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TsukuBlog A Local Perspective on Life in Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan. The Bamboo Shade is Lifted Once a Year- on January 28th – Revealing the 12th Century Buddhist Cliff Carving in Oda, Tsukuba (小田の磨崖不動明王立像), 26 January, 2021   For 364 days a year (365 in leap years) the cliff carving looks like this- covered with a bamboo shade On January 28th each year the curtain is removed- and while a new one is being made, the rock-carving in the cliff remains in view (January 28th last year)   By Avi Landau Halfway up a wall of sheer granite in the old village of  Oda in what...

TsukuBlog A Local Perspective on Life in Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan. Watching the First Sunrise of the Year ( HATSU HINODE, 初日の出) From the Seashore or High Up on a Mountain 31 December, 2020 Hatsu Hi no De ( the First Sunrise of the Year) as seen from near the top of Mt. Tsukuba By Avi Landau It probably should come as no surprise that here in The Land of the Rising Sun, a land in which a myriad gods and natural phenomena are looked upon and treated with religious reverence, it is considered highly auspicious to greet the first day of the new year by WATCHING THE SUN RISE. The mos...

TsukuBlog A Local Perspective on Life in Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan. Ringing Out the Old Year, Ringing In The New- Joya no Kane (除夜の鐘) – Japan`s New Year Bells (again) 31 December, 2020 The bell at Hannya-Ji (just off the Tsuchiura-Gakuen Road) dated 1275 was designated a National Treasure during the war years to save it from being melted down to make ammo. After the war it was demoted to an Important Cultural Property. By Avi Landau When it comes to praying for health, safety and prosperity, the Japanese do not put all their chips on one hand in terms of religious tradition. This is ...

TsukuBlog For the Winter Solstice (冬至)- Yuzu Baths, Pumpkin, and Fire-Walking (火渡り) – on Sunday December 22, 2019 20 December, 2020 By Avi Landau Up here in the northern hemisphere, we have been watching our daylight hours grow shorter and shorter by the day. It can be startling to leave work at the usual time and find ourselves immersed in complete darkness where just a few weeks ago it was perfectly bright. For the ancients, this gradual waning of daytime was the cause of great apprehension, and a wide assortment of rituals and ceremonies (including human sacrifice!) were conce...