Story Notes

Now this is a tale which can be found in the konjaku monogatari shū, a tale revolving around a man known as Fujiwara no Tamemori from the Province of Echizen. A Province he was made Governor of in 1029AD.

The story relates how whilst Governor in Echizen (though he did live in Kyoto) he had failed to give his rice stipend to the Palace Guard. Now in response all six groups of guards came to his house, and made themselves comfortable outside his home, refusing to let anyone in or out.

The day was hot, and all were sweating very much and eventually a senior retainer from the home open the front gate of the property and stated that Tamemori wished to speak with them.

Knowing it was hot, he made the suggestion he could talk to them through a screen if they came inside in small parties and so at first the Left and Right Inner Guards entered into the property.

They were relieved and thought his offer was rather kind, and so they entered, not only to drink, but to tell them the reason why they were camped outside the man’s home.

When they entered they found the area ready for them. Long mats laid on the floor, with several tables all facing one another. And so all the men sat down. Upon the tables they found dried and salted sea bream, salty salmon, salted horse mackerel and more sea bream this time pickled in miso. In addition to this they found bowls piled high with ripened plums.

In came Kanetoki from the province of Owari and Atsuyuki from Shimōsa. Both were followed by the most senior of members of the Inner Guards.

Wine was ordered, but was very slow to arrive. And so all the men began to feast on the salty food and plums.

Tamemori, it was then announced was suffering from some stomach trouble and would soon come to talk with them once they had finished their food.

The wine was first given to Kanetoki and Atsuyuki, and due to the heat they had sat in for many hours their thirst was very high. And they had three cups of the wine which was rather cloudy and sour. But they drank regardless due to their thirst. Once it was quenched they passed on the cup to the next man waiting.

It was then that Tamemori appeared behind the screen to talk with the men.

He addressed them saying he never thought his failure of generosity would set them against him, and that his land had been in drought. He had given what he could, but now he had nothing left to give them. Even his staff were now going hungry due to the rice stipend that had already been taken.

The men all listened to his dilemma, Kanetoki and Atsuyori replying that, though they understood his problem, his failure to supply rice meant they also now had no food. And the men were growing rather angry at their situation. And that is why they had arrived this day, to tell him of their predicament.

However, all the while they had spoke, the stomachs of all the men had been making unsettling sounds. Some tapped their batons on the table to try and cover the sound, other tried various tactics to also distract from their sudden problem.

The Governor from behind his partition could hear it all, and he could make out that all the men were now doubling over with terrible cramps.

Kanetoki suddenly stood up asking to be excused before bolting away, all the other men quickly following in his footsteps. They all suddenly had terrible diarrhea and some went before they could get their trousers off. Others made it to the edge of where they were sitting before they couldn’t hold it any longer. And other just went where they had been sat. 

But all the men were laughing as it happened to them. All of them laughed and said they had no complaint. They knew Tamemori would try something when they visited and they had been so greedy with the food and wine they deserved what was happening to them.

The men left, laughing, the retainer who had initially asked them to enter now asking for the next set of men. When they men who were waiting saw the state of those who had entered, they all broke out into laugher and retreated back to wear they had come from.

This tale was enjoyed by all those at court, as Tamemori had always been an old scamp and had a knack at making people laugh.

And the guards never returned to his house again to make any demands. 

Sumikko no Heather

Today Heather found a senryū for you to enjoy.

ぬるい茶でだんだんあつきおとりなし

With lukewarm tea, gradually promoted warmly

Header Image: Fish from Pixabay.

References

• Tyler, R. (1987) “Japanese Tales.” New York: Pantheon Books.

You can listen to the full podcast episodes here: Japan Archives, or wherever you listen to Podcasts.

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Story Notes

The Song the Sea God Sang is said to be a critique on the connections that exist between humans and the kamui (gods of the Ainu). For this particular story it revolves around Repun Kamui the Sea God, though the identity of the kamui is not evident at first through the telling of the story.

However in the tale we see this kamui taking the form of a killer whale.

This kamui has twelve brother and twelve sisters. 6 tall brother, 6 tall sisters, 6 small brothers, 6 small sisters. Every day they would go out to sea and everyday Repun Kamui would carve knife sheathes.

In the mornings all would depart aside from the Sea God, the brothers with quivers on their backs. And at night they would return empty handed. In the evening they ate, the sisters cooking and the brothers making more arrows.

Eventually, one day, Repun Kamui took his golden bow and his golden arrow and went to see what his brothers and sisters were doing. The tall sisters ahd joined hands to make a ring, with the small sisters chasing whales into it.

The brothers took their bows, firing the arrows above and below the whales.

Repun Kamui saw a mother and child whale seperate in the ocean, and taking his bow he shot them both dead with one arrow. He threw one half of the whale into the sister’s ring and took the other whale and a half to the humans.

In the village of Otashut he left it on the beach and then returned home. But he was immediately visited by a sea-wren. The wren compained that the humans would not apprecitate what had been given, and would hack at it and destroy it.

However, Repun Kamui replied saying that he decided to give this gift to the humans, but now it is theirs and not his, and so they may do with it as they please.

He returned to his home, and saw the brothers and sisters complaining about the whale he had thrown to them. And so he turned his attention back to the humans.

Repun Kamui saw them, and their leader, all of whom were happy and leaping with joy at the bounty that had been given to them. The nispa (leader) was there, wearing six robes, holding a sacred sword high in the air. And all, including him raised their voices in worship.

Repun Kamui could see the wren had been wrong, and after a few days the Sea God saw upon in window sill a golden dish overfolowing with salmon, sake and ritual chopsticks (decorated with inau).

‘On behalf of the people of Otashut. In a spirit of reverence I offer this ritual sake.’ So said a messanger to the Sea God.

Repun Kamui learned that the village had been suffering from a famine, and this whale had saved them from starvation. And so the people were forever grateful to him.

And so the Sea God accepted the offerings and went back to carving his knife sheathes.

Another few days passed before the brothers and sisters finally returned. Upon seeing the home, and the offerings which has been made they prostrated themselves. The Sea God then decorated the house with the inau and invited kamui from near and far for a feast.

When the party was in full swing Repun Kamui rose to tell his tale of how he had helped the humans. The kamui proased him for this efforts and returned to their feast.

Again a few days passed before the feast came to a close and the assembled deity all took home some of the inau.

And so it is said that ever since this act from Repun Kamui that whenever people make sake they sent it with inau to the Sea God and to the brothers and sisters.

And Repun Kamui’s mind was at peace, knowing the people lived without trouble.

Sumikko no Heather

I encountered the phrase from the Netflix show “The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House”

The phrase is ichi-go, ichi-e

It can be roughly translated to “only this moment” or “one this lifetime”

It’s a moment that can’t be repeated.

Header Image: Beach Waves from Pixabay.

References:

• Netflix – The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House
• Peterson, B. (2013)  “The Song the Owl God Sang; the collected Ainu legends of Chiri Yuki.” BJS Books

You can listen to the full podcast episodes here: Japan Archives, or wherever you listen to Podcasts.

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Show Notes

This is another story by Yei Theodora Ozaki, a woman who sorely deserves her own episode on our show some time soon!

Long, long ago there lived a man called Sentaro. His surname meant “Millionaire,” but although he was not so rich as all that, he was still very far removed from being poor. He had inherited a small fortune from his father and lived on this, spending his time carelessly, without any serious thoughts of work, till he was about thirty-two years of age.

One day, without any reason whatsoever, the thought of death and sickness came to him. The idea of falling ill or dying made him very wretched.

“I should like to live,” he said to himself, “till I am five or six hundred years old at least, free from all sickness. The ordinary span of a man’s life is very short.”

He wondered whether it were possible, by living simply and frugally henceforth, to prolong his life as long as he wished.

He knew there were many stories in ancient history of emperors who had lived a thousand years, and there was a Princess of Yamato, who, it was said, lived to the age of five hundred. This was the latest story of a very long life record.

Sentaro had often heard the tale of the Chinese King named Shin-no-Shiko. He was one of the most able and powerful rulers in Chinese history. He built all the large palaces, and also the famous great wall of China. He had everything in the world he could wish for, but in spite of all his happiness and the luxury and the splendor of his Court, the wisdom of his councilors and the glory of his reign, he was miserable because he knew that one day he must die and leave it all.

When Shin-no-Shiko went to bed at night, when he rose in the morning, as he went through his day, the thought of death was always with him. He could not get away from it. Ah—if only he could find the “Elixir of Life,” he would be happy.

The Emperor at last called a meeting of his courtiers and asked them all if they could not find for him the “Elixir of Life” of which he had so often read and heard.

One old courtier, Jofuku by name, said that far away across the seas there was a country called Horaizan, and that certain hermits lived there who possessed the secret of the “Elixir of Life.” Whoever drank of this wonderful draught lived forever.

