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Seira - Love letter no kawari ni kono uta wo:

Generally, the Japanese Zen gardens are small, covering just dozens of square meters. The reason is that the viewer must be able to see the entire garden, to understand the symbolic meanings. Some of them are very small, just a few square meters… but the smallest Japanese Zen rock garden is Totekiko, one of the gardens from the Ryōgen-in Temple, Kyoto.

Totekiko was designed by Nabeshima Gakusho in 1958 and it represents a Zen kōan: The harder a stone is thrown in, the bigger the ripples. The garden was built in the small space between two of the temple’s buildings and, depending on the weather outside, in some moments of the day a ray of light comes in and it makes it breathtaking…

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Totekiko, the smallest Japanese Zen rock garden, Ryogen-in Temple, Kyoto

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Yesterday’s Japan Photo: Cute Jizo Gashapon Machine

The Scanty - I ♥ U:

Gashapon (or gachapon) is a brand, owned by the famous company Bandai, referring to capsule toys, but also to the capsule vending machines. The name comes from two onomatopoeia, gasha and pon, sounds made by the capsule while going through the vending machine and dropping into the cup.

Of course, there’s a large variety of gashapon products in Japan and what differentiates them from the toy vending machines available in other countries is that the products are generally of good (or even very good) quality. Of course, the prices are also higher, varying from 100 to 500 yen - that’s about 6.5 US dollars now.

For a collector like me, gashapon is always a big temptation, because, “you never know what you’re gonna get!”. I tried a lot of items, from lapel pins (these are top-quality in Japan) to phone straps or figurines. But sometimes you can find unique gashapon machines, like these found in Higashiyama, Kyoto, with a collection of statues representing cute chibi Jizo statues… and next to it, obviously, one with lucky cats…

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Gashapon Machine, Higashiyama, Kyoto

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Yesterday’s Japan Photo: Japanese spiritual architecture, Prince Shotoku Hall

Taja - Love Today:

Prince Shōtoku is known in the history of Japan as the father of Japanese Buddhism. He established the Shitennoji Temple from Osaka, which is known as the oldest officially administered temple in Japan.
Prince Shōtoku is also the author of the Seventeen-Article Constitution, a code established in 604, comprising principles for the ruling class. An amazing fact is that this law remained in effect until 1890, for almost 1300 years!

To honor him and his constitution, a hall was built in 1992 at the Narita-san Shinshō-ji Temple, the Shotoku-taishi-do Hall (this is the most recent building from the complex).
As you can see, the Shotoku-taishi-do is an octagonal building, a small architectural jewel designed to evoke a specific principle from Prince Shōtoku’s Constitution, about the value of harmony. The article begins like this: “Harmony is to be cherished, and opposition for opposition’s sake must be avoided as a matter of principle…”
Do you feel the parallel between the building and the Prince’s article?

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Prince Shotoku Hall, Narita-san Shinshō-ji Temple, Narita

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Yesterday’s Japan Photo: Mamemaki, the bean throwing festival, in a Tokyo Metro mosaic

My most recent discovery, the singer and songwriter cellen a.k.a Takuya Murase. Enjoy!

In Japan, Setsubun is the day before risshun, the beginning of spring in the Japanese lunar calendar. In this day (February 3rd in 2012) takes place the tradition of Mamemaki (bean throwing), a ritual to chase away bad spirits and bad luck. Like many other Japanese customs, Mamemaki is a lot of fun:

The man who is the head of the family, standing at the entry door, throws roasted soybeans (called fuku mame - fortune beans) outside or into someone wearing an oni (demon) mask, while the rest of the family shouts:
Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi! (Out with the evil! In with good fortune!).
Then the door is slammed hard to prevent the oni to enter. So, the oni is chased away by the soybeans and the good luck enters the house.

Mamemaki also takes place at shrines and temples. Priests and guests (usually sumo fighters or stars) are throwing roasted soybeans (sometimes wrapped in gold or silver foils) into the mass of people. Then, it is said that if you want to be healthy all year long, you need to eat a number of bean equal to your age… That’s quite easy, because I tasted these beans and they’re not bad…

Years ago, I was intrigued by an interesting mosaic at the entrance of the Asakusa Tokyo Metro Station (Ginza line): it represents several events taking place at the Senso-ji Temple throughout the year.
So, I started to decipher it… and here’s the detail regarding Mamemaki: in the center, colored in red, with horns and fangs, is an oni head - he looks quite upset… And to the left, in front of the temple, three traditionally dressed men are throwing soybeans…

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Mamemaki, the bean throwing festival, in a Tokyo Metro mosaic

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Yesterday’s Japan Photo: Yokohama Cosmo Clock 21 blue color night view

Furil - Sweet Little Love:

One of my favorite subjects for long exposure night time photography is the Ferris wheel. While the wheel is moving, the colors are often changing and its quite hard to choose the right moment to start the exposure. It’s like a game, sitting with the camera in your hand and waiting for the best moment to shoot… and then, when you look at the results, you are either thrilled or disappointed…

Here’s a photo I took on a freezing night in Yokohama, with the giant Cosmo Clock 21 Ferris wheel, which I wanted to photograph colored in blue (my favorite color)…

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Ferris wheel Cosmo Clock 21, Minato Mirai 21, Yokohama

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Photo participating to Travel Photo Thursday

Yesterday’s Japan Photo: Itsukushima Shrine Torii at low tide

B’z - Love Phantom:

The Itsukushima Shrine’s Otorii (Grand Gate) from the Miyajima Island is probably the most famous torii from Japan. It is so famous that there is a high probability that an image featuring this torii was among the very first Japanese pictures you ever saw…

The torii is 16 meters tall, its weight is estimated at 60 tons and it was made 135 years ago from two huge, 500 years old camphor trees. It looks magnificent from any angle and during any moment of the day: in the morning, at high tide, the torii seems to float on the water surface. Then, the water is deep enough to allow boats to pass, as I had the chance to do last summer.

At low tide, the scenery changes dramatically and the area around the torii becomes accessible by foot. Many people are going there to take a closer look, to take pictures, to harvest shellfish or just to touch the torii - it is said that you can make a wish by placing a small stone or coin in the wood cracks …

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Itsukushima Shrine Torii, Miyajima

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Yesterday’s Japan Photo: Reflections in the rain at Umeda Sky Building