Kyota Ko on LinkedIn: The Sometimes Silly World of Kanji: 危 & 取 (2024)

祭 Matsurimeaning: FestivalThe radical at the bottom represents an altar. The radical in the top left represents meat. The radical in the top right represents a hand holding onto something, and therefore the Kanji for festival was originally more about sacrificial rituals. 梟 f*ckuroumeaning: OwlThe radical at the top represents a bird. The radical at the bottom is a tree, but it actually represents a wooden stick. Owls were beieved to eat their mother in ancient China and perhaps due to Confucian values which strongly advocates filial piety, owls, upon beign captured, got their heads chopped off and put on a stake to scare pests away from the fields.There was a form of punishment in the middle-age samurai world called 梟首 (literally, “Owl Head”) which referred to the putting of a human head on a stake 😫😫😫, most likely inspired by the Chinese owl version 😫😫😫.Hi, I’m Kyota, the author of Amazon Best Sellers [Folk Tales of Japan], [Underdogs of Japanese History], and [Horror Tales of Japan].Please check out my books at ☺️: https://lnkd.in/gmv5jqmjhttps://lnkd.in/gnD_3f5s#japanese #japaneselanguage #japanesestudy #japan #japaneseculture #kanji

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Ashes precipitate in towns in Kagoshima Prefecture in western Japan quite often due to an active volcano, Sakurajima. Lately, it erupts close to 1000 times a year! Here’s a folktale that tells us the volcano has been naughty throughout history:Once upon a time in a domain near the Sakurajima volcano, there was a mayor called Tahei who was so smart that people rumored he must be smarter than the ruler of the region. The ruler was not happy about the rumor, and always had an attitude towards Tahei. One day, the ruler decided to exercise his skills as a total jerk, and invited all the mayors under his rule to a party, served delicious duck meat to all of them except Tahei, who was instead served radish. Tahei, all upset, ate up the radish and stormed out of the castle. The ruler got a kick out of that. Sadly.A few days later, the ruler got a letter from Tahei. He informed that a great number of ducks had spawned on a hill nearby, and suggested that the ruler go out to hunt them. It was raining ashes that day, but that did not stop the ruler. He circled around the hill on his horse excitedly, but he could only find villagers working hard to clean the dust off their radish fields. When Tahei showed up, the ruler confronted him in anger. “Where are the ducks!! I didn’t come here to see a bu nch of radishes covered in ash!” To that, Tahei replied “I thought you called radishes ducks 😂😂😂 Burn 😂😂😂!!The ruler ended up seeing the hard lives of his people after Sakurajima volcano erupted, and his governance grew slightly more empathetic starting that day 😁. The story is called Kamo-no-gochisou.Woodblock print of Sakurajima volcano by Utagawa hIroshige (1797 - 1858).Hi, I’m Kyota, the author of Amazon Best Sellers [Folk Tales of Japan], [Underdogs of Japanese History], and [Horror Tales of Japan].Please check out my books at ☺️: https://lnkd.in/gmv5jqmj#japaneseart #woodblockprint #japaneseculture #folklore #folktale #bedtimestory #japan #japantravel

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The way silk kimonos are created embody the traditional life and philosophy of the Japanese people. Silkworm farming was one of premodern Japan’s biggest industries. After the hundreds of eggs laid by a single silk moth hatch, they grow 10,000 times their original size to become silkworms. They eat mulberry leaves frantically for close to a month, creating noise analogous to a hailstorm all over the farm, to fill their bodies entirely with silk threads. Then, for two full days, they spin silk to form their cocoons with literally everything they’ve got.It is here when humans heat or cool the cocoons to an extent that their content die, disallowing them to complete their metamorphosis into a grown moth. Given 10 days, the pupa would break themselves free from their cocoons, leaving a hole which would shorten the silk thread harvested. Silkworms are killed prematurely to serve human interests😔.As if to compensate for their sinful practice, Japanese people designed kimono so that not a single piece of silk cloth is put to waste. Curves are created by folding the cloth to avoid cutting. To put this in perspective, 20% of fabric can be discarded for dressmaking. Some Japanese elementary schools have their students experience the one-month process of silkworm farming, partly to help them learn that our lives are built on the backs of many other lives, and it is a mistake to take anything we have for granted.Illustration of kimonos by KAMISAKA Sekka (1866 - 1942).Hi, I’m Kyota, the author of Amazon Best Sellers [Folk Tales of Japan], [Underdogs of Japanese History], and [Horror Tales of Japan].Please check out my books at ☺️: https://lnkd.in/gmv5jqmj#japan #japaneseculture #kimono #japaneseart #lovenature #japon #japao