The Emperor ordered Jofuku to set out for the land of Horaizan, to find the hermits, and to bring him back a phial of the magic elixir. He gave Jofuku one of his best junks, fitted it out for him, and loaded it with great quantities of treasures and precious stones for Jofuku to take as presents to the hermits.

Jofuku sailed for the land of Horaizan, but he never returned to the waiting Emperor; but ever since that time Mount Fuji has been said to be the fabled Horaizan and the home of hermits who had the secret of the elixir, and Jofuku has been worshiped as their patron god.

Now Sentaro determined to set out to find the hermits, and if he could, to become one, so that he might obtain the water of perpetual life. He remembered that as a child he had been told that not only did these hermits live on Mount Fuji, but that they were said to inhabit all the very high peaks.

So he left his old home to the care of his relatives, and started out on his quest. He traveled through all the mountainous regions of the land, climbing to the tops of the highest peaks, but never a hermit did he find.

At last, after wandering in an unknown region for many days, he met a hunter.

“Can you tell me,” asked Sentaro, “where the hermits live who have the Elixir of Life?”

“No.” said the hunter; “I can’t tell you where such hermits live, but there is a notorious robber living in these parts. It is said that he is chief of a band of two hundred followers.”

This odd answer irritated Sentaro very much, and he thought how foolish it was to waste more time in looking for the hermits in this way, so he decided to go at once to the shrine of Jofuku, who is worshiped as the patron god of the hermits in the south of Japan.

Sentaro reached the shrine and prayed for seven days, entreating Jofuku to show him the way to a hermit who could give him what he wanted so much to find.

At midnight of the seventh day, as Sentaro knelt in the temple, the door of the innermost shrine flew open, and Jofuku appeared in a luminous cloud, and calling to Sentaro to come nearer, spoke thus:

“Your desire is a very selfish one and cannot be easily granted. You think that you would like to become a hermit so as to find the Elixir of Life. Do you know how hard a hermit’s life is? A hermit is only allowed to eat fruit and berries and the bark of pine trees; a hermit must cut himself off from the world so that his heart may become as pure as gold and free from every earthly desire. Gradually after following these strict rules, the hermit ceases to feel hunger or cold or heat, and his body becomes so light that he can ride on a crane or a carp, and can walk on water without getting his feet wet.”

“You, Sentaro, are fond of good living and of every comfort. You are not even like an ordinary man, for you are exceptionally idle, and more sensitive to heat and cold than most people. You would never be able to go barefoot or to wear only one thin dress in the winter time! Do you think that you would ever have the patience or the endurance to live a hermit’s life?”

“In answer to your prayer, however, I will help you in another way. I will send you to the country of Perpetual Life, where death never comes—where the people live forever!”

Saying this, Jofuku put into Sentaro’s hand a little crane made of paper, telling him to sit on its back and it would carry him there.

Sentaro obeyed wonderingly. The crane grew large enough for him to ride on it with comfort. It then spread its wings, rose high in the air, and flew away over the mountains right out to sea.

Sentaro was at first quite frightened; but by degrees he grew accustomed to the swift flight through the air. On and on they went for thousands of miles. The bird never stopped for rest or food, but as it was a paper bird it doubtless did not require any nourishment, and strange to say, neither did Sentaro.

After several days they reached an island. The crane flew some distance inland and then alighted.

As soon as Sentaro got down from the bird’s back, the crane folded up of its own accord and flew into his pocket.

Now Sentaro began to look about him wonderingly, curious to see what the country of Perpetual Life was like. He walked first round about the country and then through the town. Everything was, of course, quite strange, and different from his own land. But both the land and the people seemed prosperous, so he decided that it would be good for him to stay there and took up lodgings at one of the hotels.

The proprietor was a kind man, and when Sentaro told him that he was a stranger and had come to live there, he promised to arrange everything that was necessary with the governor of the city concerning Sentaro’s sojourn there. He even found a house for his guest, and in this way Sentaro obtained his great wish and became a resident in the country of Perpetual Life.

Within the memory of all the islanders no man had ever died there, and sickness was a thing unknown. Priests had come over from India and China and told them of a beautiful country called Paradise, where happiness and bliss and contentment fill all men’s hearts, but its gates could only be reached by dying. This tradition was handed down for ages from generation to generation—but none knew exactly what death was except that it led to Paradise.

Quite unlike Sentaro and other ordinary people, instead of having a great dread of death, they all, both rich and poor, longed for it as something good and desirable. They were all tired of their long, long lives, and longed to go to the happy land of contentment called Paradise of which the priests had told them centuries ago.

All this Sentaro soon found out by talking to the islanders. He found himself, according to his ideas, in the land of Topsyturvydom. Everything was upside down. He had wished to escape from dying. He had come to the land of Perpetual Life with great relief and joy, only to find that the inhabitants themselves, doomed never to die, would consider it bliss to find death.

What he had hitherto considered poison these people ate as good food, and all the things to which he had been accustomed as food they rejected. Whenever any merchants from other countries arrived, the rich people rushed to them eager to buy poisons. These they swallowed eagerly, hoping for death to come so that they might go to Paradise.

But what were deadly poisons in other lands were without effect in this strange place, and people who swallowed them with the hope of dying, only found that in a short time they felt better in health instead of worse.

Vainly they tried to imagine what death could be like. The wealthy would have given all their money and all their goods if they could but shorten their lives to two or three hundred years even. Without any change to live on forever seemed to this people wearisome and sad.

In the chemist shops there was a drug which was in constant demand, because after using it for a hundred years, it was supposed to turn the hair slightly gray and to bring about disorders of the stomach.

Sentaro was astonished to find that the poisonous globe-fish was served up in restaurants as a delectable dish, and hawkers in the streets went about selling sauces made of Spanish flies. He never saw any one ill after eating these horrible things, nor did he ever see any one with as much as a cold.

Sentaro was delighted. He said to himself that he would never grow tired of living, and that he considered it profane to wish for death. He was the only happy man on the island. For his part he wished to live thousands of years and to enjoy life. He set himself up in business, and for the present never even dreamed of going back to his native land.

As years went by, however, things did not go as smoothly as at first. He had heavy losses in business, and several times some affairs went wrong with his neighbors. This caused him great annoyance.

Time passed like the flight of an arrow for him, for he was busy from morning till night. Three hundred years went by in this monotonous way, and then at last he began to grow tired of life in this country, and he longed to see his own land and his old home. However long he lived here, life would always be the same, so was it not foolish and wearisome to stay on here forever?

Sentaro, in his wish to escape from the country of Perpetual Life, recollected Jofuku, who had helped him before when he was wishing to escape from death—and he prayed to the saint to bring him back to his own land again.

No sooner did he pray than the paper crane popped out of his pocket. Sentaro was amazed to see that it had remained undamaged after all these years. Once more the bird grew and grew till it was large enough for him to mount it. As he did so, the bird spread its wings and flew, swiftly out across the sea in the direction of Japan.

Such was the willfulness of the man’s nature that he looked back and regretted all he had left behind. He tried to stop the bird in vain. The crane held on its way for thousands of miles across the ocean.

Then a storm came on, and the wonderful paper crane got damp, crumpled up, and fell into the sea. Sentaro fell with it. Very much frightened at the thought of being drowned, he cried out loudly to Jofuku to save him. He looked round, but there was no ship in sight. He swallowed a quantity of sea-water, which only increased his miserable plight. While he was thus struggling to keep himself afloat, he saw a monstrous shark swimming towards him. As it came nearer it opened its huge mouth ready to devour him. Sentaro was all but paralyzed with fear now that he felt his end so near, and screamed out as loudly as ever he could to Jofuku to come and rescue him.

Lo, and behold, Sentaro was awakened by his own screams, to find that during his long prayer he had fallen asleep before the shrine, and that all his extraordinary and frightful adventures had been only a wild dream. He was in a cold perspiration with fright, and utterly bewildered.

Suddenly a bright light came towards him, and in the light stood a messenger. The messenger held a book in his hand, and spoke to Sentaro:

“I am sent to you by Jofuku, who in answer to your prayer, has permitted you in a dream to see the land of Perpetual Life. But you grew weary of living there, and begged to be allowed to return to your native land so that you might die. Jofuku, so that he might try you, allowed you to drop into the sea, and then sent a shark to swallow you up. Your desire for death was not real, for even at that moment you cried out loudly and shouted for help.”

“It is also vain for you to wish to become a hermit, or to find the Elixir of Life. These things are not for such as you—your life is not austere enough. It is best for you to go back to your paternal home, and to live a good and industrious life. Never neglect to keep the anniversaries of your ancestors, and make it your duty to provide for your children’s future. Thus will you live to a good old age and be happy, but give up the vain desire to escape death, for no man can do that, and by this time you have surely found out that even when selfish desires are granted they do not bring happiness.”

