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My Unexpected Japan! A not-so-serious take on all things surprising about Japan

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Independent Excursion Post: Media Reflection

May 29th, 2019. Our last free day in Tokyo. I had originally planned on Tokyo Character Street for my independent media excursion, then changed it to Osaka, but I have to write on Ikebukuro now because one, it was a pretty cool day trip with my roommate Valerie and two, it was the complete opposite to the only media representation I have seen before.

First of all, I heard online that Ikebukuro was basically just a modern-day Akihabara, meaning it’s the new anime nerd capital. At some point Akihabara was the central hub of all things otaku culture, all fandoms ever, catering to anime, manga, and video game nerds alike. Nowadays, as we’ve seen for ourselves, it’s much more geared toward gaming culture, with its rows and rows of multistory arcades and SEGA towers. Ikebukuro became a destination trip for everything else otaku. I’d also like to point out that Akihabara, with its gamer kid focus audience, is also generally aimed at young men and middle/high school boys…if the half-naked animated girls plastered on every arcade game and store window weren’t enough of a hint. Ikebukuro, however, is advertised toward otaku girls who are looking for new shoujo manga, a good cosplay shop, and maybe even a butler café. Yes that’s right, unlike Akihabara’s maids advertising their cafes on nearly every street corner at night, Ikebukuro unapologetically, unabashedly promotes their butler cafes. We didn’t stay long enough to go to one ourselves, but shopping through the aisles and aisles of shoujo (and quite a bit of yaoi) manga, with some gorgeous art books as well, tired us enough to head back by noon.

But anyway! That was my expectation of Ikebukuro, a bright and shiny shoujo wonderland for Val and me to frolic, shop and geek out to our hearts’ desires. And honestly, that was pretty close to my impression of the place. It is definitely one of Tokyo's biggest commercial city centers, with plenty of entertainment opportunities. While it’s not as big or well known as Akihabara, its butler cafes and anime, manga and cosplay shops (like Animate, Mandarake and K-Books) make it a great place for two female roommates to explore and experience the female otaku scene in full swing. Otome Road was our first stop and the heart of the geek culture (also apparently a good place to find dojinshi, or self-published manga, especially those written for women).

Now for the shocker…the only other time I’d ever heard Ikebukuro mentioned was in the anime Durarara!! (the exclamation points are part of the title, sorry). I find this hilarious because the plot revolves around the underground world of motorcycle gangs, yakuza, and the Russian mob, along with all the chaos that ensues because of super dangerous people living in and operating out of the city. That is…not exactly the impression I had of Ikebukuro. In the anime, street fights break out spontaneously and there’s violence everywhere…I think the only thing that remains consistent throughout each representation of the city is its commercialism. From the moment you leave Ikebukuro Station it looks like a Japanese Times Square with slightly less billboards. Massive department stores, with some rivaling companies, surround the main intersections and give a 360 shot of advertisements on every crosswalk. (Below: Durarara!! vs. Ikebukuro 2019)

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Independent Excursion Post: Academic Reflection

Flashback to June 1st, our first free day in Kyoto. We saw a huge statue of Kannon from across a parking lot, peaking out above the trees. As it turns out, the statue of Kannon, 24 meters and built in 1955, is a landmark of a commemoration of the Japanese who sacrificed themselves in World War II. Unexpectedly, the memorial was also a tribute to all the unknown or nameless soldiers of World War II, which I think is really cool and thoughtful. It’s very fitting that a statue of Kannon, Goddess of Mercy and known for her compassion for all living things, is its symbol. As we first walked in we were given sticks of burning incense to offer further inside at the shrine. I got an incredible shot of the front courtyard with the iconic statue behind the temple’s fountain. After leaving our incense behind we continued up and around the temple to various smaller dedications before we came across the memorial hall. The plaque states that the hall was created June 8, 1958, shortly after the temple first opened. The monument in the memorial hall had the inscription:

All honor to him, friend or foe, Who fought and died for his country! May the tragedy of his supreme Sacrifice bring to us, the living, Enlightenment and inspiration; Fill us with ever-mourning zeal For the all-compelling quest of peace, World peace and universal brotherhood

