Seasonal Flower HAGI ( : Bush Clovers )
Early September in Kyoto brings cooler mornings and evenings to refresh
us, and reminds us that autumn is hesitantly approaching. Beginning with
bush clover, autumn flowers spring up all over, offering new life and color
to the city and its surroundings. Bush clovers are deciduous shrubs of
the pulse family. Some grow naturally in fields and mountains, while others
are planted in gardens and parks. Purple-red or white flowerets are at
their best in September.
Speaking of places noted for bush clover viewing in Kyoto, I would recommend
Nashinoki Shrine located to the eastside of Kyoto Imperial Palace. Nashinoki
Shrine is dedicated to Prince SANJO Sanetumu (O) and his heir Sanetomi
(O) both of whom were senior statesmen in the days of the Meiji
Restoration (1868). Following his father's last wishes, Prince SANJO Sanetomi
played a significant role in the accomplishment of the Meiji Restoration
through many hardships. At the beginning of the Meiji Period (1868-1912),
the Kyoto Imperial Palace was going to be demolished due to the transfer
of the capital to Tokyo. The Prince made a direct appeal to Emperor Meiji
stating, " I feel very sorry for the citizens of Kyoto. I'm afraid
Kyoto will surely decline in prosperity if it loses the Imperial Palace."
Consequently the plan was cancelled, and nationwide imperial ceremonies,
such as the enthronement of the Taisho and Showa emperors, were performed
in Kyoto from hereafter. With each of these ceremonies Kyoto has become
more and more prosperous. For this, Kyoto owes much to Prince SANJO Sanetomi.
It is considered very honorable that both father and son pursued their
duties with equal determination and purpose, and were rightfully deified
in one shrine.
In the past court noble's mansions were built along side each other in
an area close to the Imperial Palace. In the mornings and evenings Nashinoki
street, a street leading to the Imperial Palace, would be occupied with
noblemen commuting back and forth. There have been many bush clovers scattered
throughout the shrine garden since it's establishment in the middle of
the Meiji Period. Just after Second World War, the then chief priest had
planted more around the shrine to revitalize its deteriorated condition,
having been left to nature's devices during the war.
These days the Bush Clover Festival is held on the 3rd Sunday of September
every year.
It attracts a lot of visitors from the Kansai District as well as Nagoya.
Additionally, the Haiku ( oFJapanese 17 syllable poem) Festival takes
place on the 15th of September every year and continues to rise in popularity.
Visitors can enjoy reading Haiku written on Tanzaku ( Z : A long narrow
rectangular shaped piece of paper) hanging from the sprigs of bush clovers.
Last but least, it is possible to obtain good quality water from an old
well located near the inner shrine. The well is called Some-i ( ),
and is the only one of three noted wells in Kyoto to still contain water.
The other two noted wells, Samega-i ( ) and Agata-i ( ) have
already dried up. The water springing out of Some-i is good for making
Japanese tea used in tea ceremony.
Event Information
15th Sept. (Wed) Respect-for-the-Aged-Day: Haiku Festival
Tea Ceremony
18th Sept. (Sat) Dedication: (Koto, Shigin (poem reciting), Shakuhachi
(Japanese flute)
Tea Ceremony
19th Sept. (Sun) Bush Clover Festival Ritual
Dedication (Flower Arrangement, Kyogen (Noh comic play), Koto,
Yokyoku (Noh singing)
Japanese Dance
Tea Ceremony
23rd Sept. (Thu) Autumn Equinox: Bush-Clover-Viewing
Tea Ceremony
Inquiries: Nashinoki Shrine Tel/Fax 211-0885
Access: 5-minute walk from the City Bus Stop (Furitsu Idai Byouinmae)
ALL DRESSED IN WHITE
My most brilliant achievement was to persuade my wife to marry me
-Winston Churchill
The institution of marriage exists in every culture with diverse histories
behind the wedding ceremony. Two events that have made me think seriously
about Winston Churchill's quote: my attendance at a Japanese wedding in
Japan and my son's wedding this fall. For women, the wedding is oftentimes
considered the most important "rite of passage". The bride is
the centerpiece of various religious and secular customs. It is interesting
to look at some of these traditions as you visit Kyoto and hopefully have
an opportunity to view a wedding.
In early times, couples simply chose each other and began living together
as husband and wife. Or they set up housekeeping once their marriage was
arranged.
They needed no rings, no special wedding clothes, no vows to love, honor
or cherish to consider themselves married. In fact, what usually sealed
the pact wasn't a wedding at all, but an official betrothal or promise
made before witnesses to live as man and wife.
In most countries LOVE had very little to do with marriage. Parents arranged
marriages, as they still do today in parts of Japan and elsewhere. A Japanese
family checking out marriage prospects will sometimes hire a private detective
to make sure there is no embarrassing background. Today in the United States
matchmaking is often relegated to computers and dating services.
Choosing the right wedding date is very important. In fact, in many Muslim,
Hindu, Buddhist and African cultures, a priest, monk or astrologer will
set the date of the wedding. This may be done through numerology based
on such things as the bride and grooms birth dates.
The earliest betrothal rings were made of braided grass, rushes, or hemp.
They then appeared in more durable materials such as leather and stone.
The Romans had their rings made of iron.
Gradually, however, people realized that celebrations are wonderful and
an endless variety of rituals developed uniting the bride and groom. A
traditional 90's Japanese wedding includes: the Shinto wedding ceremony,
the wedding hall banquet reception for 100 guests, master of ceremonies,
karoke, videotaping, flowers, music and four changes of clothes for the
bride (often two kimonos, western style white gown, and a going-away suit)
the groom's formal attire, gifts for the guests and the honeymoon.