“In this book I give you there are many precepts good for you to know—if you study them, you will be guided in the way I have pointed out to you.”

The angel disappeared as soon as he had finished speaking, and Sentaro took the lesson to heart. With the book in his hand he returned to his old home, and giving up all his old vain wishes, tried to live a good and useful life and to observe the lessons taught him in the book, and he and his house prospered henceforth.

Poem Notes

The author for this little senryu is listed as 十五夜 (Juugoya) which means 15th night, or the full moon. So, it seems our senryu poet will have to remain anonymous at this time until we find out the real name behind them.

改札へ係ゆるゆるやって来る

The ticket collector comes to the wicket slowly.
 

References

• Blyth, R.H. (1949) “Senryu: Japanese Satirical Verses”. Japan: Hokuseido Press.
• Ozaki, Y.T. (1903) “Japanese Fairy Tales” USA: Cavalier Classics.

You can listen to the full podcast episodes here: Japan Archives, or wherever you listen to Podcasts.

Follow us on Social Media: Instagram: @japan_archives

We also started a Youtube channel for Japan Archives.

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The post E77 To Live Forever appeared first on . A History . . of Japan . 日本歴史.

Story Notes

We return to Kyoto as we often do on our show, this time to a temple known as Kōzan-ji. It is not really a centralised temple in Kyoto, located in the north-west outskirts of the city. Settled more in the wilderness it is a rather beautiful temple and it is one I hope I can visit when I go next to Kyoto; hopefully with Heather.

Now the temple was once the location of a collection of important picture scrolls, now housed in the Kyoto and Tokyo National Museums. And reproductions can be seen at the temple should you visit.

These scrolls are known as the Chōjū-giga (鳥獣戯画, literally “Animal Caricatures”) or sometimes as Scrolls of Frolocking Animals.

Looking into the authorship of these scrolls, we find that once it was thought a Toba Sōjō was the author of them, or at least some of them; this man living from 1053-1140; but we will see why shortly that this is unlikely.

So what are these scrolls? Well they are four scrolls, using ink but with not text. In size they are not too large, 31cm high and only 1 metres long. We also have several small fragments of them from private collections and it is likely that these private fragments also formed part of the original.

These 4 scrolls of the Chōjū-giga have no special name attributed to them and are simply labelled as scrolls A through D. And what is fascinating about them is that they are unique, they show animals with human characteristics, and no other scrolls have been found that do this. They are a good example of the use of monochrome wash, known in Japan as Hakubyō, and the use of only ink and its fluid link were a prefigure to the rise of ink monochrome as a major mode of later Buddhist paintings.

Looking at the first scroll to give you all some idea of what they portrayed we see rabbits, frogs and monkeys all frolicking as if they were in fact human. We see rabbits and monkeys bathing and swimming in a lake and further along on the scroll we are shown rabbits and frogs making bows and arrows. Events not explained are shown, with rabbits and foxes bringing pots and boxes to a gathering of some sort.

Celebrations are shown with frogs dancing, rabbits shown walking passed monks with their cattle. And we can also see a monkey being chased by a rabbit with a large stick. Perhaps the monkey stole something from the rabbit? We are even shown a funeral with a frog praying infront of a frog shaped Budai (a semi-historic Chinese monk) as well as animal in wrestling matches. It is very fascinating to look at.

Scroll B contains a continuous landscape with animals in pure enjoyment with lions also shown roaring and scratching their backs. C brings together a collection of games and contests between monks and laymen; this includes a tug of war wth people using their heads and additionally shows a group of monkeys attacking an ox cart. And to finish it off D shows clerics undertaking rituals as well as amusements and smoking their pipes.

A quote from George Sansom from his book Japan: short cultural history from 1931 says:

The work belongs to the decline of the Fujiwara period, but it expresses in one of its best aspects the artistic spirit of their age. The artist is a delightful draughtsman. His pictures of animals disporting [themselves] in the garb of monks are alive with satirical fun. They are a true fruit of the native wit; they owe nothing to China beyond a vague debt to her older artistic tradition; and they bear witness to that reaction against the solemnities of Buddhist art which we have noticed.

So when it comes to the dating of these scrolls it is likely that scrolls A and B come from the end of the 12th century. With C and D dating to the Kamakura Period which lasted from 1185-1333AD. Now this shows why is it unlikely Toba Sōjō created these scrolls having been born in 1053. And more specifically, whereas they contain no text, scrolls C includes the date of 1253 upon it. Recent studies as well have suggested that more than one artist may have work on the scrolls.

References

• Louis Frederic, translated by Kathe Roth (2002) “Japan Encyclopedia”. London: Harvard University Press.  
• Kodansha. (1993) ”Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia”. Tokyo: Kodansha Ltd. 
• Sansom, George Bailey (1931). “Japan, A Short Cultural History”. Tokyo: Tuttle Publishing.
• “Choju-Giga”. The Physiological Society of Japan.
• “Emaki Unrolled: Master Works of Illustrated Narrative Handscrolls”. Kyoto National Museum. Archived from the original on 2009-05-18.

You can listen to the full podcast episodes here: Japan Archives, or wherever you listen to Podcasts.

Follow us on Social Media: Instagram: @japan_archives

We also started a Youtube channel for Japan Archives.

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The post B17 Frolicking Animals (Chōjū-giga) appeared first on . A History . . of Japan . 日本歴史.

Story Notes

If you mention Japan and noodles in the same sentence, most people in America would, I assume, think you are talking about ramen. Ramen has become so ingrained in American culture that, along with sushi, that’s may be what most of us thought about when we first thought about going to Japan – either to visit or to live.  

And in doing the research for this podcast, that’s the article topic that came up most frequently. Ramen is a hugely popular dish worldwide, and of course in Japan.  

And it would be sooo easy to just focus on ramen for this episode. I thought about it – BUT I feel like ramen should have it’s own episode. 

There so so many different types of noodles in Japan! And they are all equally delicious in their own way! So, while we are going to mention about ramen because it IS amazing, I want to give some more information about other noodle-y delights as well. 

Somen 

So it could be said that this noodle has origins from the Nara Period, coming to Japan from China. These rice noodles were called soumochi. These noodles were made from rice flour.  

But in the Kamakura period, noodles were being made from wheat instead of rice. These wheat based noodles were served at buddhist temples in the Muromachi period. This is probably when we get the name transition to somen.  

And while other noodles may be talked about more in other counties, in Japan somen is a popular gift item. In fact – a tradition I’ve heard about is when you move to a new place, you often present your new neighbors with somen.  

Chilled somen is eaten in summertime. Dipped in a mentsuyu broth, it’s cooling and refreshing. And also said to be easy and light on the stomach, as appetites may be lower due to the intense heat and humidity.  

For a fun experience, nagashi somen is somen noodles sent down a floating bamboo tube. However, unless you buy your own personal home nagashi somen machine, you’ll need to wait till well AFTER the danger of the new corona virus to try this with others. 

Soba 

Soba – or buckwheat noodles as you might know them. A sort of grey-ish noodle that’s eaten hot or cold. These are thought to have come from China during the Jomon period, sometime between 10,000 and 300 BC.  

Buckwheat has a lot of nutritional value. But, some people do have allergies to this grain. Oddly enough, it’s not a grass or a wheat like you might think but is actually related to rhubarb.  

Soba is eaten on New Year’s Eve in Japan, along with tempura to mark the passing of the years end and to look to the future.  

Soba is served hot in dashi stock, or cold with a dipping sauce which usually includes a side of green onions and wasabi.  

Soba is made from buckwheat flour and funny enough, I saw that in Hokkaido that buckwheat was submerged in sack in the water and brought out recently to dry out and grind into buckwheat flour. And unfortunately I didn’t have time to look this up but I think we might have to come back to buckwheat in the future.  

Udon 

There are a few possible origin stories for udon – one says possibly a monk named Enni brought over a wheat milling technique from China around 1421 which paved the way for widespread noodle making. Another said that a monk named Kukai introduced the noodles to Sanuki province, or Shikoku, in the Heien Era after studying in China (Thomas knows who this is – I may interrupt here). There’s more, but let’s move on to talking about the noodles themselves. 

Made from wheat flour, kneaded, and cut, these are thick and chewy noodles and happen to be one of my absolute favorites. There’s many ways to enjoy them – kitsune udon (light stock with sweet fried tofu) is very popular and cheap! But you can also eat them similar to soba or somen – dipped into a flavorful stock. Yaki udon is also great! And I’ve also seen udon noodles included in okonomiyaki, at least here in Hiroshima prefecture.  

