NIPPON Kichi - 日本吉

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2007/11/13


切妻造 Kirizuma-zukuri The Kirizuma-zukuri Style

Jp En

The Kirizuma-zukuri style is one of Japanese traditional architectural styles, especially said of the styles of roofs. Japanese roofs are classified into any one of the three representative styles; Kirizuma (gable roof), Yosemune (hip roof) and Irimoya (hip-and-gable roof).

The ends of buildings with gable roofs have a triangular space (gable) made by the incline of the two sides of the roof. Seen from the gable side, the wall looks as if it was cut by the roof; hereby it is called Kirizuma, which literally means “a cut gable.”

The Kirizuma-zukuri style was a basic architectural style in ancient Japan. The gable roof was prized most highly during the Kofun period (3rd-6th centuries), when it was the symbol of the residences of powerful rulers. However, in the Nara period (710-794), when the Yosemune-zukuri style (with hip roof) was introduced from China, it was considered more sophisticated because extension of the roof was apparently recognized.

Later on, the Irimoya-zukuri style (with hip-and-gable roof) became most favored in the prestigious buildings such as palaces, noblemen’s residences and temples due to its combined features; the symbolic character of the Kirizuma style and the expansivity of the Yosemune style.
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満月 Mangetsu Full Moon

Jp En

Full moon is a lunar phase, in which the hemisphere of the moon facing the earth is fully illuminated by the sun and appears round. A full moon occurs when the geocentric apparent longitudes of the sun and the moon differ by 180 degrees. As the full moon corresponds to an age of about 14.8 days of the synodic month, a night with a full moon is called “Jugoya (the 15th night)” in Japanese.

The appearance of the illuminated portion of the moon as seen by an observer on the earth is called luner phases. The phases designate both the degree to which the moon is illuminated and the geometric appearance of the illuminated part. The moon appears as a new moon when the sun and the moon are on the same sides of the earth, while as a full moon when they are on the opposite side. Between the new moon and the full moon, it appears as the first quarter moon and the last quarter moon, which mean we can see half of the illuminated part. If the moon happens to align exactly with the earth and sun, then we get a lunar eclipse.

As a lunar month is about 29.531 days long, the full moon falls on around the 15th day of the lunar month in the calendars that start the month on the new moon such as Chinese Calendar. However, as there is a margin of error, a full moon does not always occur on the 15th day.

The moon on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month of the lunar calendar (usually around mid- or late-September in the Gregorian calendar), when the moon is at its fullest and brightest, is called “Chushu-no-meigetsu (the fine moon in the mid-autumn)” and people hold the Moon Festival. The full moon seems to symbolize the mysterious beauty and power of the moon.
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2007/11/12


魚板 Gyoban Gyoban (Fish Drum)

Jp En

Gyoban is a wooden fish-shaped drum, which serves as a signal to start and end rituals, meditation sessions and meals. The fish-shaped drums are common in Zen temples in Japan. Gyoban is also called Gyoko, Mokugyoku, or Ho. In Buddhism, the fish, which never sleeps, symbolizes wakefulness and devotion to training.

Mokugyo, a wooden percussion instrument used during the recitation of sutras, mantras, or other Buddhist texts, also takes the shape of fish. Mokugo is said to have been derived from Gyoban and developed into the present form in China during the Ming Dynasty. That's why Gyoban looks more like a fish than Mokugyo.
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2007/11/1


栃木 平和観音 Tochigi Heiwakannon Tochigi Heiwa Kannon

Jp En

Heiwa Kannon located in Ohya-machi, Utsunomiya City, Tochigi Pref. is a huge statue of Kannon carved into a wall of Ohya Stone in the old Ohya stone quarry. It was made in hope for world peace and in memory of Japan and U.S. war dead soldiers in the World War II. The statue is 26.93-meter in height and 20-centimeter in circumference of waist. It was made in 1954 by a stone mason, Ryozo Ueno, who did its foundation work, and a sculptor, Asajiro Hida, who hand-carved its calm expression. From the top of the stairs beside the statue, you can command a wide view of the Utsunomiya plain over its shoulder.
On the left side of the Kannon was a tunnel leading to Ohyaji Temple, but it is currently closed for the danger of falling. Ohyaji Temple is also famous for its rock-cut Kannon known as Ohya Kannon. Heiwa Kannon is a symbol of the stone town of Ohya.
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2007/10/31


