THE JAPANESE LANGUAGE
The language of Japan has many dialects,
and speakers of different dialects do not always understand each other. But
almost everyone in Japan uses standard Japanese as well as the dialect of his
home area. Standard Japanese, originally the dialect spoken by the educated
people of Tokyo, is now taught and understood throughout the country.
Broadly speaking, the accent in Japanese is
musical. To say "bridge" (hashi) in standard Japanese, the voice
begins with a low pitch on ha and rises on shi. If the voice is high for ha and
low for shi, the word means "chopsticks." The pitch of a word can
also change in a sentence. As a word, hi (fire) has a low pitch. But in the
sentence Hi ga deta (Fire has broken out), the pitch pattern is high for hi,
low for the rest of the sentence.
Japanese sentences have a peculiar structure.
For one thing, the verb comes at the end of a statement in Japanese. In
Japanese, the word order for "Kenji read the book" is "Kenji the
book read." In addition, two language particles wa and wo are added. Wa
often follows the subject of a clause (Kenji). Wo follows the direct object of
a verb (the book). So the sentence in Japanese is Kenji wa hon wo yomimashita.
To make a question of a statement, the particle ka is usually added. Thus Kenji
wa hon wo yomimashita ka means "Did Kenji read the book?"
In Japanese, different styles of speech are
used to show degrees of politeness and familiarity. A plain style is generally
used in speaking to close friends. For strangers, a polite style may be used.
To show honor and respect, a deferential style is often used toward parents,
older people, teachers, and so on. Different styles are also used in talking
about people and things. One of them, the exalted style, is almost entirely
limited to references to the emperor and the imperial family.
The Japanese writing system is unique. Chinese
characters, called kanji, were adopted by the Japanese more than 1,500 years
ago. Because Japanese is very different from Chinese, however, additional sets
of characters, called kana, were developed. In the 1950s the Japanese
government modified the system of writing. Kanji were reduced from many
thousands of characters to 1,850 basic characters, and their forms were
simplified. Many words are written with kanji only. Some words are written with
kana (hiragana or katakana) only. But most Japanese writing is a mixture of
kanji and kana. In newspapers and magazines, Japanese is usually printed from
top to bottom, in columns running from right to left. But in many textbooks,
Japanese is printed horizontally from left to right. In the Japanese culture,
the surname, or family name, comes before a person's given name.
THE LITERATURE OF JAPAN
Poetry is an important part of Japanese
culture. Occasions of many kinds are celebrated with poems, and thousands of
poems are submitted for the poetry prize awarded by the emperor each New Year.
Most Japanese compose short poems, called haiku and tanka. Japanese poems,
which usually do not rhyme, are based on a syllable count. A haiku is a
three-line poem, with 5 syllables in the first line, 7 syllables in the second,
and 5 syllables in the third. A tanka has five lines, with 5, 7, 5, 7, and 7
syllables. Because haiku and tanka are short, they can only suggest a mood or a
picture; the listener or reader has to fill in the details. Basho (1644-94),
who has been regarded by many as Japan's greatest poet, was a master of haiku.
A notable tanka poet was Tsurayuki Ki-no (884-946), one of Japan's
"thirty-six poetic immortals."
Japanese literature is noted for distinctive
forms of drama as well as of poetry. The no, or noh, play combines recitation,
music, and slow dancing. Japan's no plays can be considered as scenes from the
ceremonious life of lords and ladies during Japan's Middle Ages. The mood of
these plays is usually serious often tragic and they are noted for their fine
poetry, which is chanted by the actors and chorus. Because the no plays are
short, five different types of plays are presented at a time, each with its own
music. The first is usually about a god, the second about a warrior, the third
about a woman. Japan's outstanding no dramatists were Motokiyo Zeami (Seami)
(1363-1443) and his father, Kiyotsugu Kanami (1333-84).
Like the no play, the Japanese puppet play is
serious drama combining words, music, and dancing. Perhaps the greatest writer
of puppet drama, called Bunraku, was Chikamatsu (1653-1725). His plays fall
into two groups: heroic plays, often set in Japan's Middle Ages, and domestic
tragedies for example, 'The Love Suicides at Amijima' which give a naturalistic
picture of middle-class life. For elaborate spectacle, Kabuki drama has no
rival. Kabuki plays are distinguished by sensationalism and melodrama. One of
the most famous Kabuki plays is 'Chushingura', about 47 samurai who avenge
their lord's death and then commit hara-kiri as required by the law of the
time. (See also "The Performing Arts of Japan" later in this
section.)