This truly resonated with me, certainly enough to make me change my excursion post from my original choice Horyuij. It speaks on the futility and loss of war, as well as a hope for recovery from the loss of humanity in WWII. Joan D. Stamm, author of A Pilgrimage in Japan: the 33 Temples of Kannon, wrote “Kannon – and the Kannon in all of us – cries buckets of tears as we witness heartless cruelty, disrespect of others, disregard for the earth and the never ending destruction of animal species, wilderness, and the purity of the natural environment. At what point will human beings stop to consider the Buddhist precept ‘do no harm.” In all her studies of Kannon and her devotees’ pilgrimages, Stamm acknowledges a power and wisdom in humankind. She believes in human potential for compassion, as many devotees of Kannon regularly pray for “world peace, planetary healing, spiritual evolution, and divine inspiration.” Everything about being in that temple spoke and felt of doing no harm. It felt peaceful, among the searing heat of midday June and the dozens of mosquito bites.

What I appreciated the most about the site was the inclusiveness, the consistent idea of the “universal brotherhood” mentioned in the monument. There was a smaller hall next to the monument with samples of soil or sand from military cemeteries from many countries around the world. They honored fallen soldiers on both sides of the conflict, as well as every country in between that was even remotely affected; the United States, Germany, Canada, Turkey, Belgium, and Italy to name just a few.

The last notable part of the temple was the room dedicated to the death of Buddha. Paintings covered every inch of the walls and ceiling, depicting the human followers, animals and some deities who mourned his death. It really was breathtaking, the pure sorrow and anguish you can feel in the one room. It was heartbreaking, yet beautiful. It definitely tied the melancholy of war to the distress felt everywhere in the world from the malice and cruelty of humankind. It is the “life is suffering” foundation of Buddhism in its most basic form.

Stamm, Joan D. A Pilgrimage in Japan: The 33 Temples of Kannon. Mantra Books, 2018.

[theunexaminedlife]

June 12+13: Last Day in Japan plus travel day

Last day in Japan...I’m sad. But still really happy. It’s bittersweet, cliche but true. I woke up and took my last morning walk around the neighborhood. Said my personal goodbye to our little machiya.

A group of us got fluffy pancakes from A Happy Pancake. It’s the cutest little cafe.

I spent most of the day in the mall getting some last minute shopping done. The mini supermarket I pass every day in the mall? Apparently it’s two stories. I was also able to get mall boba from store #5/5, success!

I didn’t take many pictures but it was a good last day. I finally got around to walking on the bank of the river (I have a couple pictures but failed to realize nighttime strolls aren’t the best for lighting). I flew from Osaka to Tokyo with Alex, had lunch in the Narita Airport with him, ran for our flight to Dallas, had lunch with my sister and aunt in Dallas (27 hours of travel, from leaving our houses to walking into my house in Florida, means you have many lunches in one day), then finally got back to Florida...without my luggage. Which is okay, the customs delay meant I got my suitcases the next morning.

Goodbye Japan, see you soon. お世話になります。

[theunexaminedlife]

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Bonus Post: Adventures in Ujishi

Found a path lined with kimono designs on the way to Ujishi, with a wish-granting statue in the middle (no we’re not being weird, we’re making wishes)

Our second and third cones of soft serve for the day (melon and hojicha tea) because we’re shameless

Tranquil path to Byodo-in Temple, featuring Lady Murasaki

Shoutout to our extended band of thieves, thanks for an amazing last excursion!

[theunexaminedlife]

June 11: Arashiyama Bamboo Forest

Day twelve in Kyoto!!!!!!!!!!!! Last day of official excursions!! Arashiyama’s bamboo forest is beautiful, of course, and very vacation-photo-worthy. Thus, we expected the many tourists that were there to block our vacation-photo-worthy shots of the bamboo. I got a few good ones though. Once we passed the bamboo part of the forest, the other shorter trees were really just as beautiful. One of the shrines in the forest, Nonomiya, was where the imperial princesses supposedly waited for years to be purified before moving on to another temple. I bought my friends a few charms there, mostly for studies (for that junior year struggle).