I have focused on wheat noodles, but if your definition of noodles includes anything that is long and thin, well then I’ll briefly mention – 

Harusame 

Harusame are noodles made from different types of starches, including perhaps potato or mung beans. You can hydrate these noodles in hot water, or add them to nabe. They’re used in salads too, among other things.  

Ramen 

So let’s end with ramen. Ramen noodles are made from wheat and water – but to be called ramen noodles they have to be made with kansui – alkaline water. If they aren’t made a certain way, they can’t be called ramen. At least, that’s what I have been told! 

These noodles are also thought to have come from China, but not that long ago in relative Japanese noodle history.  

Like I said, we’ll have another episode just on ramen, but some popular base types you might know are  

• Shoyu – soy sauce based 
• Tonkotsu – pork broth based
• Shio – a salt based broth 
• Miso – miso based broth 

We’ve also got Hokkaido ramen, made with miso and butter and corn. Speaking of which, pretty much every prefecture, area, and city in Japan has their own style of ramen.  

Actually – all the noodles mentioned here have their own regional specialties as well! So perhaps we’ll visit noodles again. Or better yet, just try them all! 

So there you have a very very short intro to noodles in Japan! And if you want further information, there are tons and tons of food vloggers, cooking vloggers, articles, tv shows, documentaries, etc about Japanese noodles and I encourage you to check them out! I learn something new all the time.  

And if you are wondering – why, yes I did have to eat noodles while writing this research! In fact, today was udon. Which may be my favorite. No, wait. Somen. No, soba. I need further “research” before I can confirm.  

Poem Notes

Todays poem comes from Kobayashi Issa.

陽炎やそば屋が前の箸の山 

Kagerō ya / Soba-ya ga mae no / Hashi no yama 

In the heat-haze
Before the noodle shop lies
A mountain of chopsticks.

Header Image: Japanese Noodles, Image by Lindsey White from Pixabay

References

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Udon
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buckwheat
• https://web-japan.org/kidsweb/cook/soba/soba01.html
• https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2015/06/19/food/short-history-japans-long-noodles/
• http://www.wakapoetry.net/kagero-ya-4/

You can listen to the full podcast episodes here: Japan Archives, or wherever you listen to Podcasts.

Follow us on Social Media: Instagram: @japan_archives

We also started a Youtube channel for Japan Archives.

And another for other creative endeavours!

The post E57 A Brief History of Noodles appeared first on . A History . . of Japan . 日本歴史.

Story Notes

In the world there exists 67 companies which have existed since before 1300AD, and out of those 67. 34% of them are located in Japan. So today let’s dive into some of them shall we? 

Kongo Gumi

We start off with the oldest company. This one not just the oldest in Japan, but the oldest in the world. A company that has been around since 578AD. 

Now this company, headquartered in Osaka and founded by Shigemitsu Kongō traces its origins not to the Japanese, but to Korean immigrants to came to Japan at the behest of Prince Shotoku to help in the construction of the temple of Shitenno-ji. And we know of every one of those who were a descendant of this family due to a 3 meter long scroll from the 17^th century, tracing back the lineage of the family heads of this family and company. 

Now they specialised in the building of Buddhist temples, but by 2006 they were falling on hard times and went into liquidation, being bought by Takamatsu Construction Group. In essence, they still exist to this day, however, whether people believe they should still hold the title of worlds oldest company after liquidating is something you will need to decide for yourself.    

Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan

Our second company today is the world’s oldest hotel. You can find it located in Hayakawa, Yamanashi Prefecture and dates all the way back to 705AD for its founding by a Fujiwara no Mahito according to their website. The onsen took the name of Keiun as it was founded in the Keiun Era and gathers its water from the nearby Hakuho Springs. Its is still run by the same family, and its now on its 52^nd generational descendant from Fujiwara Mahito.  

Such was its fame that even Tokugawa Ieyasu is said to have stayed here during his life.  

The hotel has tried to remain traditional during its existence, and even after a major renovation in 1997 it maintained its traditional architecture. And in 2005, they added hot spring baths into every room in the hotel.  

Now I tried to figure out who this Mahito was, some references said that he was the son of an aide with the surname Fujiwara to Emperor Tenji. However, I am not entirely sure about this. So if anyone can help me please do. 

The aide to Emperor Tenji was Fujiwara no Kamatari. He had sons, but no Mahito, though he did have a son called Fuhito. One syllable difference. Fuhito did live during the correct time so could have founded this hotel, however right now I can’t be sure.  

Of Mahito I can find no record, only this Fuhito, so is there an error somewhere in the histories? Maybe we’ll never know, or maybe I am over thinking this. I leave it to you to decide.  

Gendai Shigyo

This company was founded all the way back in 771 and is the oldest ceremonial paper goods store in Japan. From what I could gather from the Japanese it seems that this company created Mizuhiki (explain what this is, add a pic in show notes) which up until the Meiji Era was not popular with the general public and was more for the imperial family and nobles. But now that also make other ceremonial paper goods including those for festivals.  

Tanaka-Iga

Sadly not much to say for this one. Based in Kyoto, this company was founded in 885 and is the oldest company to Buddhist religious items.  

Ichimonjiya Wasuke (Ichiwa)

Looking now at confectionary, we find ourselves in Kyoto, at the Ichiwa store. If you are wanting an idea of whereabouts it is, it’s about a 20 minute walk from Kinkakuji.    

Founded around 1000 years ago the store is known for selling Wagashi, a kind of plant based confection made of mochi, anko or fruits; often served with tea. The store is rather small, currently run by the 24^th descendant of its founder. And in addition to a small number of benches and stool to enjoy your confectionary at, you can look down over a garden at the back of the store designed in around the 17^th century by a Kobori Enshu. 

The primary specialty of this place is aburi-mochi. This is mochi grilled over charcoal, doused in a sweet miso sauce.  

Sudo Honke

Now if you’re in Japan, one of the famous drinks is the sake. And if you are wanting to find the oldest company who makes it, turn your attention to Sudo Honke. A company which has been around since at least 1141. The exact origins are lost to us, but we have this date from a talisman the family still had showing they were making sake during 1141. You can find them located in Ibaraki Prefecture and their website states that they originally started out as a Samurai family who chose a mission to revitalize the economy of the area and so they began to brew sake.  

They make around 180 kilolitres of sake annually, using the best rice and only the water pumped from a local well. 

They have never had to use any other water aside from this source.  

This did come into jeopardy after the 2011 earthquake however, no damage was done to the buildings, however they soon had to test the well for radiation contamination due to the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant disaster. Luckily the tests came back negative and the company is now doing what it can to get their sales back on track after a big drop in sales following the earthquake. 

That’s all I can really say for now, as the current head of the company has said they have various memos, receipts and paperwork stored dating back to the Edo Period for their brewery. However, none of it has been sorted through yet, and so if there is more history to tell for this company. We don’t know it yet.  

Tsuen Tea

Now we turn our attention to Japan’s oldest Tea Shop and a lot of their history can be garnered from the plaques they have on display around their store. It has been around since about 1160 founded by a man known as Furukawa Unai who during his lifetime served as a vassal to Minamoto no Yorimasa. And in addition to enjoying tea, Furukawa was also said to have been a rather excellent martial artist. After he was allowed to retire, he changed his name to being Taikei-an Tsuen Masahisa, which is where the name of the store came from. And he sets up his store on the East side of the Uji Bridge. He did return to service in 1180 to fight alongside Yorimasa in the battle of Uji, where he sadly died and there was even a play made about him telling the story of his life.  

The location of the tea shop was a prime location for all people to travel through, and it is even now that prominent people such as Tokogawa Ieyasu and Toyotomi Hideyoshi even had tea served to them here. 

His descendant carried on serving tea here to various travellers and changed their family name to being merely Tsuen. Now jumping to the seventh generational descendant we find that this man had strong connections to a Zen monk known as Ikkyu, and they are said to have been inseparable. When this 7^th Generation Tsuen died, Ikkyu apparently came straight to the tea shop where he presented them with a piece of calligraphy which went as follows, “one cup of tea, one coin, one’s time is a bubble.” 

 The 8^th Generation Tsuen served as Chief tea master to the Shogun Ashikaga Yoshimasa, which goes to show I suppose the fame and prestige their Tea Shop had gathered over the years. 

The 10^th and 11^th Generation Tsûen’s served as masters of the crossing at Uji Bridge. They earned the trust of Toyotomi Hideyoshi during his lifetime, and were even permitted to provide the lord with tea, using water from the Uji River. It is said the buckets they used to gather the water still survive to this day. 

Outside of the store are many tea jars spanning back hundreds of years in age. And additionally there is a statue of the first Tsuen, which was gifted to the store by the priest Ikkyu. 

