Kaze Hikaru 14

I'm greatly enjoying the volumes of Kaze Hikaru that Viz is publishing. After all I'm a bit of a sucker for stories in the set in the bakumatsu period (see: The Anime Companion 2 p.8), especially stories about the Shinsengumi.

What was most interesting to me was the supplementary material found at the end of this volume, each volume has a section where the author writes various things related to the story. This time there was a section on women's hairstyles. The thing is in all my years of studying Japanese culture I have never seen so much on Edo Period women's hairstyles in one place. This is an example of the lack of material in English on many aspects of Japanese society. The supplements and notes at many current translations are useful sources of information for the readers but Kaze Hikaru is exceptional.

Kaze Hikaru is a josei manga, even tho' Viz publishes it in their Shojo Beat line. While aimed at young women the tale is very well done and the characters portrayed well. I highly recommend this series for anyone interested in the period and a good tale. However do be aware that male male sexual situations do turn up (nothing explicit shown) and there are trips to the local red light district (again nothing explicit shown).

Three more on Buddhism

This week's entries all related to Buddhism, and to each other.

Amida 阿弥陀

Jōdo-Shinshū 浄土真宗

Jōdoshū (Jōdo sect) 浄土宗

The largest Buddhist group in the US is the Buddhist Churches of America a Jōdo-Shinshū organization.

Male geisha, festive curtain, future Buddha

This week I'm happy to finally have an entry on male geisha, it took until recently for an anime to come out in the US with a reference to them. However now that I've written the entry I'll go back and re-check Saber Marionette as I realize it may have one in it. I now also have an entry on something you see in many titles, red and white curtains at festive events. Then continuing the adding of religiously related entries I have one on Miroku, commonly known as Maitreya in the West.

hōkan (male geisha) 幇間

kō-haku-no-manmaku (red and white curtain) 紅白の幔幕

Miroku (Maitreya) 弥勒

Slow Chant Zen Zenny

The slow is me. I just could not get moving this morning. This week I ended up with three religious entries.

What I have are entries on a major Buddhist chant and the two major schools of Zen in Japan.

It is interesting that a Pure Land Buddhist chant turns up more often than references to the two major schools of Japanese Zen Buddhism, and not that often in any case.

Namu Myōhōrengekyō 南無妙法蓮華経

Rinzaishū (Rinzai sect) 臨済宗

Sōtōshū (Sōtō sect) 曹洞宗

Clan, leader, text

This week I was working on a series of interlinked entries when I realized I first needed an entry for the Lotus Sutra. that then led me to the Fuma clan, which led me to Fuma Kotaro.

Fuma [a ninja clan] 風魔

Fuma Kotaro 風魔小太郎

Myōhōrengekyō (Lotus Sutra) 妙法蓮華経

I'll still continue working on those interlinked entries, and hopefully have them done and up in a few weeks.

PS: I have added a new subject heading to the topical index.

Religion/Mythology/Belief - Texts

Breezy, holding and clap-clap

My original plan for this week was a much more ambitious set of interrelated entries. These will have to wait as it is far more complex than I anticipated.

For I have an entry for religion in Fujin, one for a bit of dishware in hashioki and on the sex trade the famous pan-pan girls.

Fujin (wind kami) 風神

hashioki (chopstick rest) 箸置き

pan-pan パンパン

Moon, treat, drum

Continuing to add references relating to religion I have one for uchiwa-daiko, and one for tsukimi, which requires one for food in tsukimi-dango.

tsukimi (moon viewing) 月見

tsukimi-dango 月見団子

uchiwa-daiko (prayer drum) 団扇太鼓

That's it this week.