We also went up to the monkey park, though unlike going to see the wild deer, I wasn’t all that excited to see wild monkeys. I’ve seen some before on multiple Caribbean islands and watched them steal other people’s food, watch and purses. These were surprisingly tame in comparison, so long as you don’t provoke them. I was relieved to go back to relatively soon after hiking up. The view was great but I’m not a fan of monkeys.

Afterwards, our band of thieves FINALLY visited Uji after attempting for days. The weather was perfect and we had plenty of time. We saw the Byodo-in Temple (the temple on the 10 yen coin, fun fact). The temple itself was pretty impressive, similar in structure to Horyuji, but a large group of school children came in behind and swarmed the temple and its museum. The best part of our Uji trip was hands down the river. The water flows unnaturally fast because, according to the signs we found was because of the nearby power plant upriver. (According to the English translation we “don’t want to get close to gamma rays”…yeah, okay). We found a series of little islands that can be accessed by a long, red bridge and, walking across several of them, found a spot where we basically walked straight into the river. The water was cold and refreshing and after a long trip in Japan we just all enjoyed the sunset on Uji River, a mini beach day for us.

Academic Reflection 

I won’t lie, the reading lead me to believe that the bamboo forest would be much...grander than it was. From what we saw, the bamboo was beautiful but there wasn’t all that much to get into regarding land management, there wasn’t enough land to manage really. Most of what we saw were smaller trees that are native to the mountainous region we were in. The article did, however, mention that there used to be more than just bamboo trees but now that’s all that remains. Again, I’m not sure how old the article is but we saw many native plants that weren’t bamboo, some I believe were maple, so maybe that has to do with forest preservation efforts over the years. 

Nonomiya, the shrine we visited, is featured in the Tale of Genji. Which is really cool because our group continued our adventures with the Tale of Genji in Uji where we found the statue of Lady Murasaki! 

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June 10: Day Trip to Nara

Day eleven in Kyoto!!!!!!!!!!! I PET A DEER TODAYYY. Lots of pictures of deer, I’m not sorry at all for this. So yeah, we went to Nara today, it was a pretty cool town and all. Also, there are SO MANY deer, all over the place, not just the deer park. The deer run the whole town. They’re wild but very much used to humans. They’re protected by law and the locals are really everyone because they’re adorable and why would anyone want to hurt them (actually most of the protection is against people who have tried to steal them which…makes sense). We had to walk through the deer park to get to Todaiji, the actual excursion today, and some of us got to feed the deer. Some got their clothes chewed on because the didn’t feed them fast enough, and apparently deer are just cuter versions of goats. Even when you’re standing off to the side with no food they still approach you. The third picture is of my little buddy who kept bowing to me when I walked by and let me pet him the whole time. I pet many deer, but he was my favorite.

But anyway, the real reason we went to Nara. Todaiji, one of the Seven Great Temples, housed a giant Buddha statue built in the 8th century. The Great Buddha Hall is around 50 by 50 meters and although the pictures probably won’t do it justice, just know that the statue is massive. The construction used up nearly all of Japan’s money and bronze, but the emperor did it for the sake of his people’s salvation. For scale reference, there was a pillar with a hole in it the exact size of the Buddha’s nostril. Supposedly if you could crawl through it then your next life will be on the path to enlightenment. A good amount of us tried and succeeded but I was not about to get stuck in a wooden hole in front of a bunch of Japanese school children so I opted out. I’ll have to find my way to enlightenment some other way. We stopped for a quick lunch (I’ve had too much ramen on this trip) and more soft serve (finally got my sakura ice cream) before moving on to our secondary excursion.

