NIPPON Kichi - 日本吉

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2007/10/26


奥尻 鍋釣岩 Okushiri Nabetsuru-iwa Okushiri Nabetsuru-iwa Rock

Jp En

Nabetsuru-iwa Rock located in the offing to the south of Okushiri Harbor on Okushiri Island in Hokkaido is the symbol of this island. It was named because its center was hollowed by sea erosion to form a shape like nabetsuru (handle of a pot). It is lit up from 7:00 to 10:00 at night and creates a fantastic view. You can view it from the observatory on the island. It may be nice to view this natural work of art and think about the power of nature for some time.
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2007/10/24


【潮】 Chou The Character for Tide

Jp En

I shall introduce an easily approachable character from nature here. Originally, 'tide' was a character combining 水 'water,' 艸 'grass' and 日 'sun' only; the 'moon' was added later. Above and below the sun are the pictograms for grass. There are also forms for this character with inverse sides. The moon was added for the first time in the Tenbun (Zhuan Wen) seal script.

In antiquity, the characters for celestial bodies such as the sun and the moon had a dot in the middle (there are exceptions), which we can see in 日 (sun, day). The dot also distinguishes ○ 'gem' (of 環) from 日, which would otherwise have been written the same. (In poetic language, the sun, moon and stars were often compared to gems. This is also the case in the Zhuang Zi).

In ancient Chinese characters (carved on tortoise plastron and oracle bones and bronze vessels), the character for 'moon' does not appear. This, of course, does not mean that people then were not interested in the moon. Probably, there was not yet an understanding of the moon's relation to the earth's gravity and tides.

The special thought and attention in Japan to the moon can be understood and is seen in Heian literature like the 'Hyakuninisshu: The Hundred Poems by One Hundred Poets.' Inclination to the moon in ancient China also is conspicuous. The character 望 engraved on bronze vessels shows that a month was divided into four weeks. Although there was no scientific discovery of gravity, this character shows not only the inclination to the moon, but also bears a relation to calm astronomical observation of the atmosphere and the clouds.
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2007/5/7


竜串海岸 Tatsukushikaigan Tatsukushi Coast

Jp En

Heading west for 24km around the coast from Cape Ashizuri brings you to Tatsukushi Coast, where natural art objects of shales and sandstones protrude into the sea. This alternation of strata, the Tatsukushi Formation (the Miocene Misaki Group), was formed about 20 million years ago and has been eroded by strong winds and waves to create the present rock formations. As the rocks look like bamboo skewers laid side-by-side and stuck into the dragon-shaped hills along the coast, the seascape gets its name Tatsukushi (Dragon’s Skewers). The various formations have been given names like “large and small bamboo trees,” “tie-dyed curtain,” transom stone,” “kabuto stone,” and “carp’s waterfall climbing.” This is quite literally “the museum of strata” created by ocean waves.
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2007/3/9


生石高原 Oishi-kougen Oishi Highland

Jp En

Oishi Highland is located near the top of Mt. Oishigamine (870 m) in Wakayama Pref. Mt. Oishigamine is a part of the Nagamine mountains and it is counted as one of Japan’s 100 Fine Mountains.
From the mountain top, you can command a panoramic view of Kii mountains and Kii Cannel over the streets in Wakayama City on a fine day. The highland is a popular place for hiking but you can drive to the parking lot just below the summit and enjoy easy walking. In fall, Japanese pampas grass grows in clusters in this gentle meadow. A lot of hikers come to see this pampas grass field covered with swinging golden ears.
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NIPPON Kichi - 日本吉 - 日本語に切り替える NIPPON Kichi - 日本吉 - to english

"Nippon-kichi" leads you to places, people and things that reveal a certain Japanese aesthetic.

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