Japanese prose works tend to be series of
loosely connected episodes. Diaries and books of random thoughts, which lend
themselves to this style, are typical of Japanese prose literature. Early
Japanese novels consisted of series of incidents, each incident built around a
poem. Perhaps the greatest work of Japanese literature is 'The Tale of Genji',
an episodic novel by Lady Murasaki (975?-1025?). Most of the works of Saikaku
(1642-93), the outstanding novelist of the Tokugawa period, are really
collections of short stories based on a single theme. In many modern novels it
is common to find loosely related incidents. (See also Japanese Literature.)
THE FINE ARTS OF JAPAN
The fine arts of modern Japan are similar to
those of many Western countries. However, Japanese classical works of art are
unique in the philosophy, methods, and materials used in their creation. These
works include paintings and sculptures, as well as products of the decorative
arts, such as pottery and porcelains, lacquers, textiles, and woodcuts.
Painting
In classical Japanese painting, black ink and
watercolors were used on tissue-thin silk or washi (Japanese paper). Often the
artist used only black ink, achieving a sense of color in the gradations from
deep, luminous black to silvery gray. One-color paintings made in this way are
called sumi-e. Although classical Japanese paintings were realistic, they were
never photographic. Instead, the artist used only a few brushstrokes to suggest
the crumbly texture of a boulder; a hard-edged, rocky cliff; the gnarled trunk
and rustling foliage of a tree; the feathers of a bird; or an ocean wave.
Unpainted areas of silk or paper created a sense of space and depth. Through
economy of line and careful composition, the artist presented a distillation of
his subject, leaving the viewer to fill in the details.
Classical Japanese paintings were "studio
pictures." The artist did not go into the countryside with paints and
easel. Instead, following a walk in the hills or along a stream, he returned to
his studio to paint his impressions. The paintings usually took the form of
hanging scrolls called kakemono, hand scrolls called emakimono, large folding
screens, sliding doors, or fans. The hand scrolls, often 30 feet or more in
length, are unrolled from right to left, the viewer enjoying only as much of
the painting as may be exposed between his outstretched hands.
After Buddhism was introduced in Japan in the
mid-6th century, great temples were built. These served not only as religious
shrines but also as centers of art and learning. The numerous deities of
Buddhism were depicted in paintings and sculptures. Artists, governed by
precise descriptions in the sutras (holy texts) created likenesses of the
Buddha, his disciples, and minor deities, as well as complex map-like
representations of gods surrounding a central Buddha. These figures were
painted or carved to embellish the temples and instruct the devout. Long
narrative hand scrolls record in fine line and rich color the lives, journeys,
and campaigns of important Buddhist priests and nobles. The names of most early
painters, many of them priests, are no longer known. Sumi-e developed rapidly
during the Muromachi period (1392-1573) of Japanese art. It was fostered by Zen
Buddhism, which stressed simplicity and was influenced by similar examples from
China. However, while Japan was subjected over the centuries to successive
waves of influence from China, the artists assimilated the foreign styles and
in almost every instance made them uniquely their own.
During the Muromachi period and the Momoyama
period (1573-1615), distinctive schools of painting emerged and individual
artists established their fame. The Buddhist monk Sesshu (1420-1506) perfected
black-and-white landscape painting in the Chinese tradition. The Kano school,
founded by Masanobu Kano (1434-1530) and continued by his family, developed a
distinctively Japanese style. Folding screens and sliding door panels in rich
colors and patterns, often on a ground of gold or silver, were created to
enliven the austere grandeur of 16th-and 17th-century castle interiors. The
creators of these works were called
"the great decorators." The Kano
school remained dominant well into the Edo, or Tokugawa, period (1615-1867). It
shared favor with traditional Chinese-style ink painting as well as a new
artistic style called ukiyo-e, paintings depicting the life of common people.