And to finish everything off, how about I tell you the kinds of tea you can get there?  

• matcha – ground green tea 
• gyokuro – shaded green tea 
• sencha – whole tea leaves infused in hot water 
• karigane – contains also twigs of the tea tree 
• hōjicha – roasted green tea 
• genmaicha – mixed low – level green tea and roasted brown rice. 

Kikuoka

The company of Kikuoka can be found in the city of Nara, close to the old capital of Kyoto. The current instalment of this shop deals in traditional Japanese/Chinese medicine and has been around since 1184. Currently it is run by the 24th generation of the same family. It appears the Kikuoka family was originally from Fujiwara, and that their family had a long desire to care for the sick people of Japan. 

They have made various attempts at catering for English speaker should you wish to go and procure some medicine by providing in house a giant glossary in both Japanese and English should you require it, but they do also recommend booking before hands if you need a consultation as the wait may be long if you don’t do so. Or if you don’t need any medicine and just wish to see the ancient store, you can go and have a free cup of herbal tea.  

Ito Tekko

Founded in 1189, Ito Tekko has claim to being the oldest metalworking company in the Japan, located in the city of Tsuruoka, Yamagata Prefecture. According to their website, they were founded by a man known as Ito Sukeemon who served Minamoto no Yoritomo. Minamoto no Yoritomo was the man who established the bakufu system, or as we know of it abroad the system of Shoguns who held power over the country more so than the Emperor.  

The company remained very much the same until the Meiji Era where as times were changing and Japan was modernising they changed the products they made to also include weaving machines and brewing machines, and similarly on the 800^th year since their founding, so the first year in the era of Heisei they again change, making the difficult decision to modernise again and move into making electromagnetic flow meters to measure the water flows of water and sewage systems. 

Kotabe Foundry

Founded back between 1190 and 1199 this currently is being run by Shouemon Kotabe, a 37^th generation descendant from the founder of the company. You can find them in Ibaraki Prefecture on the foothills of the Tsubaku Mountain. As a foundry company they are well versed in the making of fire bells, rainwater bowls, as well as the bells for the temples of Japan. The location allows them access to sand and clay used in the making of the moulds needed. 

And from what little information I could find out about Kotabe, it appears that they are the only company in Japan permitted to place the emblem of the chrysanthemum on their product, this being the symbol of the Japanese Royal Family.  

Proverb Notes

Today we bring to you another Japanese Kotozawa. 

鳴く蝉よりも鳴かぬ蛍が身をこがす  

なくせみよりもなかぬほたるがみをこがす 

The silent firefly burns with more passion than the crying cicada 

References

• Weblinks
• https://jisho.org/search/鳴く – Kotozawa
• End of the Road for Worlds oldest Firm
• The End of a 1400 year old business
• Keiunkan Official Website
• The Worlds Oldest Hotel has been a family business for 1300 years.
• Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan
• Oldest Businesses in Japan
• Tanaka Iga
• Nuke Crisis tested Oldest Sake Brewer
• Tsuen Green tea
• Kikuoka Kanpo Yakkyoku
• Nara Fear 1300th anniversary flop
• Ito Tekko
• Kotabe Foundry
• Shouemon Kotabe
• Books
• Durston, D. (2013) Old Kyoto: A Guide to Traditional Shops, Restaurants, and Inns. New York: Kodansha Ltd.
• Kodansha. (1993) ”Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia”. Tokyo: Kodansha Ltd.
• Louis Frederic, translated by Kathe Roth (2002) “Japan Encyclopedia”. London: Harvard University Press.  

You can listen to the full podcast episodes here: Japan Archives, or wherever you listen to Podcasts.

Follow us on Social Media: Instagram: @japan_archives

We also started a Youtube channel for Japan Archives.

And another for other creative endeavours!

The post EP50 Worlds Oldest Companies appeared first on . A History . . of Japan . 日本歴史.

Story Notes

What do you think of when you think about sushi?

Maybe you think about the rolls served with avocado, mayonnaise, fried seafood… Maybe you think about the cute little egg omelettes or raw fish like tuna served on top of small amount of rice. Something you would dip in your soy sauce with wasabi (or not!)

Depending on where you get your sushi, you might picture something different.

You might picture a bar with a chef, making and serving sushi in front of you. Maybe you get your sushi from a conveyor belt. Maybe you pick up a plastic container at the grocery store.

But the sushi that we eat today – is a more recent invention. Especially if you eat your sushi with mayonnaise inside (and no judgement here – the professor, who is Japanese, loves American sushi. He often gets California rolls. There is no sushi judgement here, only appreciation! You do your sushi as you like, or not at all! Only sushi love here)

Let’s talk a little bit about the origins of sushi – and a quick note, I’ve pulled from several sources BUT food origin history can sometimes be debated and updates can change based on new findings, so take this information with a grain of salt. And maybe perhaps a bit of vinegar.

Sushi could be said to have origins dating back to the BC times – perhaps around Southeast asia. People in this region would preserve fish by pickling in a mixture of salt and rice for a long time, sometimes months. With this process, only the fish was eaten and the rice was tossed out having served its purpose as a pickling agent.

Okay, let’s stop here and talk about pickling. Pickling is a way to preserve foods for a long time. Pickling causes good bacteria to form which munches away on the food itself, causing lovely fermentation. This fermentation creates lactobacillus and other bacteria, something that can help with gut health – keeping your internal parts moving along in a healthy way. Also, some vitamins from the vegetables and fish are preserved, which is important as we’ll see later. 

Now back to sushi. Well, it looks like sushi made its way to Japan around the 700s, as its first mention seems to be in a tax book called the Yoro code. 

The sushi eaten around this time was called “Narezushi” and “Kusarezushi.” 

There’s also a mention of sushi around the 12th century – in the Konjaku Monogatarishū. Around the time of the shogunate. And it’s around the time of the shogunate that vinegar was added to sushi. The vinegar, which enhanced the fish’s flavor, allowed for a shorter preservation time which also meant the rice could be eaten. The rice had previously been tossed out, which was mottanai (or wasteful) Oh, and cooking methods also changed during this time – but let’s save that for another podcast.

Because the rice could be preserved, more rice could be eaten! 

Which takes us to… the Edo period! Let’s get introduced to Hayazushi. This technique used vinegar to shorten fermentation time. This sushi was also pressed using heavy weights then sliced up. And these pieces are MUCH bigger than we are used to seeing today, closer to onigiri size or palm size (depending on the size of your palm I guess!). I know this style of sliced sushi is sold in the grocery stores in Japan and in places like Sushiro.

It’s also during the Edo period that Nigirizushi was born! I bet you’ve heard of this one. It’s around today and you may have had it or at least seen it on a sushi menu, depending on where you go. This came from Yohei Hanaya, and consisted of fish – preserved with vinegar or cooked – then placed on top of vinegared rice. So, the sushi that we think of today was more like the sushi during the Edo period.

Also sushi in the Edo period was served via wooden carts called kiosks that could be carried on the shoulders and set down allowing the vendor to sell anywhere. The original fast food place!

Oh, I mentioned earlier about vitamins? Well, the pickled vegetables gave some much needed vitamins to prevent “beriberi” – nicknamed “Edo disease” since many dwellers of Tokyo seemed to suffer it. My guess is that if you live in the city, your access to fresh fruit and vegetables during this time was more difficult, so those pickled vegetables were truly almost medicinal.

But – there aren’t food kiosks for sushi in Japan – well, unless you go to a place that HAS kiosks or food carts but in a lot of Japan these aren’t around. How did sushi get to restaurants?

During the 1920s, the great Earthquake in Tokyo happened. So many buildings were leveled, and required a restoration of the city. Land prices were cheap to encourage this rebuilding, and the sushi kiosk owners opened restaurants. Thus, the sushiya was born!

OH, the fish! What kinds of fish were used for sushi? Well, historically fish like mackerel were used for sushi – fish that had few or maybe a skotch parasites but fish that could be safer to eat. Fish like salmon were not used because they had too many parasites (This was told to me by the professor) But of course if you go now, there’s salmon as far as the eye can see. How did that happen?

The answer is TECHNOLOGY! Modern refrigeration gave us the technique of deep freezing the fish to kill parasites. (Okay, well a human figured it out but… I digress). If you eat sushi now, more than likely (I would guess around a 90some percent chance) that you are eating previously frozen fish. And that’s a good thing, because when you eat sushi you would prefer if your sushi didn’t eat you – by way of parasites. It’s still fresh, it’s just safety fresh! Although – some parasites can happen, such as the recent story of the lady in Tokyo. Just… look it up. If you are worried about sushi – the amount consumed, at least here in Japan, should help reassure you that the danger, while present, is on the minimal side. (But according to guidelines, if you are immuno-compromised, pregnant, a child, elderly… etc check with you doctor if you are worried. Or just check anyway, I’m not a medical expert so take my advice with a little vinegar. Preferably rice vinegar although I am partial to an apple cider vinegar too).

