Japanese Culture
Japanese culture and traditions are still preserved in most places among all generations.
We chose only a few to introduce below, leaving a lot more for you to discover.
Tea Ceremony/Sado
In Japan, there is a traditional tea ceremony called sado.
In sado, the master of the ceremony invites guests and serves Japanese traditional tea called matcha.
The spirit of sado is based on Zen philosophy.
During the Kamakura period, as Zen became popular in Japan, so did sado.
Sado is based on Japanese spirit of hospitality.
Calligraphy/Shodo
Japanese calligraphy is a Japanese art and is translated to mean the way of writing.
Sho means writing and Do means the way of doing something.
Good Japanese calligraphy possesses not only beauty, but also rhythm, as well as the
character of the calligrapher and their emotional state.
Ikebana/Kado
Kado is a traditional Japanese art originating from the Heian period in which flowers and plants are specially arranged in a vase for appreciation. It is also called Ikebana.
Ikebana uses plants and flowers as Yorishiro (an object representative of a devine spirit).
There are many styles in Ikebana . Based on Ikenobo style, there are about 2000-30000 styles.
Kimono
A traditional Japanese garment. It is a long-sleeved, ankle-length, T-shaped, robe-like garment, tied with a belt called an obi.
Until the 1930s, the majority of Japanese wore kimonos, but today most people wear them for special occasions such as weddings, funerals, and festivals.
Martial Arts
Japan has many traditional sports which most are internationally practiced and/or admired.
The national sport of Japan is Sumo, huge wrestlers clash in a circular ring and use various techniques on each other.
More sports such as Judo, Karatedo, Kendo, Kyudo, Aikido, Naginata, Jukendo, etc.
Festivals/Matsuri
Deeply rooted in Japan's unique Shinto religion and traditional agricultural lifestyle, there are many festivals that began in ancient times to celebrate the changing of the seasons and to pray for a good harvest. These have been passed down and taken root even today.
Kabuki
A traditional Japanese performing art consisting of three elements: theater, dance, and music, developed from the Kabuki dance that began in 1603.
In the process of Kabuki being performed only by men, onnagata, female roles, were created. The male roles are called tachiyaku.
Kabuki was designated by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2009.
”Kabukiza” is the only theater in the world that’s dedicated to Kabuki.
Traditional Crafts
Japan has a wide variety of traditional crafts such as gold leaf craft, glass craft, bamboo craft, lacquer ware, and Japanese paper. You can also directly experience the making of traditional crafts at workshops in each prefecture.