三ツ畑田島 Mitsuhatada-jima Mitsuhatadajima Islands

Jp En

Mitsuhatajima located offshore of Ainan-cho, Minami-Uwa-gun, Ehime Pref. is a collective name for the three small islands in the Uwakai Sea, which is a part of Ashizuri-Uwakai National Park. The water around the islands is so clear that a variety of table corals exist in colonies at the sea bottom and colorful tropical fish are swimming through waving sea weeds. It looks like a flower garden in the ocean. Seeing the cute islands in the afterglow, you will have a relaxing time until the sun set in the ocean. Mitsuhatajima Islands are the symbolic landscape of the Uwakai Sea.
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2007/10/15


栗林公園 掬月亭 Ritsurinkouen Kikugetsu-tei Kikugetsutei Tea House in Ritsurin Park

Jp En

Kikugetsutei is a tea house is an aristocratic tea house located in Ritsurin Park, which is famous for its exquisite stroll-type garden. The construction of this garden started in 1625 by the lord of the Takamatsu domain, Ikoma Takatoshi, and was completed in 1745 after 100 years of improvements and extensions made by five successive domain lords of the Matsudaira family. The park was designated a prefectural park and opened to the public in 1875.

The lord of the Matsudaira family loved this grand Kikugetsutei Tea House.
With the greenery of Mt. Shiun as a backdrop, its elegant shape looks in good harmony with the pond. The tea house is in Shoin-zukuri style (the style of warrior residences) and elaborately designed so that you can fully appreciate the beauty of the pond and the surrounding landscape beyond the water.

On the second Sunday every month, you can join the tea ceremony “Tsuki-gama” here at Kikugetsutei Tea House.
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2007/10/4


大瀬神社 Ose-jinja Ose Shrine

Jp En

Ose Shrine is in Nishiura Enashi in Numazu City, Shizuoka Prefecture. As it enshrines Hikitajikara no Mikoto, it is formally named Hikitajikara no Mikoto Shrine. It is also called Ose Myojin Shrine.

The origin of the shrine is not identified, but, according to one story, the shrine was founded because, when an island called Biwashima emerged by the elevation of the sea bottom due to a big earthquake in 684, the local people believed that the god had pulled land from Tosa province (present-day Kochi Prefecture), where a lot of land sank into the sea by the same earthquake.

The enshrined deity, Hikitajikara no Mikoto, is known as the guardian god of the sea and has been worshipped by fishermen in Suruga Bay. A lot of Ema-plates depicting fishing activities in the old days and model fishing-ships made by ancient fishing people preserved at the shrine. These votive items are considered historically precious and prefecturally designated as a tangible folk cultural property.

Kami-ike Pond in the precinct is counted as one of the Seven Wonders in Izu because it is a fresh-water pond in spite of being located just by the sea.
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2007/8/16


赤城山 Akagi-yama Mt. Akagi-yama

Jp En

Mt. Akagi-yama, one of the Jomo Three Mountains and Japan’s 100 Fine Mountains, located in the center of Gunma Prefecture, is the generic name for mountains including Kurobi-san, Komagatake, Jizo-dake Choshichiro-yama, and Nabewari-yama.

It is a double-rimmed caldera volcano. There are three beautiful lakes near the mountaintop; Lake O-numa (an atrio lake), Ko-numa (a crater lake) and Kakuman-fuchi (a high moor).

The north wind known as “Karakkaze,” which is characteristic to the Kanto Plain in winter, is also called “Akagi Oroshi,” because it blows from Mt. Akagi-yama.

Mt. Akagi-yama has been worshipped by local people since the ancient times. It is a symbol of Gunma Prefecture.
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