So now we are in the 20th century. How did sushi get around the world? Well, I’m just going to focus on the US and UK today to keep things short (haha), plus I want to research this more myself!

This dish came to the US in the earlyish (or pre) 20th century with Japanese immigrants during the Meiji period. There’s a whole history there too – but that’s another podcast. But it’s during the 1960s that sushi gained popularity and more restaurants were built in several cities, allowing more people to experience this culinary delight.

In the UK, it was in the 1950s with a visit from the Japanese prince to Queen Elizabeth II.

Types of sushi – there are soooo many. Not just that but there is also popular sushi in each country. And – here’s a little happy thought for you. If you eat “American” style sushi for example – yes, it’s still sushi.  Modern sushi, while having roots in Japan, has truly become a global food. And even in Japan we’ve got hamburger on sushi rice, beef on sushi rice, and fried chicken. So, depending on where you go sushi has become an interesting and innovative form of culinary expression.

Now, personally I’ve never been to a high end restaurant. I am sure the experience is VASTLY different and it’s one I hope to experience someday. In fact, I’m gonna share with you a website I used during my research and one I’d like to explore – once I can ever get to Tokyo (sad noises). Sushi University! Thomas, you and I might need to add this to our list which is now probably several pages long.

I’m including a list of different types of sushi, and I’m sure we will mention it during the podcast.

So there you go! A brief history of this food. Very brief, lightly detailed, a small nibble that hopefully leaves you hungry for more. Or just hungry.

Enjoy this dish as you like!

Proverb Notes

落花枝にかえらず、破鏡再び照らさず
らっかえだにかえらず、はっきょうふたたびてらさず

Rakka eda ni kaerazu, hakyou futatabi terasazu

Fallen blossom doesn’t return to the branch, a broken mirror can not be made to shine

What’s done is done; “There’s no use crying over spilled milk”

Notes from the website we found this proverb (see references below):

• The ra in rakka is the kanji for otosu (to drop/let fall), but can also be read as ochi (the punchline of a joke) and is also the ra in rakugo (traditional funny story telling).
• Hakyou is a compound of yaburu (to tear/break) and kagami (mirror)
• Futatabi means again/once more
• Terasu is a verb meaning to shine on/illuminate (eg: teriagaru to clear up after rain), and -zu is a negative ending similar to -nai. Interestingly the kanji is also used for shyness

References

• https://www.pbs.org/food/the-history-kitchen/history-of-/
• https://www.thenibble.com/reviews/main/fish/seafood/-glossary6.asp (about adding vinegar to rice)
• https://www.historytoday.com/archive/historians-cookbook/short-history-
• Earliest known mention was in Yoro code (legal code, which ties into https://university.jp/basicknowledge/history-of- mentioning taxes)
• America and UK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_

PICKLING (In rice bran)

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nukazuke
• http://pickles.wanderingspoon.com/2009/04/24/nukazuke-japanese-rice-bran-pickles/
• http://kyotofoodie.com/how-to-make-nukazuke-nukadoko/

More about pickles

• https://justhungry.com/different-types-japanese-tsukemono-pickles-hassle
• https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2017/08/19/food/pickle-veggies-traditional-japanese-nukadoko/#.XxeTHp4zbOQ
• https://www.seriouseats.com/2014/06/guide-japanese-pickles-tsukemono.html

Types of:

• https://gurunavi.com/en/japanfoodie/2017/05/types-of-.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki
• https://japan-forward.com/more-than-a-dish-its-a-ritual/

Interesting notes about meat:

• https://www.pbs.org/food/

Proverb

• http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~fgandon/miscellaneous/japan/

You can listen to the full podcast episodes here: Japan Archives, or wherever you listen to Podcasts.

Follow us on Social Media: Instagram: @japan_archives

We also started a Youtube channel for Japan Archives.

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The post E47 Sushi appeared first on . A History . . of Japan . 日本歴史.

Story Notes

All the way back in Episode 16 we heard of a poem from Sarumaru Taifu that went as follows.  (From the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu.)

奥山に 紅葉踏みわけ 鳴く鹿の 声きく時ぞ 秋はかなしき  
Okuyama ni momoji mireba naku shika no koe kiku toki zo aki wa kanashiki  
In the deep mountains making a path through the fallen leaves, the plaintive belling of the stag- how forlorn the autumn feels.  

But we will come back to that in a moment. As my research led me to a strange Yokai known as Momonjii. These creature is made from dense fog and strong winds which join together when the hour is late and turn into these being.

It is said that any who would come across Momonji after he manifests would fall ill.  

But this led me to a strange titbit of information from the Edo Period. During this time period the eating of land animals became taboo and so people had to think of creative ways to get people to be able to eat these kinds of food using a kind of code.  

The wild boar was redubbed yama-kujira (mountian whale), with their meat called botan (peony). Horse meat became dubbed sakura (cherry blossom) and venison became momiji (maple). It is said that the naming of venison was a nod to the old poem we started off this post with.  

Another way in which the poem could be translated goes as following.  

Deep in the mountains, I hear cries of the stag searching for its mate amidst the momiji –  How sad autumn feels to me! 

Now doesn’t the idea of venison being momiji give this poem an entirely new vision in your minds? The stag who is walking through the momiji could be the stag walking through herds of other deer trying to find his mate, and not just through a forest of maple! 

Feature Image: Hokusai, One Hundred Poets. (Plate 5, based of the above poems.)

References

• MacMillan, P. (2018) ”One Hundred Poets, One Poem Each: A Treasury of Classical Japanese Verse”. St. Ives: Penguin Classics. 
• Yoda, H. and Alt, M. (2016) “Japandemonium: Illustrated: The Yokai Encyclopaedia of Toriyama Sekien.”. New York: over Publications, Inc. 

You can listen to the full podcast episodes here: Japan Archives, or wherever you listen to Podcasts.

Follow us on Social Media: Instagram: @japan_archives

We also started a Youtube channel for Japan Archives.

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The post B9 Momiji Meat appeared first on . A History . . of Japan . 日本歴史.

Story Notes

What is rice? How is it grown? 

The rice plant is a grass. The product, also called rice, is a cereal grain, and the scientific name is Oryza sativa. It is usually grown in a water paddy. While rice technically doesn’t need the paddy to grow, it does provide a way to ward off bugs, water the rice, and does generally yield more rice per field.  

Rice is started in beds, and then it’s moved to the water paddy when it’s approximately 25-50 days old.  

Rice needs processing in order to be eaten, and you can get both white rice and brown rice, depending on the level of polishing, or milling. Brown rice has more nutrients than white rice, but white rice is much more popular.  

There are different types of rice too, but that’s a topic for another day. The majority of rice eaten in Japan is a short grain rice.  

How did it get to Japan 

Based on my research, it looks like Rice may have come to japan via the Fukouka region, around 3000 years ago. There is an archaeological site called “Itazuke remains” located in Hakata that has the first evidence of rice grown in Japan.  And just like grass, rice spread relatively quickly throughout Japan, taking approximately 600 years to cultivate in the different regions.  

Food 

If you study Japanese, you’ve probably learned these words: “朝ごはん、昼ごはん、晩ごはん, which mean breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You probably learned other words as well, but these are USUALLY the ones you’ll start out with. Notice something in common? They all end in gohan. Gohan is the word for cooked rice. The stuff you buy at the store? That’s 米、お米. The “O” sound is an honorific, which can also be used to beautify a word. 

Religion 

Rice is used in religious rights, such as the Buddhist offfering of rice to ancestors. There’s a shrine in the house and you’ll put out a bit of the cooked rice, light incense, and ring a bell. This lets your ancestors know that there is rice for them. There isn’t food in the afterlife, so you should share yours with them. 

Cooperation 

Traditional rice planting requires A LOT of work. You have to individually plant each rice stalk. Rice required communities to work together to cultivate and harvest the rice. 

Cultural Significance 

Rice is also used in holidays, such as the mochi for new years, as decorations and in soup. There’s a mochi for many different seasons, such as the pickled sakura mochi eaten during spring.  

And of course, as mentioned on the podcast before, there is the rabbit making mochi on the moon. 

Products 

Rice can also generate lots of products, such as sandals, thatched roofing, tatami, as well as sake or nihonshu.

Currency 

Rice was also used as payment for taxes from around medieval times to the Edo period. Hideyoshi Toyotomi was responsible for the system that evaluated the sizes and yield of rice in order to provide protection by the bushi class. 