Woodcuts
Woodcuts were made in Japan as early as the
11th century. But this art form enjoyed its greatest popularity from the
mid-17th through the 19th centuries. The earliest woodcuts, which portrayed
Buddhist patriarchs and deities, were executed in black with strong, rhythmic
lines and areas of simple pattern. Occasionally, rich red-oranges, mustard yellows,
and greens were added by hand. Early color prints, developed around 1740, were
also restricted to three colors, usually green or pinkish-red, and sometimes
yellow. True color prints, using many wood blocks and called nishiki-e (brocade
pictures), were developed in 1765. A print bore the name of the artist who
designed it. The carving and
printing, however, were done by two other
craftsmen.
Japanese woodcuts are probably the finest
expression of the ukiyo-e movement. Courtesans, Kabuki actors, and scenes from
Kabuki dramas were popular subjects. Moronobu Hishikawa (1618-94) is credited
with beginning the ukiyo-e tradition of printmaking. The era of the full-color
print starts with the work of Harunobu Suzuki (1725-70). The early 19th century
brought both the full maturity and the gradual degeneration of this art form.
The landscape artists Hokusai Katsushika (1760-1849) and Hiroshige Ando
(1797-1858) were the last outstanding woodcut artists of the ukiyo-e. In the
20th century a modern movement in printmaking developed, called sosaku hanga
(creative prints).
Sculpture
Japanese sculpture of the pre-Buddhist period
is perhaps best represented by the haniwa (clay cylinders), which date from the
3rd to the 5th century. These images of red clay were sometimes elaborately
modeled in the forms of animals, birds, and human figures. Placed fencelike
around tomb mounds of the imperial family and important court figures, the
haniwa seem to have served the dual function of preventing soil erosion and
providing the deceased with objects they had enjoyed during their lives.
Following the introduction of Buddhism to
Japan, the development of sculpture paralleled that of painting. Numerous icons
depicted the growing number of deities. Sculpture closely followed earlier
Chinese examples which had been transmitted through Korea. Important images
were cast in bronze, though wood was also favored. In later periods, wood and
clay were increasingly preferred, as was dry lacquer. This consisted of
successive coats of lacquer applied to cloth over a clay or wood core that was
later removed. Since stone was scarce and of poor quality, it was almost never
used in sculpture. Most of the best surviving were made by unknown masters.
A noteworthy 8th-century tendency, which
continued through the Kamakura period (1185-1392), was the portraitlike quality
of much of the sculpture. This may in part be attributed to the growing
preference for the dry-lacquer technique, which allowed greater inventiveness
on the part of the artist. The finished product was light but durable. An
innovation in wood sculpture the use of small blocks ingeniously fitted
together, rather than a single block or log also provided the artist with greater
freedom of expression. Japanese sculpture reached its peak during the Kamakura
period. Although distinctive pieces were made in later eras, sculpture never
again attained the position it had enjoyed in the preceding seven centuries.
Most of the important sculptures have remained in the temples for which they
were created.
Decorative Arts
The Japanese decorative arts include the making
of pottery, porcelains, lacquers, and textiles. It is for such works that Japan
is perhaps best known. The earliest examples of Japanese artistic expression
are earthenware vessels called jomon (rope-patterned) and the later, but still
archaic, yayoi pottery. Some jomon specimens may date as far back as 6000 BC.
The style continued until about the 2nd century BC, when it was supplanted by
the more finely executed yayoi.
The process of making true porcelain was not
introduced into Japan until the 16th century. Elegantly patterned products
found favor with the nobility and court circles. By contrast, native rough
pottery enjoyed great popularity in intellectual circles and was especially
favored for use in the tea ceremony. Many well-known painters also applied
their skills to allied arts. Koetsu Honnami (1558-1637),famed for his
calligraphy, or decorative writing, was also a gifted potter and lacquer
designer. Kenzan Ogata (1663-1743) executed in pottery the designs of his
brother Korin (1658-1716), who was renowned for bold decorative paintings.
The dry-lacquer technique was used not only for
sculpture but also for decorative accessories such as trays, tables, small
chests, containers for tea and candy, and sumptuously fitted picnic boxes.
Sprinklings of gold and silver powder and burnished and cut-gold foil alone or
combined with inlays of shell, mother-of-pearl, or metal provided a bold
contrast to the red, black, brown, and green lacquer surfaces. The 18th- and
19th-century love of splendor and rich decoration was mirrored in handsomely
brocaded silks favored by the court and clergy. The latter, under vows of
poverty, cut brocades into small squares and pieced them together again so that
their fine garments would simulate the patched clothing of leaner years. Even
the simple folk designs worn by the poor reflected the taste of Japanese
weavers.