Once we were set free I got to go to the last place on my personal list in Kyoto, Horyuji!! I’ve been talking about this for weeks and I’m so glad I got to go today. Professor Smith took a small group of us to Horyuji, the oldest wooden temple, about 30 minutes by train away. It was incredible. I may make this my academic excursion post but if I decide not to I may also just make a separate post so I can rant about it. It was so cool, the structures we saw were from the 8th century. Some of the artifacts in the museum exhibits dated back to the 6th and 7th centuries. That’s insane! I don’t know, a lot of people look at all old things as the same but even for someone who may not like studying history all that much, it’s pretty impressive that something from the 8th century made of wood and paper can survive centuries of war and natural disaster (and arson).

Academic Reflection

Today’s reading was about Mahayana Buddhism, specifically Shingon Buddhism. Mahayana means the “greater vehicle,” capturing the core value of rejecting enlightenment until all beings reach their salvation, or being a vehicle for the greater good and helping others reach enlightenment. The reading talked a lot about the interaction between Buddhist and Shinto practices when Buddhism was introduced in Japan. Rather than a complete separation of the two belief systems, Shinto kami (spirits) were recognized as manifestations of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Buddhism is an ancient religion and is sometimes seen as an ancestor of native Shinto practices. But that’s a very specific niche of scholars.

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Alleyway in Osaka (because I’m a sucker for cool cityscape shots)

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June 9: Free Day #4

Day ten in Kyoto!!!!!!!!!! Today was our second to last free day in Japan and we planned on making the most of it. Osaka day trip!! I’ll just say it from now…I planned on Tokyo Character Street for my independent media excursion but I absolutely have to write on Osaka now because it was almost nothing like I expected from what I’d seen in media. Not entirely in a bad way but, it’s basically New York City. From the second we got off the train I felt like I was in a New York subway, and I’ve been in many. Right out of the subway we got more of a California vibe but that may have just been how hot it was today. The views of the city were exciting enough for us to want to head straight to the castle.

Osaka Castle Park had a lot of smaller attractions around the castle itself and just from reading the map, featuring The Place Hideyori and Lady Yodo Committed Suicide and The Pine Tree Where the Buddhist Priest Rennyo Hung His Robe, we knew we had to go find this pine tree on the way to the castle…such disappointment. The Fuji gang equated this to their ice cave adventures but since I didn’t go with them, this was most definitely the biggest disappointment of the trip. I have no words. Just a picture (and no it is not the wonderful, thriving tree above us, even though it’s not a pine, it is the sad, dead stump in a ditch). We grabbed some shaved ice and freshly fried chicken nuggets before finally getting to the castle! Afterwards we wandered through the city until we found a street market, lined with mostly fresh fish vendors but I also got some white peach ice cream (because how could I not).

Some more wandering the city and we found the center of the shopping district. We got a quick lunch (fried food = good food) before weaving through the crowds some more. Osaka really was just a not-so-gross-smelling New York. Before we left we ended up riding a Ferris wheel – yes in the middle of the city – and finding a huge store with walls lined with kit kat and a ton of other snacks. I spent more than I’d care to admit on pistachio pocky and every flavor of kit kat I could find. Ian also found a hole in the wall record store he wanted to check out so I’d say it was a pretty successful free day.

[theunexaminedlife]

June 8: Kyoto National Museum

Day nine in Kyoto!!!!!!!!! Kyoto National Museum day! We actually couldn’t go in the main building, due to some renovations, but the separate three-story exhibition we were allowed to tour was just as impressive as I’m sure the main museum would have been. The art was mostly scrolls and small figurines from followers of Jishu Sect (the Time Sect) Buddhism. We began our self-guided tours from the top floor and made our way down. I won’t lie, the complete and utter silence was unsettling and made me pretty nervous to even walk down the stairs or breathe too loudly. I tend to like self-guided tours but only when I’m not left entirely to my own thoughts. There wasn’t much room for discussion or explanation of the exhibit after our reading on this sect of Buddhism though so at least I could roam through the art as I pleased.

