Religion in Japan

Although many Japanese don't affiliate with any religion, many of their daily rituals are tied to Shinto or Buddhism. My Grandma is Japanese, but doesn't consider herself religious. However, when I was growing up, she always had a little shrine dedicated to her son who had died. Every morning she would bring food to the shrine and talk to him. I never really understood this when I was younger, but this past week I had the privilege of meeting my Japanese relatives, and went to some of the family graves and shrines which helped me understand my Grandma's rituals. The Japanese relatives don't associate with religion either, actually when I asked one of the cousins about Shinto, he didn't know what I was talking about. When it came to the customs of Shinto however, they were all very practiced. Even the children knew exactly what to do at the family shrines, as well as bigger shrines and temples. Most of the family still prays every morning to the ancestors and offer gifts of food and drink to them. I had brought some gifts of food to the family, and they immediately put it in my Great aunt's shrine. I found this interesting that they offered the food to the deceased before enjoying it for themselves. Overall from what I have seen so far, religion seems fairly widespread in Japan, but is not labeled as traditionally as other religions around the world.

For more on ancestor worship:

http://www.sacred-texts.com/shi/jai/jai04.htm

http://family.jrank.org/pages/85/Ancestor-Worship-Ancestor-Worship-in-Japan.html

Gender in Japan

As I've been learning in my Labor, Culture, and Human Resources class, Japan's society is set up to promote traditional gender roles: men working long hours and women staying at home taking care of the family. Many of the Japanese young women I have spoken with have one main goal: to get married. They spend a lot of money to go to college so they can find a job where they can meet their husband, and then quit working after getting married to start a family. If they do go back to work it is usually part-time, non-regular jobs. In many cases, they were raised with their mother at home, so they want to do the same for their family. I suppose I am slightly bias because I am from America, but most people I know continue to work after getting married, and even after having children. I think that the set up in Japan is much different making it harder to raise a family with two working parents. A recent poll conducted by the Ministry of Public Management found that men spend less than 3o minutes per day on domestic chores, while women spend 3 1/2 hours. Even if both husband and wife work the woman is considered to be responsible for childcare and most domestic duties. Many women who want to advance their career are choosing not to get married and have children, which is causing a population decrease. I think that since the Japanese labor system is beginning to move more towards the Western system, this might change. Although I find the Japanese labor force very interesting, I would like to see it become more mom-friendly so woman can not only have a family, but also a sucessful career.

For more information:

http://family.jrank.org/pages/984/Japan-Gender-Roles.html

http://english.ohmynews.com/articleview/article_view.asp?no=315816&rel_no=1
http://www.zmag.org/znet/viewArticle/5264

Sports in Japan

Japan is a country whose society is rooted in spirituality, ethics, and etiquette. So it comes as no surprise that much of the sports and leisure activities are present in these facets as well. The other day I travelled to Kyoto to view a popular meditation practice called Kendo. Kendo is a form of martial arts that resembles fencing with wooden swords. Basically the goal is to hit your opponent in one of the four areas that qualify as a point while calling it. The first to two points wins the match. I was suprised to see this meditation practice, because it seemed more like a sport when I saw it. There is a lot of posing and attacking, and very interactive. I held a real steel sword that was used before the bamboo sword was introduced, and it was incredibly heavy. It would take a lot of strength to constantly hold it up. After the match, I found out that it was popularized as a major sport in Japan after World War II, and now has spread globally as well. Kendo has even become a big part of Japan's physical education. There are clubs present from elementary until high school levels. Many of the practitioners that I saw were past school level, and chose Kendo as a way of life. I think that Kendo is a good example of sports in Japan because not only does it represent their dedication to physical activity, but also their strong ties to spirituality.

For more information, check out these websites:

http://www.linkframe.com/Healthcare/Fitness/Kendo/kendo_feature_article.htm

http://web-japan.org/trends/sports/spo030815.html

http://www.karateinternational.net/kendo.php

Globalization can be seen through many aspects of Japanese culture, but I think that the most significant example is through food. Everyday when I walk by the McDonald's on campus there is a plethora of Japanese students eating their favorite grease-intense burger and fries. It is not just Kansai Gaidai's campus that is enjoying Western fast food, because you can see these fast food chains everywhere. The number of McDonald's sprouting around Japan has more than tripled in the past 10 years. This is contributing to more and more health concerns in the country. In fact until the late 19th century, people practicing Buddhism and Shintoism were banned from eating meat at all. Seafood was the exception to this rule, which in addition to Japan being an island, helps explain the popularity of seafood in the Japanese diet. Now, it is hard to find any meal without meat being present in someway. The other day I ordered an eggplant-tofu dish, assuming it was vegetarian, but soon discovered small beef bits in the sauce. This has happened in some way on several occasions. Apparently Japanese society has left their vegetarian ways, and adopted a more carnivorous way of thinking. Some equate meat-eating with becoming more Western. And with the popularity of McDonald's and KFC increasing, it is a hard idea to disagree with. To read more on this topic go to this website: http://www.scribd.com/doc/95256/Effects-of-Globalization-on-Japanese-Food-Culture-and