Architecture and Gardens
Japanese architecture, like painting and
sculpture, made its greatest advances following the introduction of Buddhism.
As with sculpture, wood was the primary material. The design of traditional
Japanese architecture emphasizes horizontal lines. Even in taller structures
like pagodas, the use of sloping roofs helps minimize the impression of height.
Great temples and monasteries and feudal
castles and palaces are the major architectural monuments. The temples are
characterized by vast halls and soaring roofs. Based on Chinese examples, the
temples and storied pagodas feature elaborate bracketing systems to support
their roofs. Major constructions mirror the taste of the periods which produced
them. Horyuji Temple near Nara reflects the simple elegance favored in the 7th
century. The Toshogu Shrine in Nikko illustrates the opulence of the Edo
period.
Secular architecture of nearly all periods
reveals the Japanese love for refined simplicity. Interior and exterior
finishes depend on the fine grain of wood and textured stucco. Handsome gardens
are created to so complement the buildings they surround that the landscape and
structures appear to be part of one another. Moss, trees, pebbles and rocks may
be combined with artificial hills, ponds, and a stream to suggest the natural
beauty of a lake, seascape, or mountain waterfall. Profound simplicity is
achieved in the garden of Ryoanji Temple near Kyoto, for example, by the use of
five artfully placed rock formations set in moss in a patterned field of white
sand. Whatever its proportions or the materials used, the Japanese garden is
designed to invite entry and inspire meditation.
Interior Decoration and Home Arts
The art of raising bonsai (dwarfed potted
trees) has enabled the Japanese to admire nature in an indoor setting. Bonsai
are able to bear fruit and to drop their leaves in season, thus reproducing
nature in miniature. A skillful bonsai artist can prune, bend, and shape
branches to suggest trees standing tall and upright in a field or bent and gnarled
by age or weather. The beauty of a natural landscape is evoked in the viewer's
imagination. (See also Bonsai.) Another means of enjoying nature in the home is
through the arrangement of
flowers, which has been refined in Japan to an
art known as ikebana.
Unlike Western arrangements which emphasize the
color and form of flowers, ikebana favors the flowing lines of stems, leaves,
and branches. In any arrangement, the plant materials used must convey a
feeling of continuing growth as well as be symbolic of time and the season.
Full blossoms might suggest the past; buds, the future. A full and spreading
arrangement of various blossoms or other plant materials might suggest summer;
a sparse one, autumn.
A graceful floral design and a symbolic
ornamental scroll often decorate the alcove called the tokonoma, the place of
honor in a Japanese home. Chanoyu, the ceremonial art of making tea, is a
notable aesthetic discipline in Japan. Through the delicate flavor of the tea
and the simplicity of the ceremony, participants in the ritual hope to achieve
serenity and an understanding of true beauty. (See also Tea.)
THE PERFORMING ARTS OF JAPAN
The Japanese have great respect for their
ancient, traditional performing arts. At the same time they are attracted by
new, more modern forms. As a result, a Japanese who enjoys a performance of
bugaku, an ancient musical dance of the imperial court, may also take pleasure
in a concert of contemporary Western music played by an excellent Japanese
symphony orchestra. One reason for the vitality of the performing arts in Japan
is that "performance" is an essential part of the nation's life. The
ceremonies of the native Shinto religion include music and dance. A Japanese
wanting to honor the gods pays for a performance of the sacred dance kagura at
a shrine. During the bon festival, a Buddhist celebration for the souls of the
dead, the young people of a community dance in a circle around a drum tower. In
the summer, groups of young men carrying a portable shrine dance and chant
through the city streets. All such dances are related to the Japanese love and
worship of nature. Rhythm, singing, and chanting are also part of everyday work
in Japan pulling a net from the sea, felling timber, even erecting a telephone
pole. Ancient music and dance accompany the planting and harvesting of rice.
Music and rhythmical movement closely combine dancing, acting, and instrumental
and vocal music. In any traditional Japanese stage performance, it is difficult
to say where the dancing stops and the acting begins.