Future Rice 

Consumption in Japan is way down – the introduction and popularity of western foods means a decrease in the amount of rice eaten (And my unscientific study of asking my students back during ALT days, sometimes about half of my students ate bread for breakfast) in fact, some places are trying to bring back the tradition of eating rice, which has decreased over the years. I found an article from 2015 about a shrine that created Nagoshi gohan, rice with azuki and millet topped with kaki age, and seasoned with Ginger sauce. Which sounds amazing and I would gladly welcome this new tradition 

How to cook and eat rice 

The easiest way is a rice cooker, but you can also use the stovetop and boil it. There is also the steam method, which you can do when you want to make mochi. Rinse the rice til the water becomes clear and don’t season it! Just water, and rice. You’ll eat the rice with pickles and other sides, and the subtle flavor of the Japanese rice helps cleanse your pallet and provide a backdrop for different flavors. Japanese people also serve their rice in a separate bowl. And you probably know some basic Japanese table etiquette for rice, such as don’t leave your chopsticks standing in the rice – that’s how they serve rice at a funeral, but did you know you also should’t use soy sauce on your rice?? One of the few exceptions to this rule is tamakakegohan – raw egg served on rice. You can add soy sauce then. It is also considered polite and respectful to finish your rice, as a show of gratitude for the food. And not just that, but many Japan people (including sometimes the professor and I seem to have also adapted this habit) don’t feel it’s a “true meal” unless there is rice! For at least one meal a day, if not most.  

Rice Folktales 

Rice folk tale #1 – the rolling rice ball 

There was an ojisan who went to work on the top of a mountain, bringing with him his wife’s delicious rice balls/onigiri. Well, when lunchtime came Ojisan eagerly reached into his fukoro and pulled one out. Well, wouldn’t you know it, but once of those rice balls escaped and rolled down and into a hole! The Ojisan, quite hungry, followed the trail of the rice ball. When he gets there, he looks inside and there are very happy and rejoicing mice! “Oh, dear sir, thank you so much for this glorious food! You are our hero” And with that the mice danced and sang. The Ojisan, hungry but happy that the mice were so happy, decided to let them keep part of his lunch. “Oh, but please! Before you go, we wish to give you a gift! You can choose from the small box or the big box.” The Ojisan decided “The small box. And thank you!” And with that the mice presented him with the small box and the man returned to finish his lunch. When he arrived home, he opened the box and all sorts of treasures burst forth! The Ojisan and his wife, greatly pleased with their windfall, decided to share this blessing with the town. And there was much rejoicing. Well, except for one man – the Ojisan’s neighbor. He became inflamed with jealousy, so much so that after hearing how the Ojisan received the box, decided to try the same thing. He made the journey to the mouse home, and dropped in a rice ball. When he heard the sounds of rejoicing, he peered in. “You, mice! I gave you a rice ball, so give me a gift! Or I’ll bring my cat!” The shocked mice, much disturbed by this angry man, dragged him into their hole! Amd with that, the angry neighbor was never seen again. 

Rice folktale #2 Somin Shorai

Somin Shorai is a folktale written in the Bingo Fudoki, from the 8th century.  Bingo is an old name for a particular region in Hiroshima prefecture, one I am familiar with. There are several shrines that have charms base on this folktale.  

Somin Shorai was very poor, but very kind. He was always willing to lend a hand to those less fortunate. One day, while taking a journey, he happened across a man who seemed lost, tired, and dirty. “Ah” Somin came up to the traveler “Are you lost”  

“I am a visitor here, but I’ve gotten lost and I’m trying to find a place to stay. I’m so tired, and I’m so hungry.” replied the man 

“Well, I don’t have much, but please, share my lunch with me. It’s millet and rice. I’m sorry it’s so humble, but it’s very filling” 

“Ah, thank you!” And with that the man took a bite. 

But! He stopped – and while Somin looked on, his appearance changed!  He was actually a kami in disguise! 

“Somin – your kindness in helping an unknown traveler should be rewarded. I’m gifting you this ring which will help save you from harm. Guard it well.” 

And with that, the kami disappeared.  

Much later, a terrible wind came and destroyed much of Somin’s home village. However, Somin and his family were saved – because of the ring given to him by the kami.  

Poem Notes

Master Kenshō. We are uncertain of the dates he lived though it is likely to have been around 1130 to around 1209. Though we don’t really know who his parents were, we do know that he was at some point adopted by one member of the Fujiwara Clan, a Fujiwara no Akisuke, this man having had a poem in the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu.  

Todays poem comes from a poetry competition, a poetry competition in six-hundred rounds, known in Japanese as the Roppyaku-ban Uta Awase, and we known that Kenshō even acted as judge in similar competitions. These competitions consisted of two poems being read side by side, with a judge ruling which of the two best fit the theme that they were writing about. Now I am unsure who judged Kenshō’s poetry during this competition, but Kenshō’s poem fit into the category of love and he was up against a man known as Fujiwara no Tsune’ie, who was a Minister for the Imperial Household. 

Now did Kenshō win? Unfortunately not.  

The judges critiques stating it was stylistically tasteful, but the line ‘can a meeting, like the waters rounds the rice seedlings’ makes the conception of love weak. 

Featured Image: All images today were gathered from pixabay.com

You can listen to the full podcast episodes here: Japan Archives, or wherever you listen to Podcasts.

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The post EP36 A Brief History of Rice appeared first on . A History . . of Japan . 日本歴史.

There was no poem segment in todays episode due to the length of the Podcast.

Story Notes

Now I have debated a little on how to write down these show notes, as we know during the episode I gave Heather various scenarios to see how she would deal with the situation as a Ninja. I feel that might not work as well in note form and so below you will find the notes of the items mentioned during the epsode grouped by theme.

You will also find a few things we initially planned to mentioned in the episode, but did not.

So lets start with a Ninja Poem. This comes from the Bansenshukai (萬川集海 – All Rivers Merge into the Sea) This book contains a collection of knowledge from the clans in the Iga and Kōga regions that had been devoted to the training of Ninja. It was compiled by Fujibayashi Yasutake in 1676 and the poem goes as follows:

忍ニハ危ナキヲ良セヨ 前へ疑ヒハ臆病ノ沙汰

For a shinobi it is desirable not to have any anxiety or hesitation. Doubts before hand come from you own cowardice.

Tools to take with you

It is said that every Ninja had six items they would always take with them. We find them first recorded iny the Shoninki (正 忍 記 – Record of Proper Ninjutsu) a medieval ninja document from Kishū province. It was written by Natori Masatake in 1681.

• Kaginawa – Rope attach to hook. Grappling hook.
• Kasa – Conical straw hat, could conceal flat blades or arrows.
• Chalk – Useful to leave easily erasable marks for other ninja.
• Tinderbox – For starting fires, cooking/firing rifles.
• Tenugui – A towel.
• Kusuri – Medicine, antiodes, insect repellent, blood clotting agents, poison etc.)

Herbs

There were several herbs used by the Ninja which could be uses for medicinal purposes, as well as to fill ones stomach if needs be. They were the following.

• Yomogi – Japanese Mugwort. Boiled steamed, or fried, it can be eaten directly or applied for medicinal applications.
• Tsukushi – Horsetail. Often found near fuki (see below), boiled alone or added to rice it would make a tasty dish.
• Fuki – Butterbur. Soaking this in water lessens their bitterness, butterbur stalks are chopped into short lengths and boiled for use as a side-dish or topping on boiled rice.

Food

On a mission it would also have been wise to take food with you, and various food stuffs were made prior to missions, or taken with them to prepare on their journeys.

The ideal Ninja weight was said to be 60kg, or 132 pounds, and their diet meant that they would not eat strong food such as garlic, chives, onions, meat. Instead their diet would consist of tofu, miso, pickled plums, vegetables, brown rice, wheat, soba and potatoes.

• Umeboshi – Pickled plums. These were good at making you salivate for times you may feel thirsty.
• Hoshi-i – Dried rice. Cook it, dry it, and soak in water to eat again.
• Kikatsu-gan – Think of this like an energy bar. This consisted of dried carrots, buckwheat (soba), wheat, yam, licorice and sticky rice. You will grind this down to a powder and then soaked it in sake for 3 years. The slurry left behind after the sake has evaporated is then made into balls. On missions, three were consumed over a day.
• Hyoro-gan – Ration balls. This is made from wheat powder, sake, honey, sticky rice, and carrots. This is all mixed, cooked then mashed and made into small balls. 30 of these a day would be eaten.
• Kata-yaki – Ninja biscuits. These were a very durable and long lasting food, so hard they had to have been broken up by with a knife or sword pommel.

If you needed to cook yourself some rice in the field but had forgotten your pan, then you could do the following to get around the problem. Wrap rice in a straw bundle or straw mat, soak it in water, dig a hole and then bury it. You would then need to burn a fire over it, and eventually it will cook. Alternatively would could put rice in a bucket, add hot rocks, and it would eventually cook.