Traditional Japanese Culture

It seems that every other week in the Kansai area, there is another festival to celebrate some aspect of traditional Japanese culture. The Japanese are very deeply rooted in traditions and festivals in order to appreciate the past. With ancestor worship being so important to followers of Shinto, as well as to people who do not classify as religious, the traditional festivals bring today's Japanese closer to their ancestors and all those who came before them. A few weeks ago, I attended the full moon festival in Kyoto, which is held to celebrate the most beautiful full moon of the year. They celebrated at a Shinto shrine, and had a tea ceremony, koto players, and traditional dancing. Many of the traditional customs such as cleansing before entering the shrine and praying for good luck could be seen by almost every native person.

Another interesting festival is the Daimonji Gozan Fire Festival, which is held in August. According to this website, http://www.city.kyoto.jp/koho/eng/festivals/gozan.html,the tradition started when in hopes to put an end to the plague, the monk Kobo-Daishi lit the kanji for dai on fire. Other sources say that the festival is an ending ritual of obon, when deceased ancestors come back to their homes, and the fire is lit to release ancestors back. Although the history of the festival seems irrelevant by contemporary Western standards, it is still celebrated every year. I took this picture long after the fire was put out, but the symbol is still scorched into the earth reminding everyone of the meaning behind it.

To read more about this topic, or to view pictures, refer to these websites:

http://www.city.kyoto.jp/koho/eng/festivals/gozan.html

http://gojapan.about.com/od/attractioninkyoto/a/gozanbonfirefes.htm

http://www.jal.com/world/en/guidetojapan/city_information/uky/events/

So have you ever walked into one of those Pachinko parlors where the lights are so bright and the noise and tobacco smoke are so strong that you almost faint? Apparently thats what many Japanese are into. According to this website, http://www.japan-zone.com/modern/pachinko.shtml Pachinko employs 1/3 of a million people. The total revenue is over 30 trillion yen per year, which is more than the car industry! The other day I went into one of the nearby parlors and lost 1,000 yen in about three minutes. I don't think I necesarily understood what was happening, but the pachi-puro, or "serious gamblers" make a life out of it. The kicker is that in Japan, gambling is illegal, which is essentially where Pachinko came to thrive. Instead of winning money, the players win silver balls that they then can exchange for prizes, but the value cannot exceed 10,000 yen. As a way to work around the law, the patrons can then go to booths located outside of the Pachinko parlors and exchange their prizes for money. Pachinko can be seen in any city, and usually are adorned with horrific neon lights, inside and out.

To read about more information on Pachinko in Japan, refer to this website: http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20070925i1.html

Japanese People

Although generalizing any group of people is difficult, I will attempt to consolidate what I've seen so far in Japan into one idea. In my visits to Osaka, Kyoto, and even Kansai Gaidai, I have seen one thing in common with many of the Japanese youth that I have encountered, which is fashion. I have been constantly amazed at their ability to be so "fashion-forward". Most Japanese girls aren't cought without their high heels, no matter how much walking they will be doing. And many of the Japanese guys have better hairstyles than I ever have! This can be seen walking into any mall or store, where there are countless people sporting their sense of fashion and looking for new ideas. Obviously this is very cultural, and has become an important part of Japanese society. http://www.japanesestreets.com/ references new trends and provides a shopping catalogue for people to get similar looks. Not only is there a generally good sense of style in the youth culture, but there are also many different groups of people with distinctly different "looks". http://www.style-arena.jp/index_e.htm and http://livej.maruione.jp/content/blogcategory/1/7/lang,en/catalogue some of the different looks of Tokyo with new pictures every week. Some popular Tokyo fashion categories are gothic lolita, punk, elegant gothic, and kogal. Any style they choose, they put their all into it. Overall, Japan can be seen as an inspiration to all people hoping to be more stylish (or broke from buying so many clothes!)