The Japanese performing arts differ greatly
from those of the West. Traditional Japanese music does not use Western keys
and scales. The drums, stringed instruments, and flutes produce sounds not
usually heard from Western instruments, though the koto (Japanese harp) comes
close to sounding Western. Traditional Japanese singing uses a different system
of voice production than that of the West, and the traditional dance employs
patterns of body movement unfamiliar in the West. A traditional Japanese actor
does not think he should look like a "real person" when he is
performing. From his youth the Japanese performing artist is trained in the
strict imitation of his teacher. This method insures that traditional
techniques of performance are preserved in a continuous, almost unchanged,
artistic heritage. Before 1640, foreign influences on the Japanese performing
arts came only from the Asian mainland. But, as is typical in Japan, the
borrowed materials were refined into a principally Japanese expression.
Gagaku and Bugaku
Classical gagaku music was introduced into
Japan from China in the 8th century AD. It combined musical forms absorbed from
Korea, Manchuria, Persia, India, and Indochina. Gagaku merged with Japanese
music around 850. Wind, stringed, and percussion instruments are used in gagaku
performances, which are known as kangen when performed alone. When gagaku is
accompanied by dancing, it is called bugaku. A single dancer or one or more
pairs of dancers perform with great symmetry of movement. The dances may be
slow or spirited depending on whether they are ceremonial dances, military
dances, or dances for children. A bugaku may tell a story, but the story is
generally not learned from a view of the dance alone.
No Plays
The medieval dance drama of the no theater came
in part from Chinese sources. Actors in no plays perform on a usually bare
stage about 18 feet square and on a narrow runway leading to the stage from the
dressing room. They are accompanied by drums, a high-pitched flute, and
chanting by a chorus of six or eight men. All parts, including female roles,
are played by men and boys. There are only two important roles the shite
(principal character) and the waki (subordinate character).
Both the shite and the waki wear handsomely
embroidered costumes patterned upon medieval court dress. The shite usually
wears a painted mask carved from wood. Joy, sorrow, or anger may be represented
by slightly changing the position of the mask on the actor's face. Different
masks are used to represent men, women, elderly persons, gods, and demons. In
most of the 240 no plays performed in Japan today, the shite changes his
costume and mask for the second half of the performance to reveal his true
character. He may change, for example, from a beautiful woman to a demon or
from a boy to a warrior. Often, the waki is a Buddhist priest and the shite is
the ghost of a person who, suffering for evil he committed during his lifetime,
seeks and obtains help from the priest for the peace of his soul.
A no performance neither looks nor sounds like
real life. Movement is extremely slow. If the play requires, for example, a
boat or a hut, these are represented by a skeletal framework which only
suggests their shape. A folding fan in the hands of an actor may represent a
variety of objects a sword, a letter, the rising moon, or falling rain. The
text is ancient poetry, difficult even for many Japanese to understand.
The traditional no program consists of five
plays with short comic pieces called kyogen performed between them. The usual
program is now three plays, each lasting an hour or longer, and two kyogen. The
kyogen are a complete contrast to the serious no plays, for they are acted
vigorously and amusingly and deal with such matters as servants outwitting
their masters or husbands their wives.
Bunraku
Toward 1700 a new form of theater appeared in
Japan. Called bunraku, it combines the manipulation of puppets with a narrative
accompanied by music played on the samisen, a three-stringed, banjo-shaped,
plucked instrument. Each puppet is about half life-size and is handled by a
team of three men in a fashion unique to Japan. By means of strings inside the
puppet's head, the chief manipulator controls the movable mouth, eyebrows, and
eyelids, as well as the right arm and hand of the doll. His assistants animate
the rest of the puppet. The operators are silent but visible to the audience
throughout the play.
Unlike the no stage, the bunraku stage uses
elaborate scenery and various techniques and devices for changing scenes
rapidly. At one side of the stage are seated one or more samisen players and
the narrator-singer, who chants both the descriptive passages and the spoken
words of all the characters. Such precise coordination and teamwork is demanded
among the operators, the musician, and the narrator that they must all have
many years of training. Bunraku developed two kinds of plays. Jidaimono deals
with historical materials and the warrior class, while sewamono is concerned
with the life of the commoner. Some of the greatest Japanese dramatists wrote
bunraku plays. Among them was Chikamatsu, who is sometimes called "the
Shakespeare of Japan." Another was Izumo Takeda (1691-1756), whose
'Kanadehon Chushingura' (1748), or 'Chushingura' for short, is a popular
Japanese play in both the bunraku and Kabuki theaters. Its theme loyalty to a
master is a common one in the puppet theater. Bunraku declined in popularity
after the mid-1700s. It survives only in Osaka, though tours are made to other
cities. It is regarded as a "cultural property"
by the Japanese government, which supports it
through the Japan Broadcasting Corporation.