I’m not normally one for visual art museums but this was an interesting cultural experience. We, once again, weren’t allowed to take photos but we could take notes. I had a personal favorite from the first round I made of the third floor. It was a portrait of the priest Muhon Kakushin by Kakue, from the Kamakura period, 1315. This means almost nothing to most people reading this but essentially its super old and pretty incredible. The priest was a Zen master who studied in Song China. He highly influenced Ippen’s practices and is seen as the founder of nenbutsu. The portrait shows him seated in a grand chair wearing a very detailed robe, especially for a 14th century artwork. Our reading mostly mentioned Ippen, but it was cool to see more of the man who inspired him.

After the museum our small group stayed in the area a bit longer, wandering into another temple, this time the Chishakuin Temple. It had some really beautiful gardens, featuring dichromatic hydrangeas lining paths leading off to small cemeteries. After travelling back together by bus, I broke off on my own to treat myself to a nice, quiet afternoon. I think I got comfortable in Tokyo much quicker than I did in Kyoto because I was constantly on the move and exploring everywhere, but I really take more time to get to know Kyoto as the days go on. I got lucky wandering the mall and found another Red Rock like the one in Harajuku (apparently it’s a chain) so I grabbed some lunch and mall boba #4/5 before heading home.

Academic Reflection

Our reading was on the origin and teachings of the Jishu sect of Buddhism. At this point I’ve realized that I can never really get tired of reading about Buddhism, especially when I get to compare it to my Chinese Buddhisms class and all that I haven’t learned. Most of Chinese Buddhism studies are focused on Pure Land, which we discuss in this class, but also on uniquely Chinese writings on Buddhism and how the religion interacted with politics and other Chinese philosophies over time. Buddhism has almost no competitors besides Shinto in Japan so its influence and art is much more apparent here. The artifacts were really cool to see in person, as well as all the art dedicated to not only the religion itself but to its founders as well. I already mentioned my favorite piece in the museum but a close second is probably the series of scrolls depicting Ippen’s life and the lives of his followers.

[theunexaminedlife]

June 7: Kyoto International Manga Museum

Day eight in Kyoto!!!!!!!! I’m a nerd, in every sense of the word, so of course I’d be super excited for manga museum day. It was another rainy day and my poor mini umbrella died during the trip from Tokyo to Kyoto, but I bought a new umbrella at a 7 eleven in the train station, surprisingly durable. But anyway, Kyoto International Manga Museum! Unfortunately photography is not allowed so not many pictures to show of the inside. But I was too excited to take many pictures anyway. It took everything in me not to run through the place like a child (which in fact the museum is a converted elementary school, but yeah, still not appropriate…). The actual museum space, the former auditorium, was a bit small but fit a good exhibit of manga through the decades. Not just a trip through time but also a trip around the world. I knew most of the information but it was still cool to see some really old manga (and be reminded that Naruto is as old as me) and other comics from around the world.

We got to watch a kamishibai performance before leaving the museum which was probably the highlight of the day for me. It was obviously meant for children but I am obviously a child so I thought it was great. I got every question in the introductory game right but restrained myself so the actual children in the room could participate. Kamishibai was prime children’s entertainment before television or anime or anything of the sort, basically just a slideshow of hand-drawn cartoons on physical paper while someone narrates the story. It reminded me of my third grade teacher’s dramatic readings of the Series of Unfortunate Events books, but somehow more dramatic and very interactive.

The rest of the day was another chill day, we seem to have a lot more of those in Kyoto than in Tokyo. I just don’t feel the need to be constantly on the move here as much as I did in the first two weeks. It feels like we live here at this point. We went back to our favorite cheap ramen place and just roamed the mall, breaking off into smaller groups as we went on. I got boba from a different place this time, found a newly opened clothing store with almost everything on sale, and was yet again tempted by almond crepes.

Academic Reflection

This reading was really cool because it went into different aspects of manga history and culture that aren’t discussed as much, especially in an academic setting. Not many scholars see the value in studying manga and anime seriously but this medium reaches far beyond entertainment and is a huge part of Japanese soft power. Which brings on the debate about just how much Western influence manga has. We definitely saw a lot of Western comics in comparison to old manga in the museum today and there is a clear relationship between styles and central themes of these comics, regardless of their age. The reading also brought to light the division in the market of shoujo and shonen manga (girls’ and boys’ manga). The social concern over shonen manga is completely warranted. Most of what we saw in the museum as well as most of what you see today is advertised with explicit images of women and often underaged girls, along with an unsettling amount of sexual aggression and violence toward women.