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Juggling “I” pronouns in Japanese: for women私 Watash*the most commonly used. Good for formal and informal situations. It makes you sound like a grownup.あたし AtashiAn informal version of Watashi. Used when talking with close friends.うち UchiOriginally a pronoun used in Kansai dialect, it has been slightly popularized among young girls across the country. It gives a friendly, approachable feel.Calling yourself by your own name or a shortened version of it is only acceptable for children, anime characters, and maybe extraordinarily pretty girls; otherwise, expect people to throw punches at you in their minds. Hi, I’m Kyota, the author of Amazon Best Sellers [Folk Tales of Japan], [Underdogs of Japanese History], and [Horror Tales of Japan].Please check out my books at ☺️: https://lnkd.in/gmv5jqmj#japanese #japaneselanguage #japaneseculture #pronouns #japanhttps://lnkd.in/gWHRfJSx

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Why the makeup? Why that makeup? Why the cross-eye? By knowing the answers to these questions, Kabuki starts to become less intimidating or alien 😁. First off, it helps to know that Kabuki’s sole purpose is to entertain the audience. That means everything that happens in Kabuki is meant to contribute to an excellent customer experience. Between the 17th and 19th century when Kabuki was THE public entertainment of Tokyo (then called Edo City), Kabuki was performed in a dark theater that only got lighting from a sunroof and a few candles. To make sure nobody watched for free, there were no windows. To make sure fire risk was kept low, there were only a few candles. But the theaters were not small, so to make sure the audience in the back could see better, Kabuki actors powdered their faces white. They painted their face so the audience far away could distinguish between characters. And the cross eye🤪: actually, it’s one eye looking in a different way while the other stays put. This eye gesture requires quite a lot of practice and concentration (I advise that you don’t try), and is done only at key moments of Kabuki shows. The legendary Kabuki actor Ichikawa Danjūrō mimicked the eyes of an angry Buddha statue, of which, one eye looks upward and the other looks downward. It represented the idea that Buddha sees everything on earth and the heavens. So when he did it on stage, the crowd was stunned by his divinity and went wild! It was like Michael Jackson’s standing still for minutes on stage🕺! The cross-eye became everyone’s favorite Kabuki move and has been handed all the way down to the present Ichikawa Danjūrō XIII. Woodblock print by UTAGAWA Toyokuni (1786 - 1865).Hi, I’m Kyota, the author of Amazon Best Sellers [Folk Tales of Japan], [Underdogs of Japanese History], and [Horror Tales of Japan].Please check out my books at ☺️: https://lnkd.in/gmv5jqmj#kabuki #facepaint #japan #japantravel #woodblockprint #japanese #travel #japaneseculture

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Japanese etymology: おかげさまで Okagesamadeおかげさまで “Okagesamade” Meaning: Thanks to youOkagesamade is originally a Buddhist term that refers to the feeling of gratefulness towards the supernatual that extends help to us. Kage = ShadowSama = HonorificImagine the gratefulness towards a shadow that protects you from the blazing sun in summer. The shadow is there to help you because someone planted a tree there. We are all helped by people and things that are beyond what we can perceive. Nowadays, the phrase is used to thank others for something that went well for you. When Japanese people come back to work after a sick leave, they say: a. “おかげさまでよく休めました” = “Thanks to you, I was able to rest well” b. “おかげさまで良くなりました” = “Thanks to you, I have gotten better”even if the counterpart didn’t do anything to help.Hi, I’m Kyota, the author of Amazon Best Sellers [Folk Tales of Japan], [Underdogs of Japanese History], and [Horror Tales of Japan].Please check out my books at ☺️: https://lnkd.in/gmv5jqmj#japanese #japaneselanguage #japaneseculture #japan #bookloverhttps://lnkd.in/g-RKYeqC