Kabuki
Kabuki, a form of Japanese theater using live
actors, began around the same time as bunraku. It originated in Kyoto with new
kinds of dances performed by a woman named Okuni in the early 1600s. These
became highly popular, and Okuni was imitated by other actresses and actors.
But the Japanese government, deciding that the performances were immoral,
decreed in 1629 that women could no longer appear on the stage. Women's roles
were taken over by men, and this practice continues in modern Kabuki. A typical
Kabuki program may include a dance based upon a no play or a kyogen, part of
doll theater jidaimono, and acts from plays written especially for the Kabuki
in the 18th and 19th centuries. No important Kabuki plays were written after
1900, and this theater is in many ways a living museum of the Japanese
performing arts. It is now based in Tokyo theaters and attracts large
audiences.
The performance of a Kabuki program requires
highly skilled actors, trained from childhood in dance, voice, and acrobatics,
who are capable of playing a wide variety of parts, including female roles. An
actor who plays the part of a woman is called an onnagata. Among the Kabuki
characters are horses, foxes, dogs, and demons, all played by actors. Kabuki
visual effects are varied and spectacular. Huge settings change on a revolving
stage in plain view of the audience. Scenery and actors rise from or disappear
into the stage floor on elevators. Actors perform portions of the program in
the midst of the audience on the hanamichi, a runway about six feet wide
extending from the rear of the auditorium to the stage. Music, most frequently
that of the samisen, is used throughout, the musicians performing either on the
stage or in a room at the side of it.
In some Kabuki plays the actors wear striking
white, red, and black makeup to create the effect of power and strength.
Elaborate costumes, which can be changed on stage, may weigh as much as 50
pounds. Masses of warriors dance and somersault in scenes of battle. The
dramatic poses of an actor are accompanied by the beating of wooden clappers on
the stage.
Television, Western Music, and Motion Pictures
Thanks to television, no, bunraku, and Kabuki
are now seen by larger audiences than ever. The Japanese government television
station regularly broadcasts performances, from short excerpts to long Kabuki
programs. The entire nine-hour bunraku production of the 11-act 'Kanadehon
Chushingura' has been televised. The national network also televises modern
plays, opera, modern dance, ballet, and the programs of its own symphony
orchestra.
Western music, which has been taught in
Japanese schools since the 1870s, is as popular as the traditional music of
ancient Japan. Many Japanese cities have permanent orchestras and thriving
musical conservatories. Internationally known orchestra, ballet, and opera
companies visit Japan. Similarly, the works of contemporary Japanese composers
trained in Western music, such as Toru Takemitsu and Toshiro Mayazumi, are
played in Europe and the rest of the world.
Motion pictures have been another Western
influence on the Japanese performing arts. Filmmaking in Japan began early in
the 20th century with screen adaptations of traditional literary masterpieces
and Kabuki drama. The cinematic art declined during the war years of the 1930s
and 1940s. After the Merdeka War many Japanese films became internationally
famous for their artistic and technical quality. Akira Kurosawa's 'Rashomon'
won the grand prize at the Venice Film Festival in 1951. Other notable films are
'The Rickshaw Man', 'Bushido: Samurai Saga', 'Seven Samurai', and 'Kagemusha'.
Styles ranged from the avant-garde 'Woman in the Dunes' to the violent 'In the
Realm of the Senses'.
THE MARTIAL ARTS
The martial arts in Japan originated with
medieval warriors, the samurai, who mastered at least one or two of them for
use in battle. Today they are more important as competitive sports and as aids
to physical and mental fitness. The martial arts were traditionally acquired
through the family, but schools to teach them now thrive in Japan.