[theunexaminedlife]

June 6: Fushimi-Inari Shrine

Day seven in Kyoto!!!!!!! Today we visited Fushimi Inari which is widely known for its “ten thousand gates” and of course as a major site of Inari worship. We took a train straight to the site and the station got me really excited for this shrine. Everything was decorated with foxes and a vendor sold Inari sushi right as you get off the train. A good day for our vegans and vegetarians I suppose because there were fried tofu stalls lining the path up the mountain. Also lots of meat on sticks, it felt like a whole carnival. The shrine was impressive, as I expected it to be, and really it was dozens (hundreds) of tiny shrines built next to and on top of each other to make one massive tourist site. Again the fox statues were everywhere, one with a jewel and the other with either a key or sheath of rice. Foxes were painted on everything, even the charms, and of course there were the famous red-orange gates. Some of the torii were normal sized and some were HUGE, probably donated by major companies.

I haven’t been feeling that well lately so I opted out of going all the way up the summit, though our small group of invalids (plus Elizabeth) wanted to go up for about 10 more minutes just to escape the crowds. After we came back down we hit the street vendors farther down the mountain by the train station. It was hotter than I thought Japan would ever get so I caved and got caramel ice cream before getting a real lunch. Also apparently BBQ quail is like a turkey-duck hybrid, but all the dark meat.

The rest of the day was spent napping (cause sometimes you just gotta), playing video games and celebrating Seth’s extra-special-not-birthday-pizza-thursday night at Shakey’s all you can eat pizza place again. PS we hit up the convenience store again and I have a new obsession.

Academic Reflection

So academic reflection is pretty easy today. I’ve learned a bit about Inari on my own way back when so I had some background knowledge, plus Summer gave some great crash courses while she, Seth and I have wandered into Inari shrines before. I hadn’t realized until coming here just how huge Inari worship was in Japan, nor did I know that it was integrated into both Shinto and Buddhist cultures. Inari is a figure for the rice harvest originally, but is also asked for business and financial success. There are many depictions of Inari so it was really cool comparing the shrines and statues to others we’ve seen in Tokyo, even the smaller ones.

[theunexaminedlife]

June 5: Kyoto Imperial Palace

Day six in Kyoto!!!!!! Today was also a pretty chill day. Good news, the Kyoto Imperial Palace was worth the walking around in 87 degree heat. The Tokyo Palace set some strange expectations for imperial palaces, but for once I liked being led by a tour guide today. The woman was knowledgeable and gave interesting facts that held my attention throughout the hour long tour. The majority of the tour was about the architecture and different uses of the structures by officials depending on social status. Generally things, like gates and carriages, were made larger for men and smaller for women. The gardens within the gates were just as all the other gardens I’ve seen here, a simple elegant beauty.

The Imperial Palace visit was finished sort of early and we were able to find our way back home by noon. I had lunch at the same cheap ramen place in the mall for the fourth time now and I am absolutely not ashamed of it. Their sliced pork rice bowl and edamame is a perfect late brunch for 340 yen. Amazing.

Not much else to report on. I took a nap and repainted my nails today. Tonight we’ve got plans for some good ‘ol family dinner after swinging by the grocery store, and watching Lord of the Rings, which I have actually never seen before. I have heard many good things though. Hopefully we don’t burn down the wood and paper house we’re in. Wish us luck!

[theunexaminedlife]

June 4: Kiyomizudera and Gion

Day five in Kyoto!!!!! Despite staying up later than usual last night, I woke up at 5:30, yet again. BUT after my morning walk I had some pretty great French toast and tea from the French bakery. 

