Inreki
The old Japanese calendar is based on lunar cycle and was called the 旧暦 kyūreki or 陰暦 inreki. This calendar dates back to the Edo period, Tempo era. Over the course of time, Western/Gregorian calendar was introduced in Japan and Kyūreki lost its popularity. The western calendar is used till date but a modified version […]