Japanese Rainmaking and other Folk Practices

Japanese Rainmaking and other Folk Practices PDF Author: Geoffrey Bownas
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1136550968
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 188

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Book Description
The ritual of rainmaking is one of half a dozen Japanese folk practices and festivals described in this book. The story of rainmaking ceremonies begins with personal experience and then draws on the work of Japanese folklorists to record significant local variations and to construct a general account of the history and purpose of the ceremony. Field research was conducted during study visits to Kyoto, to Tenri in Nara Prefecture and to Shiga Prefecture. The chapter order follows the year cycle, from New Year via early summer purificatory festivals and rainmaking ceremonial to the feast of Bon, which with New Year ceremonies divides the year. Alongside these community or public rites are described private or family rituals concerned with birth, marriage and death. The introductory chapter relates aspects of Japanese culture, myth and language to the constant features of folk practice recorded or extant in 1950s Japan. Originally published in 1963.

Japanese Rainmaking and other Folk Practices

Japanese Rainmaking and other Folk Practices PDF Author: Geoffrey Bownas
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1136550968
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 188

Get Book Here

Book Description
The ritual of rainmaking is one of half a dozen Japanese folk practices and festivals described in this book. The story of rainmaking ceremonies begins with personal experience and then draws on the work of Japanese folklorists to record significant local variations and to construct a general account of the history and purpose of the ceremony. Field research was conducted during study visits to Kyoto, to Tenri in Nara Prefecture and to Shiga Prefecture. The chapter order follows the year cycle, from New Year via early summer purificatory festivals and rainmaking ceremonial to the feast of Bon, which with New Year ceremonies divides the year. Alongside these community or public rites are described private or family rituals concerned with birth, marriage and death. The introductory chapter relates aspects of Japanese culture, myth and language to the constant features of folk practice recorded or extant in 1950s Japan. Originally published in 1963.

Japanese History & Culture from Ancient to Modern Times

Japanese History & Culture from Ancient to Modern Times PDF Author: John W. Dower
Publisher: Manchester University Press
ISBN: 9780719019142
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Book Description


Japan Encyclopedia

Japan Encyclopedia PDF Author: Louis-Frédéric
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 9780674017535
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 1130

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Book Description
"Knowing Japan and the Japanese better," Louis Frédéric states in the introduction to this encyclopedia, "is one of the necessities of modern life." The Japanese have a profound knowledge of every aspect and detail of Western societies. Unfortunately, we in the West cannot say the same about our knowledge of Japan. We tend to see Japan through a veil of exoticism, as a land of ancient customs and exquisite arts; or we view it as a powerful contributor to the global economy, the source of cutting-edge electronics and innovative management techniques. To go beyond these clichés, we must begin to see how apparently contradictory aspects of modern Japanese culture spring from the country's evolution through more than two millennia of history. This richly detailed yet concise encyclopedia is a guide to the full range of Japanese history and civilization, from the dawn of its prehistory to today, providing clear and accessible information on society and institutions, commerce and industry, sciences, sports, and politics, with particular emphasis on religion, material culture, and the arts. The volume is enhanced by maps and illustrations, along with a detailed chronology of more than 2,000 years of Japanese history and a comprehensive bibliography. Cross-references and an index help the reader trace themes from one article to the next. Japan Encyclopedia will be an indispensable one-volume reference for students, scholars, travelers, journalists, and anyone who wishes to learn more about the past and present of this great world civilization.

Japanese Religion

Japanese Religion PDF Author: Robert Ellwood
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1315507110
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 279

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Book Description
This book provides an overview of religion in Japan, from ancient times to the present. It also emphasizes the cultural and attitudinal manifestations of religion in Japan, withough neglecting dates and places.

Japan's Name Culture

Japan's Name Culture PDF Author: Herbert E. Plutschow
Publisher: Psychology Press
ISBN: 9781873410424
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 324

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Book Description
This is the first comprehensive study in English of Japanese names - their history and evolution, and ontological implications. Its main purpose is to understand the development of the nomenclature in its religious (animistic) and socio-political contexts. We learn, for example, how belief in the animistic-symbolic property of names developed into extensive taboos and, in connection with these taboos, into the custom of revealing names in case of marriage or territorial surrender. Whereas private (religious) use of surnames was tolerated, commoners without public functions were prohibited from public use of surnames. In the Meiji period (1868-1912), on the other hand, the government enforced the universal registry of surnames to conform with its policy of universal conscription, education, taxation and the postal service. The book will be of particular interest to students of Japan and Japanese nomenclature. It will also appeal to the general reader drawn to learning more about Japan by looking at its history, religion and culture through the names of its people.

Matsuri: The Festivals of Japan

Matsuri: The Festivals of Japan PDF Author: Herbert Plutschow
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134246986
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 312

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Book Description
Contribution to Western understanding of the nature and manifestations of Shinto through the vast galaxy of historic festivals (matsuri) that are here categorized and analysed.

The Kakure Kirishitan of Japan

The Kakure Kirishitan of Japan PDF Author: Stephen R. Turnbull
Publisher: Psychology Press
ISBN: 1873410700
Category : Catholics
Languages : en
Pages : 322

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Book Description
First major study in English of the Japanese 'hidden' Christians - the Kakure Kirishitan, who chose to remain separate from the Catholic Church when religious toleration was granted in 1873 - and the development of the faith and rituals from the 16th century to the present day.

Religion in Japanese Daily Life

Religion in Japanese Daily Life PDF Author: David C. Lewis
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317194373
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 312

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Book Description
Are Japanese people religious – and, if so, in what ways? David Lewis addresses this question from the perspective of ordinary Japanese people in the context of their life cycles, and explores why they engage in religious activities. He not only discusses how Japanese people engage in different religious practices as they encounter new events in their lives but also analyses the attitudes and motivations behind their behaviour. Activities such as fortune-telling, religious rites in the workplace, ancestral rites and visits to shrines and temples are actually engaged in by many people who view themselves as ‘non- religious’ but express their motivations in terms other than the conventional ‘religious’ ones. This book outlines the religious options available, and assesses why people choose particular religious activities at various times in their lives or in specific circumstances. The author challenges some widespread assumptions about religion in urban and industrial contexts and also shows how some of the underlying motivations behind Japanese behaviour are expressed both in religious and non-religious forms.

Marriage in Changing Japan

Marriage in Changing Japan PDF Author: Joy Hendry
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 113689800X
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 277

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Book Description
This book approaches its subject from two angles. First, there is a detailed and descriptive analysis of the social organisation of, and place of marriage in, one community in Kyushu. To this extent, the study is a regional one and provides valuable ethnographic information. The second angle, however, is to analyse this material in the light of other historical ethnographical writings on Japan, which puts the regional material in a national context, and brings together a great deal of information about Japanese marriage hitherto unpublished in English.

Irezumi

Irezumi PDF Author: Willem R. van Gulik
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004544976
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 406

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Book Description