Kiyomizu Temple, also known as the Pure Water Temple, had a pretty spectacular view, especially from the 5th/6th floor deck. It has three streams to drink from; one for success, one for love and one for longevity, but if you drink from more than one you are deemed greedy and will get nothing. It was a cool temple to see, though again there were SO many people and I am not very fond of large throngs of tourists. The middle schoolers were swarming everywhere, especially trying to lift Benkei’s staff (that was probably bolted to the ground). We had lunch with Professor Smith again, today in a much fancier place than I anticipated. But I got a darn good sandwich out of it.

The Gion area was a quick ending to our scheduled activities. We’ve already walked around the area since it’s pretty close to home but the specific streets we saw were lined with traditional Japanese houses. We also had the option to see a show if we wanted to, performed by maiko or geisha-in-training. Instead my group went back to the marketplace within walking distance of the houses. We walked through the Totoro cafe again, found a few shops with handmade souvenirs and of course I had to buy a couple.

I spent the better part of the evening on my own. I, not surprisingly, went back to explore the mall some more. I got soup dumplings from one of the vendors and boba tea from one of the 3 or 4 places I’ve seen in the mall. It is now my goal to try them all.

Academic Reflection

The reading on Kannon gives a slightly different take on how the Japanese viewed gods and spirits. This time Kannon was shown as both helpful and vengeful, rather than just being a pureful benevolent ancient being. This seems more like the realistic, practical side of Japanese spirituality and philosophy that I know. The concept of consequences and rewards came to mind when we were told to choose only success, love or longevity, and to not ask Kannon for too much. It may have been the time of day but Gion wasn’t all that busy, our group occupied most of the sidewalk on our own. We didn’t get to see any maiko but I really did enjoy seeing the older architecture and the higher end shops and teahouses of the area. It was basically as described earlier.

[theunexaminedlife]

June 3: Kinkakuji and Daitokuji

Day four in Kyoto!!!! So I’m a bit late on this one too, oops again. I’ve been pretty tired as of late and just taking things easy for now. I also tend to pass out early and wake up at 5:30am...but anyway, onward to the post! Our first excursion was Kinkaku-ji, seemingly the only major structure in Japan to have not burned down (most in war) at least once, until the “freak accident” arson in 1950 by an alleged insane man (he was definitely at least a little crazy). We got to see the reconstructed temple that was restored beyond its former glory with a fresh, new coat of gold leaf. We’re not allowed in anymore, for obvious reasons, but walking the path around the temple was nice and I got some pretty amazing pictures of the golden pavilion. That being said, I also almost had to physically fight some middle schoolers and Chinese tourists because good lord it was crowded with tourists. 

After that we bussed over to Daitoku-ji, the second temple of the day which was more of a compound of temples and different than the others we’ve seen so far. Because it’s a Zen Buddhist temple it was much less focused on looks and presentation for tourism. Instead it centered around their lecture hall for monks and the gardens. I have never been so at peace than walking barefoot on the wood of the temples, staring out into the simple patterns of the gardens. I actually zoned out a couple times, but in a good way. Everything felt tranquil for a good five minutes and that’s all I really needed that day.

Once we ventured off on our own my day was relatively slow. I treated myself to some mall boba and went out with a group for some waffle house quality curry. It was so good. And cheap. I absolutely will go back to our waffle house curry again. Many times.

Academic Reflection

Well, for a temple celebrating the practice of a minimalistic religion, rooted in the refusal of worldly pleasures and materialistic desires, it was very shiny. And gold, all gold. Just, shrouded in a grand showcase of wealth. It was highly amusing. I had similar reactions as the protagonist of our reading, it wasn’t the most impressive temple ever, though I definitely felt no obsessive thoughts of burning it to the ground. I absolutely loved the gardens in Daitoku-ji. I do see the problem with dubbing a variety of styles as “zen gardens” as if they all represent the Zen Buddhist religion exactly the same or are exclusive to the religion. I also really appreciated the symbolism of each rock, each wave and groove made in the gardens, reflecting major teachings and practices of Zen Buddhism.

[theunexaminedlife]

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Train to Himeji-jo