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There are a few mammoth temples that are approx. 400 years old in Tokyo, built around the same time. Why 🤔?Tokugawa Ieyasu (the Shogun who eventually put the 150-year long samurai battle-royal age to an end and the model of Toranaga in the drama Shogun) was assigned to rule the Tokyo area (then called Edo City) by his boss 400 years ago. During this time, one thing he did was build these temples. Was it because he was that religious? Absolutely not 😂!Back then, Ieyasu was the second-most powerful lord of Japan, and was still pretending to be super obedient to the most powerful lord, the Taikō, Hideyoshi. So Hideyoshi suspecting him of preparing for war was the last thing he wanted. Ieyasu built a huge temple in the south and another in the west of Edo.He reported to Hideyoshi that he was building Zōjōji Temple in the south as a family grave, and Denzūin Temple in the west as the grave for his mother who just recently passed away 😢.If you’ve been to these temples, you might remember that they had a wide open space, perfect to station thousands of men. The two temples stand in strategic locations that would help to protect Edo City from attacks coming from the west, where the HQ of Hideyoshi’s regime was. These temples were incognito forts, and therefore a reminder of how prudent one needed to be to take over a whole country. But FYI, Sensōji Temple which is a temple all first-time visitors to Tokyo visit, was built purely out of religious intent 😁! Woodblock print of Zōjōji Temple by UTAGAWA Hiroshige (1797 - 1858).Hi, I’m Kyota, the author of Amazon Best Sellers [Folk Tales of Japan], [Underdogs of Japanese History], and [Horror Tales of Japan].Please check out my books at ☺️: @themetroclassic https://lnkd.in/gmv5jqmj#temple #japanesehistory #shogun #japan #japaneseculture #travel #japantravel

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When, how, why is the Japanese honorific -kun used?-Kun is said to have been invented by a legendary samurai teacher of the mid-19th century, Yoshida Shōin who accepted learners regardless of class. But when he encouraged discussion among his students, he noticed that classism got in the way. Samurai students called their peasants peers Gonbei-dono (Gonbei was the most common name in pre-modern Japan. Average Joe = Average Gonbei). Peasants students called their samurai peers Gonbei-sama.So to establish equality, Shōin had all students call each other with a new honorific, -kun.Many of these students grew up to become rebels who eventually contributed to overthrowing the over-250 years old samurai government in 1867. At the National Diet of Japan still now, there is a rule where all Diet members call each other with the -kun suffix, male and female alike. Nowadays, probably because of its origin, -kun is predominantly used towards males, and it symbolizes a closer relationship than -san relationships, but establishes a graceful distance than a no-honorific relationship.In the video, I give you one very important use case of -kun which is exclusively used by girls towards boys 😂.Hi, I’m Kyota, the author of Amazon Best Sellers [Folk Tales of Japan], [Underdogs of Japanese History], and [Horror Tales of Japan].Please check out my books at ☺️: https://lnkd.in/gmv5jqmj#japanese #samurai #japan #japaneseculture #japaneselanguage #relationshipshttps://lnkd.in/gAn2_59g

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“Issun-boushi” is a folk tale every Japanese person can recite, but not many will want to know how its original story went.The wholesome version we all know is this:Once upon a time, there was a couple trying to conceive but unluckily, couldn’t. So they prayed at a local shrine for a baby.Soon, the wife gave birth to a cute little boy, but he didn’t grow any taller than 3 cm (about an inch). He was called Issun-boushi. Issun-boushi carried a needle as a sword, and floated down the river to the capital on a bowl. He found employment under a minister and became a trusted servant of his daughter, a princess. One day, a pair of Oni (Ogre-like creatures) tried to kidnap the princess. Issun-boushi was eaten by one of them in one gulp. But inside the mouth, he stuck his needle everywhere. The Oni ran away and dropped a magic mallet that made any wish come true. Issun-boushi wished to be tall. He instantly grew into a handsome young man and married the princess. The end ☺️.But the original story written somewhere around 700 to 400 years ago differs 😫:1. The couple despised Issun-boushi for being so small and useless, and so he left home.2. Issun-boushi fell in love at first sight with the minister’s daughter. But she was a princess and out of his league. So he snuck in and pasted rice around her mouth while she was asleep. Issun pretended his rice was stolen by the princess, and the minister kicked her out of the house. Issun offered to run away with her, to which the princess had no choice but to comply 😫.Outsmarting others no matter what seemed to have been considered heroic once upon a time. Here’s to hoping we are at least in the midst of evolving into a more compassionate species 😌🙏.Woodblock print by KASAMATSU Shirō (1898 - 1991).Hi, I’m Kyota, the author of Amazon Best Sellers [Folk Tales of Japan], [Underdogs of Japanese History], and [Horror Tales of Japan].Please check out my books at ☺️: https://lnkd.in/gmv5jqmj#folktale #folklore #bedtimestory #japaneseculture #japantravel #japan #japanese

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