Should you find yourslef in need of some clean water, but were unfortunately in a marsh you could dig a small hole and put paper around the hole. You can take out water which filters through the middle of the paper.

Clothing

Now on a mission, it would be best for the Ninja to hide in plain site, often disguised as travellers, merchants or wandering monks. But of course this would later call for a change of clothing when night fell and their nightime activities began.

Sadly, the image of their black clothing is more myth than reality. You would find them wearing dark clothes, but more perhaps grey, brown or blue. In the case of blues, deep indigo would work well as it was thought the dye helped repel insects and venomous snakes. At times, a different color could be stiched onto the inside of their clothing, in case you need a quick change of outfit to get a way and go incognito again.

The standard Ninja attire would be as listed below.

• Zukin – Single sheet of cloth 30 centimetres wide and two meters long, wrapped around the head and to cover the face.
• Uwagi – Based off a farmers shirts, however the Ninja added extra pockets in them to hide their gear.
• Fundoshi – Loincloth, wrapped around your private area. Could whip it off in an instant if you need a garrotte.
• Hakama – Two independent leggings synched together and top and ankles, meant they wouldn’t have to disrobe to relieve themselves.
• Teko – Cloth gauntlets.
• Tabi – Two toed socks, cushioned to mask noise.
• Waraji – Straw sandals, at times spikes woven into soles for extra grip.
• Seoi – Cloth back back.

Weapons

Many weapons made up a Ninja’s arsenal and this below is by no means a completed list.

• Shinobi-gatana – Straight and fairly short blades. Ninja were forbidden swords, so likely made off the books by inaka blacksmiths. Due to this perhaps they lacked the finesse and polish of the better known samurai swords. Sheath had a pointed tip. These were good to find people in dark corridors, by pulling the sword out halfway from the sheath keeping the sage-himo cord in your teeth. This cord is wrapped around the top of the sheath. Should the sheath bump into someone in the dark, the vibration would be felt in the Ninja’s mouth, meaning they could then quickly pull out the sword and dispatch the person before they could signal for help. Sheath could also be used to make a makeshift footstool. You would do this by sticking it in the ground, standing on sword pommel and vaulting over your obsticale. You could then use the cord to pull the sword back over to you.
• Shuriken – Throwing stars. Written with Kanji meaning ‘blade in the hand’ there are lots of various shapes which would affect how they were thrown. Various schools also used specific shapes.
• Makibishi – Small spiked objects for unwary feet. Likely in Japan they used the seed pods of the water chestnut after drying them out. As throwing them down, their spikes naturally point upwards.
• Manriki-gusari – Length of chain, weighted at both ends. Coiled in palm of shirt sleeve it could be hurled at enemies, and instantly retracted to be used again.
• Kusari-gama – Weighted chain attached to farmers sickle. You would throw the weighted chain to entangle your foe, then run in and finish them off.
• Teko-kagi – Think Wolverine, literally metal claws.
• Nake-te – Smaller than the teko-kagi, these metal claws merely slipped over the end of your fingers so you could slash a foe.

Equipment

• Nobe kagi – Extendable key. A nine section extendable bar around 5ft with changeable heads. Each section can fold out. It is L shaped at the bottom to allow you to change the angle of usage.
• Mizu-gumo – (Water Sliders) or Uki-gutsu (Floating Shoes) These are of unsure use, but perhaps they were planks of wood with inflated animal skins attached to the bottom to allow you to grab hold and cross water or lay upon them.
• Mizugaki – Wooden Geta. These versions of geta would have had angled board coming from the soles to give you better footing through murky areas.
• Kamei-gata – This was a quick to make raft made by a bamboo frame over upturned clay pots for buoyancy.
• Shikomi – Walking sticks made from things such as bamboo which were hollow inside. Could be used to hide swords, chains, weighted balls, blinding powders etc. This could be expanded to other things such as flutes for blow guns and smoking sets which would hide pepper instead of having tobacco to be used to irritate peoples eyes if thrown at them.
• Kunai – Small field knife. To be used for cutting, scraping and digging tasks. Can be thrown if needs be.
• Shikoro – Serated version of the kunai knife. Curved edges to be able to cut through flat surfaces easily.
• Hamagari – Folding saws.
• Kasugai – Anchors to fit into cracks to scale walls. Can also bar doors shut to delay pursuers. Interestingly, Castle walls were nicknamed musha-aeshi ‘Warrior Stoppers.’
• Tsubo-kiri – This tool has a distinct look, like horseshoe with pointed ends attached to a long metal handle. Used to drill starters holes in walls which would could then widen with the Shikoro. Can make holes through which you can unlatch a lock.
• Musubi-hashi – A normal light weight ladder.
• Tobi-hashi – Steps on a single pole.
• Uki-hashi – Rope ladders, can be pulled taut across bodies of water to create make shift bridge.
• Goshiki-mai – Dyed rice grains to leave a trail for others.
• Gandou – Portable lantern. Using a candle and bucket. Gyroscopic device inside to ensure the candle always stays upright no matter which ever way you hold it. This meant you could hide the light quickly from people by holding bucket upside down.
• Michi-Hakari – Measuring stick for precise distances.
• Noroshi-no-jutsu – Smoke bombs for concealment.
• Firecrackers – For distractions.

Techniques

• Kitsune-gakure-no-jutsu – Submerging oneself in water, or using water to mask your scent.
• Kannon-gakure-no-jutsu – Kannon goddess technique. Pressing oneself flat against a wall or static object, covering your face and remaining completely still.
• Uzura-gakure-no-jutsu – Quail technique. Derived from defensive posture of a bird, involves balling oneself up, slowing your breath, and stilling movement. Reduces silhouette and noise, enhancing effect of limited cover.
• Tanuki-gakure-no-jutsu – Taking cover high places, such as tree branches or the roof of a house. Humans often fail to look up when searching, 45* is the ideal blind spot.

Cats and Snoring

Cat’s Eyes are said to be useful in telling the time as their pupils dilate at regular patterns throughout the day.

• 7am-10am, oval but narrowing.
• 12pm-14pm very narrow, almost like needles.
• 14pm-17pm becoming more oval.
• 23:00 egg shape again.

When it comes to snoring, if someone is acually asleep then it is more stable. If you don’t have pain or emotional stress in your life it will be calmer. Labourers will have louder and more erratic snoring and ill people will have duller sounding snores.

Feigning sleep however, will vary the pitch wildly. Swallowing, sighing, or skipping breathes are also other clues. There was even a doodle sketch drawn by Basho, showing the intensity of an average snore.

Creating Torches (Recipes)

The Rain Proof Torch

• Saltpetre
• Sulphur
• Pine tree knot
• Camphor
• Moxa
• Pine Resin
• Mouse droppings

Make a powder using the above and put into bamboo cylinder. Scrape off the exterior of the bamboo until the sides have thin walls, burn paper, covered in a layer of the power on top of the cylinder and light with a tinder.

Sun Torch

It is said this will not fail in the rain.

• Walnut bark
• Camphor. This and the walnute bark should be dried.
• Shochu spirit (boiled)
• Borneol
• Japanese nutmeg yew
• Pine resin
• Mouse droppings
• Cow dung
• Whetstone
• Moxa
• Saltpetre

If you have none of those, but have mercury on hand you can make the Yoshitsune Fire, or Long-Lasting torch.  (Named after Minamoto no Yoshitsune 源 義経 a military commander of the Minamoto clan of Japan in the late Heian and early Kamakura periods.)

Scrape ox horn until the walls are thin, place 5 cormorant feather spines at the bottom. Next place mercury into the spines of the feathers and cover with a lid. (Presumably this make the whole thing illuminate? Unfortunately the book I found this recipe in does not say.)

And there you have it. This is by no means an exhaustive list of Japanese Ninja items, but it is a good start for those who find themselves interested in the history of them.

References

• Cummings, A & Minami, Y. (2013) ”The Book of Ninja; The First Complete Translation of the Bansenshukai. Oxford: Watkins Publishing Limited.
• Yoda, H & Alt, M. (2012) “Ninja Attack: True Tales of Assassins, Samurai and Outlaws” Tokyo: Tuttle Publishing.
• Zoughari, K. (2010) ”The Ninja: Ancient Shadow Warriors of Japan.” Tokyo: Tuttle Publishing.

Feature Image: Ninja from Travel Rakuten

You can listen to the full podcast episodes here: Japan Archives, or wherever you listen to Podcasts.

Follow us on Social Media: Instagram: @japan_archives

We also started a Youtube channel for Japan Archives.

And another for other creative endeavours!

The post EP32 Ninja Arsenal appeared first on . A History . . of Japan . 日本歴史.