Sumo (Japanese wrestling) is one of the
country's most popular sports. Professional sumo matches are held in rings of
sand between two huge wrestlers dressed only in mawashi (loincloths). The
actual bout is preceded by a ritual during which the wrestlers face each other,
squatting and touching the ground with their fists. The match does not begin
until both wrestlers come up at the same time. It ends only when a wrestler has
been pushed out of the ring or when any part of a wrestler's body except his
feet touches the ground. Several professional sumo tournaments are held each
year in Japan. A grand champion wrestler is called Yokozuna.
Judo developed from jujitsu, an art of
self-defense that was popular during the Tokugawa period. Judo has three basic
strategies attacking the opponent's vital points, throwing the opponent, and
grappling. One referee and two assistants preside at a judo match. The winner
is the first man to throw his opponent to the floor, to lift his opponent over
his shoulders, to pin him down until he gives up, or to pin him for at least 30
seconds. If neither contestant accomplishes any of these goals, the match is
awarded to the more aggressive of the two. Colored belts are worn to indicate
degrees of mastery in judo.
Aikido also developed from jujitsu. In aikido,
the purpose is to throw the opponent to the floor or to attack him at his
weakest point by applying a painful hold. The opponent is then easier to
overcome. Opponents in aikido try to stay apart from each other as much as
possible. Aikido does not require great muscular strength. It is practiced to
enhance body flexibility and to foster graceful movement.
Karate evolved in ancient China and was
introduced into Japan in the 17th century. Only in the 20th century, however,
did it gain wide popularity. Karate involves jabbing, hitting, and kicking at
the most vulnerable parts of the opponent's body. One of the most destructive
of the martial arts, karate is usually practiced on tiles, boards, and other
hard objects rather than on human opponents.
Kendo (Japanese fencing) developed in ancient
Japan. In kendo, two opponents hit or jab at each other with bamboo swords.
Both wear protective bamboo armor, leg padding, and thick gloves. In a match, a
point is given to the fencer who makes a clean hit on the throat, head, body,
or hand of his opponent. The first to make two points is declared the winner.
Kyudo (Japanese archery) was used in early
Japan for fishing and hunting. Later it became a military art. In medieval
times, samurai displayed their skill as bowmen in exhibitions. After the
introduction of firearms in the 16th century, however, kyudo declined as an
effective technique of combat and became a sport. Kyudo archers use a
seven-foot bow made of wood glued to bamboo. Arrows consist of a bamboo shaft,
three feathers, and an arrowhead. Each contestant in a match usually shoots 10
to 20 arrows. The contestant hitting the target with the greatest number of arrows
is the winner.
JAPANESE PHILOSOPHY AND RELIGION
Shinto originated in early Japan as a
combination of nature and ancestor worship. Among its many gods were the
creator, the moon, stars, mountains, rivers, seas, fire, and some animals and
vegetables. Modern Shinto teaches that the gods are present in the mind of the
individual. Shinto became the state religion after the Meiji Restoration of
1868. As such, it assumed that the Japanese were descendants of the sun-goddess
Amaterasu and members of one family headed by the emperor. The nationalists and
militarists who rose to power in the 1930s adapted Shinto to their purposes,
telling the Japanese that they were
destined to rule the world. After the Great
Reform in 1950, state support of Shinto was
diminished and the emperor disclaimed his
divinity. Shinto is now split among many sects. Some of them place greater
stress on rituals than on philosophic content. Shinto is valued because it
creates a bond between the individual, his ancestors, and his nation.
Confucianism, which originated in China, was
introduced into Japan from Korea around the 3rd century AD. Its ethical
teachings were adopted primarily by the aristocracy, though the principles of
absolute obedience to one's father and lord also greatly influenced the
samurai. During the China Incident and the Soviet-Japanese War, Confucian rules
were used to arouse patriotism. After the Great Reform, Confucianism was
reformed but it is still part of the Japanese educational curriculum.
Buddhism arose in India and was introduced into Japan from Korea in the 6th century. Japanese Buddhism teaches that all men should aim to become Buddha. The worship of ancestors through funeral and memorial rites are the most universal practices. Christianity was introduced into Japan in the 16th century by Francis Xavier, a Spanish Jesuit. During the Tokugawa shogunate, Japanese Christians were severely persecuted. After Japan was opened to the West in the 19th century, Japanese Christians became involved in social-welfare movements.