The groom's family traditionally gives a gift to the bride's family at
the time of the engagement. The bride's family usually pays for new furniture
including electrical goods and the bride and groom's families share the
wedding expenses.
At the reception the guests line up and hand the bride envelopes full of
cash (usually $150-$200 a person).The bride and groom also give gifts to
the guests which can be of greater value than the cash contributions they
receive. If the wedding couple is important, the gifts can be very large.
For example, a niece of the ex-emperor Hirohito married a descendent of
a well-known tea master and received $140 million in cash and gifts.
Today, however, some economy-minded brides and grooms get married in a
package deal offered by hotels in Tokyo and Singapore where 10-20 couples
marry at the same time. Sometimes a honeymoon is also included. Another
popular recent custom is for brides, grooms and their families to go to
Hawaii or the United States and have a small wedding. This site is then
used as the honeymoon location. A newer trend for Japanese young couples
who dislike the traditional style Japanese wedding is to arrange a simple,
inexpensive casual wedding where the guests pay their own party fees.
Some women's colleges in Kyoto still offer courses to prepare girls for
marriage by learning flower arranging, performing tea ceremonies, and managing
a household.
The origin of the honeymoon is interesting. It comes from an old Teutonic
custom where newlyweds "ran off, holed up and drank hydrome, (a fermented
honey potion with a big kick to it) for 30 days until "the moon waned".
Honeymoon trips, some historians say, relates to the times when a man ran
off with his newly won bride to hide from her parents.
The western wedding cake is very much a part of the Japanese Shinto wedding
. The cake is lavishly decorated, western-style. It is very expensive and
most wedding palaces supply a cardboard reproduction and have just one
real piece of cake
which the bride and groom cut. Couples delight in the cake-cutting ceremony.
Queen Victoria of England's wedding cake was three yards wide and weighed
three hundred pounds. The present queen of England at her 1947 wedding
had twelve wedding cakes presented to her. The one she cut measured nine
feet tall and weighed five hundred pounds, and arrived by van accompanied
by two motorcycle escorts.
As cultures vary and customs evolve the greatest interest in all weddings
is the wedding dress. Today in Japan and the United States it is traditionally
white. In Spain, the color is traditionally black, in China red, in Russia
blue.
Brides wore veils in ancient Greek and Roman times. In some cultures the
veil was thought to protect the bride from evil spirits. In Muslim and
Shinto societies veils traditionally covered the brides head completely.
Sometimes the Asian groom's first glimpse of his wife would be as he lifted
her wedding veil.
Two wedding dresses illustrate the point that East and West styles are
influencing each other. Picture 1 shows a 1999 American designer Vera Wang
dress. The bodice is satin and the skirt a gold trim on silk organza. This
is a use of unconventional fabrics and nonwestern influence - a departure
from her normal wedding dress.
Picture 2 shows a sumptuous kimono - inspired gown by Yumi Katsura. The
gown has 42 separate pieces and is ivory with gold and silver decoration.
The dress would cost between $20,000 and $80,000 depending on whether the
gold and silver is silk screened or embroidered. This gown includes three
tassels on the bodice (see picture 3). Two are for a fitted brocade sword
sheath. This sword is now ceremonial but it recalls the ancient custom
mandating that a wife commit suicide if her husband dies prematurely. The
other tassel can hold a wallet or paper. It took two kimono experts five
hours to assemble the kimono on the mannequin. Normally it would take a
bride approximately eight hours with assistance to prepare her kimono,
makeup and hair for the wedding.
The dress and all other rituals are important but as the English writer
Oliver Goldsmith said:
"I ... chose my wife, as she did her wedding dress, not for a fine
glossy surface
but such qualities as would wear well."
Frances M. Broderick
Professor of Speech
Associate Professor of Communication
Chairperson of the Communications Department
College of Mt. Saint Vincent
Riverdale, NY 10471
Kyoto City Libraries
There are 18 public libraries located throughout Kyoto City. The various
resources of each library, which range from books to audio/video tapes
and other learning materials, are all freely available to the public. For
those people who live in or commute daily to the city, it is also possible
to borrow these resources.
For those wishing to borrow library resources, it is first necessary to
obtain a library identification card. This simply requires providing some
sort of identification which has your name and current address written
on it. For example, a Japanese drivers license or a gaikokujin residency
card. A library card can be arranged on the spot, which you can then use
at any of the other libraries in Kyoto City.
All of the 18 libraries in Kyoto City house some foreign books, although
mostly picture books. If you venture to either Daigo Chuou Library or Fushimi
Chuou Library, you will find many kinds of foreign books including novels.
Hours : Chuo Library, Daigo Chuo Library and Fushimi Chuo Library:
Weekday: 10:00 - 20:30
Weekend & Public Holiday: 10:00 - 17:00
All other libraries:
Weekday/Weekend: 10:00 - 20:30
Closed : Chuo Library, Daigo Chuo Library and Fushimi Chuo Library:
Every Tuesday, and when Tuesday is a public holiday the next day.
New Year Period
All other libraries:
Same as above, plus public holidays, 2nd and 4th Wednesday of every month.
Inquiries : Daigo Chuo Library
4F Paseo Daigoro Zaikan,
Fushimi-ku, Daigo, Takahata-cho 30-1,
Tel: 575-2584 Fax: 575-2587
Fushimi Chuo Library
Fushimi-ku Ima-cho 659-1
Tel: 622-6700 Fax: 622-6551
Access : Daigo Chuo Library
Tozai Subway line "bound for Daigo" and get off at Daigo station.
Keihan Bus to Daigo-ekimae
Fushimi Chuo Library
City Bus to Higomachi, Keihan line to fushimi-momoyama, or Kintetsu line
for
Momoyama-goryomae