Japanese Culture

'At once so personal, yet utterly universal. A visceral, thoughtful and emotionally compelling story.' Melissa Leong In a beautifully crafted memoir of captivating emotional honesty, the SBS Insight host sets out to understand the dad she never really knew, and – along the way – herself. ...

**Kirkus Best Books of the Year (2013)** **Kansas City Star Best Books of the Year (2013)** A passionate student of Japanese poetry, theater, and art for much of her life, Gretel Ehrlich felt compelled to return to the earthquake-and-tsunami-devastated Tohoku coast to bear witness, listen to...

Rain in the Mountains brings together some of Ruskin Bond’s most beautiful works from his years spent in the foothills of the Himalayas in the town of Mussoorie. Through vivid images and lucid writing, Bond evokes the everyday sights and sounds, and captures the essence of mountain life. The...

Copying Buddhist sutras is called shakyo and in Japan it typically refers to copying the Hannya Shingyo (The Great Heart of Wisdom Sutra).

The Emperor and some of his relatives, the imperial family, are referred to as the imperial household.

Japan is the only country in the world that uses a seal registration system.

Furoshiki are square cloths for storing, wrapping, and carrying items. They are also used to cover things that are important to protect from dust.

Gagaku is a traditional Japanese art form which combines singing and dancing elements from classical Japanese styles such as kagura (shinto music and dancing) with elements from the ancient Asian continent such as from China.

Origami is a traditional form of Japanese entertainment in which you make various shapes such as cranes, boats, and helmets by folding colored paper.

In contrast to the type of paper that originated in the West, there is also a type of paper made through a traditional Japanese manufacturing method called washi(Japanese paper).

The costume play (cosplay) boom in Japan began in the latter half of the 1990s.

Odaiba is a recreational area of Tokyo where there are many shopping malls and entertainment facilities.

Animate's Ikebukuro headquarters has nine floors.

In Japan Halloween has no religious overtones.

Chopsticks are indispensable cutlery items when it comes to Japanese cuisine. They are used not only for eating, but also for cooking.

Fireworks that color the night sky are synonymous with summer in Japan, and fireworks festivals are held throughout the country every year, mainly during July and August.

There is a range of yakatabune from small boats with a capacity of 10 people, to larger luxurious ships that can carry up to 100 people.

A yukata is a type of Japanese clothing that is worn in summer. It is a thin cotton kimono that is relatively easy to wear compared to a regular kimono.

Shojin ryori (vegetarian Buddhist cuisine) is one of Japan’s traditional cuisines that was born from the Buddhist concept that meals were also a part of religious practice.

Kado（flower arrangement） is a traditional Japanese art in which flower vases are adorned with seasonal flowers and plants for people to appreciate. This art is also known as ikebana.