After crossing the Kyujo Bridge over the Omogo River off of Route 33, it is a 14 minute/4.3 km drive up a mountain to get to Akiba-Jinja Shrine, located in Niyodogawa, Kochi Prefecture. We were greeted by a Shinto priest … Read More
The following interview is between Kozo Yamamoto, an eight-time elected member of Japan’s House of Representatives, and Gabriel Wozniak, a journalist at JTAST. This interview took place at 14:00 on May 20, 2022. Some of the statements have been paraphrased … Read More
The Japanese Integrated Resorts (IR) Association held its 3rd IR study session presenting the benefits of bringing IR to Japan. The theme of this session was ‘entertainment’ which is a vital part of IR. People tend to think that IR … Read More
In ancient times, people would make pilgrimages to different shrines and temples all over Japan. The goal of these pilgrimages was to worship the kami in their many homes, then collect the goshuin, or simply shuin, of these many shrines … Read More
The streets of Yokohama are cornucopias full of foreign influences ranging from the Yokohama Christ Church (Catholic Yamate Church) to the Yokohama Foreign General Cemetery right down the street, to the American Yama Park. If you are in the Yokohama … Read More
Due to Japan’s growing number of foreign in-bound tourists, a panel meeting was called to discuss how to market Japan to the United States audience. In this meeting, three American university interns and Professor Tadayuki Hara were invited to our … Read More
The same day that we visited the Tenryuin and participated in the zazen lesson, we also made a few side trips around Yanaka Town. The day was the right mix of cloudy and sunny, where it was warm enough to … Read More
Sitting cross-legged on the ground and looking down, half focusing on the black line that runs across the floor, I catch out of the corner of my eye the Buddhist priest’s movement. His barefoot feet make muted sound on the … Read More
We were welcomed at the Nichirenshu Saichuzan Joshoji by Itou-sensei, who was the head priest of the temple as well as master of the aikido dojo connected to the temple and shown to the main prayer hall. As we entered … Read More
As we were led through the halls of the National Diet, we all anxiously mused about our upcoming meeting with the former Minister of State for Regional Revitalization, Yamamoto Kozo. It would be our first time meeting such a prominent, … Read More
Blue is undoubtedly the most popular color. Blue skies, seas, eyes, and clothes have all been admired for centuries. It is not surprising then, that art makes use of this beautiful color and all its shades. Today, it is easy … Read More
Martial arts: the popular image that this phrase conjures is one of sage masters, fast striking action heroes, and disciplined training. Aikido falls into this nebulous and often misunderstood category. One might expect (as I did) that aikido training would … Read More